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HOW TO TAKE GREAT LOOKING PICTURES

Which Item would YOU rather buy?

One of the most important aspects of any successful online auction is the image that you attach to the item's description. Think about it. If you're shopping in a store, you can pick up your potential purchase, look underneath it, and get a pretty good idea what kind of shape it's in. With electronic shopping, you're at the mercy of the seller's ability to describe size, shape, and potential flaws. You want to present the best pictures for your auction that you possibly can. A good image can go a long way toward dispelling any doubts a prospective buyer might have about your item!

If you're going to be primarily selling flat objects, such as comics or baseball cards, then maybe what you need isn't a camera, but a scanner. There are many inexpensive (under $100) flat-bed color scanners that can capture an image in 600 or 1200 dpi (dots per inch) mode. If you're planning on selling antique furniture or computers or any three dimensional item, then you'll need a digital camera. Check with your local computer retailer or www.cnet.com for reviews and prices of the latest peripherals.

Assuming that you have a digital camera or a camcorder hooked up to a digitizing card, your first step is to arrange your item in a manner that shows it off to it's best advantage. The pictures above were both taken with the same camera. The picture on the left was taken with available lighting, not clearly focused, and the basket takes up about 10% of the frame. I've seen more than my share of pictures like that. The picture on the right was taken of the same basket, clearly focused (when you have a 3 dimensional object like this one, you have to make up your mind which part you want to show in sharp focus), has a much brighter light source, and a black background which makes the object stand out.

In order for you to understand how to use light effectively, let me give you a little background on how the "pros" do it. When professional photographers shoot products, most of the time they use a technique called "3-Point Lighting". This involves a Key Light, which is the main source of illumination; a Back Light, which helps emphasize the contour of the object, and also separates it from a dark background; and a Fill Light, which helps to soften some of the shadows thrown by the key light and back light.

Unless photography is either your occupation or your hobby, you're not likely to have professional lights lying around the house. Make the most of what you have available. If you're shooting a larger object, try and direct a couple of lamps or lights toward the front of your item. A great, inexpensive way to light is to buy a couple of clamp-on lights with reflectors. These can be found in most hardware stores. Place them around your item in roughly the same positions shown in the diagram above. If you have two lights, then put them in Key Light and Fill Light positions. You can use natural light from a window as well, but don't put the item in front of the window and shoot into the daylight. Too much backlight will make your item look dark and indistinct. The idea is to illuminate the front of the object as much as possible.

If you want to spread an even light across the front of your item, wrap aluminum foil around a piece of cardboard and reflect some of the light from the lamp so that the shadows are washed a bit. A piece of white foam-core or cardboard next to your item will also work wonders in filling out some of the shadows cast by your main light source.

If you want to get fancy, then take one of the lights and put it above and behind your item, where the backlight would be in the diagram above. Direct the light onto the object and give it an "edge", or a hint of light along the outline of your item. This is great if you're selling an item that has colored glass in it. Keep the light behind the object, and out of camera shot. The color of your glass will be much more brilliant.

These are just a few ideas. One great way of learning is to search the auction sites and look at some pictures. Try to figure out how they've lit their items, or if they have at all. Chances are, you'll find that the items with the best pictures are bringing the best prices!