How to photograph your sole.

The read is only as good as the photo. Ten seconds of care here is the difference between a confident wear map and a shrug.

1. 01

   Whole sole in frame

   Heel to toe, edge to edge. A cropped heel is the most common reason a read comes back low-confidence, because the heel is where most of the story is.

2. 02

   Toe at the top, shoot straight down

   Lay the shoe sole-up on a table or the floor and hold the phone flat above it. Angled shots foreshorten the forefoot and hide wear in the shadows.

3. 03

   Daylight, no flash

   Flash flattens the tread and makes exposed foam glare white. A window or a well-lit room shows the difference between smooth rubber and rubber that is gone.

4. 04

   Knock the mud off

   Dried mud and grit read as tread. A quick tap on the doorstep or a brush is enough; it does not need to be clean, just visible.

5. 05

   One shoe, or both side by side

   Both shoes in one frame is fine and lets the read compare left and right. If you photograph one, tell the reader which one it is so the arch side is anchored correctly.

6. 06

   Skip the filters

   Portrait mode, beauty filters and heavy HDR all invent detail. A plain photo from the default camera is the best input.