The New Lighting for Product Photography: The Digital Photographer's Step-by-Step Guide to Sculpting with Light Paperback – August 15, 2019

I run an e-commerce business, and some of my products are highly reflective. Haven't been able to get decent photos, even from "professional" photographers. Nasty, blown-out highlights and seemingly uncontrollable reflections. Apparently I'm not the only one with this problem.This book really teaches you how to control light. Allison Earnest describes the process clearly and in detail, elaborating her descriptions with real-world examples. She calls the process "sculpting" with light, and that is precisely what she does.I'm not an expert photographer, but it seems to me that product photography makes greater demands on lighting skill than, for example, portraiture. I came away with a healthy appreciation of just how difficult it can be. But this book paves the way. It's not voodoo, though. Anybody willing work at it and who has a good aesthetic sense should be able to take good product photos.The book is well-written and well-printed. The level of detail is just right: enough for the reader to understand. Particularly helpful are the plates and accompanying text which show just how the lights and other objects used to control the light were placed.Highly recommended for anybody serious about learning about the art and science of product photography.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone, novice or advanced. This book begins by laying out the basic tools, concepts, and principles that anyone should learn for the setup and lighting of a product shoot, or any small object, in a clear and well illustrated manor. The author then continues with detailed instructions of a simple product shoot used to illustrate concepts. Each subsequent chapter walks the reader through a different product shoot, and builds on information previously described in earlier chapters.If you want to get in the commercial line of photography, or photographing scaled models, this is one book you need to get that shows you great lighting. This is a fantastic book for any photographer wishing to improve their photographic techniques and images

While I am primarily a landscape and wildlife shooter, I found the book so helpful on lighting, that it is quite applicable in the field as well as products. The book covers the basics on through very detailed examples of how a product was setup as well as the lighting details and setup (angles, power etc.). In particular, I really liked the descriptions of how to bring depth to a product and how the lighting was setup for the shot. If you are a commercial photographer taking product images, this is your must have guide book. The theory and practical use of light also works well in the field! Enjoy!

As a newer product photographer, I consume information about the subject vehemently. YouTube videos, advice on forums and good 'ole fashion books are my teachers on how to continuing leveling up.I read the New Lighting for Product Photography book right after I had finished the same subject book by by Nath-Sakura, which I found to be THE book to exalt as top honors on the subject. So this one had some big shoes to fill. Overall though, it was a solid read. Some of the images and information was a little dated, even at only 5 years old, but the concepts and rules don't change, so that stood strong.I enjoyed the double page outlining basics you would need for a studio. Now that I have my own studio, I would agree with most of it. These are small things you don't think of when you are handed the key! It takes time to discover that. Or, you can just take Allison's advice as it will get you started.Photographers do the same job differently all the time time and I felt Allison leans heavily on her Mathews dots and fingers. I do it differently but I appreciated her approach and she used it so much throughout the book, it prompted me to order my own set to try out (Though I went with the Impact flag kit. Far less than Mathews).I also enjoyed the case studies that more than half the book is based on. They were done well by starting at the start (background) and walking through to show how one got to the final product. I felt like it was in these that I found numerous nuggets of advice.Overall, this is a book worthy of your shelf and a useful reference book to use if you find yourself in a bind, which I have numerous times!

Lighting for Product Photography doesn't just explain lighting in detail for products/table top photography but it helps you understand lighting for people and other subjects as well. This book can help even the newest photographer understand how light works in the photography world! I highly recommend this book to everyone I speak to. Allison has a talent for lighting and truly understands how photography and lighting work 100% together! You will not be disappointed in this book at all.

An excellent guide to product lighting for photography. Highly recommend.

I keep this next to my sketchbook so I can refer to it to plan the lighting when I storyboard. Thanks for the updated version.