A common marketing request we receive is to capture a product in practical environments for use in digital and print materials. Some examples would be a smart speaker on a living room side table, a security camera installed on aluminum siding, or a paint can on the floor of an unfinished basement. For each of these scenarios to be captured professionally, you’d need the following pieces:
a) Final manufactured version of product and labeling
b) Closed location
c) Producer(s) and production crew
d) Camera package(s)
e) Grip and lighting package specific to location and look-development
f) One or more days per location depending on the number of products or variations to be captured
This practical approach to product photography is an excellent way to capture your product, but there are some variables where a CGI approach would be the best fit.
1) Under Development
A manufacturer may want to advertise their product at a conference or trade-show, but they only have partially finished prototypes or 3D CAD files of their product. In this instance, CGI renderings or animations of their product will allow them to test market interest, make adjustments based on customer reactions, and even sell pre-orders before final production. Plus, if there are product changes, renderings and animations can be re-created with product changes more easily than re-shooting a practical setup.
2) Product Variations
Consumer products typically have color, size, and style variations that make real-world photography more cumbersome. Using the smart speaker example from earlier. The product may come in 4 different color choices and 2 size options. Besides needing to capture the same camera angles and product placement for each of the 8 product variations, you might also need to have a new locations to complement each color choice. This can quickly scale the difficulty and time required to photograph in practical environments.
3) Customization
Finally, capturing your product in a 3D application allows for the bending of real-world properties and the possibilities are quite limitless.
“Want to show this shoe floating above a frozen lake?”, “...what if our energy drink was sitting on a cloud,” “Can we cycle through all 6 styles while maintaining the same camera move, inside the airplane hangar?” Yes, yes, and yes!
For each of the CGI benefits, there are instances where a practical setup is the right approach. For either of your needs, we are here to help make your imagination and reality.
Cheers,
FX Jedi
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