Photography: what the word actually means
Photography is the art and practice of creating images by recording light: on film, on light-sensitive paper or on the sensor of a digital camera. The word comes from two Greek roots, phōs (light) and graphé (drawing), so it literally means ‘drawing with light’ (Wikipedia).
The English term is credited to the astronomer Sir John Herschel, who coined it in 1839 independently of William Henry Fox Talbot. In the same year, on 7 January, the invention of the daguerreotype was publicly announced. The oldest surviving camera photograph, Nicéphore Niépce’s View from the Window at Le Gras, is dated to 1826 or 1827.
Photography is the discipline; a photograph (a photo, shot or frame) is a single result of it. For an online seller the definition has one practical consequence: a photo shows the product exactly as the light shaped it. The direction, size and colour of the light source decide whether glass looks clear and whether a fabric shows its weave.
A photograph is also different from a render. A render is built in 3D software without a camera, while a photograph always needs the real product in front of the lens. At marszalstudio we photograph real products and do not produce 3D renders.
Types of photography by purpose and subject
Types of photography (photographic genres) group images by what they show and what they are for: portrait, landscape, documentary, sports, fine art, scientific and commercial photography. The lines are blurred, because the same shot of a pair of trainers can be a packshot in an online shop and part of an advertising campaign.
The simplest split is by purpose. Fine art expresses the photographer’s vision, documentary photography records events, scientific and technical photography captures detail for analysis, and commercial photography is commissioned to sell or promote something. The genres named after their subject sit within these groups.
| Type of photography | What it shows | Where it ends up |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait | People, their face and character | Press, CVs, ‘about us’ pages, family albums |
| Landscape and nature | Scenery, mountains, the sea, wildlife | Books, tourism, exhibitions |
| Documentary and photojournalism | Events and people in action | Newspapers, events, weddings, archives |
| Sports | Movement, action, athletes’ emotions | Media, clubs, sports brands |
| Fine art | The author’s vision, abstraction, a concept | Galleries, exhibitions, collections |
| Scientific and technical (including macro) | Detail invisible to the naked eye | Research, medicine, industry |
| Commercial: product, advertising, fashion, catalogue, beauty, corporate | A product, a brand, a company | Online shops, marketplaces, catalogues, adverts |
What really separates the genres is control over light. A landscape photographer waits for the right conditions, a photojournalist works with whatever light is there, and a product photographer builds the light from scratch with flash heads and modifiers. That is why an excellent wedding photographer will not automatically deliver a good packshot, and the other way round.
For an online seller, the last row of the table is the one that counts. Commercial photography and the variants described below decide how a product looks on its product page, on a marketplace and in an advert. marszalstudio is a product photography studio in Warsaw: we shoot packshots on a white background and still life photography with sets arranged by our photographer.
Commercial photography
Commercial photography is photography commissioned by a business to sell a product, promote a service or build a brand. The shortest definition calls it any photography for which the photographer is paid for images rather than works of art (Wikipedia).
It covers several specialisms: product photography (packshots, 360° shots, flat lays), advertising, fashion and catalogue, food, beauty and corporate photography. What they have in common is the brief. Before the first frame is taken, everyone knows where the image will be used, in what format and for how long.
How a commercial shoot differs from an artistic one
- A sales purpose - the image has to show the product faithfully or make people want it, not express the photographer’s vision.
- A consistent series - dozens of products need the same light, background and framing.
- Usage rights - the contract sets out where and for how long the images may be published.
- Deadline and budget - the quote depends on the number of images, the level of retouching and the styling.
The most common mistake buyers make is not agreeing the rights up front. Before you order, check whether the contract gives you the copyright or only a licence, and for which uses: your online shop, a printed catalogue, paid social media ads.
From the studio: at marszalstudio clients receive full copyright to the photos, with no limit on time or territory. The one exception is a model’s likeness, which may be used for 2 years. An advertising shot arranged by our photographer costs €47 net per photo with a minimum of 5 photos (€235), and the other rates are listed on our product photography pricing page.
Catalogue photography
Catalogue photography is a series of product photos taken to one standard, with the same lighting, background, angle and framing, for a printed catalogue, an online shop or a marketplace. Its job is to inform: the customer should see the shape, colour and details of a product before buying it.
Catalogue photography is a branch of product photography. In practice it usually means packshots on a white or light grey background, backed up by detail shots, a back view and the packaging. Fashion catalogues add on-model shots, the ghost mannequin effect and flat lays.
What a catalogue set usually includes
- Main shot - the whole product, front-on or at a three-quarter angle, on a neutral background.
- Back and side views - for anything where the back matters: bags, shoes, electronics.
