Fun with Photos

Well I knew there would be some bumps in the road when I started my Etsy store, but I didn't think in would be in the area of photos. While I am not the best photographer in the world, I had thought I at least had sufficient ability to come up with some acceptable photos for the site.

I suppose knowing that a sale, or even getting someone to click on an item to just look at it, hinged on the quality of the thumbnail photo they found at my site. Take that pressure and add my obsessive compulsive nature and you have the perfect formula for many hours of frustration with a digital camera.

First I tried to just set up shots in my work room, against a drape of fabric. This seemed to work okay for larger items but my necklaces just didn't show up right. The background didn't look white, they were too dark, the shadows were not behaving and even several hours playing with them in a photo editor could not get the colors to look like a proper representation of the design.

So then I got a photo cube and lighting to try to see if a more professional set up would help, but I continued to have the same problems with the background looking anything but white. *arghh*

I then thought that perhaps using my bunny Lily (made by the very talented Lollihop) to model the necklaces might be cool and a bit different, but tie into my studio name. But when I ran it by other people, everyone agreed Lily was adorable, but confusing as to what exactly was for sale. K.I.S.S. - Keep it simple stupid! Well no one was that blunt, but that was the bottom line.

Okay, plan C, or is it D now? Someone suggested scrap booking paper as a background, but I still thought the pictured needed something else to it, that didn't distract from what was being sold. Then at 3 am it came to me, something nature-like: river rocks, a tree branch, something along those lines. So today I went on a hunt and found a wonderful branch out in the firewood pile! Woohoo! I draped a necklace over it and I really liked how it looked! But there was still the problem of the background.

A soft beige was too light and washed out.

A sandy background was too much and took away from the necklace and sort of made it all run together in shades of brown.

Then, much like Goldilocks, I finally found one that was just right!

My stubborn OCD brain is happy and I was able to post a bunch of new necklaces! Yeah! Now I just need to go back to the previously posted necklaces and "upgrade" their photos.

Comments

[Teresa]

I love the Lily Bunny, very cute! But true, can be confusing as what is being sold, and if it will be sold on the site... Maybe if *you* make a bunny as a mascot for your site (and somehow, in the header or somewhere on your Etsy site, make it clear that it is your mascot...), that could model the jewelry and "hold" stuff... or would that be to cute?

Oooo! I definitely like the "just right" pic! Good background color and the necklace really pops (in a good way)! And the branch is lovely! (Don't you love how great ideas sometimes come in the middle of night after you get some sleep?)

*hugs*

[Suzanne]

What a beautiful necklace!

[natalie jo]

A brilliant example of "if at first you don't succeed...!" What a great solution to your photo delimma...that last photo is wonderful.Thanks so much for the link to the Mary Frances doll. I also looked up her other books and was amazed at the number of them...have now officially started my Christmas list! Most Fondly, natalie jo

[Wyldhare]

Teresa - I am trying to do that with the vintage bunny graphic on the banner on this page, but he isn't very good at holding things! LOL!

Suzanne - Thank you so much!

Natalie Jo - I am so glad you found the other books. I think the sewing one is best, with the housekeeping one being the second best. It comes with a whole set of paper dollhouse furniture to make and set up to make a household!