What do I need to set up a small, effective "photo studio" for taking pictures for my eBay auctions?

Question

I've been eBaying for years, and have even been a PowerSeller. I've almost always used stock photography. Well, now it's time to clean house and get rid of my own junk, especially clothes, that does not have stock photography available to me. So, what do I need to take high-quality, not expensive photos of my items? I have a great camera. I need to know, what kind of mannequin should I buy that's cheap but looks good? And, what can I use as a backdrop? I've tried a sheet, but it doesn't look very professional.

Answer 1

All you really need is a table, backdrop and lights. My wife and I are on eBay professionally and we take all our pics int eh laundry room. Here is our two setups:

For smaller items, we have three lights set up with special 'blue' enhancement bulbs (got them at Walmart). One on the left, one on the right and one above. The ones to the left and right are "draftsman's" style lamps, like this one: http://www.circalighting.com/product_images/s3064ch_31155_t.jpg
We found several of these types of adjustable lights at thrift stores and inexpensive ones at office supply stores.

They are attached to the table so that they can easily be adjusted for the piece we are photographing. The light from above is a simple mini flood.

For a backdrop we use a plain piece of tan cloth. It is hung about 3 feet up on the wall and stretches all the way to the front of the table. The tan cloth is held up with a set of clips and on the back of the tan cloth is a black cloth. (Never know when you're going to be photographing something which needs a darker backdrop)

The table is about 2 feet deep, and is actually a table for folding our laundry - or at least it was, until we got into ebay. As you can see, we work with what is handy.

For clothes, my wife bought a nice mannequin, about $50 at a specialty store. Mannequins are not necessary, as a good hanger will also do the trick. (When not using the Mannequin, we will use a wide and deep SUIT hanger, which gives dimension to the item being photographed.) We hang it up on a dark or neutral colored door. We have another set of lights attached beside the laundry room door which we use for clothing. Remember, Light items on darker background, dark items on light background. (A sheet never looks good because sheets aren't made to be backgrounds. Learn to use what is handy, like the door, or natural wall and if possible, get a hook for your hanger which will allow the item to hang a few inches away from the backdrop, again giving dimension to your photo.)

I also encourage you to learn to use editing software. Learning how to adjust brightness, contrast and even how to edit out minor background errors can save you hours of repositioning and retaking photos. In addition, when I was selling some Christmas ornaments, knowing how to use photoshop, I was able to take the pic of the item in front of the black background, and then cut/paste it into a photo of an evergreen tree. Very effective. But this is minor compared to simply making your photos look their best.

Feel free to email me direct for more information on Ebay and photos.