Still, think of photography as wind-up disposable cameras at summer camp? Do you consider your experience taking selfies to be the bulk of your photography skills? You’ve come to the right place!

Don’t freak out when your boss asks you to take a few “high-quality” product photos to use in online advertising or to promote your business! You will learn all you need to know about product photography from this list of fourteen tips, ideas, and techniques.

1: Use proper lighting

Lighting plays a major role in product photography. Both your product and your background will not appear as they do when you see them in person without proper lighting. “White backgrounds without light don’t look white in the picture, they appear grey,” says Tony Northrup in an article for Digital Photography School.

2: Use a tripod

Even though tripods may seem like unnecessary pieces of technical equipment, they make a big difference in the clarity and quality of your product photos. You won’t even need to hire someone to use one!

3: Shoot for the edit

Do you remember the time that you stayed up late, half-awake, to write a paper, thinking, “I can do this in the morning?” Then, several hours later, you have to start the assignment over because it’s so sloppy that editing it takes more time than it would to just scrap it.

4: Take a basic photo editing class

Editing isn’t always necessary in most cases, but it’s still a skill you should develop as you learn more about product photography. You can make a big difference to the look of your product photograph by tweaking the saturation or removing small flaws.

5: Take inspiration from brands you love

Taking inspiration from others is always useful. You probably already have some favorite brands in mind. Consider how a similar shot or technique may work for your product based on their product photography.