We Are An eCommerce
Photography Service

For South African Entrepreneurs

Who Are We?

Productability is a branded photographic service brought to you by Durban based professional photographer, Dallas Dahms.

Dallas has been a full time professional photographer since 2008 and has taken on many different types of assignments, ranging from photojournalism to commercial work. As a former data systems analyst he strives for efficiency in everything he does and in the sphere of photography he has managed to create a workflow around standard product photography that bears this out.

“Productability is all about getting you the best quality images of your products in the shortest amount of time and at the most reasonable cost possible. With the experiences I have had since becoming a full time professional photographer I know where the bottlenecks in providing this kind of service are, so I have looked at those problems, found solutions and in so doing have streamlined the entire process. I am using the Productability brand to kick start a potential photography franchise service down the line where we can train up young people to do this kind of work in many different parts of South Africa. We will equip them, train them and provide a platform for them to sell these services on to businesses in their area.” ~ Dallas Dahms

What We Do

We Make Your Products Stand Out

We offer excellent quality pack shots of most products on pure white backgrounds that are easy to integrate with a variety of platforms, including Instagram, Amazon, Takealot, Shopify or WooCommerce.

We have been doing product photography under various brands and guises since 2008 and have photographed thousands of images for a variety of different clients. From text books to T-shirts, cosmetics to coffins, bat guano to car racks, there isn’t much we haven’t photographed, so give us a try.

Where We Are

Where Are We?

We are located in the leafy suburb of Glenwood in Durban, very close to Howard College UKZN campus.

While we may have a physical presence in Durban, we can provide service for any person or business within the Republic of South Africa. All you have to do is courier your products to us and we will photograph them then repackage and send back to you via the same means.

Some products can’t be shipped easily, but we are also able to shoot on location using our portable setup. If you are located outside of Durban we can offer you a day rate, plus S&T expenses. Check the pricing section for more on that.

We do have plans to open up a studio in the Western Cape region in the next few years.

Our Studio

Our studio is small, but we are very well equipped! We shoot on Micro Four Thirds cameras, which provide outstanding sharpness and extra depth of field. Our lighting setups are both flash and constant LED which gives us a lot of flexibility when it comes to lighting certain types of products.

Easy: R100 per shot
Complex: R250 per shot

Day rates available for on site shoots or client supervised work.

Easy Or Complex?

Product Classifications

Easy Products

Anything that is no larger than 50cm on any side, doesn’t require assembly or have any reflective or glossy surfaces falls into the “easy” category. This does not include clothing.

Complex Products

Any jewellery, glassware, shiny objects, clothing, pure white products, items requiring assembly, bottles, etc.

Complex products require complicated lighting setups, that’s why they cost more than regular products. Sometimes we can overcome these issues easily and we might be able to bill you at a lower rate, but it’s best to check with us before you book a job in.

How We Discount

How We Apply Discounts

Bulk Discounts

If you need over 200 shots done in one appointment we will offer a discount that is dependent on the complexity of the product. The amount of the discount offered is at our discretion.

Repeat Business

If we see you returning for a third time over a period of at least 3 months we will put you on our A list and give you a better per shot rate. Repeat business is the best business. 🙂

Advance Payment

Should you opt to pay for your job in advance you will automatically qualify for a 35% discount off the standard rates (excludes day rates).

Half / Day Rate

The Day / Half Day Rate Option

If you have a lot of product you need photographed, or you intend to be present on the shoot while we work through a variety of angles and other variations, renting the studio and photographer for a day might be a more cost effective option. If you can’t be present but would like to follow and direct the shoot, a live stream can be set up for you to direct product placements. Alternatively we will shoot directly to your assigned cloud folder and you can accept or reject images from there.

Parameters

An 8 hour work day can start at 8am or 9am.
Half day can only start at 8am and end at 12pm.
Overtime is billed per hour or part thereof @ R1000 per hour.
Upfront payment in full is required to book a slot on our calendar.
Cancellations will attract a 50% penalty. We try to be flexible, but time lost is a cost.
Only 2 people can be in the studio during the shoot.

What Is The Day Rate?

R8000 (full day)
R4000 (half day)

Advanced editing (e.g. deep etching or retouching) will be billed in addition to the day rate.

Cost Calculator

Shoot Cost Estimator

Drag the sliders to calculate what your shoot will cost.

* These deep etching rates are a guideline only. If the product is overly complicated (i.e. has many edges) we will have to quote you first. You may not need deep etching if you only want a pure white background for store use. All our images will have a pure white background by default.

IMPORTANT!
This calculator is here only to help you estimate what your product photography is going to cost. Please contact us to obtain an official quote if you are unsure of anything.

This Is How
We Work

We Have A Simple Process, From Beginning To End

Brief Us

The first step in the process is to send us a comprehensive brief on what you need us to do. You can call us or email us, details are further down on this page.

Describe the products and tell us exactly how you want them photographed (i.e. what angles you want and if any advanced editing such as deep etching is needed, etc). Don’t forget to mention the size of the products and to let us know if there is any assembly required as this will affect the cost of the job.

Once we have your brief we will be able to provide you with a detailed quote. If you decide to accept the quote then you can book a date with us and deliver your products, either in person or via courier.

Pay 50% Deposit

Pay A Deposit

Once we have the go-ahead from you to undertake the job we will require you to make a 50% deposit of the invoice. The banking details will be on there, or you can use the Yoco payment link if you wish to pay by card.

Pay In Full Upfront?

If you’re confident in our ability to do the work you need, you can pay the full amount in advance and you will receive an instant 20% discount off the going rate. Just let us know that you intend to do this and we will make the necessary changes to the invoice on our side.

Review Your Images

As we complete elements of your job we will send you unedited shots via WhatsApp (or via a link to our cloud) so that you can approve each shot. For complex products this is done in real time, so we will need you to respond immediately.

The reason we need an immediate answer is so that we can move on with the shoot. In most cases lighting needs to change from one type of product to the next and this takes time to get right, so if we are going through a lot of different types of products we don’t want to waste time waiting for an approval on one set up.

Approved Shots

If you are not looking for deep etching or any advanced edits we normally deliver website ready images while we are working. If you need deep etching we will send approved shots off to our editing teams and when they are sent back we will provide you with a cloud link from where you can download the final files in the format of your choosing. This normally happens within 72 hours of the last shot being sent to them.

Settle & Collect

Settle The Account & Collect Your Goods

If you haven’t opted for the upfront payment discount you can pay the outstanding balance at the end of the job.

Once we receive that we will release your products back to you for collection.

Please note that any products not collected within 7 days of the shoot will be disposed of.

We Also Make
Unboxing Videos

For the type of overhead unboxing we show here you are looking at R1000 per minute (or part of minute) for final edited video, including voice over and royalty free soundtrack (if needed).