8 Easy Steps to Photograph Apparel for Your eCommerce Store with Models

If you are going to photograph clothing with live models for your online store, you need to get it right. You may not know it but the way the photos turn out can influence closing a sale. While photographing clothes is not as tricky as having highly detailed subjects, like jewelry, you still need to get the right set up and capture all the important details.

Take note that you also need to do some apparel product image editing during the post processing too. Clothing photo retouching is a special kind of product photo editing and you have the choice to either use a live model or mannequins. At the same time, you may also choose one of the most popular photo editing services called “ghost mannequin” if the situation asks for it. For example, some online retail shops only accept photo submissions with ghost mannequins instead of live models.

Related Post: 10 Product Photography Tips for Effective E-commerce Photos that Sells

Now, if you are going to have live models in your photos, there are a lot of ways that you can improve your studio workflow. Although you can trust a professional apparel product image editing to fix any mistake during the shoot, it would be a lot easier to do the necessary e-commerce photo editing if you are able to do it right from the start.

Learn to create stunning apparel product photos with these methods:

1. Choose a Model Well

Having a suitable model is a basic factor that makes a successful apparel photoshoot. You need to remember that when choosing a model, you have to consider choosing one that you feel comfortable to work with, someone who can commit on a long-term project, and has the body type that fits well with the clothes you are selling with.

These are very specific considerations because you need to establish a good flow of communication during the shoot and the less you fumble with your model, the better the rapport will be. You will have an efficient and productive shoot as a result. Consistency is also important so the model should be available for future shoots. It will also be easier to work with a model who already knows your visions and can execute the theme that you have in mind.

Most importantly, you are selling clothes, one thing that even the best clipping path or background removal photo editing services cannot fake is how the clothes will be projected by the model. It must look flattering and desirable when worn by the model.

2. Mind the Setup

Having the proper equipment is important in achieving professional-quality images. Basic but essential equipment aside from a good camera includes a white backdrop, a tripod, umbrella ensembles, and 1-3 continuous softbox or 1-3 external speedlight.

The photoshoot area should have enough space to accommodate not only the equipment but also the model. It should be enough to let the model move freely. It is, however, not a good idea to have a too large area. What you can do is designate background boundaries to keep the model within the frame and you will have an idea where to exactly aim the camera.

3. Use Proper Lighting Equipment

Proper lighting is probably the most significant factor in creating effective product images. The goal is to mimic a natural soft light to avoid having a too harsh and direct light on the product.

This can be achieved by having soft box lights, external speedlight, and umbrellas. You must test out the lighting equipment even before the model arrives so that you can save time from setting up later on during the actual shoot.

4. Position the Model

Upon the model’s arrival, you should be able to explain about your vision for the shoot. You can position the model accordingly so that the poses are suited with your vision. Mark the area where you want the model to be, depending on the setup that you have. You can either position the model directly facing the camera, or wherever that you think will suit the angle that you are shooting from.

5. Use a Wide Frame when Shooting

Web standards for cropping and sizing photos vary so it will be good to shoot with “wide framing”. This means that there should be enough space on all sides of the photos so once you are in the apparel product image editing stage, you can crop the image according to specifications without any trouble.

If you are uploading to another platform, like Amazon, Ebay, and other companies, you have to make sure about their specifications in uploading clothes with live models. Unless they like to include the models faces or expressions, you can crop the model’s face altogether to minimize distractions.

6. Direct Your Model

Using a live model allows you to give the clothes shape and let the customers see how the products fit on the body. Although models are somewhat experts in showing off clothes through their poses, it is also important that you direct the model to achieve the vision that you are aiming for. Use precise commands when giving instructions.

If you want the model to look at a particular direction, try to point out to a specific object where the model should look, instead of merely pointing to the direction. Models are great at following instructions so they can actually be told to make natural poses instead of showing elaborate poses that are more fit on the magazines. Choose simple poses that are not too distracting.

7. Take Multiple Shots

Take as many pictures as possible from multiple angles for more variations. The thing with e-commerce product image editing is that customers can be picky when they see products online. Because they cannot hold the actual clothes, they rely on the uploaded photos to see all the details that they need to see first before making a purchase.

Ask the model to have a variety of poses so that the customers can appreciate how the clothes look in different angles. You can even take photos from the back just to show the back portion of the clothes. If there are specific details that you want to highlight, such as contrast stitching or embroidery, you may take close-up shots of them too.

8. Post-Production

The apparel product image editing during the post-processing of photos is very crucial. It can be regarded as your last chance to make the photos look great on your site. During post-production, you need to be aware that although it is necessary to make the clothes stand-out, over-processing can destroy the photos too.

If you do not have the skills or do not have the time to learn everything about editing photos or the time to do the edits, you can simply outsource for help. There are many professional photo editors who can expertly do the necessary edits, such as wrinkle removal, lighting adjustment, product straightening, cropping/resizing, and others.

A DIY photoshoot for apparel product photos can work if you have an idea about how professional photographers do it. Shooting the products with a live model is a struggle in itself. It is expected that you will spend a lot of energy during the shoot and may be tired to do the post-processing later. If you are starting out in the e-commerce industry and you want your product photos to stand out, it is best that you get a professional to do the apparel product image editing. You simply cannot afford to have bad photos at this point so you need to hire the most reliable team for this kind of job.