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Even before the COVID pandemic, increasing numbers of people were buying their furniture online. And this trend has only accelerated post-pandemic.

To feel comfortable skipping the showroom, online consumers want to see the clearest, most detailed photos of the furniture.

For starters, online furniture retailers need outstanding, hi-res, carefully edited photography of their products. And outsourcing furniture photo editing makes sense both in terms of saving time and money.

So, in this article, we’re going to explore how to effectively outsource furniture photo editing.

But, first, let’s discuss why use furniture photo editing in the first place?

Why Use Furniture Photo Editing?

Why use furniture photo editing?

Successful online sales and marketing require the absolute best product photography — especially for furniture. 

More specifically, internet furniture shoppers need to see the exact color, texture, and grain of the furniture they are thinking of buying.

Also, shoppers need their questions answered:

  • Will this piece match my existing furnishings? 
  • Will the color of the piece work? 
  • Is this item as sturdy as it looks?
  • How does that fabric feel?

Only high-end, carefully edited product photos can answer these questions. 

One wrong purchase and customers are highly unlikely to use that site or vendor again. After all, returning furniture is not an easy task and is an unpleasant experience.

That being the case, online furniture retailers have to get it right the first time — there are rarely second chances. 

Also, the quality of the product photography must simply be the best possible, and this will require expert photo editing

Now, let’s go deeper and consider all the specific benefits of furniture photo editing. 

Have You Ever Thought To

Outsource Photo Editing?

Try it today with 10 free edits from three professional photo editors.

6 Benefits of Furniture Photo Editing

So, as we’ve seen, the highest-quality product photography is vital for attracting clients and driving organic traffic to your online furniture store.  

Let’s dive even deeper and look at 6-specific benefits and uses of furniture photo editing. 

1. Accurate Color and Exposure 

Outsource furniture photo editing

To begin, color matters greatly when purchasing furniture. The tone of the wood, the stain, and finish, and the exact hue of fabric — consumers are likely trying to match this purchase with existing furnishings. 

Furniture photo editing will ensure that:

  • Exposure levels are correct
  • Shadows aren’t interfering with or skewing the product itself
  • The colors exactly match in the photo and with the actual piece

After all, you can’t overstate the importance of accurate color in online furniture photos to not get too many returns.

2. Eliminating Blemishes and Wrinkles

Photo editing and retouching can eliminate any blemish, such as:

  • Fingerprints
  • Dust and/or lint
  • Excess glare from lighting or flash
  • Or, any other imperfection 
  • Also for upholstered items, photo editing can remove wrinkles from the fabric 

Furniture photo editing ensures that there are no mistakes or distortions from any last-minute movements during the shoot.

3. Have More Polished Furniture Photos

When photographing furniture products, there are a lot of minute details, curves, and features you’d like your customers to notice.

For example, you want to highlight:

  • Wood grains and finishes
  • Upholstery stitching and tucks
  • The angle of a chair back or the curve of a sofa’s arms
  • Also, patterns and weaving of fabrics

Therefore, furniture photo editing results in polished, professional images that allow you to stand out from your competitors and shine in front of your customers.

4. Background Removal

Background removal of furniture

Most furniture looks best isolated on a crisp white background. Additionally, removing the background of a furniture photo allows for the greatest amount of contrast and focus on the detail of the piece.  

Skilled furniture editing can address the following in these situations: 

  • Wrinkles in the background fabric or material
  • Shadows and overexposure issues
  • Correcting perspective and lines
  • Easily remove the background from the furniture

These editing fixes will make your furniture look clean, and impressive, and bring out the details.

5. 3D Presentation

For furniture that is shot as a stand-alone piece, a good furniture photo editing idea is to present it in a revolving 3D display. 

Again, careful photo editing is essential for this task:

  • Shadows might be needed on the edges to help create the proper perspective
  • Exposure and light effects will need to be adjusted for each angle
  • The 3D presentation allows the customer to see the entire piece

Overall, these editing techniques will add to the photos’ accuracy and realism. 

6. Edited Furniture Photos to Use on Social Media

Outsource furniture photo editing

Furniture photo editing isn’t just about quality images on your product page — these attractive images have multiple uses. 

Smart eCommerce merchants understand the importance of social media, email marketing, and online ads.

For example, consider these facts:

  • Appealing images are 40% more likely to be shared by users
  • There are currently over a billion social media users worldwide

All things considered, high-quality edited furniture photos give you robust social media exposure and enable you to market your furniture across multiple platforms.

Have You Ever Thought To

Outsource Photo Editing?

Try it today with 10 free edits from three professional photo editors.

How to Outsource Furniture Photo Editing

Outsourcing furniture photo editing

Furniture photo editing can be time-consuming and when done by an inexperienced editor, the results can be disappointing at best. You want your furniture products to look their absolute best to entice customers into purchasing them.

However, few online furniture retailers have experienced, in-house, staff photo editors. In such cases, outsourcing is the practical — and affordable — solution.

So, let PhotoUp help with all your outsourced furniture photo editing needs. 

We have over 10 years of experience with real estate photo editing and virtual staging — as a result, we’re highly experienced even in editing furniture photos.

PhotoUp’s expert team can handle any furniture photo editing job — big or small. Our skilled photo editors can help with the following issues:

  • Improper exposure levels
  • Harsh shadows, lack of light, etc. 
  • Blurred images that were taken without a tripod  
  • Images that need cropping or other effects

Best of all, we offer bulk discount pricing and are happy to work on ongoing and custom editing projects.

So why wait?

Create a free PhotoUp account today, and explore how we can help with all your outsourced furniture photo editing needs!

We hope you enjoyed reading this article on how to effectively outsource furniture photo editing. 

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Gregory Gronbacher

Real Estate Sales Agent / Professional Blogger

Gregory is a real estate sales agent and a state-certified instructor of real estate licensing and law. Originally from New York City, he's called Grand Rapids, Michigan home since 1995.

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