It makes perfect sense to go with what feels familiar, like basic retouching or background removal. But we’ve learned from working with thousands of photographers and business owners that your photos often benefit from multiple services working together. Combining services gets you better results with less hassle, since you can handle everything in one order instead of juggling separate projects. Let’s show you how to pick the right edits for your photos.

How to identify what your photos actually need

Before you start combining services, let’s figure out what you’re actually working with—it’ll save you time and help you get better results.

Photo diagnosis checklist

Take a look at your images and ask yourself if you spot any of these:

• Background issues: Is the background distracting, the wrong color, or inconsistent across your batch? Does it look messy or unprofessional?
• Subject problems: Are there imperfections, poor lighting, or color issues with your main subject? For apparel, does it need to show fit and drape without a model?
• Technical fixes: Is anything crooked? Are shadows missing or looking unnatural? Any dust, dirt, or glare issues?
• Brand requirements: Do you need multiple product colors? Specific formats? Transparent backgrounds for marketing materials?

Common photo problems and their solutions

Here are some scenarios we see all the time:

• “My product looks flat and boring” → clipping path + shadows
• “The background is messy and distracting” → background removal + retouching
• “I need to show this product in 5 different colors” → clipping path + color change
• “The model’s hair isn’t looking right” → image masking + retouching
• “My apparel needs to show shape without the mannequin” → ghost mannequin + retouching + symmetry

Most photo challenges need two to three services working together, not just one by itself.

How Path services work better together

Here’s why thinking in combinations instead of individual services makes more sense:

• Save admin time: Upload everything you need edited in a single order and get it all back together, ready to use. No juggling multiple orders or trying to keep track of which image versions are where.
• Speed up your workflow: Everything gets delivered together in the formats you need. Your designer handles all the edits for each image, so there’s consistency across the entire batch.
• Keep all photos consistent: When the same designer handles all your edits, you get cohesive results. Colors match, shadows look natural together, and the overall style stays consistent.
• Keep costs down: We offer discounts when you bundle multiple editing services together.

You can combine pretty much any of our services together—two, three, four, or more. What matters is understanding which combinations work best for your specific type of photography.

Service combinations by photography type

Every photography project has different needs, and you might even use the same image for different purposes. Here are some proven editing combinations that work well for different situations:

Sports photographers

When you’re dealing with high-volume shoots and tight deadlines, you need services that work fast and handle the most common issues in sports photography.

Your typical service combo:

• Image masking for complex backgrounds, hair, equipment details, etc.
• Background removal for clean, professional shots and official team photos, etc.
• Photo retouching for spot removal, color correction, skin touch-ups, etc.

There may be time-critical events such as championship coverage where you need polished images fast, or you might need to update and create consistent team roster headshots across an entire squad, just like this photographer does. You can choose different services depending on what each batch of images needs, whether that’s processing 200+ action shots or creating headshots with a uniform, professional look.

We offer turnarounds from 6 hours, so you can deliver images to your clients, magazines, or publications fast.

Product and ecommerce brands and photographers

For ecommerce, consistency is everything. Your product photos need to look professional, meet marketplace (like Amazon) standards, and convert browsers into buyers.

A standard combo:

• Clipping path for clean cutouts that meet marketplace requirements or create a clean website look.
• Shadow services add depth and dimension so products don’t look flat.
• Color change shows all available product colors without reshooting every single variant.

Advanced ecommerce stack (add these for even more polished results):

• Ghost mannequin is essential for apparel brands to show fit and drape.
• Symmetry shows perfect product alignment for a premium, professional look.
• Photo retouching removes any product imperfections (like wrinkles in fabric) and enhances details.

New ecommerce brands often start with the foundation combo (clipping path + shadows + color change) and add ghost mannequin as their apparel inventory grows. Established retailers may go with the full stack approach for complete consistency across their entire product catalog.

Portrait and headshot photographers

Professional portraits and headshots need to look polished but still natural. The goal is enhancing what’s already there, not creating something fake.

Typical professional edits for portraits and headshots include:

• Background removal/clipping path gives you versatile backgrounds for different marketing uses.
• Photo retouching helps with natural beauty enhancement, color correction, and flyaway hair fixes.

Corporate headshot scenarios may include:

• Basic combo of background removal + basic retouching.
• Premium package, adding advanced retouching and multiple background options for different brand uses.

Advanced portrait combination (for high-end clients or special projects) may include:

• Image masking for complex hair or clothing details.
• Color change for different outfit variations or brand color matching.
• Multiple background options so clients can use the same headshot across different marketing materials.

Wedding and event portrait combinations may include:

• Image masking for intricate dress details and flowing fabric.
• Retouching for flawless, natural skin and perfect lighting.
• Background removal for ceremony photos that need to work in albums and marketing.

How to choose your perfect edit combination

Use this simple framework to figure out which services make sense for any project:

1. What’s your end goal? Are these photos for marketplace listings, marketing materials, portfolio work, or client galleries?
2. What’s your biggest time constraint? Do you have a tight deadline, a high volume of images, or particularly complex edits?
3. What’s your budget priority? Are you focused on cost per image, or is premium quality and time savings more important?

Consider your photo use case

Sometimes the same photo needs different sets of edits depending on how you plan to use it. For example, a product photo might need:

• For marketplace listing: clipping path + white background + basic retouching.
• For social media: same photo but with different background + enhanced colors + shadows.
• For print: higher resolution + color matching + vector conversion.

How to mix and match your edits

Use this simple approach to figuring out which services work best for your projects:

• Start simple: Pick two to three core services that address your biggest pain points.
• Test combinations: Try different combos on smaller image batches to see what works best for your workflow.
• Scale up when it makes sense: Add more services as you see results and understand how they improve your final images.

When to add each editing service

Not sure which services you actually need? Here’s a quick reference for what each one does best.

Clipping path: When you need hand-drawn, crisp clean cutouts that you can use on any background.

