5 Best Camera Settings for Product Photography in 2024 (Updated)

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Regardless of what camera is utilized, Canon or Nikon, DSLR or mirrorless, shooting manually is a hard step for beginners. If you cannot understand what camera settings should be there to get professional product photos, it is not something to worry about. Yes, it is so trouble-free to set Auto and let your camera work instead of your choice of aperture ISO and shutter speed. Alternatively, you are to control the parameters of your camera and take the best product photos.

Adjust ISO, Aperture, Shutter Speed for Your Product Photography

Camera’s settings affect the photo’s quality in different lighting conditions, especially ISO setting & shutter speeds. Aperture focuses on how much light passes through, ISO settings adjust sensitivity to light, and shutter speed is something related to how long the light reaches your sensor.

On the example of and Fotodiox Pro lightbox and Canon EOS 80d, you would understand how to set all such camera settings to get the required results. Any other camera will also have similar settings if it is in Manual mode. Therefore, you are required to make a difference in your product photography, which can drag the attention of the customers. So, you need to go through one by one to the following settings, which can assist you in capturing your product photos.

1. You Should Make Low ISO

ISO means how much the camera sensor is sensitive to the light. It’s important for product images. If the ISO is low, then the sensor is less sensitive, and it will take a little longer to shot. But higher ISO doesn’t work in this way. If you desire to take shots faster and to shoot in low light, increase ISO. Nevertheless, the photos, this way, will turn out to be granular.

Measurements of ISO usually vary from 100 to 3200. “ISO 100” implies a full second while “ISO 3200” – 1/32 second.

To avoid noise, use the lowest ISO. Adjust your camera on a tripod and look at the target product when you have set camera light settings. Start with the smallest number of ISO and then gradually enhance it until the product is rightly lit.

2. You Should Set High Aperture

Aperture controls the quantity of light that passes through the lens to your camera. It determines the depth of field of the picture.

Aperture is regulated by the F-stops system and varies typically from F1 to F22. If the number is low or F1, it means that a more substantial amount of light can reach a camera, and shutter speed would be faster.

Lower F-stops also create a shallow depth of field, which provides you a possibility to focus on particle details while the focus falls and makes the focal point blurred. Shutter speed creates no problem when taking the shot as your camera is set on a tripod, and the light is constant. For full focus, use as high F-stop as possible, for instance, F16 to F22.

The only case when you need a lower aperture is if you are going to emphasize a particular detail, such as a door handle or a belt buckle. For everything else, you will want to have the whole product in focus. You have to be careful of raw format of product images because it’s important for post production like to make white background.

3. You Should Raise Shutter Speed

Shutter speed determines how much time the sensor takes to be revealed to the light while you are taking a shot. If the shutter speed is faster, it makes a product more still while slow shutter speed gives a motion blur.

Shutter speed plays a huge part in sports, landscape, and nature photography, as there is flow in your photos. You can walk as well with a camera in your hand.

If you are working over DIY professional product photography, you should not worry about camera shake or blur; your camera will be adjusted on a tripod, and the product will be still. In such a case, you can use slower shutter speed and take very sharp photos.

Shutter speed is computed in split seconds. If you adjust your camera on a tripod, use a low setting, such as 1/13. Because of this, more light will reach to your camera. A light meter should be used to identify the perfect setting by adjusting the shutter speed until you reach 0.

If you take shots of lifestyle products with models, you need to enhance the shutter speed because of the motion. If you want to hold the camera in hands, a shutter speed of less than 1/60th of a second is much slower. This shutter speed will result in motion blur even with a great built-in image stabilizer. So, you need to select the value above this value when shooting a product photo setup.

4. Set the Only Camera Mode

If you are seeking for professional product photography setting, then you should work with a manual mood. However, you will find other settings also such as Automatic as well as Aperture Priority.

When you set Aperture Priority mode, you will get the options of the aperture along with automatically ISO Customization. However, the speed of it will be following Aperture mode. This mood has a full advantage when you are doing product photography outdoors with a variety of light, including shades. Similarly, this mood will focus on particular details of the product.

On the other hand, the Automatic Mode will set all the settings of ISO, aperture, and the shutter speed in its accordance. Whereas, Manual mode is what you can set yourself all the settings. If you know better settings of your camera, then you are the king, and you can have super qualitative shots of your products.

