Jul 10, 2025

Sunglasses Photography (Tips & Techniques For Stylish Product Images)

woman showing off her glasses - Sunglasses Photography

Sunglasses are a must-have accessory for nearly everyone, and they come in a wide range of styles and colors to fit any personality. While their primary function is to shield your eyes from the sun's harmful UV rays, sunglasses also help you look cool while doing so! As such, they have an enormous appeal in product photography and make for great, striking images that sell. There are numerous ways to style sunglasses to help you achieve the perfect look. This article will help you learn all about sunglasses photography, including tips and techniques for creating stylish product images to achieve the results you want. So, how to shoot product photography?

Caspa's solution for product photography gets you the stylish images you want for your sunglasses. With the right approach, you can create striking, dynamic images that showcase your products' unique features and help you attract more customers.

Preparing for the Shoot: Equipment and Setup

man in a photoshoot - Sunglasses Photography

As the U.S. sunglasses e-commerce market is projected to reach $5.77 billion by 2024, with nearly a third of fashion accessory sales coming from this category, it has never been more crucial to get your product photography right. With online sales expected to grow 7.7% annually through 2028, especially on mobile devices, the quality of your sunglasses imagery can significantly impact conversions.

What Makes Sunglasses Unique for Photographing

Sunglasses aren’t like shooting basic accessories. Their reflective lenses, stylish branding, and dual function, fashion and utility, demand a precise and considered approach.

Reflective Lenses

Mirrored or glossy lenses can easily pick up unwanted reflections, including the photographer, camera gear, or surroundings. Managing glare is essential. Use polarizing filters, diffused light, or careful angling to avoid distracting highlights or distortions.

2. Showcase the Details

From the nose bridge to the temple arms, every line of the frame should be crisp and visible. Use a macro lens or zoom setting to capture subtle texturing and finishes, especially important for premium or designer sunglasses.

3. Show Lens Tint and Fit

Different lens tints (such as gradient, mirrored, or polarized) affect how a user imagines their use case, driving, beach days, or city wear. Capture the tint accurately by adjusting white balance and exposure, and when using models, ensure the fit and face shape pairing is realistic and aspirational.

4. Match the Brand Aesthetic

Sporty? Minimalist? Luxurious? Your setup should reflect the brand’s identity. Sleek lighting and white backdrops for premium brands, warm tones and urban settings for lifestyle brands, or energetic outdoor action shots for athletic styles.

Best Settings for Shooting Sunglasses

Your setup will depend on what you want the images to achieve:

Clean product shots
Styled flat lays
Lifestyle content

Here are some settings to consider:

Outdoor Shoots

Natural light is great for sunglasses, after all, they’re made for sunny conditions.

Golden Hour: Soft, diffused light right after sunrise or before sunset reduces harsh shadows and enhances the warm tones of lenses and frames.
Location Ideas: Beaches, parks, rooftops, or urban crosswalks all help customers imagine wearing the sunglasses in real life.

Studio Setups

When you want precision, control, and consistency:

Use softboxes or LED panels with diffusers to eliminate harsh reflections.
Place the sunglasses on a white acrylic, glass, or matte background, depending on the brand's aesthetic.
Consider lightboxes for shadowless product-only shots, especially if shooting for marketplaces like Amazon.

Lifestyle Shoots

This is where you bring the brand to life. Use models in dynamic settings:

Walking down a street
Driving with the windows down
Sipping coffee on a terrace

Let the sunglasses feel lived-in, not staged. Maintaining focus, frame alignment, and sharpness still matters.

Equipment for Sunglasses Photography

Like any type of photography, product photography requires specialized equipment to achieve the best results. For sunglasses photography, you should have:

Camera: A DSLR or mirrorless camera is best, but any camera that allows you to adjust settings will do.
Tripod: A sturdy tripod is essential for stability and reducing blur, especially in low-light conditions or when using slow shutter speeds.
Lighting: When shooting indoors, use soft, diffused artificial lighting to eliminate harsh reflections in the sunglasses' lenses. Natural light is also great for sunglasses photography, so consider shooting outdoors, especially during the golden hour.
Reflectors: Use reflectors to bounce light and fill in harsh shadows.
Backgrounds: A white background is ideal for product photography as it keeps the focus on the product. Use white seamless paper, a lightbox, or shoot on white acrylic or glass surfaces to achieve this look. You can also use colored or textured backgrounds to create styled images, but be careful they don’t distract from your sunglasses.
Lens: Use a macro lens or zoom lens to capture the finer details of the sunglasses.

