Having two good friends that are sports photographers (here and here.) I have come to learn the value of good camera equipment. Practical eCommerce magazine has a great article posted today about product images for your websites. This is a major issue that we deal with all the time. Your pictures sell your products. There is no doubt that poor grainy, unsharp photos will cheapen your site and your products no matter how great they are. Invest in quality equipment (camera and backdrops) or a service, if not your conversion rate will suffer.

Case in point – View an article by Bryan Eisenberg on how they increase conversation rates by 147%
http://www.grokdotcom.com/2007/02/07/how-changing-your-product-image-can-boost-sales-by-147/

Check out the article here:
http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/524/Photography-More-Than-a-Decent-Camera/