Background removal: When you want clean white (or any color) backgrounds for product photos.

Image masking: For intricate shots with hair, fur, or complex borders that need precise, natural-looking cutouts.

Shadow: When products look flat or unrealistic—shadows add depth and dimension, and they actually help generate more sales.

Ghost mannequin: For apparel that needs to show natural fit and drape without models or mannequins, essential for consistent ecommerce catalogs.

Color change: When you have multiple color options and need to show true-to-life colors without reshooting every single shade.

Photo retouching: When imperfections distract from your subject—this corrects flaws and makes every element shine.

Multi-clipping path: When you need to select multiple areas within images for separate editing (like changing just the shirt color but not the pants).

Vector conversion: When you need scalable graphics and logos that maintain quality at any size.

Symmetry: When product alignment matters for brand consistency and that premium, professional look that converts better.

How to place your Path order

Ready to try combining services? Here’s exactly how to do it and how it works:

Getting started

1. Sign up for your Path account
2. Top up Path credits (optional but recommended—you get bonus credits when you top up)

The ordering process

3. Click “new order” to start your project
4. Select all the services you need for this batch—you can choose as many as you want
5. Upload your images using drag and drop
6. Get instant quote and you’ll see your total cost immediately
7. Set preferences like:
   a) File format for your edited images
   b) Additional comments or instructions
   c) Upload any supporting files if needed
8. Select turnaround time (longer turnaround means cheaper pricing, or choose rush for time-sensitive projects)
9. Review and approve your quote
10. Choose payment method and submit your order

If you need 1,000+ images edited a month, we offer bulk pricing with better rates and priority support.

Ordering edits with Path couldn’t be any easier

Now that you know which combinations work for your type of photography, placing an order is straightforward. Try Path free with 2 free edits and see how much better your photos look with the right services working together.

Let us look after your image edits, so you can get back to the fun stuff. Try Path free.

Learn more

The post How to Know Which Photo Editing Services You Need appeared first on Path Edits.

Chris does most of his work on his own—but he shares the burden of photo editing with Path.

Challenge

Chris has been a photographer for roughly 16 years. He started shooting portraits of dogs and children, and then started to branch out into family portraits, headshots, and eventually product photography.

Chris landed himself an awesome gig with a big box supplier that represents several brands. One of the main brands he works with is a fishing lure company.

“They need the images clipped out, and with an alpha channel and path,” Chris says. An alpha channel allows you to adjust an image’s transparency levels.

But not all the photo editing companies out there offer the option of an alpha channel. And Chris didn’t have the time to learn how to do it himself. “I had no idea how to do the alpha channel, and I was going to have to learn,” he says. “I hate doing computer work.”

“I had no idea how to do the alpha channel, and I was going to have to learn. I hate doing computer work.”

Plus, he still has to juggle shooting for other brands and vendors, as well as his local portrait clients.

Solution

About three years ago, when Chris received this request to put fishing lure product photos on a white background with an alpha channel, he began his search for a professional photo editing company that could help.

But many didn’t offer the option of the alpha channel—or they were too expensive.

That’s when he found Path.

“I went with Path because they were able to accommodate the alpha channel,” Chris says.

Outcome

Path fit seamlessly into Chris’s workflow. “Now, I take the pictures and I let Path handle the clipping, the retouching, the shadow, and the alpha channel,” he says.

“Path was able to do the edits real quick,” Chris says. And he has time to focus on the more advanced and creative edits to the headshots side of his business.

When you ask Chris about the biggest advantage of working with Path, it all boils down to one thing: time.

“Path handles the time-consuming tasks of clipping a product. And then when I realized Path also touched up photos, that has really improved my life. I don’t know how to clip an image as well as y’all.”

“Path handles the time-consuming tasks of clipping a product. And then when I realized Path also touched up photos, that has really improved my life,” Chris says. “Also, I don’t know how to clip an image as well as y’all.”

This time allows Chris to focus on shooting amazing photos and find a healthy work-life balance.

“I have more time,” he says. “The touching up has saved tons of time.”

“I have more time. The touching up has saved tons of time.”

You can save time on your photo edits, too. Give Path a shot with our free trial—no credit card, no commitment.

Let us look after your image edits, so you can get back to the fun stuff. Try Path free.

LEARN MORE

The post Find Out How This Pro Product Photographer Uses Path to Find Balance in His Work appeared first on Path Edits.

With patience and finesse, you can add natural-looking drop shadows in Photoshop to your product photos. This photo editing process takes time, skill, and an understanding of how shadows work.

To learn how to add a shadow in Photoshop to your product photos, watch the video below—and then scroll down to follow along via written tutorial.

How shadows work

Before you begin to draw or create your shadow in Photoshop, it’s helpful to understand how shadows work. Objects have two types of shadows:

1. Cast shadows are shadows around an object that appear on the floor or on other objects around the object.
2. Form shadows are shadows that appear within the object itself.

Both types of shadows are determined by the direction of, distance from, and number of light sources. You can use form shadows on your object to see how a realistic cast shadow might appear. Cast shadows become lighter and blurrier as they get further from the object.

In this Photoshop tutorial, you’ll learn how to add a natural shadow in Photoshop using a combination of the Drop Shadow Layer Style, transform tools, the gradient tool, blurs, layer masks, and alpha channels.

The difference between a drop shadow and a cast shadow

Creating a realistic shadow is a much more complicated and rewarding process than just applying a drop shadow to an object. Drop shadows by themselves are roughly the same size and dimension as the object. Rarely in real life would you encounter a shadow that looks just like an unmodified drop shadow. Adjusting your shadow into a three-dimensional cast shadow using the method described in this tutorial is essential to making your shadow look natural. 

