In today’s online-based business, you can not bypass the importance of suitable E-Commerce photos for B2B marketing. To make your business images realistic and professional, you will need to add a natural background shadow. But it is rare to have the perfect shadow naturally in your image. This leads people to add shadows through photo editing.
There are usually two types of shadows for an object, cast shadow and form shadow. When we are talking about applying shadow with a photo editing effect, we are meaning to create a cast shadow. Form shadows are the shadows that stay on the surface of the object. It emphasizes the depth and layering of your object. But cast shadow indicates the light source and the distance between the background and the object.
To add an appropriate Shadow to your E-Commerce photo you can hire a photo editor, use a photo editing app or manually edit and add a shadow by yourself. If you want to add shadows manually, you need to follow a step-by-step procedure. Here are the steps that will help you to add shadows to your image.
Select Your Object And Isolate it
The first step to creating a suitable background is selecting your image. You can create an outline and select the image or remove the whole background to isolate it. If you cannot separate that object from the background, you will not be able to apply shadow to it. If you want to keep the current background you will need to make a copy of the image and isolate the object in the new copy.
Bring It On A New Background
It is easier to use clear and more even background for commercial photos. You can use a solid color or gradient for the background. You can also use multiple color layers to add depth and 3D effect to your image. Choose a suitable color or image for your background and drag the object on it.
Choose Shadow Colour
Usually, black or grey colors are used for shadows. But you to add a special effect or emphasized different lights, you can use other colors as well. For instance, using a brownish red for the shadow will suit you more if you want to create the effect of red light. You can choose both gradient or solid colors for your shadow and blend them with the background to get a more realistic effect.
Create Drop Shadow
Create the drop shadow effect. Select the layer and apply the ‘drop shadow’ effect from the bottom of the layer panel. A layer of the canvas will be opened for the effect. Then pull the drop shadow layer on the foreground and the shadow will be visible to you. Now you will see that the structure of your object will appear with the selected shadow color. Clicking on the effect layer, a dialogue box will pop up. Change the properties of your drop Shadow effect from that dialogue box.
Pull The Shadow Down To The Floor
Due to applying the ‘drop shadow’ effect a shadow will appear just behind the object. But for creating a realistic outlook, you will need the shadow lying on the floor. It will be possible if you distort the shadow. Select the ‘drop shadow’ effect panel and go to the ‘edit’ option. Choose ‘transform’ and then ‘distort’. Now you will be able to pull any point of your shadow to adjust the shadow position. You can also tilt the shadow at a particular angle using this option.
Edit The Shadow Based On Necessity
Now is the time to make the necessary changes. Tilting your shadow in only one direction might not be efficient always. If you have any bend or object on the way you will need to adjust the structure of the shadow based on the position of that object. You can also use a gradient or make the shadow transparent by using the transparency option. Blur the shadow and blend it with the background. ‘Gaussian blur’ is the most suitable for this situation.
Following these steps, you will most likely be able to create a shadow for any project. This is a perfect solution to make your image look more believable and professional. Enjoy your photo editing and Boost Your marketing skill with this.