Playing around with product photos

I asked V. and some fellow Etsians for advice on how to improve my product photos. One big comment was that my photos were too busy - they didn't know what was for sale in the image. Also, they didn't like the red background. So, I set to work trying to take better photos.

As you can see from the picture below, I removed the red background with all the distracting raffia and rice, and replaced it with an open book. You see the bookmark, and you can understand that it's on top of a book. It's not confusing anymore. I also tried to reduce the reflection I was getting from the lighting and the laminate plastic by angling my camera differently.

I think the new photos are much better, so thank you V. and fellow Etsians for your help!

It will take some time before I can swap out all the old photos, but eventually, they'll all be updated.