I have always emphasized the importance of the “hero shot” when it comes to representing footwear. The problem with shoes is that their essence is very hard to capture in a photo, particularly in the standard white background packshot. Elegance, beauty and quality when it comes to shoes are things that really need to be seen in a natural environment and even more so, in person. The best one can do in photography IMHO is by taking “natural” shots, either on the feet of someone or in a photo in which the background is more natural i.e. more real. Skoaktiebolaget seemed to also realize this recently and have done a great job of upping their internet presence by offering more “real life” photos. The 3 in these pics here look infinitely better than their standard shots that they use for the webshop. But both are necessary in reality as one cannot so much go without the other. We need the standard shots to see every angle of the shoe to understand it’s technical features. But we need the hero shot to understand its beauty.
Well done to Skoab for their new photography, which to me looks absolutely brilliant!!
Just my two cent as a shoe buyer. While “natural” shoes may be appealing for many reasons, in natural settings it is very hard to fully grasp the colors and textures, especially when comparing to other shoes.
I much prefer to see well-lit shoes, especially if they are black, on an “invisible” white background. I’d like to see photos like that from all angles, i.e. top, bottom, both sides, front, back and a few profile shots.
Example sites that do a good job of this include:
– http://www.shoepassion.com
– http://www.cobbler-union.com
– http://www.herringshoes.co.uk
And in most cases 🙂
– http://www.jfitzpatrickfootwear.com
Not saying to avoid natural shots at all, but as an online shoe store, please don’t limit to just natural shots (this being advice to others who may read your post and think natural shots are all that are needed.)
-Mike