Are you looking to take your product images to the next level? One good way to do so is with a drop shadow, sometimes called a box shadow. A drop shadow can add depth to your product images and make them look a lot more natural. If you’re taking your product photos in a studio, it can be hard to create the perfect shadow, especially if you’re not a professional photographer. Luckily, it’s pretty easy to add a drop shadow using Adobe Photoshop, during post-production. Here's how.

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how to add a drop shadow
to your product images
by pixc.com

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To get started, open your image in Adobe
Photoshop. Make sure you’re starting off
with an image that has high resolution.
Let’s demonstrate the process on a white
dinner plate that’s on a white background.
You can see it looks a little flat.
STEP 1

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In the ‘Layers’ panel on the right side of the
Photoshop window select your ‘Background’
layer and duplicate it. Do this by right-clicking the
layer and selecting ‘Duplicate Layer’.
You’ll see ‘Background copy’ appear. Now you can
modify the duplicate layer without worrying
about accidentally damaging or distorting your
original image.
STEP 2

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Create a path around your product in
‘Background copy’ and remove the
background.
You can see the background has been
removed by looking closely at the
‘Layers’ panel; your product should
have a grey and white checkered
background (Photoshop’s way of
showing transparency) in the top
layer.
STEP 3

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You need to duplicate this layer too.
A little organization goes a long way in Photoshop, so
get into the habit of organising layers. Name this layer
something like ‘Product’.
I’d also suggest renaming the ‘Background copy’ layer
to something like ‘Shadow’.
STEP 4

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Select your ‘Shadow’ layer, then hit Ctrl + T or
Command + T to select the transform tool. Hold
down the Ctrl or Command key, then click the top-
middle control point (the dot at the top of the
image) and drag the mouse down to position the
transform at the proper angle to match the
incoming light source on your subject.
If necessary, use the move tool to reposition the
transformed image by clicking and dragging it into
place. Don’t worry about it being perfect as you
will have a chance to reposition it later.
STEP 5

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In your Layers panel, click the ‘Lock transparent
pixels’ button next to the word ‘Lock’.
This will ensure the next step only affects the
transform you just made (which will become your
shadow).
STEP 6

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Select the ‘Gradient’ tool (keyboard shortcut ‘G’),
then use the dropdown menu next to the gradient
bar at the top of the Photoshop window to select
the third option down for a black-white gradient.
Select ‘Linear Gradient’ as well in the menu-bar
icons to the right.
STEP 7

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To apply the gradient, simply click at the
base of the shadow closest to your object,
then drag towards the far end of the
shadow.
This should convert your transformed
image into a smooth gradient, but it still
won’t look natural. Let’s clean it up now.
STEP 8

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First, unlock transparent pixels by clicking
the same button you did in Step 7.
STEP 9
Right above this button, use the dropdown
menu to choose ‘Multiply’ as the blend
mode.
STEP 10

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Click ‘Filter’ in the Photoshop main menu,
then select ‘Blur’ and then ‘Gaussian Blur’.
Select a pixel radius for the blur.
You can experiment here, since this effect will
look different depending on the resolution of
your image file and its specific shape.
If you go overboard, use Ctrl + Z or Command
+ Z to undo one mistake, and Control + Shift +
Z or Command + Shift + Z to go more than
one step backwards.
STEP 11

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Now you can do some more transforming. Enable the ‘Free Transform’ tool again
and transform your shadow.
Try to follow the light source and move the shadow accordingly. This might take
some trial and error.
Also, you can use the ‘Opacity’ function in the ‘Layers’ panel to alter the opacity
level of the shadow. This will make the shadow more subtle.
STEP 12

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For some final touches, take your eraser tool (E)
and set its opacity to 20-25% and flow to 60%.
Right-click on the canvas and set the size and
hardness of your brush. The size of the brush will
vary on the image resolution. Set Hardness to 0.
Swiftly brush around your shadow layer to soften
any hard shadow you have potentially made.
You can use Ctrl + Z/Command + Z to undo your
latest action. Just play around until you find
something that you feel looks best, and that’s it!
STEP 13

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