- Detail shots - fastenings, stitching, texture, the label.
- Packaging - when the box is part of what the customer receives.
- Group shot - a set or a whole product line in one frame.
Image requirements of sales platforms
Every platform has its own rules. Google Merchant Center recommends images of 1500 × 1500 px or larger and, from 31 January 2027, requires at least 500 × 500 px for all products. The product should fill no less than 75% and no more than 90% of the image, with no watermarks, borders or promotional text (Google Merchant Center Help).
eBay UK asks for at least one photo that is 500 px or more on its longest side, and does not allow added borders, added text or watermarks of any kind (eBay picture policy). A catalogue set shot to one standard meets both sets of rules without separate edits for each channel.
Common mistakes in catalogue photos
- A different shooting distance for each product - in the shop grid a small jar ends up looking as big as a large one.
- Different colour temperature between shoots - the same blouse appears in two shades on two product pages.
- Framing that is too tight - the thumbnail crops off the edge of the product.
- Customer photos as the main image - user-generated content works well further down a product page, but it cannot replace a consistent series.
From the studio: the standard file at marszalstudio is a JPG, 2000 × 2000 px, 72 DPI, RGB, on a white background. For a printed catalogue clients add the 6K Resolution option (6000 px at 300 DPI), and when a platform needs a different format, the Individual size option.
Flat lay
A flat lay is a photo of objects arranged on a flat surface and shot from directly above, from a bird’s-eye view (Adobe). The camera points straight down, so the composition looks flat and graphic.
In ecommerce, flat lays come in two forms. The first is a single garment laid out on a white background without a model, common in clothing catalogues. The second is a styled arrangement with props for social media, newsletters and banners.
The most frequent mistake is a slightly tilted camera, which turns rectangular objects into trapezoids. A tripod that can aim straight down and a small bubble level solve it. We shoot garments this way in our flat lay clothing photography service: on a white background, retouching included, from €18 net per photo.
Ghost mannequin (invisible mannequin)
Ghost mannequin photography, also called the invisible mannequin effect, is a clothing technique in which the garment is photographed on a mannequin and the mannequin is then removed digitally in post-production. The garment keeps its three-dimensional shape, as if worn by an invisible person. You will also come across the names 3D mannequin and hollow man (Pixelz).
- Shots of the front and back of the garment on a mannequin.
- Separate shots of the inside of the garment, laid flat on a board, which later fill the gap where the mannequin’s neck was.
- Combining the shots into one image, masking out the mannequin and retouching.
Compared with a flat lay, a ghost mannequin shot shows the cut, the volume of the shoulders and the sleeve length better. It needs no model, so a whole collection keeps the same look. The usual faults are traces of the mannequin along the edges and an empty neckline with no inner panel added.
We produce this effect as part of our ghost mannequin photography: clothing on a white background, retouching included, from €18 net per photo.
Fashion photography
Fashion photography is a genre that portrays clothing and other fashion items: shoes, bags, jewellery and accessories (Wikipedia). It combines a sales goal with building a brand’s style, so it ranges from artistic magazine shoots to plain images for an online shop.
The French magazine La Mode Pratique was the first to feature fashion photographs in print, in 1892. Advances in halftone printing then brought photographs into fashion magazines, and in 1913 Baron Adolph de Meyer became the first full-time photographer for Vogue.
- Editorial - a magazine shoot with a story and styling; the clothes are part of the narrative.
- Campaign - advertising images of a collection for billboards, social media and shops.
- Lookbook - a consistent shoot of a whole collection that shows outfits and how the pieces work together.
- Ecommerce - product page images: on a model, as a ghost mannequin or as a flat lay.
Typical mistakes in shop images of clothing are creases that only show when a customer zooms in, fabric colour distorted by the light, and different poses and crops within one category. With fashion the model’s likeness matters too: the agreement with the model sets where and for how long the photos can be used.
From the studio: ironing garments before the shoot is standard at marszalstudio, not an extra. Clothing on a white background with retouching starts at €18 net per photo, and the version on an AI model, corrected by a retoucher, costs €14 per photo on top of the clothing packshot. Lookbook shoots with a model whose likeness is not shown are quoted individually.
Beauty photography
Beauty photography is a branch of portrait and advertising photography focused on skin, make-up, hair and cosmetics. Unlike a classic portrait, it is not about the person’s character but about the complexion, the colour of the make-up and the texture of the product.
Light comes first: soft, even and controlled, because every skin imperfection and every reflection on a tube shows up in a close-up. The classic modifier is the beauty dish, a parabolic reflector whose light sits between a direct flash and a softbox (Wikipedia). Retouching evens out skin tone but keeps the texture, because over-smoothed skin looks artificial.
