Here’s how you can Shoot Amazing Product Photography for Under $650
Being able to shoot stunning photographs of a product is an amazing skill to have and it will serve you well.
If you build up enough of a reputation, you could even scale this to side hustle, or even a full career.
There is definitely a demand for people who can shoot attractive photos of their products that will make the customers want to click the buy button.
In fact, 32% of marketers say that images are the most important aspect of their efforts, according to hubspot.
But you may feel that your budget is limiting you. Despite what you may have heard, you do not need to spend thousands of pounds on fancy new equipment.
In fact, I reckon you can do it for under $650. This will be enough to get you everything you need to get started, including the camera body, lenses and the other bits and bobs such as the lighting.
Eager to find out what you need? Let’s jump straight into it!
Here’s the gear you need
First of all, you will need a camera body, which is essential for shooting product photography. Without this, you will not be able to take any photos.
When looking for a camera body, it is important to remember that the quality of the lens matters far more than the quality of the body/camera sensor itself. This is why I will budget a little less for the camera itself and instead opt to splurge a little more on the lens.
I can assure you that the body chosen is great for any type of photography, but it is the lens that will enable the camera to show off what it’s made of.
With all this taken into consideration, the body that you should buy is the Canon Rebel T7. This is a steal of a deal, consisting of the body and a generous Kit Lens for only $449.99
This DSLR features a high-resolution 24mp sensor and a 9-point AF system, which is more than enough for you to get started with.
It also comes with an 18–55m kit lens bundled in the box. This is handy, but you will not be using this lens for the most part.
Instead, we will be opting for a 50mm F/1.8 lens. For only $59.99, this is far, far cheaper than any other lens you will buy brand new.
Despite what the price may tell you, this lens packs a punch. It has all the attributes needed for making an amazing product photo:
- The 50mm fixed focal length means that the background compresses itself, leaving the product filling up the frame and you will have gorgeous bokeh in your background
- The F/1.8 aperture means you will get a lot of bokeh balls in the shot and you can shoot products in low-light scenarios
- The lens is very sharp, meaning that all the details in the product you are shooting will be crystal clear
So then, we have now worked out what lens we are using and what camera body we should buy:
- Canon Rebel T7 ($499)
- 50mm F/1.8 lens ($59.99)
This then leaves us with $141.01, which I will round to $140.
I will now use the rest of this budget to source some good quality lighting and a lightbox
The other useful bits and bobs
For the rest of our budget, I will put it towards a softbox and an RGB light.
The softbox is an all-in-one solution that will let you place the object in the box.
The lights that are on both sides of the box are soft and dispersed.
All you have to do is place the product in the box, snap a picture and you’re good to go.
This is the best lightbox I could find, coming in at a decent $19.94, with a height of 24cm.
This height will be enough for most products.
Finally, we need to find an RBG light.
This will add some flair to our images and the colours will look more attractive, too.
This Aputure MC Light is one of the best in the industry and it is cheap too, coming in at only $99.
When this light is in use, it will be able to light up whatever colour you wish.
This will transform your photos and the quality will go up a notch.
Have we been able to meet our budget?
Now we have found all our essential gear, have we come in under our budget? Let’s find out:
All this gear comes in at $627.98, which is below the $650 budget I set.
This is great value for money and it will get you started on your way to taking some amazing product photos.
If you build up a reputation and you can get some clients, you can scale this up to a side hustle or even a full-time career.
Good luck with your photography!
What did you think of this? Are you into product photography? Give me a shout via the responses below and I’ll happily get back to you!
Psst! Looking for a FREE course to kickstart your photography journey? Grab your FREE 7-Day Photography Bootcamp and take action today! I look forward to seeing you there.
