The background is the first thing a shopper’s eye passes over and the last thing most sellers check. Small background problems make a good product look cheap, and they are often the reason a marketplace listing gets rejected. Here are the five we fix most often.

1. Rough or blurry edges

Automatic background tools often leave a soft halo, cut off fine details such as straps or fringes, or keep small pieces of the old background. On a white page these errors are easy to see.

Fix: use a hand-drawn clipping path for hard-edged products and careful masking for hair, fur and fabric fringes.

2. A white that is not really white

A background that is light grey, blue or yellow next to a pure-white website makes the photo look dirty. Many marketplaces also require a pure white background (RGB 255, 255, 255).

Fix: replace the background completely instead of only brightening it, then check the corners with a colour picker.

3. Products that float

Removing a background also removes the natural shadow. Without it, products look pasted onto the page.

Fix: add a soft natural shadow or a drop shadow. For glossy surfaces, a subtle reflection works well. Keep the same shadow style across the whole catalog.

4. Colour casts from the old background

A coloured wall or floor reflects onto the product. When the background is removed, a green or orange tint stays on the edges and the product’s own colour looks wrong.

Fix: correct the colour cast on the product itself and match the colour to the real item or a reference swatch. This also reduces returns caused by “colour not as shown”.

5. Different sizes and positions in the grid

When one product fills the frame and the next one is small and off-centre, the category page looks messy, even if each photo is good.

Fix: crop every image to the same canvas, with the same margins and the same alignment. Write these rules down once and apply them to every new batch.

Quick checklist before you upload

  • Edges are sharp and clean, with no halo.
  • The background is pure white or your brand colour, the same in every photo.
  • Each product has a consistent, natural shadow.
  • Product colours match the real item.
  • Canvas size, margins and alignment are the same in every image.

If you would like a second pair of eyes on your current photos, our background removal team can edit a few samples for free.