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eBay auction Item Photographs - How to take eBay Photos
Frankly, If you don't include a photograph, you probably shouldn't even bother to list your item on eBay because
you're bound to be disappointed by the closing price. Why are images needed? It's simple: Photographs allow buyers to quickly judge the type, color and condition of an item. Buyers want to see what they are
buying. The old adage holds true here: "A picture is worth a thousand words". Images are crucial, but they don't provide any information to a search engine. Don't be fooled into thinking that a photograph
can take the place of a detailed description.
How do I put an image in my auction?
To post an image in your listing, you need to do two things: 1.) Take a photograph and obtain a digital image, and then 2.) upload the image to eBay or some other hosting location on the internet where it can be accessed by your eBay auction.
Obtaining images - You have a few options. The easiest and best option is to use a digital camera. Image resolution and file size - As we wrote previously, most internet users still connect to the web using dial-up service. eBay sellers must be sensitive to the amount of time that it takes for their auctions to load on buyers' computers; especially images. The newest digital cameras have the ability to take photographs that are of such a high resolution, that the resulting image files will be excessively large and take minutes to load into an eBay auction using a dial-up connection. If your images are too large, they’ll take forever to load. If they are too small, buyers will not be able to see enough detail to judge the quality and condition of your item.
All digital cameras have selectable resolution settings. We have found that using digital photos taken in 640 x 480 pixels resolution are a good compromise between adequate detail and image file size. We
normally take photos using a 640 x 480 setting and crop the photos down from there. A digital photograph taken in 640 x 480 resolution will typically result in a color .jpg graphic file of about 40k - 60k.
Scanners - If you're selling items that are relatively flat and small, a great option is a scanner. Books fit this category. If
you use a scanner, again you don't want images that are too large. Setting your scanner to capture images in 72 dots per inch (dpi) is a good compromise between detail and size. Also, if you own a conventional film
camera, you can take photographs with it, have them developed, and then scan them with the scanner. A little tedious, but if you're not willing to invest in a digital camera, and you have access to a scanner, it's
definitely an option. But if you're going to sell on eBay, you really should invest in a digital camera. Prices have really come down in the last couple of years so there's really no excuse not to buy one.
Tripods
- You'll want to mount your digital camera on a tripod. Not only does a tripod hold your camera steady, once you've set up your lighting to your satisfaction, the tripod maintains your camera in a position so that your lighting will not have to be readjusted for the next item you photograph.
Lighting
- In addition to setting up in a well-lit room, we use at least two portable sources of light. By placing lights on the opposite sides of your book or item, it should have adequate lighting, and shadows will be reduced. Make sure that the lights are not above the item so that there is no glare. In the past, we used halogen shop lights, the kind mounted on a collapsible stand (they're cheap and easy to adjust), but the light always seemed a little yellow. What we've found that works even better, are old high-watt plug-in photography and video lights. The early video camcorders needed a lot of light, so for indoor shoots the solution was to attach a high-watt light to the top of the video camera. They normally have a bayonet fitting on the bottom so they can be easily mounted on a tripod. You can commonly find used quartz video lights and camera tripods at thrift stores, and normally for only a few dollars.
What type, and how many photos should I upload?
It depends upon how rare and collectible the book is. For inexpensive books, a single photo of the front cover, and perhaps even the back cover should probably suffice. For rare and very collectible books, the following is a good guide to the types of photos you should take. 1. A photo of the front cover with the dust jacket in place if it has one. 2. If the book has a dust jacket, remove it and take a photo of it lying flat, with the flaps unfolded. If the book does not have a dust jacket, take a photo of the spine of the book. 3. Take a close-up photo of any copyright, edition and date information. If it is signed, take a close-up photo of the signature. 4. Take a photo of the book cover without the dust jacket in place. If there are any severe defects in the book, try and take a detailed photo of them also.
When setting up book photo shoots, avoid using your hand to hold or position the book if there is no way that you can avoid seeing your hand in the photo. Even though it looks extremely unprofessional, we
see it all the time on e-Bay. Part of the game of selling on eBay is looking respectable and professional.
We have found that using a large square of cloth such as velvet or corduroy or other somewhat
"fuzzy" material, makes an excellent and inexpensive background for book photo shoots. Fuzzy materials absorb light and inhibit glare. We recommend that dark colored fabric (black) be used as a backdrop
for light colored books or items and a light colored piece of fabric (in a pleasing color such as light blue) be used as a backdrop for dark colored books.
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