The other half of beauty is the product itself: creams, serums, lipsticks and their textures. Here beauty photography meets product photography, because a bottle needs a clean label without glare and a cream swatch needs a visible texture. We cover this side in cosmetics product photography, either on a white background or as an organicshot with a coloured background, the look of sunlight and a hard shadow.
Corporate photography
Corporate photography covers the images that shape a company’s image: portraits of staff and management, event coverage, offices, production halls and work processes. They appear on ‘about us’ pages, in annual reports, recruitment materials and press kits, and on LinkedIn.
- Business portraits - headshots in one style for the whole team.
- Company events - conferences, training days, trade fairs, anniversaries.
- The workplace - offices, factories, laboratories and people at work.
Consistency with the visual identity matters most: the same background, crop and colour palette for everyone, including people who join the company next year. A common fault is portraits taken over the years by different photographers, which look as if they came from different companies when shown side by side. Corporate photography shows people and the organisation; pictures of what the company makes are product photography.
Macrophotography
Macrophotography (macro photography) is photographing small subjects at a reproduction ratio of 1:1 or greater, which means the image of the object on the sensor is at least life-size (Wikipedia). A macro lens is a lens that can reach that ratio, as our guide to macro lenses and when to use them explains.
In product photography, macro shows what a packshot cannot: the cut of a stone in a ring, the weave of a fabric, a watch movement, the texture of a cosmetic. At such close focusing distances the depth of field is extremely shallow, and often only part of the object is sharp. The answer is focus stacking: combining several frames focused on different planes into one image.
- Macro lens - reaches 1:1 without any accessories.
- Extension tubes - the budget alternative; magnification grows in direct proportion to the extension between lens and camera.
- Tripod and remote release - at this magnification the slightest movement blurs the frame.
- Soft, diffused light - hard light at close range gives harsh shadows and glare.
The second problem is dust and fingerprints, which look like stains at high magnification. That is why polishing surfaces before the shoot is standard at marszalstudio.
Frequently asked questions
What is catalogue photography?
It is a series of product photos taken to one standard: the same background, lighting, angle and framing. Most often these are packshots on a white background supported by detail shots. They are used in printed catalogues, online shops and on marketplaces, where showing the product accurately matters most.
What are the main types of photography?
The usual list is portrait, landscape, documentary, sports, fine art, scientific (including macro) and commercial photography. Commercial photography divides further into product, advertising, fashion, catalogue, beauty and corporate work. The genres overlap, because one image can do several jobs at once.
Where does the word photography come from?
From Greek: phōs means light and graphé means drawing, so photography literally means ‘drawing with light’. The English term is credited to the astronomer Sir John Herschel, who coined it in 1839 independently of William Henry Fox Talbot.
What is the difference between a flat lay and a packshot?
A packshot is a photo of the product alone, usually on a white background, meant to show exactly how it looks. A flat lay is a top-down shot of items arranged on a flat surface, often with props. A garment laid flat on a white background combines both approaches.
How is beauty photography different from fashion photography?
Fashion photography shows clothing and accessories, often the whole figure and the styling. Beauty photography concentrates on the face, skin, make-up and cosmetics, usually in close-up and in very soft, even light. Cosmetics and fashion brands often combine the two in one campaign.
Can you take macro photos on an iPhone?
Yes, on selected models. Apple lists macro support for the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max, the 14, 15 and 16 Pro and Pro Max models, the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus, and the iPhone 17, 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max (Apple Support). For a consistent product series, controlled lighting matters more than the phone.
How much does a product photo for a catalogue cost?
It depends on the type of shot and the retouching. At marszalstudio (October 2026) a packshot on a white background costs from €9 net without retouching and €18 with retouching, clothing on white with retouching from €18, and an advertising shot arranged by our photographer €47 net, with a minimum of 5 photos.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Photography - definition, etymology, Herschel 1839, daguerreotype announced on 7 January 1839, definition of commercial photography
- Wikipedia: View from the Window at Le Gras - oldest surviving camera photograph, dated 1826 or 1827
- Wikipedia: Fashion photography - definition, La Mode Pratique 1892, Adolph de Meyer and Vogue 1913
- Wikipedia: Beauty dish - design and quality of light
- Wikipedia: Macro photography - 1:1 ratio, depth of field, focus stacking, extension tubes
- Google Merchant Center Help: image requirements
- eBay UK: Picture policy
- Adobe: Flat lay photography
- Pixelz: Invisible ghost mannequin photography
- Apple Support: iPhone models that support macro photography
