8 Different Types of Product Photography for Your Business

Product photography is all around us, everywhere we look. It may not seem as such, but we absorb and see glimpses of product photography examples in many of our everyday activities, from the websites we browse and the magazines and newspapers we read to the billboards we walk past during our morning commute. 

Given how we’re constantly bombarded with information on such a frequent basis, it’s pretty easy to lose sight of just how much product photography we’re surrounded by. It does run deep; it’s not as black-and-white as you might think. There are several different styles of product photography, so it begs the question, have you stopped to consider what role this photography plays in the images and content you’re personally drawn towards?

Aims of Product Photography

Product photography has a clear goal – to highlight a specific object within an image to captivate interest from the target audience.

Take online shopping in this instance. For example, if you’re looking for children’s toys for possible Christmas presents, are you going to just rely on a written description of a product without any photos? Chances are you wouldn’t likely consider it, given that product shots are proof of the item’s features, functionality and benefits.

Photography for products is often integral to piquing the consumer’s interest, where they can refer to the supporting text in the description for more information. Product photos tell you a lot about the item, from how it’s used to its size, dimensions, shape, colour and texture (among other things).

Businesses that sell products online, in industries such as e-commerce, tech, engineering distribution or manufacturing, should consider the effectiveness of their product imagery. If their product shots are lacking, there is a good chance sales and conversions would be too. This is where different types of product photography from an experienced commercial photographer can help, which is explained further below.

What Types of Product Photography are There?

• Studio Product Shots

Product photography is vital for the saturated and competitive online shopping market. Depending on the product, it will need to be showcased in a specific way. Creating product images that will entice people to their features is crucial, and if a business has a diverse product offering, speed and efficiency during the photoshoots are of the utmost importance. This is where studio setups come in incredibly handy.

• White Background Photos

White background product photos are the most common type of product photography, where a ‘knockout’ version is created, allowing it to be used on a pure white background or as a floating image. 

• Showcasing Product Size by Using Scale

Creating scale in photos and images helps the viewer discern how big or small that product is, allowing them to visualise how the product may be beneficial to them.

• Grouping Products

Group product images are excellent at helping buyers isolate and shortlist potential products useful to them. This could be collections of product variations, or multiple lines of the same item in different sizes or colours.

• Lifestyle Action Shots

Businesses can display real-time ‘in-context’ product photos to demonstrate exactly how the product was intended to be used. For example, if you’re advertising smartwatches to track exercise and calories burned, taking product shots of athletes in a gym wearing the watches is a good lifestyle photography tactic. It demonstrates how the product fits its intended target buyer, helping sway potentially interested consumers over the line.

• Studio Setups

In-house setups go a long way in helping save time and effort taking multiple product shots without any worry of external factors like the weather. Lighting setups that don’t require much change can also help with this, where you can simply position a product, take the photos, and move on to the next one. Also, you could consider smaller sets as background imagery for your products, to simulate them in a particular environment, such as football boots on a patch of grass.

• Non-Traditional Product Images

Sometimes product photography doesn’t revolve around physical items but rather abstract ideas. They can be shot and styled similarly, but the intent is subtle and requires a little thinking outside the box.

• Hanging Products

Hanging certain products in photos is a popular tactic to make them appear more three-dimensional, where they can then be edited onto photos where they would fit seamlessly.