Camera Settings for Product Photography: A Step‑by‑Step Guide to Flawless Shots

Pixofix Team
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October 3, 2025

The Fundamentals: Exposure Triangle & Why You Control It

Understanding camera settings in product photography starts with the exposure triangle: ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. These three settings don’t just affect brightness. They shape sharpness, clarity, mood, and how much editing you’ll need later. With static subjects and controlled lighting, you’re not just allowed to take full control — you’re expected to.

Let’s break down how each setting works for product shots.

ISO: Sensitivity to light

Keep ISO low. Always. That’s rule number one.

ISO controls how sensitive your camera sensor is to light. Higher ISO makes the sensor more sensitive, but it also introduces digital noise: that grainy texture that kills detail and sharpness.

For product photography, where lighting is controlled, there’s almost never a reason to go above ISO 200. Set your lights right, stabilize your camera, and keep ISO at 100 or 200. That way, you get cleaner images and more flexibility in post without having to fix noise.

Side by side comparison of iso in product photography.

Aperture: Depth of field and sharpness

Your aperture controls two things: how much light enters the lens, and how much of the scene is in focus.

For product shots, sharpness matters. You usually want the entire item — front to back — crisp and clear. That’s why most pros use a mid to small aperture, usually between f/8 and f/16. This range gives you the depth of field you need without hitting the diffraction wall.

What’s diffraction? It’s when going too small (like f/22 or smaller) actually softens the image. Sounds backward, but it’s real. So don’t assume that smaller is always sharper.

Sometimes you might use a slightly wider aperture (like f/5.6) if you want to highlight just one part of the product or blur the background a bit. But that’s an intentional creative choice — not the default.

Products shot in different apertures.

Shutter Speed:  Exposure and stability

With products, you’re not freezing motion. That gives you freedom.

You can use a slower shutter speed to let in more light — as long as the camera is rock solid. That’s why tripods matter. You might shoot at 1/30s or even slower without any blur if the setup is stable.

Set your ISO and aperture first, then adjust shutter speed to hit the right exposure. If the light meter shows you’re underexposed, slow the shutter down. If it’s too bright, speed it up.

And always use a remote trigger or your camera’s timer. Even pressing the shutter button can cause slight shake at slower speeds. One tiny bump can ruin an otherwise perfect image.

Additional Essential Settings and Tools

Shooting Mode: Manual vs Priority

Manual mode is your best friend in product photography. It gives you full control over ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. That means once you dial in your lighting and exposure, every shot looks the same — which is exactly what you want when shooting a full product catalog.

If you’re shooting handheld or in changing light, Aperture Priority mode can be useful. You lock in your depth of field and let the camera adjust the shutter speed for you. Just know that consistency can suffer, and you may need to fix exposure variations later.

RAW Format

Always shoot in RAW. JPEG might save space, but it compresses your image and throws away data you cannot get back. RAW keeps every bit of detail, which matters when you need to fix color, white balance, or shadows in editing.

Even minor edits like pulling back highlights or correcting exposure work better in RAW. If you want your product shots to look polished without redoing the entire shoot, this one setting makes all the difference.

White Balance and Color Accuracy

Accurate colors are non negotiable. Set your white balance to match your lighting setup. That could mean choosing a daylight preset, setting a custom Kelvin value, or using a gray card for calibration.

What you should avoid is letting your camera pick auto white balance. It often guesses wrong, especially under artificial lights. Use color checker tools to calibrate your setup and keep every image looking uniform.

Focus Mode and Autofocus

Use single point autofocus. It lets you place the focus exactly where you want — usually on the front edge or a key detail of the product. This keeps the sharpest point where it matters most.

While manual focus sounds appealing, most product photographers find that modern autofocus is actually more precise, especially when paired with focus peaking or magnification tools. Just make sure it locks where you intend. A slightly missed focus is obvious when your product is the only thing in the frame.

Lighting and Support Tools

A stable camera is a sharp camera. Use a tripod or a solid mount to eliminate any risk of blur. This is even more critical when using slow shutter speeds or smaller apertures that need longer exposure times.

Lighting should be soft and even. Use diffusers, light tents, or softboxes to eliminate harsh shadows and specular highlights. Keep all light sources at the same color temperature. Mixing warm and cool bulbs creates color casts that are hard to fix in post.

If you want a clean and consistent look, control everything in your environment — from the bulbs to the bounce cards.

Starting Point and Example Settings for a Studio Setup

If you are working in a controlled environment like a studio or lightbox, you do not need to guess your settings. Start with a simple baseline and adjust based on what you see through the lens.

Here is a reliable starting point you can test right away.

ISO
Set it to 100 or 200. This gives you clean images with no noise. In a well-lit space, you should never need to raise it higher.

Aperture
Start at f8 or f11. This gives you enough depth of field to keep the whole product in focus without hitting the limits of diffraction. For most mid-size items, this is the sweet spot. If your product is very deep or tall, you might go tighter. If you want to blur the background slightly, open it up just a bit.

Shutter Speed
Let this one float. Set ISO and aperture first, then adjust your shutter speed until the exposure looks correct. Because the product is not moving and your camera is on a tripod, you can use slower speeds like one tenth of a second or longer without worry.

