# Beginner Help Product Photography



## williyam (Jan 25, 2014)

Hey guys, my name is William.
I'm completely new to photography aside from taking a few photos with a DSLR. I need to take pictures frequently for my businesses and have decided to purchase my own set up to do it myself. I've been trying to decide which set up to get for hours now and Google doesn't seem to get me anywhere conclusive. I'm looking to take product pictures and so far here is my dilemma:

Should I purchase soft boxes or umbrellas for product photography?
Do I need a light tent or can I just use a back drop with soft boxes or umbrellas?

Thanks guys, I tried Googling this for a while now and while I've gotten a lot of information about these options, I'm still very unsure which would be the best fit for me long term.


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## Warhorse (Jan 25, 2014)

I am interested in what the answers will be as well. 

My guess is that your product size, will have a lot of bearing on what type of set-up you will need.


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## Derrel (Jan 25, 2014)

Much of lighting is knowing "how" light behaves, and what is needed to get desired effects. The book Light,Science, Magic is a classic how-to text, but there are also a number of good books dedicated to table-top and small product photography that could help you learn ways to set up various lighting schemes. We have no idea whatsoever what your products are. There are many,many ways to light small products and still-life shots. Umbrellas, bounce cards, scrims, light tents, umbrellas, spot lights,snoots, flags,gobos,cookies,mirrors, all sorts of things can be used, depending on what the desired effects are.

The "quality" of the finished photos depends mostly on the skill of the photographer, and frankly, many people are happy with less-than-optimal but just "average" and yet sharp, clear pictures. I mean, there are high-end $20,000 wristwatch advertisements, and there are e-Bay store snaps of jeans and T-shirts, and the degree of skill and expertise needed to hawk $20,000 watches is vastly different than my friend Karen's e-Bay reseller business specializing in women's jeans and shoes.


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## Designer (Jan 25, 2014)

williyam said:


> Should I purchase soft boxes or umbrellas for product photography?
> Do I need a light tent or can I just use a back drop with soft boxes or umbrellas?



The size of your setup depends on the size of your product.  For larger items, the plain backdrop and softboxes or umbrellas would work fine.


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## williyam (Jan 25, 2014)

Thank you for the replies. I deal with both small products like lighters and regular sized items like 5' long advertising material rolls so ideally I was gearing towards making it work with a backdrop. For the smaller items I planned to just lay the backdrop over a table.

Is there a noticeable difference between using a soft box vs an umbrella for these purposes? Some of my products may have reflective characteristics such as a chrome kind of material on a lighter. Some of my other ones such as advertising material rolls do not.


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## Derrel (Jan 25, 2014)

Yes, a softbox has a FLAT front surface, while an umbrella has a curved surface, and that means VERY different surface reflection characteristics when the light source is reflected in the surface of a product. Many times the light itself will be positioned so that a reflection OF THE LIGHT itself is shown, and in that case, the curved, ribbed, 8- or 10-sided shape of an umbrella seems inappropriate. Of course, not every shot will be lighted the same way; at times, you can use an umbrella to cast a large,soft, swath of light/

I really think you need to get a good book on lighting, which will explain and show you how lighting "works". Light, Science, & Magic is a very good book.

https://play.google.com/store/books...SEM&utm_campaign=PLA&pcampaignid=MKTAD0930BO1


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## JoeW (Feb 4, 2014)

Derrel's initial post is important--the setup varies depending upon the product and the type of photography.  For instance, are you just trying to to clearly, accurately show a product (to put it on e-bay) or are you looking for something sexy, some sizzle (to attract a buyer)?  Consider this the difference between documenting an item (so people know what it is they're getting, see as much of it as they can, and can see if there are flaws) vs. photography that uses angles, setting, and shadow to create a fantastic shot but may not display all of the product.  You mentioned small products (like a lighter) but sometimes bigger products--not sure what an "advertising roll" is so I can't comment on that.

1.  For small items (like jewelry) a light box/tent can work very nicely.  You'll want to consider if you want that completely white backdrop or if you want to shoot with shadow or "black ice" (on acrylic).  You'll also want to consider how you hold the product up (wax or a stand)

2.  A light box isn't going to work for something that is a foot long (or longer).  You're probably talking a cyc (short for cyclorama in which the backdrop is curved so there is no defined edge between wall and floor).  You'll also need it big enough so you can use DoF to blur out the foreground and backdrop.

3.  Darrel is absolutely spot-on that there are some good books out there for table-top and product photography.  Start with "Light:  Science and Magic."  It's the bible when it comes to lighting affects for products and static items.  It's worth your time and money to get 2-3 such books.  It will not only shorter your learning curve.  But you'll find a setup that is used for shooting products and looks similar to what you need and then you'll have a much better idea of what to purchase (and set it up) rather than spending a couple of hundred on equipment that turns out to be a bad fit for you.

4.  Yes, there's a difference between a soft box and umbrella (more direct/controlled light with the soft box, more scattered light with the umbrella).  You can even have some umbrellas that you direct light through.  And you can use a scrim or 5-in-1 reflector and then use that to moderate your direct light.   But ultimately it's going to be a function of your setup--if you have multiple soft boxes and you aim them around the room and they aren't close to the product, you'll get an affect similar to a couple of umbrellas.  So it's hard to say "umbrellas always do this and soft boxes always do this."  In fact, you'll find that even the shape and size of the soft box makes a difference.


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## Roger3006 (Feb 16, 2014)

Hello William, I photograph firearms that I sell online so I believe I have an idea of what you are trying to accomplish.  I also like the book,  "Light: Science and Magic".  It will give you a good idea on how to set up your shots.  I use one or two Chimera Medium Softboxes for almost everything.  I also use a variety of reflectors and many of the gadgets Derrel mentioned.  My studio if full of foam board in various colors, commercial reflectors, mirrors, a roll of aluminum foil etc.  I also have a hot glue gun handy to quickly fabricate things.

Speed is important to me.  I cannot spend the time on a $1,000 gun that I do on a $20.000 gun for economic reasons.  There is also more detail to photograph on the more expensive guns I broker.  After reading  "Light: Science and Magic", you will become much faster in your setups.  Regardless of what I am shooting (pardon the pun), I always try to include what I call my sizzle shots.  You sell the sizzle, not the bacon.  Many of my shots are just informative do display either historical or technical aspects of the firearm.

I shoot a Nikon D300 or D7200 with Nikkor lenses.  Most of my work is done with a 60mm Micro. I also use a 105mm Micro quite often.

I use a camera stand and shoot tethered into Lightroom via ControlMyNikkon.  The Live View in ControlMyNikon helps me position my lighting on more difficult shots.

Like you, I am illustrating a unique item that I am selling so I cannot spend a two or more days for one shot that would be magazine quality which can be enhanced. 

Below are links to a couple of S&W's that were done somewhat quickly.  The blued revolver was much more difficult to photograph.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=392720627

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=392717939

Good luck and keep up informed.

Roger


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## davisphotos (Feb 19, 2014)

I shoot a huge range of items in a production environment-everything from queen sized beds down to jewelry and paintings. Each requires a different set up. For furniture, I tend to use 2-3 umbrellas, smaller items I use a softbox with a grid, and gridded strobes, as well as reflectors. Foam core is one of my favorite tools-for very little money, you can vastly improve your photographs.


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