Category: Photography Technique, Technical Standard

Definition: The degree to which colors in product photography match the actual physical product colors. Critical for customer satisfaction and involves precise lighting, camera calibration, monitor calibration, and post-production workflow to ensure faithful color reproduction.

Why It Matters: Prevents returns due to color mismatch (30% of returns cite color as reason); builds customer trust; essential for brand consistency; critical for fashion where color is key purchase driver; affects customer satisfaction scores directly.

Use Cases: E-commerce product photography, catalog production, marketplace listings, color matching across photography sessions, seasonal color consistency, multi-vendor coordination.

Example of Real Use Case: A fashion retailer implements strict color accuracy protocols including color checker cards and monitor calibration. Returns citing "color not as expected" drop from 18% to 4%, saving $240,000 annually in return processing and lost revenue.

Software/Service: X-Rite ColorChecker, Datacolor SpyderX, Adobe Lightroom with color profiles, Capture One, calibrated monitors (Eizo, BenQ), RAW format workflow

Common Issues: Inconsistent lighting between sessions, uncalibrated monitors showing different colors, screen-to-print variations, metameric failures under different lighting, white balance errors, color shift in compression.

Do's and Don'ts:

• ✓ Do use color checker cards in every session

• ✓ Do calibrate monitors monthly

• ✓ Do shoot in RAW format

• ✓ Do maintain consistent lighting across sessions

• ✗ Don't rely on auto white balance

• ✗ Don't edit colors on uncalibrated monitors

• ✗ Don't over-compress final images losing color data

Related Terms: White Balance, RAW Format, Color Grading, E-commerce Photography, Fabric Rendering

Also Known As: Color Fidelity, True Color, Color Matching