Is a light tent my best option?

S

SwissDot

Messages
88
Name
Simon
Edit My Images
No
Hi All,

I wondered whether anyone could suggest a reasonable lighting setup?

I'm looking to take my own photographs for work samples (mainly A5, A4 brochures) and occasional photographs of products (clothing, bottles, footwear in the main). Would a light tent be best? Are these any good - does anyone have any recommendations of these? The vast majority of our shots would be either shot with a black or white background.

I'm shooting with a 400D Canon 50mm 1.8 II or Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS. FWIW, I've got a Sunpak flash (tilt only), an off-camera cord also.

Many thanks, Si
 
A light tent is the worst thing you could use.

What you want is a range of lighting that includes a mix of hard and soft lighting modifiers. I.e. A Softbox, a standard reflector, a snoot, some grids, and umbrella, and 2 / 3 heads
 
Thanks Richard, that's really useful. Do you have any recommendation in terms of brands/suppliers to look into? I'm looking at occasional use, and am on a budget.
Out of interest, why are light tents the worst thing to use?

Many thanks! Si
 
Light tents are a poor choice, because they are

1. Size limited
2. Produce very same-ish light - dull flay lifeless from all directions

When shooting products, you will find depending on the product, you will want to emphisise or soften some features. Example. If you were shooting a shoe, you might want a softbox to give you mice global lighting, but then a gridded reflector to give you a splash of very hard directional lighting. In this way you will show the product, and then lift up the texture of the stitching or pattens

On top of this, you can then modify your softbox light using tape and card to make the reflection from the soft light more interesting. With a reflective product like a shiny black shoe, controlling the way the light is reflected from the shoe is what defines its shape and gives the shot character

As you are intending to shoot a range of products, you will need to modify your approach from shot to shot the bring the best out in the product

As for makes... Have a look at Lencarta or Bowens. Both have the inexpensive s-fit modifier fittting, and you can pick up s-fit modifiers relativity cheaply form Lencarta. I am sure Garry Edwards from Lencarta can sort you out a good kit with a balance of modifiers to cover most tasks
 
That's a really great help - thanks Richard for taking the time to explain. Time to look into a proper lighting setup methinks!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top