No Photographer Needed: 5 Ways To Take Great Brand Photos Yourself
Let’s be honest: when you start a small business, you’ve got a lot of expenses to deal with. From work tools to business licenses, it seems like everybody wants a cut of your small-but-growing profits.
We love high-quality visuals from professional photographers, but when you’re growing a small operation, you don’t have the budget to shell out $2,000+ for branded images. While these are a great investment when you’re a little bigger, it might not be feasible for you to spend a ton of money on photos right now.
And guess what? That’s okay!
Here are 5 ways you can DIY your own branded photos—without hiring a photographer.
Tip #1: Get a tripod and remote
We don’t have anything against selfies, but if you need professional headshots for your small biz, a selfie pose won’t cut it. Who wants their arm weirdly hanging off-screen?
You’ll look more professional if you invest in a tripod and remote for your headshots. You can find both on Amazon cheaply, but make sure they pair with your phone!
And yes, we always vote for taking DIY website photos on your phone. These days, camera phones are so good that it doesn’t make sense to buy a fancy camera.
Tip #2: Shoot outside
Indoor photoshoots might be more convenient, but the lighting is terrible. Instead of buying $500 worth of lights to fix the problem, try shooting outside.
We love snapping photos during sunset, AKA The Golden Hour, when everything has a sunny, orange glow that’s hard to replicate in an editing app. Your pics will automatically look awesome and professional and need very little editing.
Tip #3: Use focus
This is an easy hack that you can do right now! If you have a smartphone, your native photo-snapping app should have a Focus mode. Just tap on the item you want to focus on and presto—you’ll have a pro-looking image of your product.
Image from Adobe
Tip #4: Always edit your photos
It’s tempting to upload pictures directly from your phone and onto your website, but we guarantee they’ll need a little bit of editing.
After all, what size do your photos need to be? Do you need to apply any special filters or effects to fit the mood of your website?
You can use the native photo editing app built into your phone or free tools like Canva.
Tip #5: DIY a Lightbox
Product photography is hard. And it’s expensive if you ask a professional to help you out.
Your customers expect high-end photos of your products, ideally on a clean, white background. But who has money for a pricey photo studio? … Or the room for one?
This hack will work best for small products, but you can totally DIY your own lightbox. You’ll need a cardboard box, X-Acto Knife, paper, poster board, and two lamps to make it happen. It’s very much a DIY job, but the product photos still come out looking professional!
The bottom line
Maybe you’ll want to invest in pro photography some day. But right now, you need good images without the high price tag. Use these tips to make awesome photos for your website when you’re on a shoestring budget. You can always hire a photographer later!