Photography Tutorial

This is a guide to taking photos for Etsy or other items you want to sell online. Next week, I'll have a tutorial on how to edit photos and the week after that I'll have a tutorial on how to organize photos on your computer.

Choosing a Camera
Choosing the right camera is important. If you're taking photos for Etsy, you'll want to use a digital camera to easily upload photos to your computer. I started off using a Kodak EasyShare digital camera for under $100. I had to buy the more expensive Canon E0S Rebel XS digital camera for school so I use that one now to take all my photos. I find that both work well for taking Etsy photos and I wouldn't recommend getting a super expensive camera if you're just starting out.



My Set Up
I use a white poster board for my background. I used to have a lightbox set up, but I found a white poster board laid on the ground works just as well for me. I have a set of lights I shine above the white poster board as my lighting. I've read that it helps to have lights on both sides of your set up to avoid shadows. Some people like to use natural light, but I find that this way works the best for me.

I have my camera set up on the macro/close up setting. When I first found out about the close up setting, it made my photos improve a lot. Make sure to try this out if you're taking photos of smaller items.

Taking Photos
When I set up to take photos, I usually wait until I have a few Etsy items I want to take photos of. I usually take about 20-30 photos per item, depending on the item and how many details there are to it. Once I have the photos, I go through the photos on the view finder quickly and just delete any really bad (out of focus, bad lighting) photos. I keep the rest and wait until I edit them on the computer to really go through them.

What are some of your best photo taking tips?