iconasys Still Product Photography using Shutter Stream Software User Guide

: June 9, 2024
: iconasys

Table of Contents

Still Product Photography using Shutter Stream Software
Product Photography Workflow:
References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
Download This Manual (PDF format)

Quick Start Guide

iconasys Still Product Photography using Shutter Stream
Software

Still Product Photography using Shutter Stream Software

User Guide:
Please see: https://www.iconasys.com/resources/training/user-guides/
Additional Training Resources:
Please see: https://www.iconasys.com/resources/training/
Questions?:
Technical Support: Please see all technical support contact options here
Knowledge Base (FAQ’s): https://confluence.iconasys.com/display/SHSKB
Installing Shutter Stream Software:
Please revert to your post purchase email to access software download links. If for any reason this was not received, please contact us so we can resend.

After Software Install:

Launch & Register the Software:
After installing the software and at the time of first launch, users will be prompted with the option to register the Shutter Stream software. Please follow registration instructions in the user guide.
Set up your Compatible Camera:
Please select your specific camera model from this page for the required settings.
Connect Camera to Computer via USB:
Users will want to power on their camera and connect to computer via USB cord before launching the software.

Overview – Shutter Stream Software UI

Image Composition & Capture Tools
Image Viewing & Thumbnail Gallery
Image Processing & Output Tools
Live View / Image Viewing Window
Import / Help / Settings

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**Please ensure the camera has been connected via USB to computer and powered on before launching software

Product Photography Workflow:

Step 1: Live View
Place an object in cameras field of view and click the ‘Live View’ button (top left corner of software). Live View will stream the cameras live view to the monitor screen in real time so users can view the subject they wish to shoot before actually capturing the image. Users can view Live View options by clicking the 3 dot icon in the corner of the Live View button
Suggested Live View options:
Display Lines: ENABLED / 5 x 5 lines / Marker Color: (odd) Blue, Marker Color (even) Red
Keep Live View on After Capture: Enable if shooting multiple images per product (if not enable
Open Image After Capture)
Auto Select After Capture: Enable

Step 2: Camera Zoom (if using a zoom lens)
Manually zoom in/out camera if required (by twisting lens left/right).
Step 3: Adjust Camera Exposure
Adjust Camera Settings to Optimize for Lighting: Users have the ability to adjust camera settings through mouse clicks in the Control Camera. To open Control Camera window, left click the icon from the right side Image Capture Tools. To adjust camera settings, click drop down arrow then select a new value.

Suggested Camera Settings for Beginners:
AE Mode: Manual
ISO Speed: 100
White Balance: Auto
Aperture: 14

Shutter Speed: Start at 1/15 and change accordingly. This will be the variable setting that users will be responsible for changing. When working with a camera that has exposure simulation, the Live View Window will simulate the exposure of the image in real time as settings are made so adjust until the product in the Live View Window looks color accurate. ‘Shutter Speed’ is the amount of time a camera’s shutter is open (defined in seconds) when capturing an image. The slower the Shutter Speed, the brighter the resulting image. For ex. a Shutter Speed of 1/15 (that is 1/15th of a second) is slower than 1/30 – therefore the resulting image at 1/15 would be brighter than an image shot at 1/30.

Step 4: Adjust & Set Focal Point (optional Adjust and Set Focal Point: Users have the ability to capture images using Auto or Manual Focus. The cameras Auto Focus will likely be good however should a user wish to adjust the focal point manually through the software, toggle the Capture Mode button from AF to MF in the Control Camera window. Users have the ability to adjust focal point through mouse clicks by clicking the Drive Lens near and far arrows. To view 1:1 on the view finder – to see up close when adjusting focal point, select 5X or 10X Live View Zoom option. The 1:1 viewing area can be moved by right clicking on the Live View window. After Focal Point has been set, be sure to revert the Live View back to full screen viewing by resetting Live View Zoom option to Fit. The manual focal point set will be retained or every image (until adjusted).

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Step 5: Compose the Image
Users are now ready to compose their image. This step will first require the user to position their object to the desired angle. It is then suggested in this step to pre-crop the subject. To do so, enable Pre-Crop by left clicking on the Crop button in the Image Capture tools area. Next, users will click and drag the mouse cursor over the subject in the Live View Window. To define Crop in a ‘square’ or ‘custom ratio’ click the 3 dots in the bottom corner of the Crop button to open Crop Options window.