Tutorial: How to add a natural shadow in Photoshop

1. Isolate your object from the background
2. Create a new background behind your isolated object
3. Determine your cast shadow color
4. Create a drop shadow
5. Create a layer from your drop shadow
6. Distort the drop shadow
7. Create an alpha channel
8. Create a gradient within your alpha channel
9. Blur selection
10. Create a layer mask
11. Consider light source and clean up shadows
    

1. Isolate your product from the background

Open the photo you plan to modify. Once you’re in the new file, open your Layers panel by going to Window > Layers. Select the object in your photo.

Copy your selection and paste it into a new layer. Doing this will allow you to work with your product image without destroying the original photo.

Give your new layer a name that indicates the background has been removed (or “isolated”) to avoid confusion with other layers as you create your shadows.

Click on the eye icon next to your Background layer to make the background invisible. This way, you’ll only be able to see your object against a transparent background.

2. Create a new background behind your product

In your Layers panel, select your hidden background layer. Go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Solid Color…. A dialog box will appear asking you to name the new layer. Let’s call it “solid white.”

Click OK.

Now the Color Picker window will appear on your screen. Move your cursor all the way to the upper left-hand corner of the color field to select white. Or, in the hexadecimal color value at the bottom of the dialog box (next to the # symbol), type “ffffff.” This will give you a pure white color.

Click OK.

You should have a layer of white covering your entire image.

In your Layers panel, grab your new white Fill layer and drag it underneath your “isolated” layer.

3. Determine your cast shadow color

Shadows have color, and you can look at form shadows on your object to determine what the color of your cast shadow should be.

Find a form shadow within your object, and use your Eyedropper Tool to select that shadow.

The selected color will appear as your foreground color at the bottom of your Toolbar. Double click on the new foreground color to bring up the Color Picker adjustment dialog box.

Adjust your selected color to be a bit darker and less saturated by moving the selection down and to the left of the color field. Click OK.

4. Create a drop shadow

With your isolated object layer selected, click on the fx button at the bottom of your layers panel and select Drop Shadow.

The Drop Shadow dialog box will pop up. Create a drop shadow by setting your shadow color to your foreground color. Don’t worry about the opacity, distance, spread, and size levels yet—you can adjust all of that later—but you can use the values in the screenshot below as a starting point.

Once you’re satisfied with your Drop Shadow settings, click OK.

5. Create a layer from your drop shadow

Go to Layer > Layer Style > Create Layer to separate your drop shadow from its layer. This will allow you to modify the shadow independent of the object. A warning dialog box might pop up when you go to create the layer; if that’s the case, just click OK.

6. Distort the drop shadow

In your Layers panel, select the newly created drop shadow layer.

Go to Edit > Transform > Distort to pull your drop shadow down to the floor.

Artistic knowledge comes in handy here—consider where the form shadows are on your object to determine which direction the cast shadow should fall naturally, and think about the vanishing point of your image to determine just how far you should distort the shadow.

7. Create an alpha channel

Our shadow is starting to look realistic, but remember that in real life, shadows become blurrier and lighter the further they get from the object. Using an alpha channel is an easy way to control the areas of the shadow that need to blur and lighten.

To create an alpha channel, go to Window > Channels to open your Channels Panel. Click on the Panel menu to select New Channel.

A New Channel dialog box will pop up. You can keep the name as its default, Alpha 1. Under Color Indicates, make sure the Selected Areas radio button is chosen.

8. Create a gradient within your alpha channel

In your Channels Panel, select your new Alpha 1 channel just as you would select a layer. Make sure the visibility (eye icon to the left of the channel name) is toggled on for all channels.

Select the Gradient Tool from the Toolbar. At the bottom of the Toolbar, make sure the foreground is set to black and the background is set to white.

In the Options Bar at the top of your application window, make sure the gradient is set to black-to-white, and the gradient type is linear.

Once your gradient settings are correct, set your cursor at the furthest point of your shadow (or beyond) and draw the gradient toward the part of the shadow that’s closest to the object.

The selection will be visible as a red gradient overlaying your image.

9. Blur selection

Once you’ve created your gradient in your alpha channel, you’ll see a red gradient on top of your image, indicating how the mask within the channel interacts with your image. You can toggle the eye icon next to Alpha 1 to make the red gradient invisible so it’s not distracting.

Click on the top channel in your Channels panel (either RGB or CMYK, depending on your image’s color mode) to select your color channels and deselect your alpha channel.

Go to your Layers panel to make sure you still have your drop shadow layer selected.

Go to Filter > Blur > Lens Blur. A dialog box will show up giving you significant controls over your blur.

Make sure the box next to Preview is checked. Under Depth Map, select Alpha 1 from the Source dropdown menu.

Keep the Blur Focal Distance at 0, and check the box next to Invert.

Slide the Radius to a high number (in this example, it’s set to 72). Leave all other values at their defaults. Click OK.

10. Create a layer mask

Go to Select > Load Selection. Choose Alpha 1 from the Channel dropdown options and make sure the radio button next to New Selection is checked.

Click OK.

Now you’ll see a selection approximating the darkest areas of the gradient you created in your alpha channel.

Select inverse by going to Select > Select Inverse, or by using the Photoshop keyboard shortcut for the action by typing SHIFT + CONTROL + I (SHIFT + COMMAND + I on a Mac).

In your Layers panel, click on the Layer Mask icon at the bottom of the panel. When the mask is applied, the shadow will appear to “fade” as it recedes into the distance. Notice the thumbnail for the layer mask matches the thumbnail next to Alpha 1.

You should see your shadow recede into the background as it gets “farther” away from the object.

If you’re looking for a subtler shadow, reduce the opacity of your Drop Shadow layer.

11. Consider light source and clean up shadows

Finally, make sure no portions of your shadow appear on the wrong side of your product or object. So, in the example in this tutorial, there should be no instances of the shadow that appear in front of the bicycle since the light source pushes the cast shadow behind it. Using the Eraser Tool, carefully remove shadows that don’t belong.

When to use a natural shadow in ecommerce

There are many reasons and ways to use drop shadows in product photos. When you display a product against a white background, adding a natural shadow helps your product pop against the background and creates a more realistic, professional-looking photo.

