Image guidelines general

1. Catalogue Mandatory
Image Guidelines
General

2. INTRODUCTION
In an online marketplace, images are the most important trigger that influence purchases. Adding clear, crisp, high- resolution images
make it easier for customers to find your listings and make purchase decisions.
Follow our three-step image guidelines to create an appealing catalogue:
• How to take good photographs
• How to edit an image
• Good images vs. poor images

3. TOPICS
How to Take Good Photographs
How to Edit an Image
Good Images vs. Poor Imges

4. Model Shoots Product Shoots
TYPES OF CATALOGUE PHOTOGRAPHY
Photography for catalogue can be categorised into two types – model shoots and product shoots. However, before we look at the
detailed guidelines for each type, let’s look at some general guidelines that apply to all categories.

5. GENERAL GUIDELINES
Here is a list of general guidelines that apply to all categories and product types:
Always use a white background
Ensure that the product is centre-aligned and covers at least 80% of the frame
Always take high-resolution photographs
Avoid blurred images
Avoid using flash to prevent over-exposure and reflections
Use soft lighting to avoid shadows
Use your camera’s Auto White Balance feature to avoid tinted images

6. Coloured Background White Background
GENERAL GUIDELINES: BACKGROUND
What: You should not place your product against a colourful background as this prevents the product from standing out.
Use white background in order to help your product draw more attention.

7. Left Aligned and 60% Fill Centre Aligned and 80% Fill
GENERAL GUIDELINES: COMPOSITION
Your product should be centre aligned and cover at least 80% of the frame to ensure that customers can view its every detail.

8. GENERAL GUIDELINES: IMAGE RESOLUTION
You should capture high resolution images. The ideal resolution is 2000 (height) X 1500 (width) pixels. Use a minimum
resolution of 1400 (height) X 1100 (width) pixels to ensure that customers can use the zoom-in feature. High resolution
images also ensure that the fine details of your products are not lost and avoid pixilation.
How: From your camera settings, select medium or high file size for high-resolution images.
Pixilated Image Crisp Image

9. GENERAL GUIDELINES: IMAGE BLUR
Often, shaky hands can result in blurred images. To take crisp and clear photographs, you should use a tripod that keeps
your camera steady. Alternatively, you can place your camera on a plane to avoid blurred images.
Blurred Image Crisp Image

10. GENERAL GUIDELINES: LIGHTING
You should avoid using flash to prevent over-exposure and reflections. This will help you retain the original colour and fine
details of the product.
Overexposed Image Normal Image

11. GENERAL GUIDELINES: LIGHTING (CONT'D.)
Instead of using flash, you should use soft lighting. This ensures that the images do not have shadows and the original colour is
captured. This also helps to ensure that the images are not under-exposed either.
How: Place a white screen or sheet in front of the light source. Alternatively, you can face the light source away from the product/model
and bounce it off the ceiling.
No Lighting Diffused Lighting

12. GENERAL GUIDELINES: LIGHTING (CONT'D.)
You should avoid using filters, incandescent bulbs or fluorescent lights to avoid tinting of images as this prevents from
capturing the original colour of the product.
How: From your camera settings, select Auto White Balance (AWB).
Tinted Neutral

13. MODEL SHOOTS: OVERVIEW OF GUIDELINES
All apparels and preferably accessories should use models. Here is a list of guidelines that apply to model shoots:
Always use a professional model
Apparels should fit the model properly
Models should pose in a decent way
Avoid using props

14. MODEL SHOOTS: PROFESSIONAL MODEL
Always use a professional model. Non-professional models do not enrich the viewing experience. Customers will not buy a
product if it does not look good on the model.
Non-Professional Model Professional Model

15. MODEL SHOOTS: FIT CLOTHING
Apparels should fit the model. Customer will not purchase the product if it does not fit the model in the image.
Loose Fit Proper Fit

16. MODEL SHOOTS: POSES
The model should pose in a decent and professional way. Indecent poses will not appeal to customers, and may
distract them.
Indecent Pose Decent Pose

17. MODEL SHOOTS: PROPS
Models should avoid using props as they may end up hiding fine details of the product. In addition, props may also
confuse customers about the product that has been listed.
Props Covering Top Details No Props, Clear Details