Lighting Techniques for Sunglasses Photography

a simple photoshoot - Sunglasses Photography

From reflective lenses to vibrant frame colors, sunglasses come with a variety of hues that can be impacted by lighting and color. Experimenting with colored lighting and backdrops can help you set the mood for your product photos. For example, if you’re shooting colorful women’s sunglasses, you can use bright pink or blue lights to enhance the color of the shades, making them more appealing to trend-hunting shoppers. Alternatively, you can contrast brightly colored sunglasses with a darker background to make the shades stand out.

Expressing Moods: Capture the Sunglasses’ Different “Vibes”

Sunglasses have different “vibes” to suit the occasion, whether you’re dressing to impress with flashy new trends or roughing it outdoors with sports, driving, or fishing. As such, lighting is key to capturing these varying moods. Knowing how to work with different lighting setups can help you effectively highlight the sunglasses' various use cases. For example, stylish sunglasses models are great for studio lighting for more polished photographs with colors that pop. Meanwhile, sunglasses used for sports or outdoor purposes may be better photographed under natural outdoor lighting.

Diffusing Your Light: Avoid Harsh Glares and Reflections

When determining your lighting setup for your specific sunglasses, it can also be helpful to avoid using too much lighting. As mentioned in our introduction, some sunglasses materials can be more challenging to photograph. Mirrored sunglasses have been a style trend for years due to their specific look. At the same time, mirrors are notoriously tricky to photograph due to possible light reflections and harsh glares from your camera's flash or other lighting equipment. In this case, diffusing your lights can help.

Highlighting Shapes: Use Light and Shadows to Emphasize Unique Silhouettes

Another tip for lighting your sunglasses photography is to use light and shadows to highlight shapes, especially as sunglasses come in more avant-garde styles. We’re living in an era where 3D-printed eyewear frames are incredibly popular, while many eyewear designers are innovating traditional sunglass shapes, creating unique or even asymmetrical silhouettes. Case in point, Ray-Ban recently released the first-ever concave sunglasses, manufactured using patented technology. Dubbed the Ray-Ban Reverse sunglasses, the new line curves slightly inward towards the eye instead of outward. This is an excellent opportunity to experiment with angles and lighting to showcase this unique aspect of the eyewear.

Showing Off Frame Materials: Use Lighting to Highlight Unique Textures

Finally, lighting can also be crucial for showing off frame materials. Sunglasses with metal frames, for example, can serve as a good canvas for light reflections, helping to highlight the material, whether it is glossy or matte. It’s still essential not to use too much lighting to prevent too much glare from camera flashes or other elements. On the other hand, clear or transparent sunglass frames can be challenging to shoot due to their translucent material. For this type of sunglasses, set up your lighting as part of the background of the shoot, rather than placing the lights around the product.

Lighting Tips for Clear and Textured Frames

You can also lower the lighting intensity to help the clear frames stand out against the background, rather than simply letting light pass through. Meanwhile, other frame styles that utilize unique materials, such as wood or bamboo, can significantly benefit from angles and lighting to highlight textures or accents.

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Posing and Styling Tips for Models (or Flat Lays)

person with glasses - Sunglasses Photography

Sunglasses need to look like they fit well, and that starts with posing. Use three-quarter angles or profile shots to accentuate the shape of the frames and how they contour the face. Straight-on poses work for showcasing symmetry and full lens tint, especially with bold or oversized frames. Have the model look just above or beside the camera to keep their facial expression relaxed and let the glasses take center stage.

Tone Down Hair and Makeup to Showcase the Sunglasses

You want the sunglasses to be the star, not compete with heavy styling. Pull long hair back slightly or tuck it behind the ears to ensure the arms of the glasses are visible. Messy waves or a sleek ponytail can create a clean frame without clutter. Avoid bright or overly glossy makeup that could reflect in the lenses or distract from the product. Stick to soft, matte finishes and neutral tones that complement rather than dominate. For editorial-style shots, you can add personality with bold lip color or dramatic eyes, but always make sure the sunglasses remain the focal point.

