4 Steps to Awesome Smartphone Photography

So, you’ve decided to open your online store to sell your products. But what about photographs to feature the products you’re selling? There was a time that your only options were to a professional photographer or to buy expensive camera equipment. Just as online selling has become easier to do, so has picture taking. If you have a smartphone you have what it takes to make great pictures for your website. Our 4 steps to awesome smartphone photography guide will help you to start.

Step One: The Camera

At a minimum, the camera on your smartphone should be 8-megapixels. Some phones offer up to 41-megapixels, but this isn’t necessary for the kind of photography you’ll be doing.

Autofocus is also important. You want to be sure that the pictures you’ll take are crisp and clear with little blurring or noise to distract from your products.

Consider the screen on your phone. The larger the screen the easier it will be to do any editing on the photos you take.

Step Two: Accessories or Equipment

When photographing smaller objects, place the item on a table where you can easily work with your camera and with the positioning of your product. Have a white sheet or large roll of white paper that you can use as background for your product. You’ll want to minimize any background that might distract from your image.

Natural light is fine to use when you’re on a budget. Place the table in diffuse light or place it next to a large window. You can also use table lamps. Use one on both sides of the item you’re photographing to minimize shadows.

You’ll want to stabilize your smartphone as much as possible. Any shaking will create a blurry picture. There are some tripod devices made just for smartphones like GripTight and Spiderpodium that are easy to use.

Zooming in with your phone’s camera can add noise to your shot. There are lenses made for smartphones that can allow for zoom that will work and also enable other special effects.

Step Three: Apps

There are apps that you can use with your smartphone camera to help you with sharing your pictures, organizing your shots, or other helpful assists. Some of them are even free.

Step Four: Editing

Picture not perfect? You can fix many problems with editing. Most smartphones with cameras will have some editing capability. There are also apps available that can help you with editing. There are even online apps such as gimp or pixlr, though these can require some photo editing knowledge and time.

If you feel that DIY editing is a bit of a hassle, here’s a great option. Signing up with Background Be Gone will get your editing done. For just $1.00 per image, all the editing will be done for you