Simple Ways to Improve Indoor Lighting
Hi everyone! My name is Mira Crisp and I blog over at Crisp PhotoWorks. I’d like to thank Andi for having me on her blog.
Now, let’s talk about that one thing that makes or breaks photos: the lighting. While natural light can be amazing, and can create opportunities for gorgeous shots, it can also be reasons of frustration when shooting indoors. If you are (very) lucky, you have huge windows and rooms facing not only south, north, west, and east but also everything in between; a 360 view! Actually, you may be living in a lighthouse with a 360 degree view and bathing in gorgeous light most of the day. Most of us are not that lucky and we need to find solutions for poor indoor lighting conditions. Actually, we allow ourselves to feel a bit better because we know that even if you live in a lighthouse, you still depend on available natural light, and natural light is not always available. But don’t worry; there are affordable solutions to our troubles.
Source: Google. Copyright D. J. Dewey
Know When and Where to Shoot
So, how do you improve your chances of taking a better shot indoors? Obviously, you need to allow as much natural light in as possible. That means you need to open your curtains and shutters (and ignore windows that need cleaning at this point!). Then, you need to know when and where to shoot! If your kitchen is facing east, you will shoot in your kitchen in the morning. If your living room is facing west, you will be shooting there in the afternoon because that’s the time of the day that room has the most light.
North Light
What if most of your rooms are facing north? Well, most people find north-facing rooms to be cold and dull but did you know that the light on that side of your house is the most constant? It does not change as the Sun moves around. Did you know that artists prefer north-facing studios because of that light? North light is also known as reflected light or indirect light. So, take advantage of that. Shooting in north light is like shooting with a diffuser! If you set up a spot to take photos in any other room, you will have to worry about the Sun and its angle which changes fast. But if you set up your photo spot in the north-facing room, you will never have to worry about that. If you are shooting still life or products, I would buy two inexpensive desk lamps (with silver or white colored inside coating) and place them on a desk on each side of your subject to act as fill lights. Note: use only day light bulbs that have white light as regular bulbs tend to have yellowish light.
Built-in Flash: Diffuser and Lightscoop
A way to add more light is to use your camera’s built-in flash. This flash produces flat light and casts hard shadows. I personally don’t use the built-in flash on my cameras, rather, I prefer using an external camera flash. I understand that not everyone has a need to buy an external flash, so there is a little trick to help you use your built-in flash more efficiently.
Get yourself a diffuser. These are really inexpensive. You can get one for just a few dollars. It’s basically a piece of milky white plastic that you put over your flash. It helps enormously to avoid harsh shadows!
Source: Amazon.com
Make Your Own Diffuser in 30 Seconds
I will share a secret with you: You can make your own diffuser right away! A couple of years ago when I still used the on-camera flash with a diffuser, I dropped my diffuser into a lake. And the next day I had a photo-shoot scheduled and I knew there was no way I can get Amazon.com to deliver a new diffuser to Italy within 12 hours. What I did was simple: I took a Kleenex and separated its layers. I used one thin layer and covered my flash with it. I created a little hood that had enough space for the flash to pop-up and I secured the tissue in place with a rubber band. I went to the photo-shoot with an injured looking camera, but i
Get yourself a Lightscoop. For around $30 you could get a lightscoop to attach over your built-in camera flash. Unlike the diffuser that diffuses the light, this little scoop redirects the flash. It has a small mirror that boosts the light’s intensity and bounces it off the ceiling.
Source: Amazon.com
External Flash: Diffuser and Mini Soft Box
I took the photo below with and without an external flash. If you are shooting jewelry, portraits or other products for your website or shop, you will want to avoid shadows. However, in certain cases, shadows can add more visual interest to the photo.
Difference in Shadows
An external flash helps tremendously with indoor lighting, especially if it allows you to change the flash angle and bounce the light off the (white or gray) ceiling, wall, reflector, etc. Again, you should use a diffuser with this flash to avoid hard shadows as a diffuser softens the light. You can also get thin gel sheets to cover the diffuser or flash that changes the light characteristics. For instance, I like to use orange ones, they warm up the light. All of these are pretty inexpensive.
Source: Amazon.com
Besides a simple diffuser, you could also get a mini soft box that you attach over your external flash. I haven’t used this yet so I cannot really tell you much about it.
Source: Amazon.com
Light Reflectors: If you don’t have one, get one!
You can easily see the difference a reflector makes in the photo below. I took the top photo without using a reflector. I took the second photo after I placed the gold side of the reflector to the right and reflected the window light. Which one looks better?
