How to Film a 360° Product Video: A Step-by-Step Setup Guide

Put your product in the center of a turntable, lock your camera on a tripod, light the product evenly from both sides, and record one full rotation in 10 to 20 seconds at 4K and 30 to 60 fps. Keep the camera, lights, and settings fixed for the whole clip. That's the whole recipe - the rest of this guide explains each step and how to fix the problems that make a spin look jumpy.

Once you have the video, Spinlab turns it into an interactive 360° spin for your Shopify product page.

A turntable. We recommend a motorized product turntable because it spins at a constant speed, which is what makes a 360° spin look smooth. A manual lazy Susan can work for small products if you turn it slowly and evenly, but speed changes show up as jumps in the final spin.

A camera that records 4K. Most recent smartphones are enough. A mirrorless or DSLR camera gives you more control over focus and exposure, which helps with reflective products like jewelry and watches.

A tripod. The camera must not move during the rotation. Handheld footage almost always produces a spin that drifts or wobbles.

Two soft light sources. Softboxes, LED panels with diffusers, or a light tent. Even, diffused light matters more than expensive gear.

A plain background. A white or light-grey paper sweep or backdrop that curves under the turntable, so there's no visible horizon line behind the product.

Clean the product thoroughly - dust, fingerprints, and lint are far more visible when shoppers can rotate and zoom. Remove tags and stickers unless they're part of what you're selling.

Shape soft products before you start: stuff bags so they hold their form, lace shoes neatly, and steam fabric. Whatever the product looks like at the start of the rotation, it has to look exactly the same at the end.

Place the product so its center sits directly over the turntable's center point. This is the single most important step. An off-center product swings from side to side as it rotates, and that wobble is the most common reason a 360° spin looks amateur.

A quick check: rotate the turntable slowly by hand while watching your camera screen. If the product drifts left and right, nudge it toward the center and check again.

Mount the camera on the tripod facing the product. Set the lens at roughly the product's middle height, or slightly above it angled a little downward, which is how shoppers normally look at products on a shelf.

Frame the product so it fills most of the frame with some space around it at its widest point. Remember that wide products get wider as they turn: rotate the turntable a full turn before recording to make sure no part of the product leaves the frame.

Place two soft lights at about 45° on either side of the camera, at similar distances, so the product is lit evenly all the way around. Harsh, single-direction light creates shadows that sweep across the product as it turns.

For shiny products such as jewelry, watches, glass, and polished metal, a light tent or large diffusion panels help soften reflections. Check the reflections through a full rotation, not just from the front.

Turn off overhead room lights and keep window light out of the setup. Mixed light sources change color as the product turns.

Record at 4K resolution and 30 to 60 frames per second. Higher resolution keeps detail sharp when shoppers zoom in; a steady frame rate gives Spinlab plenty of frames to build a smooth spin.

Lock focus, exposure, and white balance before you start. On most phones you can tap and hold on the product to lock focus and exposure. If these settings shift during the rotation, the spin will flicker or pulse in brightness.

Turn off automatic features that change the image mid-clip, such as auto HDR, beauty filters, and portrait or cinematic modes.

Set the turntable so one full 360° rotation takes 10 to 20 seconds. Slower is not better beyond that point: longer clips make bigger files without making the spin smoother.

Start recording, let the turntable complete one full rotation at a constant speed, and stop. The clip should begin and end at the same position so the spin loops seamlessly. If you recorded extra seconds before or after the rotation, trim them in your phone or camera's editor.

Don't touch the product, turntable, camera, or lights while recording. Even a small bump shows up as a jump in the final spin.

Export the clip as MP4 or MOV and upload it to the product in your Spinlab dashboard. Spinlab extracts the frames and builds the interactive viewer automatically - processing typically takes 30 seconds to 2 minutes.

Then add the Spinlab block to your product template once in the Shopify Theme Editor, and every spin you upload appears on its product page. The Quick Start Guide walks through it, and Syncing 360° Spin Sets covers replacing a video later.

The product wobbles or drifts side to side. It isn't centered on the turntable. Re-center it (Step 2) and reshoot.

The spin jumps or stutters. The rotation speed changed during the clip, or something moved. Use a motorized turntable and don't touch the setup while recording.

The brightness pulses or flickers. Exposure or white balance wasn't locked, or your lights flicker on camera. Lock the settings (Step 5) and use continuous LED lights rated as flicker-free.

The spin doesn't loop cleanly. The clip doesn't start and end at the same position. Trim it to exactly one rotation.

Reflections flash across the product. Diffuse the lights further or use a light tent, and check reflections through the whole rotation before recording.

Jewelry and watches: move the camera close or use a macro lens, use a light tent for even reflections, and use a small dark card just out of frame to add definition to metal and stones.

Shoes and bags: shape and stuff the product first, and shoot slightly from above so the opening, laces, or top handle are visible as it turns.

Furniture and large items: you'll need a large, sturdy turntable rated for the weight, a wider shooting space, and lights placed farther back so the whole piece is lit evenly.

Product cleaned and shaped · centered on the turntable · camera locked on a tripod · product stays in frame for a full turn · two soft lights at 45° · room lights off · 4K at 30 to 60 fps · focus, exposure, and white balance locked · turntable set to 10 to 20 seconds per rotation · clip trimmed to exactly one rotation · exported as MP4 or MOV.

Ready to try it? Start on the Free plan with up to 3 products, or see how Spinlab turns your video into a spin.