Let’s say you have an idea for a product.
It’s just an idea – but you think it will work.
You could have a prototype designed, built, shipped to you and photographed.
Or you could save the time, money and create a realistic photograph without a physical object.
How?
Productviz creates photorealistic images without any physical prototype.
If you have a sketch of what you are looking for, we can take that and come up with a professional set of photographs you can use to sell or test your product idea, saving you money, time, and work creating a physical prototype that would have to be photographed.
A Case Study
Imagine if your artwork could be photographed anywhere in the entire world. In any interior, museum, or other setting that makes it look really great.
The ability to professionally photograph your work in any context would let you could kiss boring, white backgrounds goodbye.
Visual intelligence is the name coined to describe this process: turning a jpg (or other image file or your art) into a professional photograph in the context of a beautiful interior, gallery, or setting.
Below you will find out a little about how we developed this technique.
Traditional vs. Visual Intelligence
To start, let’s take a look at this piece of art pulled from the Library of Congress. This is just a plain jpg image of a 20th century painting.
This painting is basic in its size, shape, and color. Traditionally, an artist looking to display this painting (on their website or in their portfolio) would show the painting on either a plain white background (image #1) or with a mock black frame (image#2).
Some artists might take little bit more advanced route, and display the painting in a stock photography interior. Basically, this See the example photo below ↓
For some art, these presentations serve as good-enough. Selling 500 different posters on an Etsy store (or have a shop like Zazzle.com)? You really want to give your customers a simple, straightforward way of seeing exactly how all the many pieces you have compare to one another.
These examples are best for “commodity” artwork. Or art meant to just fill space. If you are looking to evoke a feeling or capture a mood with your art photography (or sell at a high price), these generic and sterile approaches will fall flat.
Enhancing Your Work with Interiors & Environments
Below is the same painting presented in the Visually Intelligent style. In other words, the painting is photographed in an interior.
Not only is each interior different, but also the frame, matting, and texture of the canvas in each photo.
Unlike copy and pasting, Visually Intelligence can also show the working from different viewing angles and with different depths of field.
Close-ups which are impossible using a traditional copy-and-paste technique are an interesting way of showing of your brush strokes or the quality of the paper your work is printed on.
When Visual Intelligence is the Right Solution
If you work with commodity art — you sell many slightly different pieces at a very low price point — having a high-quality photo in an interior isn’t necessary to your sales. Commodity art is really more about making your images clear and very easy for your customers to buy. (We also offer a catalog and portfolio service, formatting many images. See more here.)
If you are a high-end artist, though, you are crazy for not using a professional solution to present your artwork. Visual Intelligence is simpler than traditional photography — which requires tons of logistics, making it expensive and time consuming. Visual Intelligence, on the other hand, only requires you to email or Dropbox a single image file.
In addition, when you are dealing with sets, locations, and transportation, you will be making many creative sacrifices. Wrong color paint in the interior where you are shooting? Not much you can do about it. With Visual Intelligence, everything — from wall color to furniture choice — can be modified immediately without any extra expense.
Thinking Outside the Box With Visual Intelligence
Moving past changing art from one interior setting to another, Visual Intelligence can display your artwork on a totally different medium.
To put it another way, take our original reference piece. In the photos below, we show that art in different contexts.
Remember, all the Visually Intelligent photos you are looking at are made without traditional photography. In other words, the only thing supplied by you the artist is the image file of your work.
Think of the world of possibilities that come with being able to work not just on canvas or print, but any medium. Pablo Picasso has a very famous set of ceramics that capture this creativity perfectly.
Visual Intelligence gives you the opportunity to show your customers what your work might look like as a rug or pillow…without the investment of buying, creating, and photographing those rugs or pillows.
You could see what your audience responds to and what direction to move in without all the time, money, and sweat that would go into creating the physical pieces and having them manufactured and photographed.
Visual Intelligence is Creative Freedom
As an artist, your are in the business of being creative. And as any artist knows, creativity doesn’t stop when the clock strikes 5.
Creative people want to see and experiment with the vitality and vibrance in all things. Visual Intelligence is a little piece of that freedom, capturing your work in an environment that best suits it.
You can see a little how other artists have used Visual Intelligence to enhance their work here. You can also email me directly with any questions. I’m Jake@productviz.com