5. You Should Adjust the White Balance of Your Camera

It is crystal clear that a professional photographer always manages the camera in perfect directions before capturing. He would see the lighting setting. Undoubtedly, the natural light is a great advantage for product photography if it is enough. Whereas, it may also be the great enemy for product photography, when the overexposing occurs. So, you need to measure the lights as you can prevent overexposing. One more thing you should keep in mind that excessive daylight and overshadow may spoil the quality of the picture.

Therefore, you need to adjust your camera in a professional way so that you should have the correct color setting. This color setting is named as White Balance. If you choose the option of an automatic white balance setting, then it will follow all the settings according to the available lighting conditions.

You must remember that when you follow the white balance settings and implement them only, then you can measure the difference. However, the picture which you capture in daylight will produce near the realistic image, but it would have yellow impressions more.

Apart from this, you must know that photo lighting kits. These lightening kits will make your work easier. A lightening kit will entirely guide you for controlling the light and contrast. Similarly, it will also assist you in more opportunities in the sense of shooting by capturing a picture at any time. So, you need not wait for proper lightening conditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

What camera settings should I use for product photography?

For product photography, you’ll need to utilize the most reduced ISO setting conceivable. Thus, you ought to set up your scene, and afterwards start with the most reduced ISO and progressively increment it until the item is appropriately lit. If you’re working with direct normal light, an ISO setting of 200 – 800 will probably function admirably.

What is a good shutter speed for product photography?

Shutter speed is such a thing that helps to know how quick the shutter opens and closes. A camera on a tripod in consistent light can have a sluggish screen speed. For item photography, utilize a low setting like 1/13 and change as indicated by your light meter.

How do you take high-quality pictures of a product?

In the following way, you can take a high-quality picture of a product,

Utilize a cell phone camera with 12 megapixels or more.
Shoot from a tripod to decrease camera shake.
Utilize normal light from a window.
Skip light utilizing a froth board to mellow shadows.
Go through a scope or close shots to feature item includes.
Shoot various points and pictures.

What is a good aperture for product photography?

The best aperture for product photography is a little one, in a perfect world between f/8 and f/16, contingent upon the profundity of the item. The entire item probably won’t be in the centre underneath f/8 and a bigger opening can obscure the photo to an extreme, meaning the subtleties of the item aren’t clear.

What’s the best focal length for product photography?

You need to pick a lens with a focal length of something like 50mm or ideally, a higher one. Focal points with a central length more modest than 50mm can compel you to manage the wide-point bending.

What is the best ISO setting for a digital camera?

You should constantly attempt to adhere to the least ISO (base ISO) of your camera, which is commonly ISO 100 or 200, at whatever point you can. If there is a lot of light, you are allowed to utilize a low ISO and limit the presence of clamour however much as could be expected.

How many lumens do I need for product photography?

The ideal lumen power for product photography is more than 1,000 lumens. A high lumen yield that imitates normal sunshine gives the best photography results.

Is flash necessary for product photography?

Flash is better for product photography. 95% (or a greater amount of) each very good quality expert photographic artist out there with limitless spending plans utilizes flash. That being said, certain individuals utilize consistent light.

Why are my product photos blurry?

At the point when you take product photos, various issues with your camera settings can cause blurry. Obscure can likewise be brought about by a settling issue or wrong changes.

Is a 50mm lens good for product photography?

50mm focal points have become extraordinarily well known for product photography, most Canon users have been using 50mm f/1.4 USM focal points. Although pricier than the f/1.8, the little increment of the greatest gap implies huge upgrades in sharpness and bokeh quality.

Should I use a macro lens for product photography?

Macro lenses are perfect for shooting pictures or different kinds of firmly trimmed arrangements. A macro lens will provide you with a great deal of flexibility in your item despite still photography. So having a macro lens in your kit is a good decision.

Final Words on best camera settings for product photography

Therefore, if you are looking for becoming a professional product photographer, then you need to have particular settings that can work as a professional for your product photography. Again, when start with your product photography camera, you must concentrate on things like shutter speed and ISO, auto white balance, F stop number, automatic focus, wide aperture, small aperture & to use manual mode. So, you should go to the settings which I have unfolded. Once you follow them, then you will feel the difference.