Footwear photography allows marketing teams to promote shoes, thus helping a company increase sales. It is also important for developing a consistent brand image, launching successful social media campaigns, and performing other tasks.
The owners of footwear brands should understand how to take high-quality photos to establish their position in the market and stand out among competitors, making more than footwear on white backgrounds.
A photographer cannot use a one-fits-all method when it comes to capturing footwear as there are so many types of products available on the market. It is important to understand the differences between them to select the most suitable approach to staging and capturing photos.
Product photography is all about providing an honest preview of how a product looks in real life. It is similar to fashion photography. A photographer should be quite creative to get a decent result.
You can find plenty of photos on online auctions and eCommerce platforms that have a uniform background. When creating lookbooks, one may also experiment with different backgrounds or capture photos in unusual surroundings.
Most professionals use lookbook or packshot styles when working with product photos. Each of them aims to make a potential customer buy a product. However, they are used differently.
Lookbook photography is perfect for situations when one needs to grab a viewer’s attention by producing professional art works. Such photos also look great on Instagram or when they are used as Google Ads adverts.
You may have seen that many people add the #shofie tag to footwear photos. Using the lookbook style and deploying advanced Instagram photo editing techniques allows photographers to create photos that can be posted under this hashtag.
Amazon and Allegro have specific footwear photography requirements. Such platforms require users to upload pictures with a white background. A photographer should take packshots to showcase a product from different angles. It’s better not to use the Instagram style when taking such pics.
Before taking packshots, it’s important to learn photo editing requirements for marketplaces and discover how to remove the background. You should be able to create a clipping path in Photoshop and master complex editing techniques.
When a photographer needs to take photos of sneakers or boots, they should use an informative style. It means paying attention to details, ensuring color accuracy, and emphasizing textures.
The purpose of fashion footwear photography is to capture a product as a part of a stylish look. There is no need to use product photography tips when taking such photos, as this style requires using creative techniques and taking pics in unusual locations.
Key elements of fashion footwear photography:
Footwear lifestyle photography focuses on capturing products in a real-world environment. This style is perfect for those who want to show how footwear can be worn on a daily basis. This genre requires a photographer to establish a connection with a viewer and use storytelling techniques to promote a product in an engaging way.
It’s important to understand the differences between various types of footwear to discover the best way to capture it. Consider the context and select the most suitable location for every product:
By establishing a connection with the target audience, a photographer can take photos that will generate some buzz.
When taking photos of hiking boots outdoors, I often capture pictures that demonstrate that the product fits perfectly. Then I capture the boots in various environments to show that they are suitable for all sorts of terrains. Finally, I take pics that inspire clients and demonstrate that they can reach their goals wearing these boots.
When doing 360 footwear photography, a photographer has to take a sequence of shots using incremental angles (every 10-15 degrees). It facilitates showcasing a product from all sides.
Then, it becomes possible to create an interactive video allowing consumers to rotate the product on-screen. This approach empowers photographers to capture all the details and enables customers to view a product from various angles: front, back, sides, top, and even the sole.
Though it is a relatively new advancement, 360 product photography techniques are very useful for footwear photographers. With this method, there are no blank places in a photo.
If your profession requires you to work in this photography genre, buy some specific equipment for 360 photography to streamline your workflow. Besides a standard set of equipment, you will also need a rotating turntable, 50mm or 100mm prime lens and tripod.
Artistic footwear photography is a unique genre that requires a photographer to focus on other elements of a product besides its physical features. Such photos are often used during advertising campaigns for world-known brands. They are also used on social media and editorial pages to improve a brand’s recognition.
Examples of artistic footwear photography concepts:
Footwear impression photography is all about taking photos of thread patterns and footprints. Photographers with advanced skills know how to capture the design of the sole and demonstrate a product’s durability. This photography genre is perfect for capturing outdoor, athletic, or work footwear, as it allows a photographer to focus on threads.
When taking photos of impressions left on sand, mud, or snow, professionals demonstrate the functionality and durability of footwear. They know how to take photos that will appeal to customers interested in reliable products.
Forensic footwear photography is a narrow field. Professionals who work in this area, have to document and analyze shoeprints and footwear impressions when working at crime scenes.
They need to have strong photography skills to contribute to forensic investigations. Detailed footmark photos allow officers to learn about a suspect’s presence at a scene, track their steps, and even discover their identity.
Experienced forensic photographers know how to capture high-quality photos of footwear impressions that will be used during court cases.
Essential equipment includes a decent camera, professional lenses (it’s better to use a macro lens), a tripod, and lighting equipment (you may need studio lights or reflectors for natural light).
You can also take pictures with a professional camera for product photography or take product photos on iPhone. When you have the necessary gear, you can start taking footwear photos.
