If you want to present your brand, your latest product or design project, you can use digital and photo mockups. And you don’t need to be a designer for that!
Whether you are a writer, a blogger or an entrepreneur, I know how helpful it is to have visually appealing and good looking pictures to present your latest creation. So in this article, I will talk about mockups and tell you all you need to know about them, what is the difference between digital and photo mockups and of course, how and when to use them to your advantage.
What is a design mockup?
A mockup is a digital file that you can use to include any type of graphic element such as a logo, a visual or a picture. Think of it as a graphic template to showcase your design, to give your client or audience a clear and appealing view of your product, as it would look in a realistic setting.
For instance, if you’re publishing your first book and have your cover ready to preview but still no printed copy of it, you can include the visual of your cover in a mockup to showcase your book sitting nicely on a coffee table next to a cup of coffee. Just as it where if you had it printed and you took a picture of it in a real life setting.
Digital mockup or photo mockup: what is the difference?
Digital mockups
A digital mockup is a design document created digitally in which each elements of the picture are set on different layers. For instance, say you are an entrepreneur or small business owner and have created your logo and brand design. A digital mockup allows you to showcase your new brand on a business card or in a presentation, simply by adding your logo onto a ready-to-use digital layout. The perks of using a digital mockup is that there are very simple to use and affordable. And of course, they are plenty of them available online. Just search for “digital mockup template” and you will see. From mockups for business cards, to presentations, flyers or smartphones and tablet screens, you can find anything to show your design to the world and taylor those to your needs.
Photo mockups
A photo mockup literally takes your design creations to the next level without having to produce the actual product to show how great it is. Photo mockups are appealing images that look as good as a professional pictures from a photo shooting. So if you want to present your latest book or product packaging in a realistic setting (i.e. on a shelf in a store) before they are produced, a photography will do the trick. You can then use this image to promote your product on your website and social media. The downside of these files is that they are not as versatile and easy to use as digital ones. Indeed, photo mockups are high quality pictures, so they only come as a picture without layers that you can play with and rearrange as you wish. So if your photo mockup shows a plain book or a tablet on a table, your book or design in the tablet will be shown from that specific angle, in this specific frame as shown on the image. Accordingly, it takes a little bit of graphic design skills to include your book cover or visual into the blank and fit the particular angle of the picture. The advantage of a photography mockup though, is that it comes in high-quality and in most cases with a beautiful design already.
Where to find the right mockups?
Digital mockups are great to showcase the product in its simplicity. Luckily the web is full of these types of files, but unfortunately, not all of them are great. It’s easier to find visuals that feel really “fake”, especially if you search for free resources, and using those could create the opposite effect and push the user away.
My favorite website for this kind of mockups is graphicpear.com, they have both free resources and a paid membership.
On the other hand, photo mockups are on average nicer to convey emotions and show the contest, but they are more difficult to find and usually come with a cost. If your budget will allow it, I prefer this option to enhance your presentation.
The website that I use the most for photo mockups is moyo-studio.com, they have incredibly high-quality resources and their style is fabulous.
Now you know why digital and photo mockups truly are your best allies for all your projects. And if using a photo mockup might still require the support of a graphic designer to get it right, you will definitely save in time and money. If you need any help with that, of course, you are welcome to contact me a with your questions.
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