Furniture in particular lends itself to the natural drop shadow technique, adding dimension and depth to your product photos without the technical lighting aspects that occur during the shoot. Here’s an example from The Mood Store, where you can see natural shadows added to several images:

Famous Footwear does the same for its main product images, which are uniform in layout, background, and overall aesthetic.

Add natural shadows to bring your product photos to life

Adding natural shadows to each of your images in Photoshop is an important step to editing your product photos for the most sales. But it’s a time-consuming and detailed process—if you don’t have someone from your team dedicated to product photos, it can quickly become a distracting task.

You can outsource your natural shadows, and all your drop shadows, to Path—your virtual photo editing studio ready for you 24/7—so you can spend time on the more important parts of business and life.

How to add a shadow in Photoshop FAQ

How do I add a shadow to an image in Photoshop?

1. Isolate your object from the background
2. Create a new background behind your isolated object
3. Determine your cast shadow color
4. Create a drop shadow
5. Create a layer from your drop shadow
6. Distort the drop shadow
7. Create an alpha channel
8. Create a gradient within your alpha channel
9. Blur selection
10. Create a layer mask
11. Consider the light source and clean up shadows

What is the easiest way to add a shadow in Photoshop?

The easiest way to add a shadow in Photoshop is to add a Drop Shadow effect to the layer containing your isolated object.

How do you add a subtle shadow in Photoshop?

One of the easiest ways to create a very subtle shadow in Photoshop is to create a small, feathered ellipse of color under your object. This method works well for solid, simple shapes that you want to appear “floating” in a white space with a shadow beneath them.

1. Create an ellipse under your object using the ellipse tool. Set the ellipse to be short and wide, about the same width as your object.
2. Feather the selection.
3. Fill the selection with 50% gray.
4. Reduce the opacity of your new shadow.

What is drop shadow in Photoshop?

Drop shadow is a layer effect you can apply to any layer in Photoshop by selecting the layer and choosing Layer > Layer Style > Drop Shadow… from the menu at the top of the application window. While drop shadows can be manipulated into realistic-looking shadows, simple, unaltered drop shadows make the object look flat, as if it were a piece of paper casting a shadow on another piece of paper underneath.

The post How to Add a Shadow in Photoshop for Product Photos appeared first on Path Edits.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to combine multiple photo editing services in one order. Not only will this give you ideas on how to enhance your product photos in post-production, but also help you save time and money by helping plan ahead which combination of photo editing services to order.

Background removal + drop or natural shadow

Clipping path is a popular method for removing the background from a product photo. You can then use the cut-out product with a different color background or repurpose it in other ways. But the problem is straightforward product cut-outs can look flat.

You can create a more enticing product photo with a natural or drop shadow. Electronics, accessories, furniture, food and drink, and many other products can benefit from the shadow effect to stand out against a white background.

There are other shadow types you might want to use, like a floating or an enhanced existing shadow—it all depends on the type of products you sell. Items that naturally hang, like earrings or ceiling lamps, work well with a floating shadow, and so do products with unique angles like the sneakers in the example below.

An enhanced existing shadow is great for keeping the shadow captured during the shoot, like in the example below.

Background removal + reflective shadow

If you sell products like jewelry, watches, perfume and cosmetics, you can add a reflective shadow after removing the background with a clipping path. With such a simple change, you can create a luxurious aesthetic.

The reflective shadow gives an impression of a reflective surface beneath products, like in a store with a glass, metallic, or acrylic display.

Background removal + color change

In ecommerce businesses that offer multiple product variants, reshooting inventory every time a new product color comes in stock can be time-consuming and costly. You also have to be mindful about getting the lighting and composition consistent, so all products look the same.

However, you can streamline the process by ordering a color change in addition to background removal. All you need is a single photo that showcases your product.

Our editors will then carefully edit the different shades for a natural look so your customers can toggle between colors and pick the product variant most appealing to them. We complete every edit by hand, no automation or AI here, so you can rest assured your colors look realistic.

Product listings aren’t the only place to use color change shots—make the most of them in other parts of your marketing. For example, you can create a collage or a series of individual images for social media showing all color variations of your product. Or add all the different product color choices on a leaflet or brochure to distribute to potential clients.

Background removal + drop shadow

If you sell clothing and accessories, you already know how distracting price tags and hangers can be. With clipping paths, editors remove any distracting elements from the photo and cut out the background so all your product images are consistent.

Include a drop shadow in your order to add dimension and subtle product separation from the white background.

Camera glare + drop shadow

You may come across distracting camera glare in your photos, especially if you DIY your product photography. This happens when the light reflects off surfaces like glass and metal and shines into the camera lens. The effect may work for some creative lifestyle or product shots but not for professional ecommerce images.

There’s a simple fix—you can order photo retouching to remove camera glare and add a drop shadow for a pleasing photo ready for use in online stores and marketplaces.

Wrinkle removal (fabric) + drop shadow or clipping path

Getting your fabric products ready for the photoshoot is not an easy feat—packaging and transporting them can add wrinkles and creases even with the most careful preparation. Products like clothing, accessories, decor, and furniture may end up with various blemishes during the transit and shooting process.

A wrinkle removal will take care of any distracting imperfections. You can then combine it with a drop shadow or clipping path, depending on image use. In an ecommerce marketplace like Amazon, the clipping path removes the background, so you can use a white one to fit the listing photo requirements.

If you want to keep the original background, add the drop shadow to the wrinkle removal order and elevate the image further.

Photo retouching + color change

Photo retouching is the first step to removing imperfections like fabric wrinkles, tags, and blemishes on your product photos. Using photo retouching does not change the product’s appearance but enhances it to look professional and appealing to your customers.

For example, here, we first removed wrinkles from the model’s shorts while the rest of the photo stays the same. Then we added a product color change from brown to green.

Combining photo retouching with color change in the same order is useful if you have product variations in your inventory—it’ll save you reshooting the items.

