As you know, I’m in the early, early stages of setting up my own stationery shop. Even before I needed to take product photos, I started taking photos for Mint, and at first they were not pretty. Over the past year my photography skills have improved a lot (practice!), but I’d like to get better at it since presentation is so important for the exposure and success of your business. To help, I looked for someone who didn’t have a photography background but who excelled at her own product photography. Cue Kim Ludy! Whether you need some photo tips for a shop, a blog, or just for fun, you’ll learn a lot from Kim’s photo styling tips.
Hi there. I’m Kim from Trampoline, an Etsy store where I sell lots of beautiful vintage and antiques and my original art. I have been collecting and “arranging” things for as long as I can remember (the ability to appreciate beauty and good design was passed down from my design savvy mother and danish-style collecting grandmother).
My love for beautiful things has taken me down many career paths, from Visual Fashion Merchandiser to Catering Director and Floral Designer. Now a garden and landscape designer in the summer months, I was looking for a creative outlet to fill the long Northeast winters. So, last January, when a brick and mortar shop proved to be financially out of reach, I decided to open a shop on Etsy. I realized early on that in order to be successful online, I would need to take some really great product photos in order to get the exposure I needed and bring the business as close to an in-person shopping experience as I possibly could.
The first, and most important, thing you can do is to expose yourself to as many online shops, design magazines and photo blogs as you can. Narrow them down to a handful that represent your style, and the style you would like your shop/products to reflect. Study how the designer or shop owner displays his or her merchandise and take mental notes… use them as a sort of study guide, not a copy, for your own shop. I decided early that I wanted to learn to achieve a look that read “fresh”, “clean” and simple. Stay true to yourself and your product, but also recognize what sells. I have summed up the steps I went through in those first few months as a guide for taking better photos. You don’t need formal photography training (I have none), in order to create a really beautiful and attention-getting shop.
Here’s how I achieved the look…. {after the jump}
The Five “C’s” to creating a Beautiful Shop
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