How to Take Good Pictures of Glass

Updated April 20th, 2024

A good first picture is one of the most important steps when selling your glass on GlassPass. A strong listing starts with a great picture. Photography can make or break a sale, but you don't need to be an expert to take good pictures! Good pictures draws the eye by being high quality, well-lit, focused, and simple. The goal of a photo is to give the most realistic depiction of the item and to document as much detail as possible. Following a few simple rules and incorporating these four elements will make everybody want to tap on your listing: good lighting, updated camera settings, clean backgrounds, and color editing.

Use Good Lighting

Lighting is the most important factor for a good picture. There's a few different sources you can use good lighting, and the best one is free. On a sunny day, the Sun is the best for capturing all the details of glass. If it's dark outside, try to use a lamp with a bright bulb rather than ceiling lights. Here are a few things to keep in mind to use light for the best photo:

1. Make sure your light source is behind your camera so it shines directly onto the piece from your point of view. Taking a photo with the light in front of you will wash out the colors and puts the light source into the focus of the image. If you have two sources of lighting, such as two lamps, place them on the sides of the camera for an even balance.
2. Your light should be bright, but not too bright. Light that is too bright may  make the image too white and ruins the color. A balanced brightness will highlight the color and details perfectly. When possible, use a white light rather than a yellow-tinted light to capture the true color.
3. The best light source of all is the sun. Either set up your piece outside, or use sun coming in from your window to shine directly on your piece.

Update your Camera's Settings

Your camera settings are a critical part of taking the best picture:

1. Make sure your phone is at full brightness to properly see the piece and the lighting. 
2. The best format for photos on GlassPass is native 4:3, which is usually the default option when taking a photo on an iPhone.
3. Turn on the grid on your camera to ensure a level shot with no tilt.
4. When framing your picture, give the piece room on the top and bottom of the photo so it doesn't get cropped. This gives buyers a better picture of the size and detail of the piece.
5. Turn your exposure down before taking the photo, usually to -0.3 depending on the brightness. Full sunlight is usually -0.7. This creates some contrast and darkens the background of the image, focusing on the piece. It's easier to make the image brighter when editing rather than the other way around. 
6. Lastly, make sure your piece is in focus. Tap the part of the screen where the piece is and the camera will refocus. 

Use a Clean Background

A good background completes your shot. People look very closely at photos before buying, so make sure there's nothing in the photo that isn't related to the sale. 

1. Make sure your background has no clutter. You don’t want to distract from your piece with items in the background that steal the focus. You’d be surprised how many people look at what’s in the background!
2. A clean and simple background emphasizes the piece. Pick a background that’s one color and that will create a contrast with the piece to help it stand out. If you can’t find a background that’s a single color, you can still make the piece pop by minimizing unnecessary items in the background. 
3. The brighter, the better. A white or black background is the best to create a clean backdrop for the piece.

Edit to Fix the Colors

To tie everything together, do some quick editing on your image after. This can be done in your Photos app on your iPhone. 

1. Tune your shadows & black point slightly up or down, allowing the background to get darker. This captures your piece more clearly. 
2. Turn the saturation up slightly to bring out the true colors more. Even with a proper light source, lighting can often dull the true color of a piece. Turning up the saturation allows you to show the color more accurately.
3. Images on GlassPass are 4:3, default on iPhone. Crop your image to cut out unnecessary things in the background. GlassPass won’t crop your images to a square – the full size photos are posted!

Now that you’ve learned a few important things to keep in mind when photographing your piece, we’re excited to see your pictures on the app! Play around with a few pieces to get some practice – glass is a beautiful medium to photograph and it makes a huge difference when done properly.

As always, don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions at support@glasspass.com!