{"id":3845,"date":"2020-10-13T07:00:01","date_gmt":"2020-10-13T06:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pathedits.com\/blog\/fundamental-photo-editing-checklist-11-steps-to-perfect-product-photos\/"},"modified":"2024-11-29T11:32:50","modified_gmt":"2024-11-29T11:32:50","slug":"fundamental-photo-editing-checklist-11-steps-to-perfect-product-photos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pathedits.com\/blogs\/tips\/fundamental-photo-editing-checklist-11-steps-to-perfect-product-photos","title":{"rendered":"Fundamental Photo-Editing Checklist: 11 Steps to Perfect Product Photos"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Every photographer knows the joy of finishing a session\u2026 followed by the sinking realization that you have to edit each and every photo you intend to use or send to your client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photo editing<\/a> is an important step of the photography process. Without it, your photos lack the zing it takes to stand out online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The only problem? The editing process can be so<\/em> tedious \u2014 especially if you don\u2019t start with a finished product in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No one wants to spend hours in front of Photoshop<\/a>, so begin with a plan in place. Whether you need basic edits or a full-fledged beauty retouching, a standardized photo-editing workflow<\/a> can help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you\u2019re a professional photographer or an ecommerce entrepreneur, this complete fundamental photo-editing checklist will help you save time and end up with an attention-grabbing finished product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

General steps for editing photos quickly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before you even start your edits, there are things to consider during the shoot that can make the process of photo editing a lot faster and easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shoot in RAW<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Make your editing process smoother by starting with a RAW file. Because RAW files contain more information, you can manipulate them more without making them crunchy or lossy. Editing JPEGs always results in some damage to the original file \u2014 but that\u2019s not the case with RAW files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Begin by culling ruthlessly<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Good news: You don\u2019t have to edit every<\/em> photo you take. In fact, you shouldn\u2019t. No matter how good a photographer you are, not every image will make the cut \u2014 and that\u2019s okay. So, cull with an editor\u2019s mindset. Check for razor sharp focus and toss anything less than that. Here are some more guidelines on photo culling<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

11-step fundamental photo-editing checklist<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Perform lens corrections<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Straighten the horizon<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Choose your crop<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Fix your exposure<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Reduce noise<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Correct your white balance<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Dial in the contrast<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. Check your histogram<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. Adjust the colors<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  10. Increase sharpness as needed<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  11. Export<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Now that we have a few of the shooting basics out of the way, let\u2019s get started with our beginner\u2019s edits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Perform lens corrections<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    When you\u2019re ready to edit, first select your photos and apply lens corrections. This is particularly important if you\u2019re using a wide angle lens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You can also use lens corrections to help with chromatic aberration correction if you happen to see strange purple or green pixels around the edges of your subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Airstream\n\n\n\n

    Straighten the horizon<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    When you see a photo that\u2019s askew \u2014 even if it\u2019s just a little bit \u2014 your brain immediately registers the subject as off-kilter. Straighten your horizons right away so this doesn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Modern\n\n\n\n

    Choose your crop<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Once the subject is straight, you can dial in your crop. If you\u2019re creating an artistic image, the crop is, of course, up to your discretion \u2014 but for many photos, the rule of thirds<\/a> can help with this. In product photography<\/a>, though, you typically want the product to be front and center \u2014 a tight crop will do for your main listing images while you can get more artistic for lifestyle shots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n

    Note: if you\u2019re taking product photos, the rule of thirds isn\u2019t as important as centering your subject. Do your best to find a happy medium.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\"Cinnamon\n\n\n\n

    Fix your exposure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Hopefully you\u2019ve gotten pretty close to a perfect exposure in camera. If you\u2019re way off, you might introduce noise when you bring the exposure back to where it needs to be \u2014 so try to get close when shooting. When you have a decent exposure SOOC (straight out of camera), all you need to do is adjust your sliders up or down a bit in Bridge or Lightroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Side-by-side\n\n\n\n

