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I’m doing a few pieces of product photography but has to be amazon approved so on a 255 background I took this shot but sadly every time you zoom a little into the photo it’s not as sharp as I’d like.

I only used a lens which only goes up to f5.4, is this the issue?

Or is it that I need to fill my whole frame when taking the shot to ensure large enough pixels to work with when cropping or resizing?

I only have two softbox lights to work with so when I took this photo I was on iso 400 which I have read that this would be best used on 100 to reduce noise.

I also took the shot on 125 shutter speed as I didn’t have a shutter release until recently ordered one.

Any tips on how to improve would be greatly appreciated. With amazon having the zoom function really need these to be as sharp and clear as possible.

enter image description here

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  • \$\begingroup\$ If you're critically pixel peeping an image taken at 1/125 by directly pressing the shutter button you're almost certainly seeing blur that is a result of camera movement. This could be in addition to any other factor that contributes to the blur you see at full magnification. At 740x1110 your example is too small to tell much about the image. \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Commented Oct 9, 2020 at 7:52
  • \$\begingroup\$ Re, "is it that I need to fill my whole frame when taking the shot...?" How many pixels tall is the bottle in the original camera image? \$\endgroup\$
    – Solomon Slow
    Commented Oct 9, 2020 at 19:50
  • \$\begingroup\$ I have cut the bottle out and placed on the size background due to needed these measurements for website. I shot it at the largest size possible 4000 x 2000 something like that? And I re took the photo at f8 but was quite close to subject do I need to move back from subject? \$\endgroup\$
    – Shez
    Commented Oct 10, 2020 at 12:34
  • \$\begingroup\$ I think I may have cropped the size to smaller than needed as I’ve just checked. I know the larger the photo the more pixels. I’m needed to take some for amazon and they need to be 1000px at least on longest side but fill 85% of frame when it comes to cropping that won’t I lose pixels with those sizes too? \$\endgroup\$
    – Shez
    Commented Oct 10, 2020 at 12:49

2 Answers 2

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I only used a lens which only goes up to f5.4, is this the issue?

The F-number in lens specs is usually the max aperture (lowest F-number). Most lenses are capable of closing the aperture to obtain smaller apertures (higher F-number).

Make sure the entire product fits within the Depth of Field. DOF is region around the focal plane where subjects will appear sufficiently sharp. It is influenced by the following factors:

  • Aperture. Smaller apertures (higher F-number) increase depth of field. You can try something in the F8-11 range. At F2.8-5.6, DOF may not be great enough to contain the subject. At F16-22, diffraction usually degrades the image.
  • Focal length. Shorter focal lengths increase depth of field.
  • Distance to subject. Greater distances increase depth of field.

Other factors involved are circle of confusion, magnification, and viewing size. If you're pixel peeping full-resolution images, you probably won't find any single image to be sufficiently sharp throughout. However, most product images are not shown at pixel-peeping sizes.

I was on iso 400 which I have read that this would be best used on 100 to reduce noise.

Since the product is not moving, you can use use longer exposure times needed for lower ISO if you use a tripod.

I also took the shot on 125 shutter speed as Didn’t have a shutter release until recently ordered one.

Most cameras have self-timers that can be used when remote releases are not available. Some cameras can be triggered remotely by apps.

Any tips on how to improve would be greatly appreciated.

  • Experiment with different settings until you figure out what you like.

  • Consider using a polarizing filter to cut down reflections.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Perfect thank you for your feedback i will definitely try these and see what happened I don’t know if I have a lens that goes higher in F stops , I do have a long lens which is 70mm will that be any better? \$\endgroup\$
    – Shez
    Commented Oct 9, 2020 at 6:15
  • \$\begingroup\$ @Shez I've edited my answer to add some more info about DOF and F-numbers. Usually lens specs note the max aperture (lowest F-number), but the lens is capable of higher F-number settings (usually to F22). The advice for DOF here is opposite what you may see elsewhere because you need sufficiently wide DOF to cover the subject, while people often seek narrower DOF for artistic effect (smooth skin with blurry noses and ears). \$\endgroup\$
    – xiota
    Commented Oct 9, 2020 at 6:26
  • \$\begingroup\$ You mention using a tripod very briefly, but surely this should have more emphasis for product photography like the OP wants ? Even a basic table top tripod would be an essential IMO. \$\endgroup\$
    – StephenG - Help Ukraine
    Commented Oct 9, 2020 at 11:29
  • \$\begingroup\$ @StephenG How many words does it take to say, "use a tripod"? Based on info provided in the question, OP already likely already has one, but didn't use it because lacked a remote shutter release. \$\endgroup\$
    – xiota
    Commented Oct 9, 2020 at 11:47
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I think the white background might be too close to the subject which is causing some soft edges. Could be remedied with more distance between the white background and the subject or aiming for a near-white background and correcting in post-production.

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