11 Nov 09: Lighting #5: Studio lighting for glass & reflective objects

In the studio today Andy showed us some basic techniques for modifying the quality and direction of light when shooting an object using glass and reflective surfaces.
He set up a number of different types of lighting around an acrylic product table and we took pictures of a perfume bottle:
1. Light at 45° - gives a rather dull image, with a shadow.

2. Top lighting - the writing on the lid is really clear, but there is some reflection on the lit which detracts from the overall effect.  (This can be removed by masking - see 5 below).

3. Lighting from below and behind, through the acrylic - the bottle itself has a good strong shape with no shadow but the writing on the lid has completely disappeared.

4. Lighting from below and in front – produces a much more interesting image showing more detail such as the writing on the lid

5. Using black reflectors at either side of the table and black masking held above the bottle to change the highlights - makes the lid appear blacker and less reflective. (The masking wasn't positioned quite correctly so there are still some areas of highlight on the lid).

6. Using natural daylight (on the window sill) - the image has a more interesting dimension and perspective.

We then went away in groups of three to try out some shots of perfume bottles using lighting of our own choice. In my group we started on the product table, using the lighting from below and behind, taking shots from different angles and trying to capture the reflection on the table.   This has a good reflection, although the background lighting isn't even and the bottle appears to float in the bright space in the middle.

I did try to improve on the lighting using Lightroom2 but this was about the best I managed to achieve - I still didn't get an even background and lost a lot of the orange colour from the bottle - obviously there is no subsitute for getting the lighting right in the studio to start with!

We also used black masking very close to the sides of the bottle to try and create a black edge around the bottle:

 

 

Then we took some shots with the perfume bottles on the window sill, with the aim of getting the colours from outside to show through the bottle.  In the first image if the picture was cropped and the background erased I think this would make an interesting image.  The background doesn't show through as clearly in the orange bottle.

Then we put the bottle on the studio floor – we chose the floor because it contains particles that sparkle in the light and thought it would provide an interesting backdrop to the perfume bottle. These shots were lit by light coming through the door from the corridor.

Finally we used a penlight torch to light the bottle, initially shining it from above so that it created a circle of light around the bottle...

..and lastly placing the torch on the floor -

- so that it lit the bottle ‘from within’ and shot the bottle from above. These pictures really bring out the jewel like properties of the glass.