With a lifestyle shot like this, it’s even more difficult to recreate the exact model’s pose and camera angle. In just a fraction of a second, the model’s facial expressions will change from one image to another.

But with color change, you don’t have to worry about that because all photos will look the same. You can order color change for products like clothing, accessories, jewelry, furniture, bedding, and others.

Ghost mannequin + drop shadow

Photos of clothing on hangers and mannequins don’t always do your products justice. To bring apparel to life, you can order a ghost mannequin service. Editors will remove mannequins or models (as well as the background) for a clean, cohesive look with an invisible model.

You can use ghost mannequin shots in different ways, but above all, this method will give cohesion to your apparel listings. To make the apparel look more realistic, add a drop shadow to your order, like in the example below.

Ghost mannequin + photo retouching (wrinkle removal)

You can’t always make products look perfect during the photoshoot, especially if you have a large inventory to shoot. If you order a ghost mannequin service to give the impression your clothing products are floating mid-air, you can also add photo retouching to make your apparel look its best.

Imperfections like wrinkles, seams, creases, stains, and loose threads can be hard to notice during the photoshoot, but editors can easily remove them.

How can you order multiple photo editing services for your products?

The combinations listed above are just some ways to mix and match product photo editing services from Path. To see the full list of editing services available, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Path account. Or if you’re already logged in, click the ORDER YOUR EDITS button at the top right.

2. Select your first editing service from the list.

Clicking on the v arrow will expand the subcategories of each service. For example, after selecting the Clipping path, you can choose the edit complexity based on the type of products in your photos.

3. Select your second service. If you pick shadow, for example, you can choose different types of shadow edits—natural, reflection, existing, floating, or drop shadow.

Some services may also have secondary subcategories with additional options.

4. Repeat step #3 for any additional services. Click the ADD INFO → button (bottom right) once you’ve added all the services you need.

5. You’ll be asked for editing turnaround time, any add-on services, and additional comments for your editor. Customize your order options accordingly and then upload your images.

Click UPLOAD IMAGES → to submit your image files, and then add contact information to receive the final edits. After you submit your order, you’ll receive your custom quote within 45 minutes—once approved, we’ll start working on them right away.

Read more about ordering multiple photo editing services on our help page or get a custom quote for your product photo edits now.

Professional photo edits for an ecommerce success

Without a doubt, photos are critical for selling products online. But achieving high-quality images takes time and effort.

Our Photoshop experts are all about saving you hours spent editing so you can get back to focusing on the things that move your business forward. Mixing and matching different types of photo editing services will speed up your workflow even more. No need to submit your order for each editing technique—we can do it all in one go and deliver them to you in as little as six hours.

The post From Flat to Fab: How to Use Multiple Types of Edits to Boost Your Product Photos appeared first on Path Edits.

But shadows can be effective at making your product pop and appear more appealing. Let’s step out of the dark and into the light and see a few ways you can use shadow edits to elevate your product images and drive more sales. 

What is a shadow edit?

A shadow edit is when you create, edit, add, remove, or otherwise manipulate shadows or reflections in an image. You can create shadows with the help of editing software like Photoshop and Lightroom. Common shadow effects include drop shadow, floating shadow, and reflection shadow.

Many of our clients send drop shadow edits along with clipping path edits. That’s because the two editing techniques together can take a flat, lifeless image and give it dimension, depth, and visual interest.

You can also use shadow edits to create different creative visual effects, or edit out mistakes.

Types of shadow edits

There are five types of shadow edits, each with its own visual effect and level of editing effort.

1. Drop shadow

A drop shadow is when you create a silhouette of a product very close to its edges. This shadow gives definition to the product by creating a light gray layer of varying opacity, angle, and saturation to one or more of its sides, making an otherwise flat image look more 3D and helping the product stand out from the background. 

2. Floating shadow

A floating shadow is placed below the product as if the ray of light is hitting it on the top, creating a shadow beneath. This adds dimension to the shot by making the product appear as though it’s floating above an imaginary and invisible surface. 

Floating shadows are fun, creative, and playful—they work especially well for marketing product images. See how the floating shadow makes this sneaker appear as though it’s flying:

3. Reflection shadow

A reflection shadow makes it appear as though the product is resting on a reflective surface. This type of shadow edit is often used for cosmetics, electronics, sunglasses, jewelry, perfume, and other luxury and glam shots. 

4. Natural shadow

A natural shadow edit is when you create a realistic shadow for images without any due to on-set lighting limitations or complex, uneven edges. The natural shadow makes it appear as though the object is resting on a non-reflective surface. 

A natural shadow makes items on a white background look more realistic and less artificial and flat—thus more appealing to a potential buyer. Plus, the shadow mimics the actual size and shape of the product, so it looks like a naturally cast shadow—not an effect added after the fact.

To add a natural shadow, we first create a clipping path to isolate the product and then use several Photoshop tools to create, place, and color the shadow to look like a natural one.

5. Existing shadow

An existing shadow edit is when you fine tune or enhance an existing, natural shadow that was created during the shoot by exposing one side of the object to a source of light. 

If the photographer did their job well, you can use the existing shadow in the final shot. It may still require minor tweaking to be featured on a different background, for example, but overall it’s all about keeping it natural. 

Ways to use shadow edits to improve product photos

Here are some ways to use shadow edits in your product photos to make the most of your investment.

Add dimension to your white background photos

Product images on plain white backgrounds can look flat. If you only apply clipping path or image masking, your results will be equally flat. But if you add floating shadow or drop shadow, the products come to life, bringing dimension to the frame and differentiating the product from the background. Suddenly your images don’t look flat anymore and thus your products are more appealing. 

Make jewelry shine

Reflection shadows are common for luxury products, and it works well for jewelry in particular. The reflection adds dimension to the frame, making it appear as though the jewelry is sitting on a reflective surface, and reiterates the details in the jewelry. 

