HOW TO CREATE NICE PICTURES FOR YOUR FACEBOOK PAGE

Random people on Facebook have no idea how good your product is. Until they make their first purchase, they only have your pictures and videos to go by. So how do you capture the deliciousness of a cake in a picture? How about the luxury of a Swedish massage? The ability to communicate visually is vital to the success of any online campaign.

Master your Tools

We are guessing that you are using a phone camera or a small, amateur digital camera for your product photography. Never assume that the camera in your phone is only good for a point and shoot. There is a good chance that the cellphone you have in your hand can do a lot more than you know. Take time to read the manual. Watch videos on YouTube. There are plenty of videos on iPhone photography on YouTube, for example.

Fool around. Practice with a plate of food. Take pictures from different angles, and in different locations within the room. Play around with the camera phone settings.

Natural Light

Find a room that has plenty of light coming in. Consider going outside. Using natural light in different ways means moving around the room, using dark or light backgrounds, experimenting with opening and closing the window blinds, and taking photographs at different times of the day or night. Try using it without a flash before learning how to use the flash.

Remove Litter

Anyone looking at the photo should only notice what you want them to notice. To achieve this, remove all the litter and clutter in the background. If using a table remove everything except your product. It is okay to add other items - only if they add the allure of your item. Does it serve to draw the eye to your focal point? If not, it needs to be removed.

No Shake

Shaky hands will ruin any chance of getting a good shot. Don't worry. We are not going to tell you to buy a tripod. Find something to balance your camera on. It could be a bookshelf, a stool, a kitchen island, a chair, or a window sill.

Reflect Light

When there doesn't seem to be enough light in the room, use a white background to reflect sunlight. White reflects light and makes your product look better. The white board acts just like the photo reflector you would find in a professional photographer's studio.

Styling

Sometimes your product may need some styling to make it 'pop.' Slicing a cake to show a cross section of the inside. Adding some garnish on top. Just like apartments are sometimes staged before being shown to potential customers. Depending on what you are trying to style, you may add a ribbon, a napkin, some flowers, a watch or even a book. Think of it as adding garnish to a meal. You are just trying to add some flair. If you can't think of anything, try browsing internet photos for inspiration.

Manipulate

The final stage of photo processing is editing. It is not necessary to be an expert with Photoshop. Even with a simple tool like Microsoft's iMovie, you can achieve amazing effects on your photos. Look at one or two tutorials and just play around.  The only way to learn how to do this is to just do it. A lot of people don't use tools like canva because they assume it is harder than it really is. These tools are a lot easier to use than you might think. Once your business is off the ground, you can hire someone to take care of all this stuff. For now you can do it yourself.