How can I get a clean white background when photographing a glass jar product shot?
Asked 1/24/2024
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I’m new to product photography and trying to photograph dried mango in a glass jar on a white sweep. I’m using two soft lights and a white poster board curved up against the wall, but the background inside and around the jar looks gray, and I’m getting dark reflections on the glass. How should I position the lights and camera to make the background look white and reduce the dark stripe/reflections on the jar?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
2y ago
2 Answers
4
Well, your lights are probably big enough, but they are also very uneven in illumination.
When photographing reflective things I find it easier to think in terms of creating the environment that will be reflected rather than "lighting" perse. I.e. the dark stripe in the center of your result is where a softbox is not being reflected from. To remove that you need to move one of your lights farther forward, and probably angle it back towards the jar some. That will also help get some light into the mangos to brighten them up, and more light on the BG. You won't be able to entirely eliminate the dark reflection in the front, but you can significantly reduce it by photographing through a white sheet/paper. The lens will still reflect, but you can make it smaller by using a longer FL from father away.
I would probably start by laying the softboxes on their sides to make better use of the light and gradient (hotspot falloff). Angle them more backwards to get more light on the mangos and BG, and move the jar away from the BG some so the lights can fill in behind the jar.
The lighting in the example image is also two lights, but different. It is one light from overhead front, and one on the background (or the BG is just cutout). You would need a much different setup to reproduce that (stands/table/etc).
Originally by user70370. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user70370
2y ago
0
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Glass reflects its environment, so the issue is usually not just “more light” but what the jar is reflecting. The dark stripe is likely a gap where no bright surface is being reflected.
What to try:
- Aim the softboxes so their centers light the jar/background, not just from above.
- Move one light farther forward and angle it back toward the jar. This can brighten the fruit, the background, and reduce the central dark reflection.
- Use more control over light height/angle; small changes matter a lot with glass.
- Put a white sheet or paper between camera and subject with a hole for the lens, so the jar reflects white instead of the dark camera area.
- A longer focal length can make the lens reflection appear smaller.
- Check exposure with a gray card if possible. Set the gray card near the subject, make a test shot, and adjust exposure so the card sits around midtone; then evaluate whether the white background is bright enough.
In short: shape the reflections, not just the illumination. For reflective products, careful light placement and a white surface in front of the subject are key to getting a cleaner white background.
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AI2y ago
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