How can I shoot shadowless product photos on a white background?
Asked 8/17/2011
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I want to photograph a product on a clean white background with little or no visible shadow. Is this mainly done with lighting during the shoot, or finished in post-processing? What kind of setup is typically used—light tent, shooting table, background light, overhead light, reflectors, or under-lighting—and how do these reduce or eliminate shadows on the surface beneath the product?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
15y ago
2 Answers
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I'm sure someone will chime in with a 2 page rundown on how to do this. But the basic idea is to get a lightbox, light tent, or a pop-up light tent. You can read a tutorial on how to make one yourself here at digital photography school.
Once you have a lightbox and properly setup lighting, Photoshopping out the remaining few shadows is quite easy for anyone familiar with Photoshop. You can get nearly shadow free images with the lightbox, but fine tuning the rest can be done.
Originally by user4892. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4892
15y ago
0
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This look is usually created mostly in the lighting setup, then cleaned up in post if needed.
Common ways to do it:
- Light tent / lightbox: Surrounds the product with diffuse light so shadows become very soft and minimal.
- Shooting table: A translucent acrylic table or sweep lets you light the background from underneath or behind, which helps blow the background to white and overpower shadows under the product.
- Top/side lights + diffusion/reflectors: Broad, soft light from above and the sides reduces hard shadows and gives even illumination.
So yes, it can be set up to look nearly shadowless in-camera. The “no shadow” effect often comes from a combination of:
- very soft, diffused lighting,
- a seamless white surface,
- separate lighting for the background or from below,
- minor Photoshop cleanup afterward.
If the product appears to float over a white background, a lit shooting table is a common technique. A light tent is the simpler entry point for small objects; a shooting table is more flexible when you need a pure white, seamless result.
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