This shadow effect mimics the in-store environment of most jewelry stores—think fluorescent lighting, lots of mirrors, and reflective glass display cases. 

Put your image on a new background

Not all product images have to have white backgrounds. In fact, there are many instances where you’ll want to get creative and use an alternative to white background ecommerce photos. 

But when you remove the original background to replace it with a new one, the output isn’t always seamless. The lighting and composition are likely different for both shots, so it likely requires some small touches and finesse to turn a composited photo into a natural-looking one. 

In this case, you’ll likely retain the original shadow and use an existing shadow edit to make it look natural in its new context. 

Fix distracting shadows or soften the harsh ones

One of the popular reasons to order shadow-making services is to fix the existing shadows. Sometimes you may want to make them less pronounced, as they take too much focus off the object.

In the below example with the red toy car, the shadow is rather complex, harsh and unnecessarily long. Whatever shadow is left in the “after” example only provides some depth and natural look to the product without overpowering it or taking away the focus from it. 

You may also want to fix lighting in post-production by retouching harsh lines coming from direct sources of light used without diffusers. Remember, shadows in your product shots should be much like shadows in real life—unnoticeably in the background, not competing with your product.

Remove shadows of unwanted elements

It happens quite often that some element is gone from the original image due to the reshuffling of objects in composition and whatnot. But the shadow might still be left in. That’s when you need to consider retouching helps too.

For example, this T-shirt has the shadow of the hanger and the rail in the original shot, while the resulting image has had it all removed: the objects as well as their shadows. 

Add unrealistic and creative shadows

This shadow edit is more creative than it is technical—it requires some outside the box thinking. Adding a creative shadow could result in stunning creative for ads or print photos.

Here’s an example from former tennis champion Stakhovskiy who turned into a wine producer. His creative social media shots use references to the championship period of the now-wine-maker quite a bit. This is how it used a shadow to tell a story. 

Outsource your shadow edits to a team of experts

Shadows are subtle but impactful elements to your photos that can take an ordinary product image and turn it into a major sales tool. Shadows bring products to life, add dimension to white background shots, and even lend themselves to creative ideas.

But not everyone has time to create the perfect shadows for every image. And when you can’t manipulate the lighting source on set, it’s difficult to get a consistent look and feel. That’s where drop shadow editing services come into play. You can send all your shadow needs to our virtual photo editing studio, starting at just 25¢ per image.

The post Step Into the Light: 6 Ways to Use Shadow Edits to Get Better Product Photos appeared first on Path Edits.

Not sure which other photo editing tricks can bring the needed drama and extra definition to your product images? Let’s explore your options with before / after examples so you can learn to spot the needed photo editing technique.

1. Background removal via image masking

While clipping paths are ideal for removing backgrounds from items with straightforward edges, not every job is clean. In some cases, we have hair, fur, grass, and other fine details that don’t lend themselves to the nice clean lines we use when we create clipping paths. For images with these hairy details, image masking, compared to clipping paths, is the way to go.

Image masking is a more advanced method of background removal that’s also more detailed and time-consuming. This is why we use it as needed, not as a go-to choice.

The masking post-production technique uses artificial intelligence (AI) to recognize the borders of an object and make some parts of the image transparent, bringing pixel intensity of the identified parts to zero.

Generally, the more complex your object’s silhouette, the higher resolution you’ll need to use when editing—and the more likely image masking will yield cleaner, true-to-life results.

2. Get rid of product blemishes and imperfections

However carefully you handle your object during a photoshoot, the inevitable fingerprint, dust, smudge, or otherwise imperfect spot will make an appearance.

If you have these issues in your shot, photo retouching can help. The best retouching method depends largely on the material and reflectiveness of the item.

In the example below, a chair image was improved by removing the inconsistent spots that appear on the fuzzy suede-like material. The original image shows the fabric’s imperfections, whereas the edited image shows the product as it’s meant to be displayed.

3. Smooth wrinkles on fabric

While you want to iron or steam any fabrics prior to shooting, wrinkles and imperfections are also typically inevitable. Photoshoots are long and models are only human—an odd deep crease is almost unavoidable on most of the fabrics. You can use a “digital iron” to smooth out those wrinkles in Photoshop.

In this case, the Healing Brush Tool, Clone Stamp, and Content Aware Fill Tool help to make a perfect photo even with slight imperfections.

Check out how retouching turned a pair of messy, heavily creased shorts into a neat pair from visibly natural materials in the example below from fashion boutique Motif Concept Store.

4. Add or remove reflections

While some lighting effects are intentional, product shots can also end up with the occasional glare, reflection, or otherwise unwanted distraction due to light. Natural lighting is best for product photography, but you can’t control it. And setting up artificial lighting for your product photoshoot requires advanced skills and expensive equipment.

In other cases, you might want to add a reflection of a product to your shot. Maybe you weren’t able to get the angle right, the lighting wasn’t working, or you didn’t have a reflective surface available for the shoot. This is also possible in Photoshop. These images work well in print and digital ads, social media imagery, emails, and other marketing collateral.

5. Remove price tags and hangers

When shooting products, it’s best to remove price tags, hangers, and other distracting elements prior to taking the pictures. But that’s not always possible. Sometimes, you need to rely on Photoshop to remove these items after the fact.

And while it might seem straightforward, removing these unwanted elements may involve a combination of post-editing techniques like clipping paths, image masking, the healing brush, and more.

6. Change colors in Photoshop instead of taking new shots

When you have a product available in a number of colors or prints, but otherwise the design is exactly the same, you can simply change the color in Photoshop. Rather than spending time and money on coordinating an entirely new shoot for each new print or variant, you can prep your images using the content you already have.

Best part is, because it’s tedious and not too advanced, color change is a service you can easily outsource. Check out how natural the edited khaki shorts look in the example below.

7. Add shadow for dimension on white background

It may seem trivial to a novice in ecommerce sales, but every seasoned etailer knows the value of a drop shadow in the background. It gives an object extra dimension and depth, helping it jump off the page instead of looking flat and lifeless. Moreover, items look more realistic with a shadow.

