This lesson shows two cost-effective methods for getting professional results when shooting product photography.

Method One: Using a "Tent" Shooting Enclosure

Other than the camera and tripod, we used three items for our first lighting solution, a shooting enclosure, a reflector, and a light stand. Keep in mind that good results can be achieved using just the shooting enclosure. Even better results are possible when adding a reflector.

The shooting enclosure is simply a framework with translucent fabric attached, much like a tent. The translucent fabric softens the sunlight for softer shadows and lower contrast. Various sizes are available, usually for table-top shooting. Certain features make some enclosures easier to use than others.

We used a LiteRoom by Photoflex for this lesson. This enclosure is unlike most enclosures on the market in that it is floorless. This allows the shooter to place the enclosure just about anywhere and have a nice set top. The floorless design also allows you to place oversized props (i.e. a walking cane) that would not fit inside a more traditional enclosure. Also, items on the set top are easily accessed by simply lifting the LiteRoom, then replacing when ready to shoot again.

The LiteRoom also has an opening on the top so that you can shoot directly above the item being shot.

We set up our LiteRoom on a beach for a sandy set top.

Setting up the Shooting Enclosure

The LiteRoom is easily assembled. Four steel rods are inserted into a hub (connector) at the top of the enclosure. Set up takes about a minute.

Once we had put together our Large LiteRoom we smoothed out a space on the sand and placed a piece of driftwood we found on the beach as a prop. We then set our subject in position on the driftwood (figure 1).

Placing the Enclosure in Sunlight

The look and the lighting you achieve with the LiteRoom outdoors is dependent on how you orient it relative to the sun. When the sun is at a low position in the sky, early or late in the day, good side and back lighting is possible. At midday when the sun is overhead, you can achieve a ¾ or top-lighting look.

Keep in mind when you position the LiteRoom that the sun will be moving as you shoot, so forethought and planning is important before you choose your location. Make observations of the trees and other obstructions that can cause shadows as the sun moves.

An inexpensive compass is a great tool to help you predict the sun's path across your location. Remember the sun rises in the east and sets in the west and the height of the sun at midday depends on the season of the year you plan to shoot. Open areas such as the beach, fields and parks or even your backyard can be great locations to shoot.

In figure 2, we see the placement of the LiteRoom we chose for our shot. We were shooting at approximately 10:00 AM in December (winter solstice, actually) on the beach in Santa Cruz, California, so we know that the sun will stay relatively low on the horizon because it is winter in the northern hemisphere.

We chose to use side lighting from the left. Our enclosure's position is apparent from the shadow cast on the sand.

Shooting Product

Now that we have our location set up, we set the LiteRoom aside and arranged our props and subjects in the shooting area, then re-positioned the LiteRoom.

For our camera settings we chose to use the Auto-A setting, or aperture priority so we could have control over the depth of field in our final image, we then set the white balance to Daylight to match the sun, our resolution to TIFF for maximum image quality, the ISO to 100 and the focus setting to manual.

The camera was set low to the ground on a tripod (figure 3) and placed into position (figure 4). The camera lens fits inside the front of the enclosure box.

With the set and camera ready, we fired off our first shot.

In our result image (figure 5), we see how the LiteRoom has softened the hard sunlight and given us a diffused light quality on this line up of ball-and-grip tripod heads. We have the wrapping highlights, soft rich shadow detail, and complete control of the overall contrast of the image. This entire process took us about 15 minutes. How easy could it be?

Already we have good results. We can improve on these results by adding a rim light with reflected sunlight.

Using Reflectors for a Professional Look

To take this shot to the next level we set up a Photoflex 39X39 inch LitePanel and attached a soft gold/white cover with the soft gold side out. We then attached a Photoflex Main and T clamp to a LS-2212 LiteStand and placed this assembly on the right side of the LiteRoom. The reflector will bounce the sun back into our shot adding a warm highlight to the shadow side of our shot (figure 6).

