How to photograph your Etsy products with just a phone

Abridged Run on: *glossy mint stoneware mug, hand-painted; a kitchen with one north-facing window and a pale wood table; owns books, linen tea towels, a plant, a moka pot; budget nothing.*

1. The shot list, in listing order

#	Shot	Why it’s here
1	Mug on the wood table by the window, three-quarter angle at table height, one prop softly blurred behind	The thumbnail. It must communicate object + quality + a real home in one glance
2	Straight-on, the painted cat face centred, plain background	The buyer’s second question: what does the design actually look like
3	In a hand, held naturally	The scale shot. A hand is the most universally understood ruler there is
4	Overhead, mug with coffee in it, on the table with a book	In-use. Sells the moment rather than the object
5	Close-up of the glaze and speckle	Justifies the price. This is where “handmade” becomes visible
6	The handle from the side	Answers a real question people won’t ask
7	All three glaze colours together	Shows the choice exists
8	Wrapped, mid-packing	Gift-shoppers buy the unboxing as much as the mug

2. The setup. North-facing is the best window you could have asked for — it gives soft even light all day and never a harsh shadow. Put the table side-on to the window so light comes from the left or right, never from behind you or the camera. Turn every other light in the room off. Mixing daylight with a ceiling bulb is what makes phone photos look yellow and cheap, and it’s the single most common thing wrong with handmade-shop photos. Prop a sheet of white card, a white chopping board, or a folded tea towel on the shadow side about 40cm from the mug — that’s your bounce, and it costs nothing.

3. The props. Use: one book, one linen tea towel, the moka pot for shot 4 only. Leave out the plant — mint glaze against green leaves fights, and the leaves will pull a green cast onto the white areas of your mug. The rule: three props maximum, and each one has to earn its place by telling the buyer something. A prop that’s just decorating the frame is competing with what you’re selling.

4. Your three specific mistakes

• Reflections. Glossy glaze mirrors the window as a bright white streak, usually straight across the cat’s face. Rotate the mug a few degrees between shots and watch the highlight move; there’s an angle where it falls on the rim instead of the painting.
• Colour shift. Mint is a nightmare on phone cameras — it drifts blue in shade and grey under mixed light. Photograph it next to something pure white (the bounce card) so your phone has a reference, and check the final image against the actual mug in daylight before you list it.
• Scale confusion. A mug alone in a frame could be espresso-sized or a soup bowl. That’s what shot 3 is for, and it’s why it’s third rather than seventh.

5. The scale shot. A hand holding it, fingers relaxed and visible around the body. Don’t use a coin or a ruler — they look clinical and buyers have to think. Hands are understood instantly.

6. Phone settings. Turn the flash off and never turn it on. Turn the grid on and put the mug on a line rather than dead centre. Tap the screen on the painted face to set focus, then slide the little sun icon down slightly — phones overexpose pale objects on pale surfaces, and one notch darker keeps the glaze detail. If you have a “portrait” mode, use it for shots 1 and 4 only; it makes the others look fake.