Artistic vs. Untouched Photos in Reviews

Contributor: Djiffy Djiffy
If the editing obscures the product from view or makes it more difficult to see certain features of it, then no. Otherwise, a bit of artistic editing isn't too bad.
04/18/2012
Contributor: AU AU
I voted for artistic images, but I might retract that and tame my opinion a little. My luck hasn't brought me to many such reviews yet. As a hobbyist photo editor myself, I enjoy a bit of modification. But I appreciate careful and gentle work in such editing, especially for reviews. I think that some of the photos should be clear and for lingerie, somewhat honest. Maybe keep artistic images for just one or two shots, to excite the viewer. I think that everyone who submits photos would benefit from not only learning basic photo editing for clarity, and color correction but and also the capabilities of their camera--no closeups if your camera can't handle them! We should be able to see your product, no matter what equipment and software you use!
04/18/2012
Contributor: pootpootpoot pootpootpoot
I can't stand filters. I like to look at the colors of the products I want to buy and filters screw that up. Other editing, like writing on the photos in paint or whatever can help if it's productive (like pointing to a certain part of the toy/lingerie with a little note), and doesn't mess with the appearance of the piece.
04/18/2012
Contributor: PeaceToTheMiddleEast PeaceToTheMiddleEast
I like a mixture of both as long as I can see the product and it is not to crazy.
04/18/2012
Contributor: Crystal1 Crystal1
Overall, I prefer photos natural or with minimal editing. I'll sometimes fix sharpness/contrast/etc on my own photos when something just isn't coming across the way it looks in real life, but nothing major. To me, the whole point of having photos in reviews is to show how something really looks, without all the fancy lighting and photoshopping that companies do to promote their products.

That said, if you have fun getting a little artsy with photo editing, I don't see anything wrong with throwing in a snazzy photo or two, as long as you have other, more natural ones in there to show the real deal.
04/18/2012
Contributor: Elaira Elaira
This picture for the the EOS Shaving Cream is one that I consider to be "artistic" even though it is edited. The first photo I had was dark, slightly blurry, and overall very dull looking. Fixing those and paying attention to composition is what I see as more artistic.

Some of my photos are a little more edited than that, but that was to fix things that were the result of environmental issues. And I also feel like taking simple pictures of the product give a little more room for an artistic touch than photos showing specific details of the product. My picture in my Bondage Duckie review is slightly more artistic, but it feels fun. The picture really doesn't tell you any more than the product photos do, really, but I feel like it shows off his personality.
04/18/2012
Contributor: Starkiller87 Starkiller87
I like clean, correctly lite photos. I hate altered photos period, even outside the realm of reviews. Im an artist, Im a purist when it comes to those things. I dont like photoshop period. My editing goes as far as cropping something and thats all.

I wish more people minded their lighting in review photos, some dont realize how dark theirs are---in some cases it renders the photo moot.
04/18/2012
Contributor: Starkiller87 Starkiller87
Quote:
Originally posted by Elaira
This picture for the the EOS Shaving Cream is one that I consider to be "artistic" even though it is edited. The first photo I had was dark, slightly blurry, and overall very dull looking. Fixing those and paying attention to composition is ... more
See I dont consider that too be overly artistic. The boarder is simple so it doesnt bother me. Its when it has all the swirls and butterflies and a billion other things in different colors with sparkles etc etc that bug me.

Also the "instagram" vintage look doesnt bug me that much because it isnt messing with the integrity of the product photo. I see yours and just see it as a in use photo and it works.
04/18/2012
Contributor: Elaira Elaira
Quote:
Originally posted by Starkiller87
I like clean, correctly lite photos. I hate altered photos period, even outside the realm of reviews. Im an artist, Im a purist when it comes to those things. I dont like photoshop period. My editing goes as far as cropping something and thats all. ... more
I agree with the last part of that.

There are several photos in reviews where it's hard to really see what's going on either because there's so much blur or there's no lighting. I'm almost thinking we should do a "How to Take Photos for Reviews" workshop so everyone can get some tips and tricks to help them get stellar photos.

Macro mode for close-ups and daylight.

I also found a rather quick app for Google Chrome called Picnik. Upload photo, crop, auto-fix, clarity, throw on a border and you're done and have a great photo.
04/18/2012
Contributor: northstar northstar
I enjoy artistic photos and prefer retouched over completely natural. Purely because there may be an element which is distracting and in no way would benefit the subject & overall photo.
04/21/2012
Contributor: TheSinDoll TheSinDoll
Quote:
Originally posted by Nazaress
I said that I can deal with photo-editing but not much. And really, the editing can only be dumb little things that don't matter (or at least don't change the item and how it wears/looks/etc., such as getting rid of blur and bright spots). So ... more
This. I couldn't have said it ant better!
05/13/2012
Contributor: Missmarc Missmarc
I like artistic photos and I enjoy viewing them, as long as they are true to the product they represent.
05/13/2012
Contributor: nanamondoute nanamondoute
For reviews, I prefer untouched. As an unbiased reviewer, you're not trying to sell the product. An untouched photo gives the most honest representation of the product.
06/07/2012