Use Hands with Purpose to Direct Attention to the Sunglasses

If hands are in the frame, they should support the story. A model adjusting the glasses, holding them gently, or lifting them slightly off their face adds dynamism and draws attention to the product’s design details, without seeming posed or forced.

Telling a Story Without a Face: Flat Lay Sunglasses Photography

Flatlays provide a versatile and cost-effective way to style sunglasses while conveying the brand's lifestyle.

Use Props to Set the Scene for Flat Lay Sunglasses Photography

Props are your visual language; use them to hint at how and where your audience might wear the glasses. Beach towels, straw hats, and sunscreen for summer vacation vibes. Books, coffee cups, and notepads for a relaxed, everyday aesthetic. Denim jackets, watches, or scarves can be paired with the glasses to add a fashion-forward feel.

Play with Layers and Texture for Flat Lay Sunglasses Photography

Layering fabrics like linen or canvas under the glasses adds dimension and keeps the composition from feeling too sterile. For example, lay the sunglasses on an open book with a draped cloth in the background; this adds narrative and warmth without cluttering the scene.

Position with Purpose for Flat Lay Sunglasses Photography

Place the sunglasses at a slight angle rather than flat and head-on. This shows off lens tint, frame thickness, and arm details more effectively. Add a shadow or a light reflection across the lenses to add realism and depth.

Managing Reflections and Transparency with Sunglasses Photography

woman in pink dress - Sunglasses Photography

Shooting sunglasses can be a tricky endeavor, but managing reflections on mirrored lenses is a great place to start. Sunglasses lenses, especially mirrored or polarized ones, act like a small mirror, picking up everything nearby:

Your lighting setup
Your camera
Even your reflection

How to Reduce Glare When Photographing Sunglasses

To eliminate distracting reflections, adjust your shooting angle. Instead of shooting straight-on, try angling the camera slightly above, below, or to the side of the glasses. This slight shift helps bounce light away from the lens surface, minimizing the glare without obscuring the product. You can also attach a polarizing filter to your lens to help reduce harsh reflections on the glass surface. This is especially useful for glossy or mirrored finishes, where standard lighting can cause unwanted hotspots.

Use Flags to Block Unwanted Light

Reflections are often caused by light bouncing off nearby surfaces, like walls, ceilings, or even your clothing. You can manage this by blocking or absorbing stray light using black cards or flags. These are matte black foam boards or fabric panels that act as visual shields. Place them around your shooting area, notably opposite your light source, to prevent light from spilling onto reflective surfaces. They can also be positioned directly around the lens to eliminate camera reflections in the sunglasses.

DIY tip: Even black construction paper taped to cardboard can work in a pinch. Just make sure it’s matte and not shiny.

Managing Transparency in Sunglasses Photography

Some sunglasses come with transparent or lightly tinted lenses. These transparent lenses pose a different challenge; background clutter and lighting can show through the lens, creating visual noise. To manage this issue, use a clean, uniform backdrop. Keep the background well-lit and straightforward, especially if you want the lens color or gradient to be visible. Avoid busy textures that will show through transparent lenses and distract from the product.

Backlighting for Clarity and Definition

Transparent lenses look better with subtle backlighting, which helps define their edges without washing out the tint. Use soft, diffused light from behind or the side to preserve clarity while adding depth to the lenses.

Retouching Sunglasses Images

Even with perfect technique, a little post-production goes a long way. Gently retouch out any remaining reflections that don’t add to the image, but be careful, as over-editing can strip the image of its realism. The goal is to maintain the authenticity of the product while enhancing its appeal.

Get Product Photos that Increase Your Sales Today

It's no secret that product photography is essential to running a successful online store. Customers want to see accurate, detailed visuals of products before making a purchase. Research indicates that over 70% of online shoppers claim that product images significantly influence their purchasing decisions. Caspa helps brands address their product photography needs, enabling them to meet customer demands better and increase sales.

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Caspa's all-in-one AI product photography platform handles everything from background removal to upscaling, letting brands produce professional marketing visuals in seconds. Whether you need custom stock photos or complete studio editing capabilities, Caspa streamlines the entire product visualization workflow into a single, cost-effective solution. Get product photos that increase your sales today!

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