Artificial Lights for Food Photography: A Helpful Beginner’s Guide

Learning how to use artificial lights for food photography was a huge game-changer for me. The more control you have over your food photography lighting, the more creative you can get with your images. Not only does it boost your photography skills, it also boosts your confidence behind the camera so you can feel comfortable shooting in any location and at any time of day. In this post, I’m going to introduce you to types of artificial lights, what to look for in an artificial light, lighting equipment and lighting tips and demonstrations, so let’s dive in! 😉

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Artificial Lights for Food Photography

Natural Light vs. Artificial Light

Natural light is when your light source is the sun.

Artificial lights are separate, off camera, studio lights that include strobes or continuous lights. These do not include your overhead lights.

Like most food photographers, I started off shooting food with natural light and became very comfortable with it. I am not a very technical person and I avoided using artificial lights at first because they seemed too complicated to me and I was creating some really beautiful images using natural light.

However, as my skillset grew, sticking to using natural light only had a lot of limitations for me including:

• I could only shoot during daylight hours.
• I always had to shoot next to a window.
• I wasn’t comfortable shooting in darker restaurants.
• It caused lack of confidence in taking on certain types of photography jobs.

However, after I booked a shoot at a speakeasy bar that was located in a BASEMENT with NO WINDOWS, I was faced with the reality of needing to learn artificial lighting for food photography FAST.

So, I decided to take an online class and bought my very first artificial light and it opened up so many doors for my creativity and my client projects.

The benefits of using artificial light include:

• Being able to shoot anywhere.
• Being able to shoot at any time of day.
• It’s a major confidence booster.
• Being able to create a variety of creative photography work.

Check out this old behind the scenes pic from that speakeasy basement shoot! 😉

READ MORE ABOUT: MY FAVORITE GEAR FOR FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY

Artificial Light Myths

Myth 1: Artificial lighting is complicated.

A lot of natural light photographers think that artificial light is complicated. I understand this thinking, because I used to think the same thing. But, the truth is that it’s just a little extra gear with a little extra setup involved. All it takes is getting your light set up once to realize that it’s not that complicated at all.

Myth 2: Food images won’t look “natural.”

The assumption that food images won’t look natural when using artificial lights is usually stemmed from using the flash on the iPhone camera (or on a point and shoot camera). The flash on the iPhone camera can produce really bright hot spots and harsh results that definitely don’t look natural. This is because the light is shining directly in front of your food, with no ability to modify or control the power of the light.

When you use an artificial light, however, your light is separate from your camera. This allows you to place the light wherever you want, control the power and modify the light. This type of control gives you the flexibility to create any type of lighting you want, including a natural light look.

Check out the tomato images below.

One was shot with an artificial light and the other was shot with natural light. Can you tell which image was shot with natural light vs. artificial light? 😉

Answer: The image on the left was shot with one artificial light and a softbox and the image on the right was shot with natural light coming in from a window.

Types of Artificial Lights

There are three types of artificial lights to consider for food photography:

• Speed Lights
• Continuous Lights
• Strobe Lights

Speed Lights

A speed light is an off-camera flash that is required to sync to your camera in order for it to work. They are much smaller and lightweight which makes them great for travel and taking on location. The drawback to speed lights is that they aren’t as powerful, so you might need more than one to speed light to give you enough light to work with.

Continuous Lights

Continuous are larger, more powerful lights that do not flash and don’t need to sync to your camera. You turn them on, adjust the power and can move them around to be where you need them to be. These lights work well for photography and are the required light if you want to shoot video.

READ MORE ABOUT: FOOD VIDEOGRAPHY EQUIPMENT FOR BEGINNERS

Strobes

Strobes are a more powerful off-camera flash and it’s required to sync to your camera in order for it to work. They are larger than speed lights, provide more power and usually come at a higher price point.

What To Look For In An Artificial Light

When choosing an artificial light for food photography, there are some things to look out for to make sure you get a good quality light to fit your workflow.

• CRI (color rendering index)
• Bi-Color Capabilities
• Power
• Battery or Plug-In
• Bowen’s Mount
• Recycle Time (Speed Lights & Strobes only)

CRI

CRI stands for color rendering index and is measured from 0 – 100. The higher the number, the more accurate the colors in comparison to natural light. I recommend getting a light with a CRI of 90 or higher.

Bi-Color

Bi-color is the ability to control the color temperature of your light. Not all lights allow you to do this, so I recommend finding a light that allows you to adjust the color temp. You’ll be able to make your lighting appear more blue (a cooler look) or more yellow (a warmer look).

Power

Power is how bright your light can get. The more power it can give you, the better. I recommend getting a light with at least 200w of power.

Battery vs. Plug-In

You’ll want to know if your light is battery powered or requires an outlet to plug into. If you get a battery-powered light, you’ll have more flexibility to move the light around. If you get a plug-in light, you’ll be limited to be near an outlet. I recommend getting a backup battery if your light is battery-powered or an extension cable if your light requires an outlet.

