The Client:
Everlucid skincare launch collection
I photographed Everlucid's three-serum launch collection for their e-commerce store. The brand makes barrier-focused skincare with formulas built around ceramides and ingredients. They wanted imagery with an ethereal quality tied to sky-inspired gradients: sunrise tones for their brightening Sunshine Serum, rain-blue atmospheres for their hydrating Rain Serum, and soft cloud-purples for their anti-aging Cloud Serum. The central challenge was creating these color gradients entirely in camera rather than adding them in post-production. I also needed to find texture stand-ins that would convincingly represent each serum's viscosity and feel, since I only had the bottles to photograph and the final formulas weren't available yet.
The Challenge:
Differentiating three clear liquids with atmospheric color worlds
The project required skincare product photography that could differentiate three clear liquids while maintaining a premium, honest visual language. Each serum bottle contained similar-looking transparent liquid, so the atmosphere around each product became the primary tool for distinction. The brand's visual direction leaned toward atmospheric and emotive rather than clinical or lab-focused. My approach centered on building those sky-inspired color worlds practically with lighting and backgrounds instead of relying on digital color overlays that would feel artificial.
The Execution:
In-camera gradients and practical lighting design
Working from my Vancouver studio, I designed lighting setups that could produce seamless gradients matching each serum's intended mood. For Sunshine, I built warm sunrise tones using amber and coral gels positioned to create natural-looking transitions across the background. Rain required cooler, more subdued blue-gray gradients that suggested overcast skies. Cloud needed soft purples with gentle shifts in saturation. Each setup involved layering multiple light sources at specific angles and intensities to achieve smooth color transitions that read as atmospheric rather than flat or graphic. The goal was optical authenticity: gradients that felt like natural light phenomena rather than Photoshop effects.
Managing glass reflections and label legibility
Controlling reflections on small glass bottles presented its own technical demands. Glass surfaces pick up every light source and environmental detail, which can turn into distracting hot spots or muddy reflections that obscure label readability. I used diffusion materials and carefully positioned flags to manage specular highlights while keeping the bottles looking dimensional and premium. The labels needed to stay sharp and legible in every shot since these images would serve product detail pages where customers need to read ingredient callouts and branding details clearly. I kept compositions clean with balanced bottle-and-box pairings that showed packaging context without crowding the frame.
Macro texture photography as trust signal
For texture photography, I sourced stand-in materials that could mimic serum viscosity, sheen, and the way product spreads across skin. Since I didn't have access to the actual formulas, I tested various gels and liquids under macro lighting to find convincing proxies. The texture shots needed to communicate slip and absorption qualities without looking overly retouched or artificial. I used shallow depth of field to isolate texture details and emphasized the way light catches glossy, hydrated surfaces. These macro images were designed to serve as supporting visuals on product pages where customers want proof of product feel and performance.
The Results:
Cohesive launch imagery that balances atmosphere with functionality
The resulting photo collection gave Everlucid a cohesive set of launch imagery that works across their online store and marketing channels. Each serum has a distinct visual world tied to its sky-inspired color gradient, making it easy for customers to distinguish between products at a glance. The in-camera approach preserved the visual honesty the brand wanted to communicate alongside their ingredient transparency and clean formulation standards. The texture photography provided sensorial cues even though the images were created with proxy materials rather than final formulas.
As a Vancouver product photographer, if you're launching a skincare line and need imagery that balances atmospheric branding with e-commerce functionality, I can help you build a visual system that differentiates your products while keeping labels readable and textures believable. Reach out to discuss your next product shoot.
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