The Difference Reflector Makes
Unlike flashes, which add more light, reflectors redirect existing light. You can use reflectors to direct existing light or to fill in shadows with highlights. The good thing about the reflector is that they are inexpensive and usually come as a 5-in-1 set. So, you get a silver, white, black, and golden reflector; together with a white ring that acts as a diffuser if you are shooting in strong direct light (think midday light). If you do not have a kid (or wife or husband) as your reflector prop, you can get a tripod like reflector holder that allows you to place the reflector exactly where you want it. I bought a 5-in-1 set with a holder for about $90 but as I browsed Amazon researching for this post, I found this one for $35. Definitely cheaper than hiring an assistant to carry it around.
Source: Amazon.com
I am definitely not an expert on this topic, but if you have any questions, please feel free to ask and I will try my best to answer it in the comments. If I don’t know the answer I will definitely research it and let you know. Once again Andi, thanks for having me here today and I hope to see you at my place soon where I am starting a new weekly linky party.
Happy Shooting,
Mira Crisp
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thanks, Mira! i didn’t know you could get 1) special light bulbs that look more like natural light & 2) colored film/gel sheets to effect the lighting colors. learn something new every day, excuse me while i go spend my hard earned money…!
now, time for you to show us what you’ve been photographing this week!
link up, visit some of the other participants and share my photo friday button in your post or sidebar {purty pweease}. ——->
*By linking up, you give permission for me to facebook/tweet about your post and photo(s).
Andi, I just love these photo tips! Keep them coming!
happy they are helpful. i love learning new stuff all the time
Such great tips…love it!
thanks, Dina for linking up!
I am sooo going to buy a diffuser now…asap! I love the tips on north, etc. facing rooms and the light they provide. Good stuff. I can keep these in my arsenal of info. =)
Really great tips : ) Thank you for sharing.
thanks for linking up each week, friend!
what a ton of information here!! I recently purchased a reflector that my kids LOVE to hold!
That’s great! I wish I was that lucky!
ya, a reflector and a tripod are my next purchases i think. thanks for stopping by!
These tips are awesome! I just got a new camera and I can really use every help I can get! Thank you xxx
thanks for stopping by, hope it was helpful to you!
Such great tips. A lot to think about there. Thanks for sharing.
This is a great resource. I am off to see if I can find a similar deal for the reflectors on Amazon in the UK.
Mollyxxx
i hope you can find a good deal! thanks for stopping by
Very cool tutorial — I’m going to try to make my own diffuser. Thank you, Hollie!
it’s really easy! hope it gives you good results.
Andi
Thank you so much for this tutorial- I found it so useful! I actually own a lot of the equipment you’re discussing, (the external flash, the gels, and the reflector disk) but I haven’t tried some of your suggestions, like using the gold side of the reflector. I will definitely be giving this a go. Thanks again!
Cathy, the gold side of the reflector is nice because it warms up the photo but you need to be careful with it when shooting white subjects or people wearing white. The gold side washes out white pretty bad.
Great tips and links! I will definitely be picking up some of these great products. Thanks for sharing!
thanks for linking up!
So interesting! I need all the lighting tips I can get because my house is so dark at many times of the day.
Bri, I am sure, if you pay attention to the Sun position and the time of day, you will find a spot in your house that will be light enough for you to take nice shots. If not, replace your light bulbs with day light ones, turn on the flash and use (DIY) diffuser. It should be OK.
Thanks Mira for a wonderful post! I see a huge difference in the indoor food photographs… which is my area of improvement! I try to use the diffused sunlight and extra shaded lights to fill the photo with enough light.
Priya, you are the most welcome!
Awesome tutorial! I’m adding a diffuser to my Mother’s Day wish list right now!
BTW…Your linky party is really taking off! Congratulations!!! Looks like the secret is out.
Such a great post. I have one spot in my house that is truly great for lighting… I just purchased the reflector set, and can’t wait to see improvements:)
I’m gonna have to look into that diffuser – great tip!
great tips, I have couple of these tools already. And I’ve been think about the flash diffusers.
Kristy, flash diffusers are great, worth every penny; even the most inexpensive ones. Try it and let us know how you like it!
Great tips! I didn’t about half this stuff myself
Great photo tips that!
It’s the first time i’ve heard about a diffuser.. looks really good and there is so much difference after using that prop.
i know, right!? I was surprised at how affordable they are too or you can make a really effective one yourself.
Wow!!!! This is so incredibly helpful! In a very non-intimidating way!!! (sometimes photography stuff just results in me hearing, “blah, blah, blah…f-stop…blah, blah, blah…”) Just stumbled on your blog, so I’m looking forward to checking out your FB page!
HI Dana, Thanks so much for stopping by and i’m so happy the article was helpful. i’m not even close to knowing a lot about photography, but love to share what i’m learning along with you all. welcome and I hope you come back each week! blessings,
Andi
Hi Dana! Glad to hear the info is helpful!