Business Wednesday - Product Photography

image from Etsy

Over the past few months I have looked at many photographs on Etsy, Folksy, NOTHS and peoples websites to use in various blog posts.  Good images make the difference between me featuring a product or not, which sometimes is a real shame as the product is great but the image is poor.  Whilst many of us know that poor lighting can effect the quality of our photos there are other things to consider too.  Props are great for creating an atmosphere or idea, when I made my clutch bags I wanted to evoke thoughts of old fashioned glamour so took shots of the bags with Martini glasses and leather gloves. Another example is if you are selling bunting make sure you take photos of the bunting in situ, whether this is outside on a tree or inside on a wall. Yet it is easy to over do it! Too many props and the potential customer will not be sure exactly what is for sale. Another important thing to consider is the surroundings, I am sure you don't really want people to see your washing drying on the airer! 

Etsy has some great tutorials and advice about taking good photographs, in their Guide to Photography.  To ensure your photos are at the correct size you can always resize them on Webresizer or Picnik.  I use Picnik alot and have now paid to use their premium services as I put together alot of photo collages, however you can use a good selection of their services for free.

Another option you may consider is having your products photographed by a professional photographer.  Whilst some of us are lucky enough to know a photographer, there are many of us that need to find a photgrapher to take professional images of our products.  Shot By Lucy is a great photography agency that will provide you with a product photo shoot without the expensive fees often associated with using an agency.  I have seen the results of their work and they are now the recommended photographers for Gift Wrapped & Gorgeous partners. 

So if you were thinking of giving your shops or websites a spring clean be sure to read Etsy's Guide to Photography or even consider professional images from Shot By Lucy or another photographer.

A Day In The Life - Flemyng Design Photography

Whilst my own creative space has now been packed up in preparation for moving I am sure many of you are very busy in yours, especially as the creative world starts preparing for Christmas. I am excited about this weeks A Day in the Life as I am a keen amateur photographer. This week Katie from Flemyng Design Photography is going to share a day in her life. I will now pass you over to Katie -


Flemyng Design Photography – Katie Holland

Q.How did you get started in photography?

A. My Dad has always been a photographer, so I have dabbled in it for most of my life... mostly with rubbish cameras! A couple of years ago after investing in desktop publishing software (Adobe InDesign) I decided I would produce my own Christmas cards rather than buying them... I made a template I liked and discovered I could adapt it for other subjects. Since then I haven’t bought a single greetings card, but prefer instead to tailor them to the recipient’s interests and tastes.

I managed to sell some of the cards I made at events, and set up a website. Unfortunately this was a non-starter, and I had no takers... so the cards went on the back burner. Earlier in 2010 I decided my little point and shoot digital camera wasn’t really doing what I wanted it to, so I treated myself to a ‘proper’ camera – a Panasonic Lumix G1 DSLR and some macro lenses.


Suddenly I was able to do what I had always wanted to, and never could because I could never get close enough in... photograph flowers intimately and show off their beautiful secrets. Serendipitously I had noticed a growing trend for the writers of some of the blogs I read to make their photos look vintage through the use of filters... and I decided to have a go. From this Flemyng Design photography was born. I discovered that an otherwise fairly ordinary subject (albeit properly composed and cropped) could be transformed with a ‘through the viewfinder’ (TTV) layer which changed the character giving a contemporary image that has a nostalgic twist. I started off on Folksy, but found it very hard to drive traffic there and felt the publishing of the number of sales was off-putting to potential customers as it looked like I was untested. So I decided to develop my own site, which shows the images off to their best advantage and that has been much more successful.

Q. What is a typical creative day for you?

A. As a photographer I don’t tend to have a typical day because it all depends on where I happen to be and the weather conditions. A lot of my photographs are taken locally in my home county of Nottinghamshire... and the seasons are always on the move in terms of flowers, wild or cultivated. Many are taken on trips out or holidays... such as the ‘Of Sea and Shore’ collection which was taken whilst I was down in Cornwall. I suspect I become a pain in the neck on such trips as once I get my eye in I can see potential pictures everywhere, so have to keep stopping to capture them!



Q. What is your creative process?

A. Once my photographs are taken its time to download them onto the computer, scan through initially to find ones I think stand out from the rest and then settle down to cropping. The majority of my final images are square, which I think makes them a bit different from the majority of photos out there, so I need to bear this in mind when I compose the frame. I try to home in on some detail, and avoid getting the subject dead centre. I then work some magic and add my TTV layer, choosing one which complements the colours and subject of the photograph. Images are then uploaded to my various sites and sent to the printer.

Q. Do you create full time, part time or as a hobby?

A. At the moment I would have to say that this was something in between a hobby and part-time. The easy part is taking the photographs... the post production work takes time, marketing and promoting it takes even longer. What I do really enjoy is having a stack of orders which translates into a stack of neatly packed parcels waiting to wing their way out to different parts of the country. I also sew, knit and make jams and jellies, so there is always plenty to be getting on with!


Q. Where do you find inspiration for new ideas/designs?

A. Everything around me. A walk in the garden, a walk in the countryside... a trip round a museum or event like a vintage car rally all throw up endless possibilities! But I am confident that I have found my own ‘style’ now, and am comfortable within that.

Q. Where can your work be found?

A. On my main site  you can get anything as a print or as a card. I have a limited amount of images on folksy and have recently been included in From the Wilde’s exciting new online gallery. Prices start from £2 for a card and £10 for a 5x5 print (incl. p&p).


Thank you very much Katie. I agree it can take time to find your own style within your creative discipline and yours is fabulous.

Flemyng Design Photography

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Can't see the wood for the trees

It's been a lovely Easter bank holiday here in Suffolk, not as much sunshine as I could possibly have wished for, but better than predicted.  We had a little egg hunt yesterday morning and my three year old is still hiding the clues around the house in hope of more chocolate appearing!  To help burn off some extra sugar fuelled energy we took the children to Rendlesham Forest this morning.  Whilst the forest is mainly evergreen the ferns are starting to regain their colour and buds are appearing on the deciduous trees, we were even lucky enough to spy a young deer.  Hence the inspiration for todays choices, let's see what I find when I simply search 'forest' on Etsy & Folksy.

Available from Lilac Mist

Available from Terror Dome

Available from Leaping Gazelle Studios

Available from Hannah Skoonberg

Available from Pop Wall

Available from Chilli Von Chillison