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Tricks Of The Trade: How Pack Shot Photographers Make Life Seem More Real

By: William Penworthy

At first glance it is easy to think that pack shot photographers have got it easy. After all, packshot photography is just taking photographs of products for publication in a catalogue, promotional brochure or on a website? It can't be as hard as working with children or animals, since a mobile phone, pair of earrings or mountain bike isn't likely to suddenly run off, burst into tears or have a poo in the middle of the studio floor.

But although it is easy to see pack shot photographers as having an easy time of it, the truth is that, as with many highly skilled jobs, it only looks easy because they're so good at it.

If you've ever tried taking your own pack shot photographs or product pictures you may well have realised that there is a world of difference between your own results and those you're likely to see in magazines, catalogues and on the more professional looking websites.

But unless you're an expert photographer yourself, it may well prove very difficult to tell precisely what it is that lets your pictures down, and what exactly it is that packshot photographers do to achieve images which look so clear, so real, are so full of depth and interest, and so much more appealing.

In fact there are a whole range of little tricks used in professional packshot photography, none of which are suspected by those who see the pictures. Yet without those tricks, the images would often appear flat, dull, unspectacular, and even unrealistic.

Quite how a photograph of something can make a product look less realistic or vivid than in real life may seem somewhat questionable, but if you have ever tried to take a photograph of jewellery, especially something as sparkly and beautiful as diamonds, then you'll know the difficulty in trying to create a photograph of those terrifically expensive, high class diamond earrings in a way that doesn't make them look like either cheap glass imitations, or plastic earrings from a cracker.

There are two things to bear in mind when considering the differences between real life and pack shot photographs, or indeed any kind of photograph at all.

Firstly, the camera only has one lens, whereas we have, at least in the main, two eyes. This gives us the advantage of seeing depth in real life, and the ability to view an object from two slightly different angles, increasing the light, reflectivity and refraction.

Secondly, our eyes are capable of viewing a much wider range of colours and shades than a camera. We can look from one part of an object to another, and as we do so our eyes adjust to allow more light in if we're looking at darker areas, and less light if we're looking at brighter areas. This allows our brain to piece together a complete image in our minds of the object in much more detail.

But a camera can only provide us with a single image, with no adjustments across the different areas of the product. This means that darker areas can be almost impossible to see, and lighter areas too pale or bright to be clear.

Another problem that pack shot photographers have had to overcome is to mimic or recreate the idea of reflection. In real life we're used to items reflecting other items, and shiny products such as wine glasses or bottles have distinct reflective patterns. In a photography studio this can prove difficult to achieve, with the diffused lighting generally necessary to create good clear photographs preventing any crisp reflections.

The lack of reflections actually serves to make a product seem flat, dull and lifeless. It is therefore necessary for pack shot photographers to combine complete opposites in order to create an image which will be taken for granted by most people who see it (although anything of a lower quality would be dismissed as amateurish and cheap - better to be taken for granted and sell the product than be ignored because of apparent cheap quality.)

Using techniques that range from computer assisted LED lighting rigs to invisible wires, from fake windows casting shadows and reflections to creating digital composite images of multiple exposure and lighting settings, and from using an infinity cove to taking advantage of many years' professional experience, pack shot photographers only make it look easy - and that's the hardest part of all.

Article Source: http://freearticletrove.com

Pack Shot Photographers | www.thepackshotpeople.co.uk | Packshot Photography

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