The best lighting setup for product photography

To have the best lighting setup for product photography, you can not only choose the best camera and lens, lighting techniques are also very important. To have beautiful product photos, you need to know how to product photography light setup and choose the right product photography lights. The following article will help you understand lighting in product photography and choose product photography lighting kit for your photos. Check it out with me now!

Product photography lighting setup methods

There are three types of light most used by photographers: Key Light, Fill Light and Backlight.

Key Light: Is the main light source, usually placed off-axis from the camera and directed directly at your product or subject.
Fill Light: A secondary light, usually of lower intensity and placed on the opposite side of the camera from the main light.
Back Light: A light placed behind the product (object), helping the object appear more prominently on the background.

So you need to separate the light correctly to understand the method of product photography lighting setup. That is so important.

How many lights or reflectors should I use for product photography?

Lighting position is an important factor affecting the quality of your product photos. So after setting up the scene and background, you need to think about where to place the lights to illuminate your subject most effectively. If you are new to product photography, you need to try different lighting settings to determine the best results and gain experience for yourself.

The nesscessary of the background

Typically for product photos, customers often want their products to stand out against the background. Therefore, backgrounds such as white table tops and seamless backgrounds are often commonly used in product photography. At that time, the photographer can easily filter the product from the background and create transparent PNG image files to use for many purposes later. However, not all products taken on a white background are beautiful. So you can use other backgrounds with suitable colors to create more creative product photos.

What light do you need for product photography?

Product photography lighting setup

All high-quality product photography has one thing in common: good lighting. It doesn’t matter how good your camera is – if your product isn’t properly lit. Then no amount of post-production editing can save the photo. So the principles of lighting setup for product photography is to make sure that you create the balance of the light in you studio or your box to take your photos.

If you use natural light, make sure that you take photos in a small space with low ceilings. Instead of placing lots of artificial lights in your studio, position your backdrop, tripod, and camera next to a window with indirect but bright lighting. Early morning and late afternoon are the best times of day to take product photos in natural light. However, if your only option is to shoot by a window with direct sunlight, you can hang thin white sheets from the window to diffuse the light so it’s not too harsh. Just like with studio lighting, use light modifiers like reflectors to bounce and enhance natural light where needed to fill in shadows and best showcase your product.

If you use artificial light, you should know how to set up at least three consecutive lights from different angles to properly illuminate your product.

A light shines directly on the product from one side of the camera.
The second light is positioned on the opposite side of the camera, intended to serve as a fill light for the entire product and establish the background.
And the third light angles from behind or above the product.

From there, experiment with umbrellas or reflectors to manipulate light and shadow to your liking. The combined lighting effect must highlight the product and its features, while clearly identifying the product from the background.

How to avoid shadows with led lights when you use artificial light

The best lighting setup for product photography

The best way to take product photos without shadows is to use multiple light sources with different intensities and angles to create soft light and details will be less shadowed. You should prepare the different light such as:

Flash: Creates hard light, clear shadows. Suitable for capturing sharp details.
Softbox: Soft, diffused light, creating little shadow. Ideal for panoramic product shots.
LED light: Light intensity and color can be adjusted. Suitable for creating light and dark effects or highlighting product colors

After that, you have to use diffuse light to reduce shine on the product surface. Using diffuse light is an important method in taking shadow-free product photos. Light dispersion can be understood as the process of dispersing light, helping to minimize shadows and create uniform light on the product surface.

When a light source shines on a surface, the light will reach the point of contact and reflect back. This phenomenon causes shadows and creates dark areas on the product surface. This can reduce the appeal of the product and make it look unnatural. However, by using diffusers, we can cause the light to be dispersed before it reaches the point of contact. This process helps light spread evenly across the product surface, eliminating shadows and creating a more natural, evenly lit image.

Working with natural light to shoot products

Natural light is one of the best light sources for creating beautiful photos. Sunlight always has great intensity to illuminate every object. Choosing the right sunlight intensity is working with natural light to shoot the products. However, when working with natural light, you must understand its characteristics.

For example, natural light at noon is mostly sunlight shining directly from above. These rays of sunlight are rarely scattered through the atmosphere, and often shine directly on objects and are seldom reflected from the ground. This makes the light at this time of day the harshest and the colors the most neutral, so many people may want to avoid midday. The light just before sunset or just after dawn (also known as the “golden hour”) is often considered the ideal lighting condition for photography. The golden hour light has a horizontal angle, creating long shadows and covering the subject with warm light rays.

Sunsets and sunrises can also provide exciting and varied light patterns, mainly because small changes strongly influence the light in the weather at these times. Cloud canopies will be lit from below instead of strongly diffused from above, potentially creating warm, soft skies.

There are several methods for performing diffused light. One of the common methods is to use light dissipating materials, such as diffusers or light curtains. These materials have the ability to scatter light and reduce brightness at contact points, thereby reducing shadows. When using light diffusion to reduce surface shadows, we need to consider and choose the appropriate method for each specific case. Too much diffused light can lose the sharpness and character of the product. Therefore, it is necessary to test and adjust the lighting while getting it right to ensure that the product retains its natural shape and color.

Using diffuse light is an important method in taking shadow-free product photos. By dispersing light, diffusers help eliminate shadows and create uniform light on the product surface, thereby increasing the aesthetics and naturalness of the product.