Lifestyle

The Best Props For Blog Photography & A Flatlay Guide

When I think back to when I started blogging and look at some of my photos I inwardly cringe. Shadows everywhere and even a stray hair or two making an appearance in some photos. I like to think I’ve slightly upped my photography game since then, although I don’t profess to be any expert. I have my huge Canon DSLR 600D and my smaller Canon G7X which I use for Instagram photography etc. I spend a large amount of my weekend setting up all my different props for blog photography and deciding what would look cool on my Instagram feed!

So today I’m here to share with you my top props for blog photography and how I use them to create a lot of the flat lays you see across my blog and Instagram!

Notable Quotables

Who doesn’t love a little motivational quote? Sometimes I collect postcards so that I can use them in my photography. Kate Spade always give away cute postcard quotes in their stores for free. I’ve also received quote cards when I’ve placed online orders (Hello Tarte!). Finally I love the swivel stands that they have in Paperchase that show all of the postcards with inspirational or funny messages on them.

props for blog photography

props for blog photography

Wallpaper and Stickyback Plastic

So It’ll come as no great surprise to you, but I actually don’t have an abundance of marble surfaces in my house (i wish…). Instead I purchased some marble look sticky back plastic from eBay which I use to place many of my products on before taking pictures. I have actually been meaning to put the sticky back plastic onto a wooden board but to be honest it works just as well when I roll it out flat from its tube.

I’ve also taken to going into B&Q and taking some wallpaper samples to use as backgrounds in my photography. They had some snazzy pink and gold metallic wallpaper in there the other day so I snapped it up! This is a great way to get something for nothing, and as long as you don’t go crazy and take the entire roll it’s totally cool with B&Q too!

props for blog photography

Double Sided Tape

I use double sided tape for most of the shots I take. When I’m trying to line up a lipstick or an eyeliner at a certain angle and it rolls all over the place double sided tape is the answer. I fix a tiny square onto the back of the product and it secures it to make sure it doesn’t go rolling off under my bed.

props for blog photography

props for blog photography

props for blog photography

Books

Books are great to add some extra dimension to a photograph. I like to angle mine and then place different items on and around them. Books with a bit of a cheeky title can be even better – as you can see from the photo below!

props for blog photography

Wire Letters & Trinket Dishes

Sometimes when I have a large amount of products that I want to display I find it really helps If I have little bits and pieces to place into the photo. I love my wire letter from Hobbycraft (only £3.50!) and my trinket dish which I got from M&S last Christmas. You may have noticed a bit of theme running here, a lot of my bits and bobs have my initials on them. It’s always nice to add a more personal touch to your photos!

props for blog photography

Makeup Bags

Make up bags are another great shout. I like to place my products inside of them so that they are just peeking out. If they have a funny quote on them, then even better!

props for blog photography

Fake Flowers

Ahh fake flowers. I love them. No upkeep but they still look great! I picked mine up from Ikea, Hobbycraft and eBay. There are so many options and many of my flowers cost from between £1-2. They help to add a burst of colour to a photo, and I try and buy them in all the colours of the rainbow so I have lots of options!

props for blog photography

What do you use for your blog props? Do you have any favourites?