We’ve all been in the same position…rushing around and accidentally turn into some equipment, or getting frustrated because you’ve lost track of which batteries have been used. Fortunately, there are some cheap and easy tricks to use to save you from this and focus on the job at hand, delivering the best product photography service.

Soft Ball Feet

This is such a clever trick that once you’ve tried it, you will never look back. Put simply, there are so many stands, booms and other pieces of equipment that stick out on a photo shoot and it is easy to walk into one and hurt yourself. The solution is buying some brightly coloured balls (tennis balls are the best choice), cutting holes into them and sticking them onto the ends. The number of bumps and bruises will fall instantly with this handy tip.

You could try other products that are soft and ultimately, use whatever works for you. They just need to be soft and able to fit on the end of the stands or booms you’re using.

Reusing Gaffer Tape

Gaffer tape will be one of your best friends as a product photographer, whether working in fashion photography, jewellery or any other specialism. As a result, you will end up using a lot of it and it becomes a noticeable expense.

We believe getting into the habit of reusing the tape can really help save money, time and look after the environment. So during your next product photography session, try to put tape you’ve finished with on a nearby stand or ladder and then you have easy access for when you next need some tape.

Label it

Let’s start with the fundamental problem and that is losing track of the countless batteries, cameras, lenses, lights etc that all look identical particularly when you’re busy in the middle of a product photography session. A simple and more traditional hack is to label everything to ensure you don’t get confused, but we believe there is an even better solution that means you don’t have to stick nasty labels onto your equipment.

Use a special pen, such as a POSCA pen, that lets you write directly onto almost any surface without the need of a label. If you find the right ones, they are water-based and can be wiped off easily enough but really do make it easy to stay organised.

Non-slip lighting stands

The last top hack on our list is a way of fixing the issue of light stands slowly slipping or moving during a long product photography session. It is a little more dramatic than some other suggestions but you can use a sanding type machine to flatten the round surfaces and this will really help them grip better.

Obviously, this is a bit more permanent than the other tips on our list but do your research and if you struggle with this kind of problem, then definitely think about it. Don’t just rely on us though, do your research first!