At any given time there are millions of pieces of clothing for sale on the Internet. With that much competition you are going to have to try harder to get that buyer to consider your shirt, jacket, skirt or dress.
A shirt lying on the floor, or hung from a coat hanger on a door does little to convey information about that piece of clothing you are trying to sell.
Generally speaking, clothes are best displayed against a contrasting background. If the item is white shoot it against a dark background. If the item is dark, shoot it against a light background.
Your potential buyer wants to know what that item of apparel will look like on them. If you are going to be selling lots of clothes, a full mannequin purchase is in order. It will run you several hundred dollars, but it will pay for itself in short order with higher final values.
One question I often get is: What about photographing the item on one of my friends or a family member? Well, if the item is used, the buyer really doesn't want to be reminded that it has been worn by someone else. I strongly recommend you
do not use a live model. Only catalogs can get away with it. They are selling new clothes and paying top dollar for professional models.
If you are an occasional clothing seller, I found these hollow back mannequins on
eBay for under $40.00 delivered.
One way to get the detail in the item and show off the clothing is to diffuse the light. In other words, put something between the light source and the item. I use shoot-through umbrellas for this. If you aren't ready to purchase them (they really aren't very expensive, so I suggest you put a pair on your buy list) you can use other means to soften the light. Some people will hang a translucent cloth or shower curtain between the light and item.
More about diffusing light, how and why can be found in
Easy Auction Photography.
Below is the final result: I used diffused light and the hollow back mannequin to bring out the detail in this 100% silk Hawaiian Shirt.
One final note - if the item is too large for the form, use the fill trick. Wrap or stuff newspaper to so the item doesn't hang too loosely. The fill trick works great for bags, packs and purses as well. Buyers want to see full items not flat items.
That's it for now.
If you are interested in finding out more information about the tools mentioned above please check out these links.
Easy Auction Photography eBay Umbrella Light SetsLabels: Clothes Photography, Internet Photography
