Do you own a business where you make lovely products but get frustrated that your photos don’t do them justice? Do you wish you could take gorgeous photos, but don’t have time to read the manual from cover to cover and learn every aspect of photography? Yes? Well I think I have just the workshop for you! Since launching my successful photography workshops for parents, I have been asked many times if I would do a workshop which focuses on taking photos of products rather than people.
Many people (myself included!) are put off by bad product photos and just won’t buy something or go somewhere that is selling itself with bad photographs. And it’s not because I’m a photography snob (ok, maybe a little bit!), but because bad photographs can just make things look, (dare I say it), a little bit cheap and tacky. We’ve all seen an advert for a new restaurant that’s opening, and if the photographs of the interior and the food are beautiful, it makes you want to go there doesn’t it? But if there is an advert with bad photographs of the food sitting on plates, you want to run a mile!
Now, I’m not suggesting that by coming on this workshop that you’ll never need to hire a professional photographer again. It’s essential that you get a pro to photograph your products for your website and marketing literature to ensure you are showcasing your products in the best possible way. But unless you’re Theo Paphitis, it’s likely that you can’t afford to hire a professional every single time you make something new. So, if you own a cupcake business, you may hire a professional to photograph your cakes every 2 years when you refresh your website and marketing materials. But what about all of the beautiful cakes you make in between? Imagine if you could take gorgeous photos of them to show off on your blog and social networking sites. Photos that you’re proud of. And unfortunately just buying a good camera doesn’t mean you can suddenly take a great photo; as demonstrated in my post ‘it’s not the camera that takes the photo’.
Or perhaps you run a business where you don’t create products, but you do write a blog where you would love to show great photos of things that inspire you. And it makes such a difference when you can take good photos of these things. Just check out Fiona Humberstone’s blog at Flourish Studios. Recently she has started blogging about things that inspire her and she is getting a chance to show off her photography skills as well! Don’t these great photos she takes make a big difference to the feel of the blog?
This workshop is all about taking lifestyle photos of your products using natural light. Like the kind of photographs you usually find on Not on the High Street website. You won’t be learning how to shoot them in front of a white background using studio lights. To demonstrate what I mean, here are some different photos I’ve taken of one of my products, the Mini Brag Book. When I started my business 2.5 years ago, I naively thought that all product shots needed to have a white background (slightly odd considering I’m so passionate about shooting people in the natural world, rather than in a studio!) So on the left is how I used to show this product on my product list, and on the right is how I show it now. It’s the same product but I think the lifestyle shot on the right makes it look more stylish and also puts its size into context. What do you think?
So here are all of the details about this new workshop…..
What is it? Oh Snap! photography workshop for creative business owners.
You will spend an enjoyable morning learning a new skill that will benefit your business enormously. This brand new Oh Snap! workshop focuses on simple concepts that will dramatically improve your photos; just by understanding light, composition and perspective. A great networking opportunity too! See MakeMe workshop’s website for details of what is covered in the workshop.
What do I need? Ideally you will have a digital SLR camera (with interchangeable lenses). You could come to the workshop with a compact camera and see an improvement in your photos, but for the best results you need a digital SLR camera. Just contact me if you want help choosing which camera to buy if you don’t already have one.
When and where is it? Friday, 16th September 2011, 9.30am-1.30pm at the Make Me workshops studio at The Medicine Garden, Cobham in Surrey. A wonderful venue! (UPDATE: as this date sold out within 2 days we have announced another date on Friday, 30th September 2011)
How much is it? £125 for the 4 hour workshop. If you book your place before 31st May you can receive a £15 early bird discount.
What’s included? – An intensive & dynamic 4 hour workshop
How do I book? It’s easy; just click here to go to MakeMe workshops website and book your place online. Enter ‘Early Bird’ as the discount code to receive your £15 off (before 31st May) There are only 7 spaces left so be quick!
And credit where credit is due; the gorgeous cupcakes here are by Sprinkles and Swirls and the beautiful fingerprint necklace are from a commercial shoot I did with Button and Bean.
