Product Photography Made Easy with Replica Surfaces

written by Nik Vandeventer
1 Comment

I started my small business, Wasting Thyme in February 2014. After being a lifelong crafter and wearing so many things I made, getting compliments and suggestions to sell what I made. Like most small businesses, I think,  I jumped in head first with no clue as to what I was doing. When I first opened my Etsy shop I had no idea what I was doing. Let alone how important your product photography actually was. I had been using a camera for as long as I could remember but just didn’t know much about product photography. I wanted to try to be edgy and artistic, but the more time that passed I realized that it’s not about the props as much as it is about the background & surfaces to create a clean background to really showcase your products. Queue some cringe worthy early Instagram product photos from 2014:

Now, if Replica Surfaces would’ve been around back then, I think it really would’ve been a game changer for me! When you sell online, your product photos need to be on point. Not only so that your customers clearly understand what you are selling, but also so you stand out amongst the hundreds of thousands of others who are also selling their products online. 

One of the best things about these surfaces is that you really don’t even need a professional camera. If you have a phone that has a good enough camera (portrait mode is your best friend!) and a good light source, you’re golden. Here is a side by side of my IPhone 14 Pro Max in Portrait Mode and My Nikon D750. Both of these photos have very minimal editing, your lighting is the most important! This is a great resource that Replica provides to help you learn more about natural lighting (the only kind I use when I shoot). 

I’ve included more examples using both my iphone and my camera just so you can see that you are still able to produce quality images on your phone

These surfaces can be used for so much more than just product photography too! 

Food blogging, content creation for social media or personal use,  second hand selling online through apps like Poshmark or Ebay, even pet portraits, if you have a willing and tolerant animal like Fiona here. 😉
I use the Replica Studio, which is so awesome to have a mobile set up for product photography but you can also use their surfaces by themselves! The Studio breaks down easily and I only needed a small corner of my office to shoot in.
What is so great about the All White surface is that you can use it to bounce light off of so you really only need 1 good source of light to achieve great pictures. This would have been SO helpful in my small dark apartment when I first started in 2014. 
I also love that they have a ton of resources on their website too. Replica is committed to sharing knowledge and helping you take the best photos possible with their surfaces! Along with surfaces, Replica also sells styling towels too!
Everyone received a towel in their gift bag at Craftcation in April too! I love the feel of this towel, it’s so light and has such a great drape to it. Here are just a couple of  quick examples of how it can be used, but the options are endless:

These are the surfaces I used, all linked below:

ABOUT NIK

Nik is a maker, day dreamer & potty mouth who loves cats, coffee and craft beer. She is a self taught hand embroiderer and will DIY pretty much anything she can get her hands on. You can see her work on Instagram  @wastingthyme & @nikvphotography. She lives in Long Beach with her husband and her three awesome cats (that she can’t shut up about).

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE...

One Comment

  1. Nik! Mandy, Replica founder here. Thank you so much for showing us how it started and how it’s going now with our Surfaces. The team and I are energized to follow along on your personal journey!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.