Your instant portable studio
Here is a simple way to make "set-ups" of your images from the comfort of your own home. Call it your instant portable studio. No agency fees necessary. No need to hire a photographer.

It's time for your close-up
Make sure your camera is able to take adequate close-ups. You may need one lens that is able to zoom in. A 2.8 series lens is the best, but a 3.5 mm lens will do if you can't afford the more expensive one. These are, of course, typical to an SLR. But many consumer cameras can also take close-ups or macro pictures.

Flash with bounce
Purchase a flash with a pivoting joint that is able to bounce light from a white ceiling. Even if it is the cheapest model you can find, as long as it has a bounce feature you will be able to produce even lighting.

Give yourself the necessary table space
Create a small space with a folding table. The table must be large enough to span the length of your lens when you look through the camera. Your camera should be very close to the table. If it isn't, then your lens is not a close-up lens.

Get some inexpensive fabric
Buy some neutral colored fabric. Burlap works very well and has natural textures which are visually appealing. Burlap comes in white or tan. Cover the whole table and nail or tape the top side to the wall. Smooth out obvious creases.

Add two lamps
Put two lamps on each side of the table. The kinds that have clamps work well. Make sure they use 80-100 watt bulbs. Position them from the front of the table so that they are shooting light into the background. You can adjust lighting as needed to create a bright display. The other trick would be a mirror or big white poster board to serve as a reflector. Use it to bounce the light. If you use flash, you can bounce your flash unit from the white poster board.

Use a tripod
Position the camera on a tripod or flat surface. Some people like to use a cable release so as not to shake the camera while shooting. If this seems a little too difficult, then simply place the camera on a non-moving object, like a tall stepstool or on books.

Pay attention to detail
Pay attention to details while shooting. Dark spots, lint, or price tags should be turned away and removed from the picture.

Keep refining
Of course, you may have to play around with these techniques until you get the results that are most pleasing. Your images will look "studio professional" without having to spend the money on hiring a photographer. This will be an instantly productive method of getting higher bids from prospective customers.

Digital images are also able to be color-corrected using computer software, if necessary. Once you've finished your photo shoot, load the photos onto your hard drive and scan through your photographs to see which angles best highlight the products you're selling. You can then simply pump up the colors using a software program like Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Lightroom to drastically improve the colors. If you're working on a lower budget, you can use Adobe's $79 Photoshop Elements program or even the free Paint.NET program we've recently reviewed.