Stylish Photography

If you visit any newsagents or interior design blog  you’ll be overwhelmed by the array of  fabulous designs accompanied by wonderful styled photographs.

The articles are stacked full of  inspiring products, staged with scrumptious fabrics and artfully arranged little treasures.  Sometimes the photography is the main focus of the book or post and they do say images speak louder than words. 

Whenever I buy items, be it furniture, clothes or jewellery, I like to get what’s advertised, exactly whats on the image,  product shots taken directly inworld with as little editing as possible (apart from resizing and cropping, adding logo etc.) show your  products as they are.

Here are a few things I do when I want to take some publicity shots, nothing amazing or unique just a couple of suggestions :

1. Highlight your product.

Styling for product photograhy is about showcasing your products. Try putting other items from your store into a shot but still keeping attention on the main item.  This is a great way to  show how well items in your collection work together!  Sometimes  products look better on all white backgrounds rather than  styled prettily with other items.  It’s all a matter of taste and depends on what you are selling and what message you are trying to convey in your advertising.  Think about your overall branding and image.

2. Lighting

Play around with the light settings in secondlife.  A really great indepth tutorial for optimizing windlight for Second Life photography can be found over at Rezzable by Ryker Beck

3. Props and styling

Take a good look around your inventory. You probably have more items waiting for you to get creative with than you realize (I know I do…I could get lost in my inventory!).

The key is to focus on the product in the photo, for example, in the image below I wanted to show how our textures work and look on different prims and also to  have a few other “supporting” items that convey a feeling or theme that matches the our textures.  (Credits can be seen at the bottom of the post)

Arrangement of your items is as important as the way you photograph it and pay attention to the balance of colours and patterns used.

4. Get close

Really focusing in upon just one part of the product can be an effective way of highlighting the different elements of it. I like getting close it shows the fine detail which can be lost in a bigger picture. If possible, try filling the entire frame of the image with your subject.

You have chosen your location, considered the lighting,  arranged your props, and plumped the cushions, now lets take some photos :)

If you get stumped thinking how to stage your shot sometimes the best way to come up with an idea is just to play. For clothes designers check out some new places and poses, flick through a through magazines or fashion photograhy blogs.  Look beyond the typical use for your item, and just have fun with it. 

Credits:

Picnic clay flowerpot by nyasyousa Oh (Free Gift)

Pinecones by Gumi Yao

*forever Garden* Lilies {what next}by (note: For styling purposes I placed the flowers in one of my wicker baskets but the liles are potted)

Light Blue Pencil (Sculpted) by Quark Yifu (Free gift)

Heart Art by Amisha March (Free Gift)

Green lampshade by Jordan Giant (Free gift)

Textures by inSight Designs Textures

All other bits and bobs by Amisha March

1. 

   Chic Aeon says:

   February 20, 2010 at 4:48 am

   Good advice for furniture OR fashion :D. I like your lead shot and its slightly further away view the best. Odd angles cause us to focus and wonder a bit. Seldom a bad thing :D
2. 

   Interior Design Ideas says:

   March 30, 2010 at 11:45 am

   Very inspiring post, Thanks from InteriorHouseDesign.net