    Reduce noise<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Speaking of noise, if you do see some (white or off-colored pixels) in the dark areas, you can fix this with the noise reduction sliders in Bridge or Lightroom. If you\u2019re only working in Photoshop, you can use plugins<\/a> like Topaz<\/a> DeNoise<\/a> to achieve stellar noise-free results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Side-by-side\n\n\n\n

    After you\u2019ve done your noise reduction, look for banding patterns in your solid colors. This can occur sometimes after significant noise reduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Banding is a digital artifact that shows up sometimes when you\u2019re editing your images. It looks like a series of lines and you can see it in the sky, plain backgrounds, or in other areas of solid color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    No banding? Great! Banding? That\u2019s okay, too. You can still fix it by adding the noise back a little bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Correct your white balance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    White balance is an afterthought for some photographers, but it\u2019s too important to leave as the last step. Proper white balance is crucial. If you\u2019re not shooting with a grey card or a color checker tool, look for true blacks and whites in your image and adjust the white balance from there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Dial in the contrast<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Contrast is one of those small things that takes a photo from acceptable to genuinely interesting. There are many ways to adjust the contrast of a photo. Play around with the clarity, levels, and curves tools to see which method fits your image best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Side-by-side\n\n\n\n

    Check your histogram<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    When you\u2019re only worried about your photo appearing in a digital space, you have a little more leeway with your histogram. When it\u2019s in print, though, you need to be very careful with this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you \u201cclip your blacks\u201d or \u201cblow your whites,\u201d these will print as areas with no data \u2014 so they\u2019ll look blocky and strange. Similarly, if you blow a color channel, you\u2019ll have colored areas with no detail. To avoid this, look at your histogram and adjust accordingly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Flat\n\n\n\n

    See the blown highlights in the product? No bueno.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Adjust the colors<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    When it comes to colors, you want them to be vibrant and juicy, but also at least close to true-to-life. Some artistic edits may get away with breaking these rules, but it\u2019s important to be realistic when shooting product photography. As such, you\u2019ll only want to bring your vibrance and\/or saturation up a little. Bringing up colors too much is reminiscent of early 2000s editing, and that look is dated and out of fashion for a reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Guide\n\n\n\n

    Increase sharpness as needed<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    A little sharpness is a good thing. Too much sharpness and your photo starts looking, well, crunchy and weird. Be judicious with this step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Close-up\n\n\n\n\"Side-by-side\n\n\n\n\"Close-up\n\n\n\n

    See how the right starts to fall apart and look crunchy? That\u2019s way<\/strong> too sharp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Export<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Once you\u2019ve done all of the steps above, you\u2019re ready to save and export. Decide where the images will be used, and save in the right format for that use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For example, images for Amazon need to be in TIFF, JPEG, GIF, or PNG format with pixel dimensions of at least 1,000 or larger in either height or width \u2014 and they must be in sRGB or CMYK color mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Photos to be used in print, though, are best when saved as PNG, at least 300 dpi, and in CMYK color mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Check the specifications for your intended use before you start editing your images. This will save a ton of time and frustration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Extra steps for apparel photography projects<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    If you\u2019re shooting apparel, pay special attention to lumps, bumps, and wrinkles in the fabric. While it\u2019s ideal to get this perfect in camera, mistakes are inevitable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Zoom in and look for imperfections. You can use the Content Aware Fill Tool, Healing Brush Tool, or Clone Stamp to make them disappear so your subject looks as impeccable as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"Side-by-side\n\n\n\n

    <\/div>\n\n\n\n
    \n
    \n
    \n A Beginner\u2019s Guide to Photoshop CC 2020 Tools <\/div>\n
    \n
    \n LEARN MORE<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

    Extra steps for product photography projects<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    There are a few extra steps you need in your photo-editing checklist if you\u2019re manipulating product photos:<\/p>\n\n\n\n