Follow these instructions of How to Get Bright White Photos like you see on the Printable Crush Blog. Plus learn other Photography Tips to take your images to the next level!
The number one referral for my blog is Pinterest…it’s not even comparable with the other social media platforms. The reason my blog thrives with Pinterest is because of my images. I started changing the style of my photography about a year ago. I realized I wanted the project to be the main focus, so I took pictures on white backgrounds. It really makes the printables POP…but having a white background is not the only way to get Bright White Photos. Read below for tips and tricks!
First off, I want to say that I didn’t always have images like this. We all start somewhere, and my first post was pretty much a disaster. I learned quickly that in order to make it in the blogging world, I had to up my game. I got a DSLR camera (the least expensive one I could find), a 50 mm lens, then I started playing around with the settings. I’ve never been great at following along with photography courses, so I messed with my camera until I got the right look.
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Photography Set Up
My set up is SOOOO not professional looking…you ready for this???
Yeah…it’s pretty lame, but you know what? It works and it’s only about $5. Also, I don’t know how to take pictures of rooms. I’m more of a macro kind of girl. Anywho, I just get two white foam boards and set them up on a chair. I buy mine at Walmart or Hobby Lobby, usually.
I have AMAZING lighting in my home, so I set it up next to a window when the sunlight is indirect (that means no sunbeams shining through). I also live in a very bright climate, so I don’t have to worry about cloudy days too often.
Camera Settings
The BEST thing you can do for your photography is to take bright pictures from your camera, without having to edit too much. I usually have the following settings on my camera for my 50mm lens:
- Shutter Speed: 1/60
- Aperture: F2.8
- ISO: 400
I’m no expert in using manual mode, but I know that if I use these settings, and adjust slightly according to the lighting in my home, I’ll get some great images.
Tip: Take note during the day when you have the best lighting in your home. Schedule your day around that time. For instance, I know that if I want to take pictures in my office, I have to do it around 10am. If I want to take pictures in the kitchen where it’s less convenient, I take them at about 2pm.
Photo Editing Tips for Bright White Photos
After I take my pictures, I import them into Adobe Lightroom. Lightroom is handy because I can copy all the settings from one image to the next. These are the settings I usually adjust (see the toolbar on the right hand side of the image above for reference):
- Click AUTO first, and see if there are improvements. If not, I reset to the original.
- Bump up the exposure slightly to the right.
- THE KEY TO BRIGHT WHITE PHOTOS—Bump up WHITES in the toolbar almost all the way to the right.
- Keep blacks low (move cursor to the left). I do this so there is plenty of contrast in my images. I don’t want my graphics to look washed out. You have to be careful because if you keep it too low, it can drastically change the colors in your images.
- If I need to, I’ll bump up the clarity a little bit. If it’s not quite as sharp as I’d like, I go down to the Sharpening tools and sharpen it slightly.
Next, you’ll choose your favorites (I like to put them in the Quick Library for this), then export them to a folder for that specific post.
You can see a BIG difference in the images above. This was on a cloudy day, so I couldn’t get the originals very bright, but Lightroom really saved me. I’m in love with the way the Hand Lettered Wood Coasters images turned out.
The next thing I do is choose my favorite images, then open them in Photoshop. I remove any unwanted spots with the SPOT HEALING BRUSH TOOL. In the image above, I took out the creases that you can see in the foam board, and I later removed all the dust on the camera.
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I always get asked about my camera strap. I bought it from Nicole Berloski’s etsy shop, but it’s been on vacation for a while. I love it, but I just got a new sequin camera strap from Sam and Kate Design on Etsy. It’s seriously gorgeous! I can’t choose between the two, so I’ll be interchanging them frequently!
What other photography questions do you have? Leave your questions in the comments below!
If you liked this, check out these other posts:
Font Pairing Ideas for Designers
3 Ways to Make Money Designing Printables
12 Graphic Design Bloggers You Need to Follow
Carol says
Great tips. Thank you for sharing!
Jessica says
This is just what I was looking for! Question, I just edited some photos yesterday (before I read this blog post), and I upped exposure to help make the images more bright. My client said it looked grainy, which I couldn’t see because I wouldn’t have given poorly edited pictures to anyone. Would it possibly be because of the exposure I upped in LR?
Erin says
Yes, exposure will make it look grainy and it will also make the rest of the colors less vibrant. That’s why I like to up the white balance more than the exposure. Hope this helps!
Mary says
Hello! Thank you for sharing this info! I really need the help. If we don’t have light room, could an editing site like PicMonkey help or Canva? Not sure if I should get Lightroom. Also, I love how you put the white boards together! Very good tip!!
Brandy says
Hi thank you for the tims! What settings would you suggest if I do not have the 50 mm lens yet?
Erin says
Brandy- I would just play around with the settings until it works for you. I use those settings a majority of the time, but not every set up is the same 🙂
Mahi says
Hi! thank you so much for this information. This post was really useful! Although I have some problems with the shadows of the objects that I click photos of..can you tell me how could I manage the shadows or get rid of them without the picture looking wierd?
Thanks
Erin says
I would recommend working with your initial set up. You want the pictures to be as perfect as possible before editing.
Shama perveen says
Hii Erin
I learned a lot from this i am like a beginner to photography
and always end up capturing either blur or with bad lighting
so much thanks for sharing something that is so helpful for people like me
The Blake Image Photography says
Hi Erin,
Some great tips on how you can tackle one of the trickiest problems in commercial product photography. It’s very difficult trying to photograph a product on an all-white background without running into things like flaring around the edges of the product. One thing you can also try is a sheet of black perspex. This will mirror your white background providing a seamless foreground which might make things in post production a little easier. There are a number of ways to tackle this – it’s all up to personal preference! We work with photos on white a lot in our studio https://www.theblakeimage.com.au – if you have any questions, please ask!