With our reflector in place we framed up our shot and made another exposure (figure 8).

Below is a comparison of the first shot (figure 7) taken without a reflector and the second shot (figure 8) taken with reflected light from the right side.

When we compare our first shot (figure 7) with our second result (figure 8), we can clearly see the improvements the reflector has made to our final image. The tripod heads have taken on much more depth and dimension. We get much more of a sense of the shapes due to the turn of light and the warmness the LitePanel has added.

Figure 9 below is a close up of these two images to better show the highlights resulting from using a reflector in our lighting solution.

Figures 10 - 13 show some other product shots of cameras and underwater camera housings we made in the same set up.

Replacing items on the set is easy. The enclosure lifts up for easy access to the set top, the items are replaced and posed, and the enclosure is then put back in position.

This entire photo shoot, including the extra shots, set up and teardown, took just under an hour.

Method Two: Using a Translucent Panel Enclosure

Our second method for shooting products outdoors uses a more open shooting enclosure constructed of reflector frames with translucent fabric. This is another great way to get soft even lighting outdoors without spending too much money.

The concept behind this method is much the same as with the shooting enclosure. The translucent fabric diffuses and softens the sunlight to provide an even, low contrast light on your products. For the photographers who already have several reflector frames among their studio gear, this is a great way to simulate the effects of using a shooting enclosure.


This is also a great method for shooting objects that are too large for the LiteRoom shooting enclosure. The large LiteRoom measures 34"x45" at the base accomodating objects about 28 inches or less. A translucent panel enclosure can provide very similar light quality results for objects larger than 28 inches.

Set up time is about 4-5 minutes.

Figure 14 shows a fully constructed panel enclosure. The two walls are 39"x39" LitePanel reflector frames with translucent fabric. The ceiling is a 39"x72" LitePanel frame with translucent fabric. These two frames are each supported with a light stand and a Main & T clamp.

Building the Enclosure

To construct this enclosure, first set up two light stands about six feet apart, each stand a little less than three feet high.

Attach a Main & T clamp to the post of each light stand (figure 15).

Assemble the frames for the two walls and attach the translucent fabric (figures 16 and 17).

Attach each wall frame to a light stand with the Main & T clamp (figure 18).

Assemble the frame for the ceiling and attach the translucent fabric (figures 19 and 20).

The ceiling spans the two walls and is attached using four LitePanel connector clips (figure 21).

Shooting Products

We smoothed out the sand in our enclosure. A piece of driftwood was placed on our "set" as a prop. Then we positioned our product, a tripod, on the driftwood (figure 22).

The camera and tripod was set in place and we framed up our new shot. We checked our exposure setting and took a test shot. Once a good exposure level was found, we were ready to start shooting.

Our first exposure looked pretty good. The lighting was even and soft. The contrast level was not too harsh (figure 23).

This could work for a final image, but we wanted improve on this outcome a bit.

A reflector was introduced to our set up to add some highlights to our product. We used a 39"x72" LitePanel with a gold/white fabric, gold side reflecting, to add warm light to the shot (figures 24 and 25).

We took another shot. The gold reflector really added some "punch" to the image (figure 26). There are now some very nice highlights on the tripod. The contours of the tripod are much more apparent and pleasing.

Figures 27 and 28 show a comparison of shots without any reflected light and with the gold reflected light. The overall light is still soft and pleasing, yet the addition of the reflected light adds nice highlights to our product.

Figures 29 and 30 are cropped versions of the same final image.

Our same set and lighting set up was used to shoot additional products (figures 31 and 32). The set can be modified as you wish; here we brushed the sand some. Also you can change the angle and distance of the reflector to decrease or intensify the reflected light.

Keep in mind that the sun is ever-shifting its position in the sky, so you may need to move the enclosure occasionally to correct for this.

We have shown how simple it can be to create and control lighting for product photography using these lightweight, easy to use products that go virtually anywhere you can find sunlight.