Photo Tips: Look sharp - make sure your photos are in FOCUS!
It seems like a simple enough concept to grasp, but we’re amazed at how many photographs we see that are just plain blurry and out of focus. No matter how great your fashions may look in person, if your photographs are soft and blurry you won’t make sales … there’s just no substitute for a good photograph in web marketing!
Example…the images below are from the go robot! store. Notice how nice and sharp the first one is, and how much detail you can see. Doesn’t it just make you want to run and get your credit card? As compared to the second image where you can barely see it because it’s blurry. Who would want to buy that? They don’t have enough information to go from as to how fabulous it really is.
The core principles of focus in digital photography are just the same as they were on the old film cameras that those of us who have been around long enough used to use. Sharpness depends on three things: focus, shutter speed, and aperture. In the old days, these functions could be set manually (and with many digital SLRs still can be), but many digital cameras handle exposure and focusing automatically. For those of you using fully automatic cameras here’s how to get sharp focus every time:
1. Make sure you’ve got plenty of light. Most digital cameras rely on autofocus, which needs plenty of light to work properly, so make sure your products are well lit. At the same time, more light will allow your camera to use a faster shutter speed, which will also help keep your photos sharp. More light will also enable your camera to use a smaller aperture, which will increase the depth of focus in your shot (called depth of field.)
2. Use the right focusing mode. Many digital cameras offer a range of focusing modes, designed to function in different ways depending upon your type of subject, how close or far you are from it, and your lighting situation. Learn what your camera can do, and make sure you’re using the appropriate focusing mode.
3. Try a tripod. You’ve gone to great lengths to set your shot up and style your product so the image will look great. One of the easiest things you can do to ensure that your photo will be sharp is to simply mount your camera to a tripod. Blurry shots due to low shutter speeds will disappear, guaranteed!
Manual exposure settings
Go manual! If your camera has the capability for manual exposure control, you will have even greater flexibility to make sure your shot is in focus every time because you’ll be able to set aperture and shutter speed yourself. Shutter speed describes how long your camera’s shutter stays open to take the photo. It is expressed in fractions of a second. In general, it is difficult to hand-hold a camera at shutter speeds longer than 1/60 second without the image appearing blurry. Aperture is the term for the size of the opening that exposes the image, and the rule here is that the smaller the opening is, the more sharp your photo will be throughout the image. A small aperture allows more to be in focus in all areas of your photo, both in the foreground and in the background.
Check out your camera’s instructions to learn more about manual exposure and focus, and experiment LOTS!
