This is a great illustration of why product photography can be more time-consuming than it might seem. You set up your lights, dial in the base exposures, arrange any reflectors or flags you need, focus stack, bang out the requisite images (in the case of the shot above, that would be four), and then move on to the next item. If you are shooting similar products, you can run through a bunch in a day this way. Maybe 10, maybe 40, or more if they’re simple and you have enough coffee on board.
But the rub comes when you let your client know that the shooting-to-processing ratio is 1:2 or 1:3 or maybe way more (in other words what might take 10 minutes to shoot, could take an hour to edit), and so when you say “This ($$$) is the rate,” they don’t reach for their checkbook, they run for the door.
And this shot of two simple products, a microphone and a shock mount, is a good example of why this is so. When I shot this image, the products were brand new and right out of the packaging. But if you zoom in you would find many dozens of little specks and imperfections and little flaws that need to be cleaned up. And stuff like this can take a really long time. Sometimes hours! This shot is a long way from being ready for publication.
I think it’s really helpful to be up front with our clients and tell them that yes, we are in fact technological wizards with mad skills honed over years, but it still takes time! Show them some before and after images, and describe the process (without making their heads explode, e.g., don’t ever talk about frequency separations.) Sometimes clearing up just a bit of the mystery will go a long way in showing our clients that our costs are reasonable and that near-pefection is hard work!
