Photography Essentials

Many a times in a blogger’s work, they are asked about their photography equipment and little tricks that make  their photography outshine others in some way and make a unique impact on their readers. In the current way of work, where people depend on your visual presentation more than your written content and resort to platform that give maximum exposure in minimal time like Instagram and Pinterest, it is very important to have some essential equipment for your blog photography. When I started off, I searched for answers everywhere but back in that day such posts were rare where people actually put up helpful stuff for the beginners. I, in no way consider myself ti be an expert on this matter, but over the period of time I have learnt a couple of things that are important while doing blog photography. Now without any further adieu, let get to the essentials

1. Proper lighting : 

Proper lightening and exposure plays vital role in your photography results. By exposure I  mean that how much direct and bright the light you are using is. I always try to photograph when there is enough day light but never in direct sunlight. If you have time and access, you should set up a work table near your window from where there is enough light coming in but no sunlight. I am stressing again and again on NO DIRECT SUNLIGHT because it tends to wash out the colors. 

2. Appropriate Background : 

I can’t stress enough on the choice of proper back drop for your product photography. White turns out to be the almost fail proof choice if you choose to stay all clear. You can always add a little add ons like tiny trinkets or flowers to accentuate your product or stay clear of everything. If you don’t like it white, then the choice varies from product to product. Like for dark colored products you would need a lighter color to make it stand out and vice versa for light colored products. Its more like a trial method with hits and misses. You can go for a bokeh colored backgrounds in a couple of neutral colors like black, silver and gold and get them printed in HD to use them as background. Or you can get these fold able backdrop that you can use also for your personal photos and videography later on.

 


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Here I have this brick wall printed backdrop with floor area too. This one is around 5 feet total in length for which it can’t be used for your standing photos but it always serve well if you are filming your video. Also it serves really well for product photography like I used it here. Such backdrops are easily available. I got mine from HERE, you can get yours too! 

  

3. Stability :  

This makes the backbone of your  pictures. The more stable your picture taking device is, the more crisp and clear your pictures will turn out. After having used a gorilla pod, single pod, I have finally settled for this aluminum tripod stand with adjustable length with integrated balance indicator that helps me adjust the camera so easily and the problem of misalignment photos solved in a snap.

 


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What I like most about this sort of tripod is the 3 sets of clips that are sturdy enough to hold the legs in mid of the shaft of you aren’t going to pull them or close them completely. Plus the adjustment knobs work really well to hold my super heavy Nikon D5200. I got mine recently from Banggood.com (read review HERE) which is a really nice website for getting photography equipment along with every thing else you can think of. You can get yours HERE. 

 4. Remote control (for self photography /portrait photography) 

Being a beauty blogger and an experimenting makeup artist, I have to photograph multiple products when put on my self. Also I have to do different makeup looks that need to be shot multiple times sometimes over a hundred photos.

 


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What I have learnt is that using the selfie method will always give you an angle when you want a straight in the eye kind of photo which may make your face look asymmetrical. Also it will always be restricted to an arms length. Moreover, using the timer method give you minimal time to adjust and get in focus and this may lead to lengthy periods of shooting that might be the a little demotivating. For this I found the perfect tool that might look super small but helped me big time. That tiny gadget that is a lifesaver for me is this Universal Remote for all types of cameras that works from almost 5-6 feet away from the camera. That has made taking my own photographs be it full length, waist up or a portrait. This is super light weight so it isn’t going to add an ounce to your gear and works with almost all cameras that support Remote control. You can check the compatibility over HERE. I got mine from a new online store that I discovered recently, you can also order from them HERE

 

 

You might be wondering that I didn’t put up any camera recommendations, nor I asked anyone to buy specific camera types. Its because that no matter what device you are using be it a phone, digital camera or a professional dSLR, the quality of your picture depends on these above factors alto. A well focused, aesthetically pleasing photograph taken in proper light complimenting background taken with  a phone camera is far better than a haphazard poorly exposed out of focus picture taken from a Dslr camera. So while blogging one should never think that if we don’t have a high end camera, we won’t be able to get good photos. Whatever your device is, just a little work on the arrangements makes a whole lot of difference

 


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Have you checked the website BANGGOOD.COM? They have all kinds of photography equipment,electronics, home decor maintenance, gardening, fashion and beauty supplies. 

Here are a couple of coupon codes for you guys to save some bucks if you shop from there! 

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 Don’t forget to share them with your family and friends so that everyone gets a good shopping day! 

 

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10 thoughts on “Photography Essentials

  1. Brilliant post dear. I also want to invest in remote. Seriously there is nothing more frustrating than setting the timer, running to the front, posing and then ending up with blur photo ☺️. But I don’t have DSLR. My cam is bridge cam (between digital cam and DSLR). And it doesn’t support such devices. Also one best tip is to connect your cam with laptop to watch real time frame position and then snap it. My cam also doesn’t connect to my laptop. I guess I need a new cam 😂

    1. The remote is such a good investment MadeehaI swear, it has made my life easy a thousand fold. I understand about the camera issues you are facing, is your camera a mirror less one? Have you tried connecting it with your phone as a remote device? Because my previous Samsung one worked well this way. Love your laptop suggestion but sadly mine doesn’t connect with look laptop either (to the best of my knowledge)

  2. Good photographs are the most important part of blogging. Bad picture on posts always make me cringe. These are definitely good and important things to makes ones life easy. Great post.

    1. very well said Zubaida! I felt that putting out the essentials of photography in blogging was much needed especially when so many people are venturing into it now. for me photographs are as important as the content, sometimes even more. glad you liked it

  3. Great post. And very good tips. Good photography always complement the content of the blog posts. Both are equally important.

  4. Nice blog post. Loved it.Hows the tripod stand? Is it good in quality? I am looking to buy one and don’t really know if I want to invest one time cuz I have a fear if they might break.Is the website banggood reliable and does it cost any shipping?sorry for tons of questions

    1. Its a good website to order all the stuff together. the stand is pretty sturdy and is faring well till now

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