Product photography is a huge market. How many product photographers are out there making a full-time living out of their product photography photoshoot business is beyond anyone’s guess. The fact is, with the rise of the eCommerce business, product photography business is increasing at the same speed.
Why product photography business is increasing along with an increase in eCommerce business?
This is no secret. eCommerce means electronic commerce. Meaning, the buy and sale occur on the virtual marketplace. In simple term, businesses have product websites or eCommerce websites where they showcase their products. Buyers visit those sites and purchase whatever they want.
In order for a buyer to buy something, he or she first needs to make a purchase decision. How can a buyer make a purchase decision to buy a product that he or she hasn’t seen before or never seen in their lives? The answer is – they would not.
No one in their right state of mind will buy anything without knowing what the product look like. This is where product photos come into play. It gives the buyers a realistic perception of how the product looks like. Since seeing is believing, buyers end up buying the product since they “see” it.
Options Between Local vs. Remote Product Photography
Companies have two choices to pick from. They can either hire a local product photographer. For example, for Los Angeles product photography, a company can either hire a photographer who is located in the city of Los Angeles or nearby.
Why companies would want to hire someone who is local? Why not a budget or cheaper photographer who is all the way on the other side of the country?
The answer is within the logistics. If an electronics company that is in the business of selling fridges, TV, washing machine and dishwashers for example wants to undertake a Chicago product photography. The only way to reasonably get the product photoshoot done is by hiring a local photographer. There is no way a company can load several containers and ship them out the someone. This is not only impossible and not practical to ship such bulky items back and forth. Shipping costs and other logistics would be extremely challenging and backbreaking. It is therefore wise to hire locally.
On the other hand, small product items can be shot either local or out of town. Small products allow certain room for flexibility and you get to choose between local or remote photography shoots.
Words of Caution
While hiring a product photographer, do a thorough check on the person or company you are hiring. Check the references if there is any. If there are no references, visit their business portfolio to get a feel for that person or company.
