Furniture Photography in Toronto: A Guide to Capturing Your Furniture’s Best Side

As an interior designer, furniture store owner, or e-commerce business owner in Toronto, you know the importance of showcasing your furniture in the best light possible. Furniture photography is essential to your marketing strategy and can make or break a sale. In today’s world, customers want to see the furniture they’re interested in before they buy it, and high-quality photos can help you sell your pieces faster and for a higher price.

This blog post will cover the basics of furniture photography, including the gear you’ll need, the best practices for shooting, and some tips for editing your photos. By the end of this post, you’ll have a solid understanding of what it takes to create excellent furniture photography in Toronto.

The Gear You’ll Need for Furniture Photography

The gear you need for furniture photography will depend on your budget, the size of your pieces, and the type of photography you want to do. However, here are some essential items you should consider investing in:

• Camera: A digital SLR camera with a high resolution is ideal for furniture photography. If you’re on a tight budget, a high-end point-and-shoot camera will do the job, too.
• Lens: I usually shoot with a 70-200 mm lens because it lets me shoot wide and close with minimal lens distortion
• Tripod: A sturdy tripod is essential for keeping your camera steady and preventing camera shake.
• Lighting: You’ll need to light your furniture correctly to bring out its best features. Consider purchasing a softbox or umbrella to diffuse the light and prevent harsh shadows. Natural light is always best, but you can also use artificial lighting to supplement it.
• Background: You’ll want to choose a location that complements your furniture rather than detracts from it. A solid colour background, such as white or black, is a good choice.

Best Practices for Shooting Furniture Photography

• Choose the right location: Pick a room with plenty of natural light and a neutral background. You can also shoot outdoors on a sunny day.
• Clean your furniture: Make sure your furniture is clean and free of dust and debris before shooting.
• Position your furniture: Place your furniture in an attractive and visually appealing position. Pay attention to the angles you’re shooting from, and make sure your pieces are straight.
• Light your furniture: Use natural or artificial light to brighten your furniture and bring out its best features. You can also use reflectors to bounce light back onto your pieces.
• Use a tripod: A tripod will help you keep your camera steady and prevent camera shake.
• Shoot from different angles: Take photos to show off your furniture from all sides. Ensure you get a shot of your pieces’ front, back, and sides.
• Experiment with editing: Play around with editing tools like levels, curves, and saturation to make your furniture photos pop.

Editing Your Furniture Photography

Once you’ve taken your photos, it’s time to edit them. Here are some tips for editing your furniture photography:

• Adjust the brightness and contrast: If your photos are too dark or too bright, adjust the levels or curves to balance the exposure.
• Remove blemishes: If your furniture has scratches, scuffs
• or other imperfections, use the clone tool or spot healing brush to remove them in post-production.
• Enhance colours: Furniture photography is all about showcasing the colours and textures of your pieces, so don’t be afraid to play with saturation and vibrance to bring out the best in your photos.
• Crop your photos: Cropping your images can help you remove any distracting elements in the background and focus on your furniture. Just make sure you don’t crop too much and lose essential details.
• Add selective focus: Selective focus can help draw the viewer’s eye to specific elements in your photos, such as intricate details or patterns.
• Correct lens distortion: If you’re using a wide-angle lens, you may notice some lens distortion in your photos. Correcting this in post-production can help you achieve a more professional look.
• Save for the web: When you’re ready to share your photos, save them for the web so they load quickly on your website or social media.

Colour correction is an essential part of furniture photography as it helps to represent the colours of your pieces accurately. One tool that can help with colour correction is a grey card. A grey card is a neutral grey reference card that you can use to calibrate your camera’s white balance. Here’s how you can use a grey card to colour-correct your furniture photography:

1. Take a reference photo: Before you start shooting your furniture, take a photo of the grey card in the same lighting conditions as your furniture.
2. Set your camera’s white balance: Most cameras have a custom white balance setting, allowing you to use the reference photo to calibrate your white balance. Select the custom white balance option, and then choose the reference photo.
3. Shoot your furniture: With your camera’s white balance calibrated, you can now confidently shoot your furniture, knowing that you will have accurate colours in your furniture photography photos.
4. Check the colours in post-production: Once you’ve taken your photos, check the colours in post-production. If you need to make any adjustments, use the colour correction tools in your photo editing software to tweak the colours until they match the colours of your pieces.
5. Use the grey card for future shoots: Keep it handy and use it every time you shoot furniture. This way, you’ll be able to quickly and easily calibrate your camera’s white balance and ensure accurate colour representation in all your photos.

In conclusion, using a grey card for colour correction in furniture photography can help you achieve accurate and consistent colours in your photos. Whether you’re shooting for an interior design portfolio, a furniture store, or an e-commerce business, having accurate colours can help you sell your pieces and stand out in a crowded market.

Furniture photography is an essential part of your marketing strategy, and it can help you sell your pieces faster and for a higher price. Whether you’re an interior designer, furniture store owner, or e-commerce business owner, it’s essential to invest in the right gear, follow best practices for shooting, and take the time to edit your photos properly. By following these tips, you’ll be able to create stunning furniture photography that showcases your pieces in the best light possible.

In Toronto, many great photographers specialize in furniture photography. Consider working with a professional photographer if you’re looking for high-quality photos to help sell your furniture. They’ll have the gear, experience, and expertise to capture your furniture in its best light.