Product photography

[neal]

Hi there
New to studio photography. Need to take product pix of relatively small products against white background. Handcreams etc. have one problem. Cannot seem to get rid of the shadows opposite to the lightsources. Use Nikon D70 with 2X 200W strobes and umbrella. Any body has any advice.
Neal

[Peter_AUS]

Neal,

For product shots of this type I think you would be better off using a light tent for more even lighting.

Something like this as an example.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...=331828&is=REG

[EmbeddedMatt]

With your existing equipment I think you can move your product farther from the background and make you light sources "bigger" by moving your umbrellas closer to the product. You could also try shooting through the umbrellas instead of bouncing off the umbrellas. Umbrellas are so big compared to hand cream that it seems like you should be able to get a good result with your existing equipment.

[wwinn]

Hello:
Try this site, they have a lot of info. Definately a tent would help. Go To:

http://sell-it-on-the-net.com/online..._tent_kits.htm

great stuff!

[aj_day]

Hi there
New to studio photography. Need to take product pix of relatively small products against white background. Handcreams etc. have one problem. Cannot seem to get rid of the shadows opposite to the lightsources. Use Nikon D70 with 2X 200W strobes and umbrella. Any body has any advice.
Neal

I think the source of one of your problems is the umbrellas. Umbrellas are a very basic modifier. They spread the light out well, but the quality of light is still rather harsh. Umbrella light yields raw specular highlights, and hard shadow edges. Shadows are natural. I like to show some shadow when I shoot products, it just needs to be a subtle, soft shadow with graduated edges. Contrast is what draws the eye, and those hard shadow edges will certainly do it.

To soften up your shadow edges, you can try a lighting tent, or softboxes on your lights. I have used both, and I prefer softboxes because they give me more directional control. To soften up your shadows, I would also use one light directly above the subject, one main light @45 degress from the camera, and one silver reflector to balance the main. I use this setup a lot for small products, and have been very pleased with the results.

Check out some sample images of a small digital flash control that I shot this way: http://www.thepierceco.com/lighting/315081.htm