See how a small natural show turns this flat image of earrings into a more realistic photo that jumps off the screen. It almost gives it a 3D-like quality.

Creating realistic drop shadows to a series of products styled as a web catalog needs a lot of attention, as the shadows should contribute to the general feel of consistency and professionalism, as opposed to creating a chaotic feel to the listings. And you want to make sure your shadows are realistic. Bad shadows could make your image look low-quality and spark mistrust in your audience.

8. Add a ghost mannequin for apparel product photos

To do ghost mannequin edits, you’ll need to know ahead of time. While other editing techniques can be applied to almost any product image, ghost mannequin photos must be shot and edited a certain way. You can’t just shoot an image of a T-shirt in a flat lay mode and then convert it to the ghost mannequin type. You have to take a picture of a garment on a mannequin to enable further manipulations.

This image editing technique is a popular compromise for brands that need models for their apparel photos but don’t have the ability to hire models for shoots. So it has the best of both worlds: it doesn’t cost a small fortune, but it looks almost as if worn by a person, making it easier for potential buyers to picture wearing it.

Depending on the garment cut, you may need to do one or a combination of ghost mannequin services: neck joint service, bottom joint service, or sleeve joint service. The most advanced technique in this category is called mannequin to model, where a piece of clothing is Photoshopped onto a model. The trick here is to make sure both plastic and live models are in the same pose.

Product photo enhancements as a service

Ecommerce photos almost always go through post-processing enhancements to be able to effectively do their job of attracting customers, educating them about the product, and ultimately converting them into buyers.

No Photoshop skills or spare time to do it yourself? You can outsource the most tedious and time-consuming edits to Path, your virtual photo-editing studio. Our edits start at just 39¢ per photo, and every edit is completed by hand—not some automated, mistake-prone software. 

The post Beyond Clipping Paths: 8 Ways to Improve Product Photos in Post-Production appeared first on Path Edits.

For the Photoshop tutorial below, use a photo that features the product at eye-level, like the image of the lens below. This’ll make creating a reflection an easy process, as compared to creating a reflection of an angled object, which is way more tedious and complicated. If the product is shot against a white background, that process is even easier.

How to reflect or draw symmetry

To reflect in Photoshop, you need to create symmetry.

How do you draw symmetry in Photoshop?

Use the Flip Vertical function of the Transform tool. This function creates a perfect mirror image of your selection. You’ll then use layer masks to adjust the reflection until it looks realistic.

How to add a layer mask

How do you add a layer mask in Photoshop? You can make layer masks pretty easily by selecting the layer, and then clicking on the Layer Mask icon at the bottom of the Layers panel. We’ll walk through how to create a mask and how to use it to modify your reflection in the tutorial steps below.

How to make a glass reflection in Photoshop

1. Enlarge your canvas
2. Select your object
3. Duplicate and flip your object
4. Create perfect symmetry with your reflection
5. Add a layer mask
6. Clean up shadows

The image of this lens is ideal for a product reflection in Photoshop because the product is viewed head-on, and the base of the lens rests along the horizon line.

Step 1: Enlarge your canvas

Your canvas size needs to be big enough to accommodate your product’s reflection. From the dropdown menu at the top of the application window, choose Image > Canvas Size….

In the dialog box that pops up, click on the anchor arrow pointing directly up (top middle square of the anchor matrix) and set the canvas height to twice its original height. 

Step 2: Select your object

In this particular image, the picture has a white background. However, we don’t want to reflect the shadow, only the object. To do so, use the Magic Wand tool (located in the Toolbar on the left-hand side of the application window) and choose Select Subject. Photoshop will create a selection of your product. 

If you need to make a more refined selection, check out the tutorial on using the Magic Wand tool.

Step 3: Duplicate and flip your object

With your product still selected, copy your object by typing CTRL+C (COMMAND+C on a Mac). Then paste the product by typing CTRL+V (COMMAND+V on a Mac). The isolated product should automatically appear in a new layer.

Select your new layer and duplicate it by choosing Layers > Duplicate Layer… from the dropdown menu at the top of the application window.

Rename your lowest layer “Original.” Rename your Layer 1 “Reflection,” and rename your Layer 1 copy “Product.” Make sure that the Reflection layer is below the Product layer in your Layers panel. 

For more information about working with layers, see the beginner’s guide to using Layers.

Step 4: Create perfect symmetry with your reflection

Select your Reflection layer in the Layers panel and choose Edit > Transform > Flip Vertical from the drop-down menu at the top of the application window. 

With the Reflection layer still selected, move the flipped product image down to rest just under the product image using the Move tool in the toolbar to the left of the application window. You can grab the image with the tool and pull down while holding SHIFT to keep the image lined up correctly. You can also type the down arrow on your keyboard while holding SHIFT until the image lines up with the product’s baseline. This baseline becomes your horizon. 

Step 5: Add a layer mask

Once the product and its reflection are lined up correctly, create a layer mask to make the reflection gradually fade away. To add a layer mask to the Reflection layer, click on the mask icon at the bottom of the Layers panel. 

Once your mask is created, make sure you have selected your layer mask (when selected, your layer mask will look like it has a dashed line around it in the Layers panel).

In your Toolbar, set your background color to black and your foreground color to white. 

Select the Gradient tool from the toolbar and make sure the gradient is set to white-to-black at the top of the application window. 

Make sure you still have your Reflection layer’s mask selected. Starting in the middle of your product, draw a straight line through your image to the bottom of your reflection. 

The result will look like a reflection.

To make the reflection look even more realistic, reduce the opacity of your Reflection layer until you like the way it looks. Make sure you’ve selected the layer and not the mask. 

Step 6: Clean up shadows

Our image doesn’t quite look right, and it’s because of the shadows from the original image are being cast behind the object. We need to think about how light works with our reflection and how to add drop shadow in Photoshop.

