I have some tips (on the cheap) that you may want to try:
1) your lighting- you can get a white lamp shade or if you have one a dog's plastic white surgical collar and use that as a filter to help reduce shadow and even out light in your photos. You will need to place the lamp shade/collar over the product and then direct lighting through the lamp shade. You can then take a picture through the top of the lamp shade and that should help get rid of unevenness in the lighting.
2) You can use a white window shade to place objects upon to give an even and white backing. I still use one. It doesn't show up wrinkles like a sheet as it is opaque, so you can't see the undertones of the table that you lay it upon.
3) familiarize yourself with your camera's functions like white balance, etc. This will help you when you edit pictures
4) you can sign up for a www.picnik.com account that lets you edit your photos. Much cheaper than Photoshop!
I can't think of any more right now, but this should help and won't break the bank account.