White Balance
Set it to match your lighting. If you are using daylight bulbs, use the daylight preset. If you are using a mix of sources, create a custom setting with a gray card. This keeps your colors accurate from the start.

Focus Mode
Use single point autofocus. Place the point right on the most important part of the product. You can even zoom in on your preview to double check sharpness.

File Format
Always shoot in RAW. It gives you more room to adjust exposure, white balance, and details during editing without damaging the image quality.

Putting It Together
Try this sequence. Start with ISO at 200. Set your aperture to f8. Point your camera, then adjust shutter speed until the exposure meter is centered. Take a test shot, check focus, and review your histogram. Once everything looks clean, you are ready to shoot the full set.

Workflow and Consistency in Product Shoots

Establish a Shooting Recipe

Once you dial in settings that work, save them. That becomes your recipe. Same type of product, same kind of lighting, same camera distance — you can reuse those settings again and again.

This saves time and keeps your catalog consistent. The more variables you can lock in, the better. Keep your light position, background, and angles identical across similar products. That kind of visual consistency is what makes your site or listing look polished and professional.

Bracketing and Exposure Checks

Even when your lighting is stable, exposures can drift. That is why exposure bracketing can help. It means taking multiple versions of the same shot, each with slightly different brightness.

Shoot one a little darker, one a little brighter, and one right where your meter says it should be. Then choose the best later. It is a simple safety net that saves you from redoing an entire shoot because of one exposure miss.

Also check your histogram after every few shots. It shows you whether highlights are blown out or shadows are crushed. Use it more than your screen preview, which can be misleading.

Adjust for Product Type and Material

Not all products behave the same. Shiny and transparent items are harder to shoot. They reflect everything, including the camera and the photographer. To handle these, you might need diffused lighting, polarizing filters, or creative camera angles.

Tall or complex products might also need more depth of field than a single aperture can give you. In those cases, shoot multiple images with different focus points and combine them later using focus stacking.

You do not need to do this for every item. But when you are shooting glass, metal, or layered textures, small changes in setup can make a big difference.

Post Shoot Calibration

Once you finish shooting, the job is not done. Use color calibration tools like color checkers or gray cards to correct for any shifts in tone or warmth.

Keep your editing pipeline consistent. Same exposure corrections, same contrast, same color balance. This is how you make sure that your product photos feel like a unified collection instead of a random mix.

Create presets in your editing software. That way, you are not starting from scratch every time. Your entire post production system should be as repeatable as your camera setup.

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Even with the right gear, product photos can fall flat if you are not careful. These are the mistakes that show up most often — and how to steer clear of them.

Using high ISO when you do not need to
Noise ruins sharp product images. If your lighting is good, there is no reason to raise ISO. Keep it low, always. If the image looks too dark, fix it with shutter speed or light placement.

Shooting with a wide aperture
It might look cool in portraits, but in product work, a wide aperture means shallow depth of field. That often leads to parts of the product going soft or out of focus. Stick to f8 or tighter unless you are making an intentional creative choice.

Slow shutter speed without stability
Long exposures are fine, but only if your camera is locked down. If you are shooting handheld at slow speeds, even a tiny shake will blur the shot. Always use a tripod or solid mount if you are working below one sixtieth of a second.

Inconsistent lighting and color shifts
Changing light temperatures between shots can make your catalog look chaotic. Use the same bulbs, same modifiers, same direction and strength. Also, avoid mixing daylight with artificial sources. It rarely works cleanly.

Letting autofocus drift
Your camera might focus on a background edge or shiny surface if you let it decide on its own. Use single point autofocus and place it carefully. Check each shot for sharpness before moving on. A great image with soft focus is a wasted image.

Relying on auto modes
Auto exposure and white balance are tempting shortcuts. But they introduce variation and force you to fix things later. Manual settings are slower at first, but they give you complete control and save time in post.

Using extremely small apertures thinking sharper is better
Going to f22 or beyond might seem like the safest bet for sharpness. In reality, that often introduces softness due to diffraction. There is a sweet spot — usually between f8 and f11 — where you get max clarity without side effects.

Main takeaway

Great product photography does not start in Photoshop. It starts in the camera. When you understand your settings — ISO, aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and focus — every photo becomes cleaner, sharper, and easier to edit.

Consistency is the real secret. Keep your workflow simple, lock in what works, and use it across your shoots. That is how you build a professional catalog. That is how you save hours in post production. And that is how you make your products stand out without gimmicks.

Use this guide as a baseline, not a rulebook. Adjust it for your products, your gear, and your creative goals. Photography is technical, but it is also flexible. The more you test, the more you find what works.

FAQ

What is the best aperture for product photography?

It depends on your product, but most photographers start between f8 and f16. This gives enough depth of field without losing sharpness to diffraction.

Can I shoot in auto or aperture priority?

You can, but manual mode gives you more control. For consistent results, especially in a studio setup, manual is usually the better choice.

Do I need to shoot in RAW?

Yes. RAW keeps all the image data, which gives you more control in editing. JPEG compresses and limits your options.

How do I handle reflective or transparent products?

Use soft, diffused lighting. Add polarizing filters or bounce cards to manage reflections. Sometimes you will need to shoot multiple exposures and blend them.

Should I use bracketing?

Yes. Bracketing helps you capture under and overexposed versions of the same shot. It gives you options and prevents wasted setups.