To finalize our reflection, we’ll need to remove all shadows except for the small shadows occurring immediately below the object. You can use a soft paintbrush set to the same color as the background (in this case, white) and gently paint over any shadows that shouldn’t be there in your Original layer.

How do you make a water reflection in Photoshop?

1. Set up your canvas
2. Create your reflection
3. Create a water texture in Photoshop
4. Distort Displacement layer
5. Create a displacement map
6. Apply the displacement map
7. Add depth to your water

Add a ripple effect to make the object look like it’s sitting on water. This effect also works well if want to create a reflection of a person in Photoshop — you can make your model appear to be standing in or in front of a body of water.

Step 1: Set up your canvas

If you’re creating a reflection in water, you’ll set up your layers similarly to how you did it for a glass reflection with a few small differences.

Set your foreground color to a dark, watery blue. 

Double click on your Background layer to unlock it if it isn’t already unlocked. Name the layer Original.

Adjust your canvas size so that your image is now double in height. Make sure the Canvas extension color is set to Background. Remember to set the anchor to the top middle quadrant. 

Click OK.

Using your Rectangular Marquee tool from the toolbar, draw a selection around the area of your image you wish to reflect.

Choose Select > Inverse from the dropdown menu at the top of the screen or click SHIFT+CTRL+I (SHIFT+COMMAND+I on a Mac) to select the inverse of the selection. 

Choose to Edit > Fill or type SHIFT+F5 (FN+SHIFT+F5 on a Mac laptop) to fill the inverse selection with the blue foreground color. 

Choose Select > Inverse again from the dropdown menu at the top of the screen or click SHIFT+CTRL+I (SHIFT+COMMAND+I on a Mac) to select the inverse of the selection.

Step 2: Create your reflection

Copy the selected area by typing CTRL+C (COMMAND+C on a Mac), and then paste the selection by typing CTRL+V (COMMAND+V on a Mac). The duplicated selection will automatically appear in a new layer.

Rename the new layer Reflection, then flip the layer vertically as you did above with the reflection in glass by selecting to Edit > Transform > Flip Vertical from the dropdown menu. Move the reflected layer down until its top lines up just a pixel or two below the bottom of the image in the Original layer. 

Then, as you did with the glass reflection, add a layer mask to the Reflection layer and paint a black-to-white gradient within the mask. Click onto the Reflection layer and reduce the layer’s opacity to about 80%. 

Step 3: Create a water texture in Photoshop

In your document, create a new layer by selecting Layer > New > Layer… or typing SHIFT+CTRL+N (SHIFT+COMMAND+N on a Mac).

Name your new layer Displacement, and move it to the top of your Layers panel.

Fill the layer with white by selecting Edit > Fill from the drop-down menu or clicking SHIFT+F5 (FN+SHIFT+F5 on a Mac laptop) and choosing White next to Contents in the dialog box. 

Click OK.

Select Filter > Noise > Add Noise… from the dropdown menu at the top of the application window. 

In the Noise window, move the slider all the way to the right (400%). Select Gaussian under Distribution and make sure Monochromatic is checked.

Click OK.

Select Filter > Pixelate > Crystallize… from the drop-down menu at the top of the application window. In the dialog box, move the slider until the “crystals” are about the size of the ones in the image below. 

Click OK.

Select Filter > Blur > Motion Blur… from the dropdown menu and set the angle to 0 degrees. Adjust the slider until the blur starts to look like actual water ripples. 

Click OK.

Step 4: Distort Displacement layer

Zoom out of your document until it’s thumbnail size.

Click on the Displacement layer and select all contents of the layer by choosing Select > All from the drop-down menu or typing CTRL+A (COMMAND+A on a Mac).

Choose Edit > Transform > Perspective from the dropdown menu. Grab the lower left corner of your document and drag to the right until you’ve achieved significant perspective. 

Click on any tool in the Toolbar to make the change take effect (Click OK if a dialog box pops up).

Choose Edit > Transform > Distort from the dropdown menu. Grab the top of the layer and pull it down until it lines up with the top of the reflection layer (in other words, line it up with the horizon of the image). 

Click on any tool in the Toolbar to make the change take effect (Click OK if a dialog box pops up).

Step 5: Create a displacement map

Hide all layers except your Displacement layer by clicking on the eye icon next to the layers.

Choose Select > All or click CTRL+A (COMMAND+A on a Mac) from the dropdown menu to select all of the layer.

Choose Image > Crop from the dropdown menu. This will remove any extra “stuff” that exists outside the artboard frame (otherwise, your displacement map may not line up correctly when you apply it).

Choose File > Save As… from the dropdown menu or click SHIFT+CTRL+S (SHIFT+COMMAND+S) to pull up the Save As… dialog box. Save your document as Displacement_Map with a .PSD extension in a place you can easily find again. 

Click OK.

Step 6: Apply the displacement map

Hide the Displacement layer and make the Original and Reflection layers visible. Select the Reflection layer in your Layers panel.

Choose Filter > Distort > Displace… from the dropdown menu. 

In the dialog box, set your Horizontal Scale to a value above 10. You may have to experiment to find what looks best; the higher the value, the more prominent your “ripples” will be. Set the Vertical Scale to 0. Make sure Stretch to Fit and Repeat Edge Pixels are selected. 

Click OK.

A browse window will pop up on your screen. Choose the image you just saved as your displacement map, and click Open.

You should now have a ripple effect applied to your reflection

Step 7: Add depth to your water

Drag your hidden Displacement layer down until it’s just below the Reflection layer, and click on the eye icon next to the layer to make it visible again.

Set your Displacement layer’s blend mode to Overlay. 

You can then adjust the opacity of the layer until you are satisfied with the results. 

Ready to sharpen your Photoshop skills? Check out these free tutorials.  

The post How to Make a Reflection in Photoshop and Take Product Photos to the Next Level appeared first on Path Edits.