To achieve the highest resolution images from your camera – please be sure to zoom in as close as possible on your object so that it fills the Live View frame – then Pre-Crop.
Step 6: Snap

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Snap will trigger the camera image capture – after which the image will be auto-uploaded into the software for viewing, editing, processing and output. There is multiple Snap Modes available that can be accessed by right clicking the Snap button. Read more about these options in the full User Guide.
If required, shoot multiple angles of the same product. The standard image capture workflow now is Live View (Crop will be retained from shot to shoot – adjust this if required) then Snap. Please also see Image Overlay feature to help with consistently lining up products to shoot at the exact same angle every time.

Step 7: Viewing Images
Viewing an Image: Left click on the thumbnail to view the image in the Image Viewing Window. The selected image will be highlighted in light blue. Users will have the ability to inspect up close by right clicking on the image and clicking 1:1 icon of adjusting zoom bar. When viewing 1:1, users can pan by holding Space Bar, then clicking and dragging to adjust the 1:1 viewing area. Users can also use the left and right arrows to display other images in the thumbnail queue.

Step 8: Selecting Image’s for Editing/Processing/Ouput

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Viewing an Image: Click on the thumbnail to view the image in the Image Viewing Window. The image being displayed will be highlighted in light blue.
Selecting an Image(s): Left click the image. Once selected it will be highlighted in blue. To select all images in the thumbnail gallery, click the check box in the top right corner of the Thumbnail Gallery Window (next to trash can icon). Users can also select the first image in the set, hold ‘Shift’ then select the last, all images in between will be selected.

Step 9: Batch Image Editing
After selecting a set of images, click the Edit button from the Image Processing Tools area. There is a variety of editing tools that are useful for enhancing image quality, removing backgrounds adjusting colors and more. It is suggested to review the full user guide to learn more about Image Editing capabilities. For ex. a popular tool for product photography batch image editing/background color adjustment is our Levels tool:

Levels: Under Basic Adjustments, users can find the Levels tool. The graphic with the mountain looking shapes is called the Histogram – this describes the color values in the selected image. The left side is the very dark (black) colors in the image, on the right the very bright (white) colors in the image. The higher the mountain – the more a specific color is in the image. To adjust levels value, users will see three ‘reference points’ immediately below the histogram that are adjustable by clicking and dragging. Provided you have sufficient lighting, you will want to drag theright reference point to the left – this will turn all colors to the right of the repositioned reference point white.

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Edits are applied by clicking the Apply button. If multiple images are selected, edits will process all selected images in a batch process.
After editing is complete, exit out of the editing tool using the < button in the top right of the Editing window.

Step 10: Image Output
The last step of the workflow is to output the image(s). This can be done using either the Batch or Dynamic Save tool. Multiple product images can be saved with one click to a specific directory (local or network). Included in the ‘Batch Save’ feature is batch image resizing, resolution adjustment (web or print) renaming and watermarking. Please be sure to include a placeholder after name (ex. Filename- or Filename_).

Name: The field which the user will enter the desired image name. It is important to put a ‘-‘ or ‘_” after the name
Output Path: This will be the Save To Directory. Users can change this by clicking the ‘Browse’ button to the right and locating/selecting the desired output folder
Sequential Naming: Multiple images will be named sequentially in a numerical format.
Quality Settings: Define image quality settings (higher the number the higher the quality)
Resolution: To enable resolution, click the x box to the left of Resolution text then specify a DPI

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Resize: To enable resizing, click the checkbox to the left of Resize text then specify a pixel width or height (we do not suggest to set both width and height)
Watermark: Add a watermark (ex. semi-transparent company logo) to the set of images in a batch process
EXIF Metadata: Add custom metadata to the images in a batch process (users need to create an EXIF metadata profile first in the options area) Replace Transparent Area (Alpha Channel): For images that were cut out from their backgrounds that have transparent pixels, users can define the background color for these images if outputting in a file format (ex. JPG) that does not support transparent pixel properties Users can also use the Dynamic Save tool to save an image or set of images at multiple different size, resolutions, formats and more.

Step 11 (Optional) – Removing Images from the program
After images have been exported to a local or network folder, they can be deleted from the program. To do so, select images from the Thumbnail Gallery that you wish to remove then click the Trash Can icon in the top right corner of the Thumbnail Gallery.

Return to Step 1 to capture next set of images….
Shutter Stream Software includes many advanced features above and beyond the ‘standard workflow features’. To learn more and find out how they will fit your specific requirements, please refer to the complete user guide.