Taking auction photographs take a little bit of practice. Good photos not only give buyers an impression you are a serious seller, buyers are also more willing to bid higher or buy on your items.

This post is divided into 3 parts:

A. Taking pictures of a small object
B. Taking pictures of a camera and
C. Taking pictures of clothings

This post is lengthy due to the many examples of pictures and descriptions. But it is essential to at least learn some of these expert’s photography techniques for your auctions.

All photos and explanations are courtesy of Nikon Japan.

A. Taking Picture Of A Small Object

White paper background lacks interest and provides no intuitive information on the product size.

Wooden desktop gives a friendly impression and provides intuitive information on the product size.

Other objects providing size comparison are placed on the desktop.

Wide-angle and object is top-heavy, the background of the product wide and presents too many elements, such as a PC, mouse, desk edge, and wall.

View from an upward angle: Presents an interesting photo but makes the look of the product unseen.

Telephoto (T) and low position: Presents a good product profile.

Photographing condition: Sunlight comes from a window on the right wall, the indoor fluorescent lamp is turned off, and the white balance is readjusted. In such a dimly lit room, you must fix your camera to a tripod.

The only light source is the sunlight from the upper right corner. Therefore, the shadows of the cactus and doll extend toward the front. This photo is good atmospherically, but the shadows in the foreground make the picture gloomy.

Just setting an exposure compensation of +1 makes the photo bright and gives the impression that the intensity is higher. Compared with Photo 08, this reproduces the texture of the object beautifully.

B. Taking Picture Of A Camera

Frequently failed photo.

Atmospherically good photo.

This photo is a composite one showing a photographic scene for the wide-angle (W) mode (Photo 1) and the other taken from a distance in the telephoto (T) mode (Photo 2) below.

(Photo 1) A short-distance shot with the wide-angle (W) mode deforms the object profile and includes various elements in the background.

(Photo 2) A long-distance shot with the telephoto (T) mode shows the correct object profile and a simple background.

Adjusting the white balance eliminates the color unbalance. However, the color is still light due to the incorrect exposure compensation, rather than due to the darkness of the room.

This photo is taken with an exposure compensation of -0.7. The depth is good, the gloss of the satin is reproduced well, and the camera looks like a luxury item.

(Photo 3) An A4 paper is inserted between the lens and the lighting device.

White, purple, and blue lines appearing on the lens surface are the reflections of fluorescent lamps on the ceiling. These shines are distracting because the reflections are thin and intense.

The result shown in Photo 3 eliminates the thin, bright shines, resulting in the entire surface of the lens being covered with softly reflected light.

C. Taking Picture Of Clothes

Frequently failed photo.

Atmospherically good photo.

To reproduce the shape of the blouse beautifully, shoot it from above. If you place a large board under the blouse and set it against a chair, you will be able to take shot with upward angle.

An example taken from above, which reproduces the profile with high fidelity. The white background color allows delicate colors to be shown correctly.

Taking a picture of the blouse extended without wrinkle makes the pattern clear, but the texture is unclear.

This photo is taken with sunlight through a window. The slanted light shines at the upper left portion of the photo, and the resulting heavy shadows represent the texture well and present a three-dimensional effect.

Cushioning material (bubble wrap) and a shopping bag ball give a good shape to clothes.

Shooting with the indoor fluorescent lamp presents a flat image due to the lack of shades.

A window is located above the clothing item. Light incident from the window casts shadows on the foreground to give it a three-dimensional effect.

Photographic Technique Varies
As you can see, different practices are required for taking pictures of different items. The techniques layout-ed above are great to learn about auction photography and you can apply them for most of your auction needs. However, I’d say your personal experiences are still your best teacher. What say you?

More texts on these photography effects can be found in this article from Nikon Japan.

Have any extra tips on auction photos? Share with us about it!

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photo tips, ebay photos, nikon, camera, digital photography