Product Lighting

I receive quite a bit of inquiries on how I light product. I wish there was a simple formula for lighting product, but the truth is, it all depends. Different textures, materials, reflections, etc require different techniques. 

For example, I was doing some lay-down clothing testing yesterday with a local clothing stylist for his portfolio. He wanted punchy, directional lighting with pretty defined shadows. 

After he styled the lay-down, I went about the task of lighting and lining up the camera. I have a ten foot camera stand in the studio, so getting above a lay-down is not a big deal. 

Here is one of the final shots.....

For this image, I used a Mola Euro (with no diffusion) as a single light source. The Mola was above and camera right angled to skim across the frame. I also used a V-Flat positioned on the lower left side of the frame to open up the shadows on the left side of the frame. 

I love using the Molas on product shots. The quality of light is absolutely beautiful. 

The stylist I was working with on this project is Mack Richards. Mack is based here in southern California, but works all around the world. You can see Macks clothing and home styling websites at the following links. 

Clothing - http://mackrichards.com/

Home - http://mackrichardshomestylist.com/