From start to finish - A full photoshoot with Elysian’s Studio Manager
“We get it: shipping your valued products off to some photo studio can sound a little scary. So come with me, Connor, the Studio Manager here at Elysian, as I show you every step of the photoshoot process, from receiving your products to posting the final photos on your website.” - Connor
The largest hurdle that our customers have to jump is just getting comfortable shipping their products to us. We want you to know that your products aren’t just in good hands, they are in the best hands.
We pride ourselves on the processes we have implemented in our studio to ensure all products stay organized and safe. That way we can spend all of our time and energy on the photoshoot, resulting in the best possible visual content for your brand.
We know that guarantee isn’t always enough, so we thought we would take the time to walk you through every single step of a typical photoshoot so you know exactly what you’re signing up for when you partner with Elysian.
1. Placing an order
The first step in the process, actually placing the order, is the main role you have when working with us. Still, we try our best to make it as easy and simple as possible for you so you can get back to running your business.
Email Us: We know that all orders are different and unique in their own way, so we recommend talking with us directly. When you request a quote, an email will go directly to our team, and our studio producer will respond within 1 business day to get your project rolling. Once they answer your questions and collect some preliminary information, they will hand you off to me to begin talking about the creative stuff.
Once your order is in our system, you’re all set to send us your products! Just pack them up tight, make sure you have shipping insurance, and send us the tracking number so we can expect their arrival. That’s it! Your part is done, and now it’s up to us.
2. Receiving your products
One of my personal favorite clients that we work with is a lighting company, so today we will be shooting a large batch of lighting fixtures (the final photos from this photoshoot are farther down in this article).
This customer, in particular, sends us products from multiple shipping centers around the country, and the total product count is about 600. They simply send us their products in smaller batches on a consistent basis. The products can range from small bathroom light fixtures to ceiling fans and chandeliers.
When we receive the shipment we organize all the boxes and immediately label them with our internal labeling system. This ensures their products stay separated from other clients’ products, but also ensures we stay fair with our turnaround commitments by shooting the products in the order they arrive.
Finally, we mark the status of the order as “received” so we are able to schedule the photoshoot and begin the shooting process.
3. Prepping the products
In order to be as efficient as possible and allow the photographer and stylist to do their jobs, we need to make sure all products are all ready to shoot before they make it to the studio set.
All product preparations are different: apparel requires steaming to remove wrinkles, decor needs to be unpackaged, and some products require assembly.
Regardless of what the product is, everything needs to be unboxed, checked for damages, and placed on the photographer’s set. For this lighting company, each product also requires a brief assembly, so we will do that before we shoot.
Once that’s all done, it’s finally showtime!
4. Photoshoot
With us, the easy part also happens to be the fun part: photography and styling! Nothing beats shooting, and our team loves every second of it.
This particular customer requested 5-6 angles of every product that they sent us on a white background. Now that all the products are prepped, we just place each one on set, style them as necessary to make them look as good as they can, and shoot every angle.
They also asked for 360° spins so their customers can really interact with their lighting fixtures and see every detail, so before the fixtures leave the set we do a quick 360° spin.
When we are shooting, we do many different things that can’t possibly be summarized in this article, but below is a list of some of our core services we apply to every order:
Meticulous styling of every product
Light balance, including controlling all highlights and shadows to make the product look the best it can
Diffusing or bouncing the light to let it hit the product in a flattering way
Camera control, or modifying the settings of our camera gear to result in the best image possible
Extracting the background to a pure white background
Simple retouching, including color correction, contrast and saturation enhancements, and dust or blemish removal.
Exporting the highest resolution file in the format the customer requested
Most importantly, we make real-time decisions about shooting the products. We are proud of the training our studio team has gone through to learn what is truly the best way to shoot every product that comes in our doors. Because of that, we guarantee that your images always look phenomenal since our team knows what works best.
Examples from this photoshoot
5. Approval process
Your shoot is done and your photos are ready to view! We aren’t happy until you are, so now it’s time for the photo revision process.
Not to brag, but the majority of our customers are thrilled with their photos right away, no revisions needed. But sometimes customers either had a different vision of their products, or the products were a little tricky to understand for our team. And that’s okay! Either way, every customer is allowed one round of revisions.
Once your shoot is done you will receive all of your photos in an online proofing gallery, and oh boy, it is so much more than a gallery. Below are just some of the features our gallery has:
You can click the “approve” button which will unlock all of your photos and allow you to download them directly.
You can comment on each photo individually, requesting specific changes or alterations.
You can flag or favorite images.
You can view images side-by-side, comparing similar products.
You can change how you view the files, as thumbnails or full screen.
You can share files directly from the gallery.
But, remember, you only get one revision phase, so make sure all comments are submitted at once. If revisions are needed we will get back to work and send you your updated files. Then just click that download button and start using your images!
6. Product return
If you want your products back, we are happy to package them up again and send them back to you as soon as you approve your final images.
But, about 75% of our customers choose to donate their products to a local charity. We are proud to play an active role in the Cleveland community, and we want to be a good neighbor, so we choose to donate as many products as possible to charities around us.
So tell us if you are okay with your products being donated. Most products cannot be sold once opened from the package anyway, and shipping can be so expensive, so this is a wonderful way to give back to the community.
That’s it! See, it’s a lot more simple than what most people think. Before you know it you have professional images of all of your products, and those very same products are safely in the mail back to you or already donated to a local charity.
You may still have some questions, though, so please contact me anytime. If you click the button below you will be directed to a form that sends directly to me. Or, give me a ring by calling my office phone number listed below.
Either way, I sincerely hope to see you as a customer of ours in the near future. We know that our services can benefit any business, so partner with us today to produce captivating visual content for your customers.
Connor Moriarty - Studio Manager
(440) 528 - 3578
