Shadow

Get natural shadows that show your products in their best light

Make your product photos look more realistic with outsourced shadow making services — at a price that’s more than worth it.

Starting at $0.25 per image

These shadow services deserve the spotlight

Frequently Asked Questions

What are shadow services?

Realistic shadows add depth to product photography. But sometimes the lighting isn’t right in the photograph, or you’re removing the background to show off your products, and you need to add shadows after the fact.

That’s where shadow making services come in.

Done well, these shadows make your products look more appealing to customers, even when the effect is subtle. Especially when you’re showcasing your products against a white background, shadows will help make your products pop — instead of looking flat and lifeless.

Shadows also help when you need to distinguish your product from the background (a white dress against a white background, for example), and with creating a consistent look across all of your product images.

What king of shadow effects can you do?

Drop shadow

Add depth to product shots, making objects stand out against the background with a subtle shadow effect.

Natural Shadow

Make it look like your product has cast a shadow on the background or surface, using an imaginary light source that’s created by the editor.

Existing shadow

Maintain naturally occurring shadows that you want to keep in your shot, even when you’re removing or replacing the background. This is also known as cast shadow.

Floating shadow

Make your product look like it’s hovering above a surface.

Reflection shadow

Make your products shine — literally. This type of shadow makes products look like they’re resting on a reflective surface.

How much do shadow services cost?

Pricing for shadow services depends on the type of shadow you need, as well as the complexity of the shadow we’ll be creating for you. Every image is different, but we follow standard pricing guidelines to make sure your rate is always clear and objective, even if you’re working with a different designer.

Here’s an overview of our categories for shadow pricing:

1. Drop shadow – $0.25 per image

A basic drop shadow is fairly simple to create, and doesn’t require too much customization from image to image, so every drop shadow is priced at a simple flat rate.

Great for:

  • Ecommerce product photography
  • Adding a natural depth to images that have had the backgrounds removed

2. Basic natural shadows – $0.69 per image

Natural shadows are a bit more complex to create, because each shadow needs to be precisely created according to your product’s shape and context. The simplest natural shadows to create usually involve one product, casting a fairly simple shadow.

Great for:

  • Ecommerce product photography
  • Adding a natural depth to images that have had the backgrounds removed

3. Simple natural shadows – $1.29 per image

These images will include one or more small to medium size products that need multiple shadows to look natural.

Great for:

  • Small groupings of basic shapes
    Simple furniture
  • Sheer or lacy lingerie

4. Complex natural shadows – $2.99 per image

This is our most complex category for natural shadows. These images usually include large items with multiple products, and need multiple shadows created for them to look right.

Great for:

  • Groupings of products with more than 3 items
  • Complex machinery
  • Furniture sets

5. Existing shadow – $0.69 per image

When you want to maintain a photo’s existing shadows against a new background, this is the way to do it. Every existing shadow is priced at a simple flat rate.

Great for:

  • Keeping existing shadows with a background change

6. Floating shadow – $0.25 per image

Floating shadows are another type of shadow that’s fairly simple to create, and doesn’t vary too much from product to product. That’s why we’ve priced all floating shadows at a simple flat rate.

Great for:

  • Creating a hover effect on product photos

7. Basic reflection shadows – $0.69 per image

The easiest reflection shadows to create include products with flat bottoms, which can be flipped to create a mirror effect without too many adjustments.

Great for:

  • Symmetrical objects
  • Bicycles
  • Smartphones
  • Watches

8. Simple reflection shadows – $1.29 per image

Our next level of reflection shadows include 1-2 products with bottoms that aren’t flat or symmetrical, which means the shadow needs to be adjusted to achieve a natural mirror effect.

Great for:

  • Shoes
  • Furniture
  • Packaging or boxes with asymmetrical graphics

9. Complex reflection shadow – $2.99 per image

Our most complex reflection shadows involve multiple products or groupings, each requiring its own individual mirror effect.

Great for:

  • Product shots with multiple items

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