Professional product photography: types, how a session works and when an AI photo will do

What product photography is and what it's called

Product photography has something being sold or promoted as its main subject: a perfume, a backpack, a dish or a machine. Its job is very specific: that whoever looks at it understands what it is, what it's like and, where possible, feels like having it.

Google also asks what it's called, because several names get used. "Still life" is the classic term for compositions of objects, and it's the word many professionals use for more elaborate shots. "Packshot" is the clean photo on a white background, the kind you see on an online store listing. "Flat lay" is the overhead shot, with the objects laid out and the camera above them, very common in fashion. And "lifestyle" shows the product in use.

You don't have to learn these words, but they help you ask for what you want. Saying "I need product photos" doesn't make clear whether you want a clean image for the catalog or one in the street for Instagram, and those are very different jobs, with very different preparation and results.

Why does it still matter, with so much video content and so much AI? Because in an online purchase, the photo is the closest thing to having the product in your hand. A good photo removes doubts and builds trust, and a bad one makes you think the product is bad too. We see it daily on the websites of small brands with an excellent product that looks worse than it is because of a poor photo.

What types of photography are used for products?

These are the most requested types, and almost every brand needs a mix of several.

Clean background. White or one color, no distractions. It's the photo a marketplace like Amazon asks for, the one that goes in catalogs and listings. The aim is clarity and for all items to look alike. It's the most technical, though not the most creative.

Detail. Textures, zips, seams, materials or a specific function. These justify the product's value, and they build most trust in an expensive or technical purchase.

Ambient or lifestyle. The product where it's used, or with a person. These show how it's lived with and who it's for. They work best on social and in advertising.

Editorial or campaign. An image with an idea behind it, with art direction, that builds the brand more than it sells a particular item.

Flat lay or overhead. The product seen from above, in a composition, sometimes with other objects. It's very versatile on social and in lookbooks.

And special techniques: 360-degree photos, splashes or movement, or compositions showing how something works inside.

Here are three very different examples from our work. For Jaray, by NouVelleMaison, more than 40 product photos, between flat lays and lookbook. For Dr. Pizza, more than 60 photos with food styling, designed to make people hungry, for its social media and the Glovo campaign. And for Audiovisuales Data, technical photography of equipment for a digital catalog that has to be exact. Three goals, three ways of lighting and composing.

How a session gets prepared

What affects the result most happens before a light gets switched on. These are the steps.

First, decide where it'll be used. A store listing, with its fixed size and background, isn't the same as a vertical Instagram story or a poster at a trade fair. Each channel calls for different framing, and if you decide beforehand, you can do it all in one session. A photo list, just like a shot list on a shoot, avoids forgetting something and having to repeat it.

Second, have the product ready. It seems obvious, but it's one of the most common problems. It arrives with a crooked label, a scuff or a prototype that isn't final. Have several units, clean and with no transport marks. With food, it also helps to have a food stylist, and units are often made specially for the photo.

Third, references. Gather images of what you like and what you don't, to agree on the style and avoid surprises. If you have a brand manual, even better: it should state colors, types of background and how images get treated.

Fourth, choose the space and light. In a studio everything can be controlled: the light is the same at nine and at six, and you can repeat it tomorrow. It's the best option for catalogs. Outdoors or in a real location, there's more life but less control. Light is what defines the photo: a soft light shows the shapes, and a harder one brings out textures.

Fifth, set aside time for retouching and versions. Cleaning dust and reflections, adjusting the color so it matches the real product, cropping and exporting in every size. The product's color has to be faithful, because it's one of the reasons for returns.

How do you do product photography yourself?

If you're starting out, or you have a small catalog, you can do a lot with few resources. Google asks about it often, so here are the basics, as we'd tell someone who's starting.

With a phone. Today's phones have very good quality if there's good light. What matters is using a tripod, not touching the screen when you shoot, avoiding digital zoom and cleaning the lens, which hardly anyone does and which shows a lot.

Window light. Put the product on a table near a window with no direct sun, and place a white card on the other side to fill in the shadows. That gets you clean photos. Turn off the ceiling lights, because mixing lights changes the color.

A simple background. A large sheet of card, curved between the table and wall, keeps the horizon line from showing. It's an old trick, and it works.

Consistency. Take all your catalog photos with the same background, light, distance and angle. An online store with ordinary but matching photos looks much more serious than one with good photos that are all different.

And when should you call a professional? When the product is difficult: jewelry, glass, metal or reflective surfaces. When you're selling something expensive. When the photos will be used large, in advertising or at a trade fair. Or when you realize you're spending on this the time you should be spending on the business. If it's clothing, that has its own rules, which we cover in photos for an online clothing store.

Product photography with AI, and what the price depends on

"AI for product photography" is one of the searches we see most right now. We speak from experience here, because we use AI on real projects: Bunker's Christmas, for example, has AI-generated characters and settings, with a lot of art direction work behind them.

For product photos, AI works very well on certain tasks: removing and changing backgrounds, enlarging images, generating settings or testing ideas quickly before a session. And it has two problems you should be clear about. First: it can change small details of the product, such as a seam, a label or a reflection, and that risks the customer's trust and, in some sectors, the advertising rules. Second: real products with very specific textures or small text still produce a lot of errors.

Our way of working is usually to mix. A good real photo of the product, taken with controlled light, and from there, if needed, settings or variations generated or retouched with AI. The product remains the real one, and you gain a lot of flexibility for social. We go into more detail in ads with generative AI.

And how much does product photography cost? Google asks and we don't give figures on the website, because there are huge differences between one set of photos and another. It depends on the number of products, the type of photo, whether there are models or locations, the styling and the retouching. A hundred photos on a white background get done very quickly; a campaign image can take a full day. It's best to ask for a quote with a clear list of what you need and where it'll be used.

How we do it at Bostak, in Viladecans

We do product photography from our studio in Viladecans, in the Baix Llobregat, about twenty minutes from Barcelona. We also come to your store, your warehouse or the street, depending on what the image needs. We work with companies in the area and in Barcelona, and we adapt, from a small store to a brand with many products.

What sets us apart from a catalog photo studio is that we think about what comes next. The same session can give you photos for your website, photos for social and short product videos, with the same judgment and the same art direction. With the Bunker bum bag we handled everything, from designing the product to photographing it: technical details, lifestyle with models and videos demonstrating the anti-theft system. And if what you mainly need is video, there's how to make a product video.

Albert Murillo, our creative director, and his team have spent years building brands through images, and that shows when a photo doesn't just display the product but also looks like the brand selling it.

Do you have a new catalog or a launch? See how we work as a video production company in the Baix Llobregat and book a free diagnosis. On a video call you show us your products and your current photos, and we tell you what we'd change first, what you could do yourself and what deserves a session.

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