How to Take Lifestyle Photos that Engage Customers and Drive Sales | soona

How to Take Lifestyle Photos that Engage Customers and Drive Sales

Learn how to shoot lifestyle product photography that engages customers and drives sales. Plus get lifestyle photography tips updated for 2024.

Erica

senior director of creative product

September 11, 2024

14 min

Product photography isn’t one-size-fits-all. You need to be familiar with so many varied styles: flat lays, product-on-white, action. The list goes on.

And you may need an assortment of all of these styles for effective marketing and ecomm business. Lifestyle photography is one of those incredibly effective and engaging ways to show off your business or product. But lifestyle photography isn’t just a candid photo of your product in-use. This type of product photo offers endless creative freedom—and a lot of challenges too. We’re going to cover 12 tips to get you started showing your customers exactly how your product belongs in their lives.

Consider how you can level up your ecommerce photography even more using these quick editing tips.

What is lifestyle product photography?

Lifestyle product photography is a style of photography that aims to capture products in real-life situations, highlighting how they’re used in everyday life. This type of photography goes beyond traditional product shots, which often feature the product against a plain background, by placing the product in context. The goal is to tell a story and evoke an emotional connection with the viewer.

How to take lifestyle photos that convert

1. Plan your shoot

It’s always a good idea to start with a plan, regardless of the type of shoot you’re having. Start with a goal in mind—do you need to capture shots for social media? Are you filling a content gap in your marketing mix? Do you need to support a new product launch? Planning will help you understand what you need so you can prepare for a smooth shoot day.

Write up a shot list as part of this process. Include every product, prop, background, scene, model, and other details.

2. Set the scene

Props are an important part of product photography. But with lifestyle photos, props can be bigger and more involved in the scene. Remember, you’re telling a story about your product. That story might involve an entire setting!

Let’s say you sell mugs and mugs only. You want a lifestyle photo, more than just a photo of a mug. Maybe you want a model cradling their mug in a coffee shop. The lighting is warm and low, and they’re smiling at the barista with a book tucked into their arm. You don’t sell coffee or books, but it’s necessary to set the scene!

Set your background

Part of setting the scene includes choosing the perfect background for your product shot. You want a natural background that supports the story you’re trying to tell. Remember to minimize distractions. A busy background will take away attention from the main subjects of the shot.

Get models in place

One of the best ways to showcase how your product will fit into your customers’ lifestyle is through models. While a simple hand model might show off a nail polish line, a full-body model can show off how that amazing color plays IRL. Even throwing in a cute pet model can elevate the relatability of your photos!

🔑 Key to success: Remember, you want your customer to relate to your brand and need your product. If glam is what you’re going for, you got it! But you can also create killer lifestyle photos with a model you’d expect to see on a hike or getting ready for bed.

3. Perfect the lighting

Lighting is imperative for all photos. While you can use artificial lighting, take it outside if you can. Switch up the studio background and take your lifestyle shoot outdoors! Many products have just as many outdoor uses as they do indoor.

🔥 Hot tip: For crisp product photos, bright and indirect natural light is always the way to go. However, with lifestyle photography, you can get a little more experimental with your lighting. Try out golden hour or blue hour.

4. Check your shots

After you’ve set up the scene and taken some initial photos, review your shots. Do this continuously as you shoot different scenes and frames.

Regularly check your shots on a larger screen if possible. This helps you spot any issues with composition, lighting, or focus that might not be obvious on a smaller camera screen.

5. Edit your photos

Once you’ve captured all the necessary shots, the next step is to edit the photos to enhance their visual appeal and ensure they align with your brand’s aesthetic. Editing should enhance the natural beauty of your photos without making them look overly processed.

Tips to keep in mind

Lifestyle product photography FAQs

How do you shoot lifestyle photos?

  1. Plan your shoot
  2. Set the scene
  3. Perfect the lighting
  4. Check your shots
  5. Edit your photos

What is considered a lifestyle photo?

A lifestyle photo is an image that depicts a product or person in a real-life, relatable setting. This type of photography aims to tell a story and connect emotionally with the viewer.

Examples of lifestyle photos include: