Taking Photos For Your Auction
How to create effective digital images of your products! (part 3 of 4)
Courtesy of BidBoosters.com Your product is all set up now and ready to be photographed. Here's where things get a little more technical (but not difficult) because it's time to use the camera.
About Camera Settings
Resolution
Resolution is the measure of detail in an image that is expressed in pixels. Pixel is an abbreviation of the term 'picture element.' A pixel is the smallest picture element of a digital image. Compared to the fibers of a fabric, individual pixels are too small to notice, but together they make up the whole image. The quality of an image depends on the number of pixels in a given area...the more pixels, the higher the resolution, the better the quality of the photos.
The image quality controls on your camera give you a choice about image size when you are shooting. Your camera should be set to take medium to high resolution photos. The lowest resolution setting recommended for viewing online is 640 x 480 pixels. You shouldn't require anything higher than 1024 x 768 pixels. Your camera's manual will give you details about how to change resolution settings.
The file sizes will be very large and you will have to reduce the size of the image before using it online, but more about that later when we describe the editing process.
Auto Focus, Auto Exposure
The auto focus and auto exposure settings on digital cameras produce excellent results. Unless you like to experiment, keep it simple and use the auto settings on the camera.
Macro
If you are photographing a small object that you need to be only a few inches away from, be sure the macro setting is turned on. Refer to the camera manual to get details about how to use the macro setting.
Flash
If you use the camera's flash it's going to wash out the colors and reduce the visible details of your object. As mentioned in the lighting section, if your camera indicates that a flash is necessary, rather than use the camera flash, add more artificial or natural light to your setting.
Framing the Shot
You 'frame' the shot with the camera's viewfinder and here's where keeping the camera steady is important. The best way to do this is to use a tripod. If you don't have one, get one. It's worth the investment.
Follow these steps for a well framed shot:
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Position the camera and tripod in front of the object. A good distance is about 24 inches, but will vary with the object you are photographing.
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Try different shooting angles. Depending on the object, some look best when viewed straight on, others may be enhanced by shooting them from slightly above. This becomes a matter of judgment.
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Aim the camera at the center of the object, then zoom in and out or move the tripod until the object almost fills the frame.
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Take the picture.
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Take several photos of the object at different angles. Remember, with digital photos you can easily delete the ones you don't like.
Got the shot? Great! Let's move on to editing... (proceed to part 4 of 4)
Printed with permission of BidBoosters.com :: BidBoosters.com helps power sellers and auction newbies save money, increase sales, and boost online auction selling success with professional templates, free embedded item photos, and insightful auction selling information. ........end of article.........
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A picture is worth a thousand words. A cliché, it's true, but when it comes to selling online it's a reality. Your picture can mean the difference between getting the sale or not. [read article]
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