18. MODEL SHOOTS: ANGLES OF CASUAL WEAR
All apparels should be shown in different angles so customers can view complete details of the product. You must add a detail/close
up shot so customers can view the texture of the fabric/material. Let’s look at the different angles that you should capture for
casual wears, ethnic wears and sarees.
For casual wear, you should capture at least four shots so your customers can get a 360 degree view of the product.
Cover image for casual wear: Front cropped shot
Front Cropped Shot:
Primary/cover image
Full Shot Back Shot Close Up/Detail Shot

19. MODEL SHOOTS: ANGLES OF ETHNIC WEAR
For ethnic wears or sets, you should capture front and back shots, and detail shots of each product included in the set.
For example, in a Kurta set, you should add detail shots of the kurta, legging and dupatta.
Cover image for ethnic wear: Full front shot of complete set
Full Front Shot
of Complete Set:
Primary/cover image
Back Shot Detail Shot –
Kurta
Detail Shot –
Legging
Detail Shot –
Dupatta

20. MODEL SHOOTS: ANGLES OF SAREES
For sarees, you should capture full front and full back shots. You should capture detail shots of the body and the loose end
of the saree called pallu.
Cover image for sarees: Full front shot
Full Front Shot :
Primary/cover image
Back Shot Detail Shot :
Blouse
Detail Shot :
Pallu

21. PRODUCT SHOOTS: OVERVIEW OF GUIDELINES
Now that we have discussed most of the guidelines on how to take good photographs, let’s find out the different angles
that you should capture in a product shoot that does not involve models. In this section, we will cover the following
categories:
Footwears
Electronics

22. PRODUCT SHOOTS: ANGLES OF FOOTWEAR
For footwears, you should at least capture four shots – 45 degree angular front shot, 45 degree angular back shot,
front and back shot, and combo shot.
Cover image for footwear: 45 degree angular front shot
Front Shot:
Primary/cover image
Back Shot Combo Shot Front and Back Shot

23. MODEL SHOOTS: ANGLES OF ELECTRONICS
For electronics, you should cover at least three shots – front shot, back shot, angular shot and a shot of the brand box in
case of phones.
Cover image for electronics: Front shot
Front Shot:
Primary/cover image
Back Shot Angular Shot Shot of Brand Box

24. TOPICS
How to Take Good Photographs
How to Edit an Image
Good Images vs. Poor Imges

25. OVERVIEW OF EDITED GUIDELINES
After you have captured the images of your product, you must edit and save them using Paytm-specific naming
conventions. Here are some editing guidelines that you should follow:
Never use images with watermarks and logos
Never use any form of texts, graphics, promotional content or borders on your image
Use Paytm-specific naming conventions
Save all images in JPEG/JPG or PNG formats

26. LOGOS AND WATERMARKS
If you are using an image with a logo or watermark, you must remove it before submitting it to Paytm.
With Watermark Without Watermark

27. TEXTS , GRAPHICS AND BORDERS
You should not add any text, graphics or borders in the image. Always edit out any graphics or text that already exists in
the image.
With Text and Graphics Without Text and Graphics

28. NAMING CONVENTION
You should use the following Paytm-specific naming conventions while saving the images:
SKUID_other_1.jpeg
SKUID_other_1.jpeg
SKUID_other_1.jpeg
With Paytm-Specific Naming Without Paytm-Specific Naming

29. IMAGE FORMAT
Save all images in any of the following universally accepted formats:
JPEG/JPG
PNG
Body Control Zoom In

30. TOPICS
How to Take Good Photographs
How to Edit an Image
Good Images vs. Poor Imges

31. If there are any minor irregularities in the image, edit it using an image editor, like Adobe Photoshop, to fix it.
Jumbled Shoelaces Falling Straps
SMUDGING MINOR IRREGULARITIES

32. If there is any background in the image, you need to edit it to ensure that the background is white.
Before Editing Background After Editing Background
REMOVING BACKGROUNDS

33. If the model used is not professional, you should crop out the face from the image.
Before Cropping After Cropping
CROPPING

34. Finally, in case of combos, crop and edit to arrange the image in a compact frame.
Unarranged Compact
EDITING COMBOS

35. Thanks Everyone!
For any query please raise a ticket on support