Footwear captured against a white background looks very neat and stylish. Choose such a background color if you want to learn how to photograph footwear for online stores like Amazon or eBay.
Make sure to purchase a product photo light box. It consists of a surface, backdrop and lighting setup, which will allow you to take professional photos. You can also make a DIY light box or use a roll of paper and window light to take photos without breaking your budget.
Lighting tips:
If everything is ready, adjust your camera’s settings and press the shutter button. When working in a manual mode, I use the following settings:
However, keep in mind that these footwear product photography tips are suitable only for still pictures. If you need to take a photo of dark footwear and you don’t have enough light, try lowering the shutter speed.
To take a photo of a moving object, you will need much lighter. In this case, you will need to set the shutter speed to 1/500-1/1000. Set ISO up to 400 to avoid noise.
The recommended focal length is about 50 mm. It will enable you to avoid noticeable distortion and remove the lens limitations.
Keep in mind that different aperture values will impact the focus and the depth of field. For footwear, you can increase the lowest aperture value from f/11 to f/14. The upper limit should stay at f/16.
Professional photographers prefer to use a neutral white background when taking footwear photos. If you want to level up your skills, make sure to learn how to utilize a product photography white background to take pro-level footwear photos. However, even when using such backgrounds, you may face multiple issues:
Equipment needs. When doing footwear product photography with a white background, you will need to use the necessary equipment. You may use plexiglass tables, lightboxes, and other gear. If you want to add some visual interest to the background, use a set of colored and textured backdrops.
Contrast loss. You may need to adjust the lighting during a photoshoot and edit the contrast during the post-production stage. Otherwise, it may be impossible to capture glossy footwear without highlights. In some cases, you may notice that your photos look blurry. In this case, you should use popular footwear photography tips and perform the background cut to fix this issue.
Background uniformity control. It may be arduous to create the perfect RGB (255,255,255) background. You may notice lens vignetting issues or have to deal with unwanted shadows.
Besides, overburnt areas are another problem you may have to deal with. If you cut the background from your photo, you can quickly replace it with any color of your choice. Besides, this way, it will be easier for you to follow the repeatability principle when you need to work with other products.
Lighting focus: on the background or the product? When configuring the lighting to capture footwear, think about the location of the lighting focus. You can focus either on the footwear or on the background. It may be impossible to achieve excellent results if you focus on both areas simultaneously.
You will risk lighting your product poorly and capturing the greyish background. If you point the light source at the product, you can remove the background during post-production. When doing footwear group photography, you must use several light sources.
Consider these limitations when taking your photos. You may need to learn how to utilize professional photo editing software or outsource the task of enhancing your pics to experienced professionals.
Props allow photographers to create attention-grabbing compositions and take visually appealing photos.
You can use the following types of footwear product photo props:
There are several ways to present a product in the right way and take cool shots when doing footwear studio photography. Everything depends on the footwear themselves and your final goal. When taking photos, you can experiment with various product photography ideas.
Flat lay. This method is popular among Instagram sellers and bloggers who put their main subject close to other objects and take a photo from above. Here the main thing is a color palette and natural lighting.
Speaking of colors, choose a neutral background, like a basic white, or, depending on your subject, a wood floor, desk, or table. Use a blank space to unite your image and make it more interesting.
By styling footwear in such a way, you can follow the principle of repeatability when preparing your content for promoting and selling products online. You need to take photos of your subject from different angles and group footwear in various ways to create interesting configurations. This approach is popular among those who specialize in footwear stock photography.
Flying shoelaces. You can make it look as if your shoelaces were levitating in your pics if you hang them on a fishing line. It won’t be even visible in the frame. Make sure to build a rack behind the subject, as it will help you fix lines securely. You may even use a backdrop-hanging bar and two tripods to stabilize your setup.
If you attach the line to the heel, it will allow you to give a dynamic feel to your photos. Implementing such footwear photography ideas will help you grab the attention of e-commerce website’s visitors.
Photographing the soles. Using a headphone stand or thick wire with a base is perfect for situations when you need to fix the object upside down and take pictures from above. If you want to take more pics like this, you can also use a foot of a mannequin. Fix it to a plexiglass plate and take photos from a suitable angle.
Using the box. Some photographers prefer to utilize a box, which allows them to achieve the perfect depth effect. You can experiment with various heights and angles and lean footwear against the box.
It often happens that one brand box can help a photographer to create a consistent series of pics using footwear campaign photography methods. This technique was used for promoting the Nike Air Jordan "Bring Your Game" series.
A worm’s eye view. Even though many professionals capture footwear close to the ground, it makes their photos less creative as they have limited opportunities when experimenting with angles.
Ask the model to lift their feet. Models can sit on a bench or assume another position that will allow you to include the sky and capture a 360-degree view of the object.