Bowen’s Mount

A Bowen’s Mount is a type of attachment system that allows you to connect a light modifier (like a softbox) to your light. I recommend lights with a bowen’s mount because it’s very versatile and works with a wide variety of softboxes on the market. This allows you more flexibilty to find softboxes that are within your budget.

Recycle Time

The recycle time on a light only applies to speed lights and strobes. It’s the amount of time it takes for your light to reboot with power in between flashes. The faster the recycle time, the better.

Artificial Light Equipment

No matter what type of artificial light you decide to get, there is some extra equipment you’ll need to help you get your light set up correctly.

Light Stand

You’ll need a light stand or a C-stand to attach your light to. These will help you setup the light to the correct height and position.

Speed Ring or Mount

Your camera requires lenses with a specific mount in order to attach the lens securely to your camera. The same concept applies to your artificial light and how you will attach a light modifier to it. Most lights will come with a specific mount.

A speed ring or mount is a metal ring-shaped disk used to attach your light modifier to your light. Certain brands will require a specific type of speed ring or mount and this will be noted in the product description. For example, a popular mount is a Bowen’s mount which works for a wide range of lights and modifiers and I recommend using lights that have a bowen’s mount.

Light Modifiers

You’ll need to have light modifiers to help you create different styles of light such as soft light and hard light. Soft light has less contrast and soft shadows. Hard light is more direct and creates stronger shadows. Light modifiers range in shape and size and include umbrellas, soft boxes, diffusion paper, beauty dishes, grids and snoots.

Wireless Trigger

A wireless trigger helps your light and camera talk to each other. In other words, when you press the shutter button, you will want your light to flash at the exact same time. Wireless triggers help make this happen. You will need this if using a speed light or a strobe. You will not need this for a continuous light. Using a wireless trigger, such as pocket wizards, will help reduce the amount of cables you are using and allows you to have more flexibility in where your lights are placed in relation to your camera.

READ MORE ABOUT: SAVE MONEY WITH THE PROFOTO BOWENS ADAPTOR

Artificial Light Tips

Think of your light as your window.

Something that helped me get started with artificial light was to look at my light as if it was my window – except this is a window that you can move around and control how dark or how bright you want it to be.

Experiment with different light modifiers.

You know how your camera body can work with a variety of different lenses? Your lights can work with a variety of different light modifiers as long as they have the same mount compatibility, such as a Bowen’s Mount, which very popular.

Light modifiers are separate from your light, but can be attached to your light to create different light styles. Some examples include:

• Umbrellas
• Softboxes
• Diffusers
• Beauty Dish
• Grids
• Snoots
• Barndoors
• Gels

PRO TIP: Keep in mind that the larger the modifier, the more spread out and soft your light will be. The smaller the modifier (or lack of a modifier) the more direct it will be.

Practice setting up and taking down your light.

I think the most intimidating thing when getting started with artificial light is learning how to set it up. Practice this so you become more comfortable with it.

Move your light around.

It’s important to learn how the light placement will affect your images. Practice moving your light to the side (side light) and behind your food (back light).

Artificial Light Demonstrations

Speed Light Example

A speed light is a great light to start with in the beginning. They’re affordable and much smaller, so they’re great for small spaces and taking with you on location. The important thing to note is to make sure that the speed light you’re interested in is compatible with your camera make and model.

Setting Up Your Speed Light

For my speed light example, I used the following lighting equipment:

• Nikon D750
• 105mm 2.8 lens
• Manfrotto tripod
• I shot while tethered to my computer.
• Promaster speedlight for Nikon (no wireless capabilities)
• Promaster Light Stand
• Mounting Bracket
• Softbox 16″ (includes a mounting bracket)

PRO TIP: If looking for a speed light, be sure that it’s compatible with your camera’s make and model. My speed light listed is for a Nikon D750 and is no longer available.

Camera Settings

• Shutter Speed: 1/200
• Aperture: f10
• ISO 160
• Light Power: 1/2

The speed light is positioned closely behind the glasses for a back light look. I also used a small 16″ soft box to modify the light, which created a more direct light with stronger shadows since the softbox wasn’t very big. The power of the light is set at 1/2 power (almost the strongest power setting for this speed light).

You can see the final image below.

Continuous Light Example

Continuous lights are larger, off-camera lights that don’t flash. You turn them on and adjust the power to your liking. This allows you to see how the light is hitting your subject in real-time and you can adjust the power and position of the light as needed. Because these lights don’t flash, you don’t need any sync cables or wireless triggers to make them work with your camera.

PRO TIP: Continuous lights are used to shoot both stills and video. So, if you want to learn video at some point, get a continuous light.

Setting Up Your Continuous Light

For my continuous light example, I used the following lighting equipment:

• Nikon D750
• 105mm 2.8 lens
• My overhead setup
• I shot while tethered to my computer
• Amaran 200x with Bi-Color
• Light Stand
• Round Diffuser
• Light Stand with Boom Arm

Camera Settings

• Shutter Speed: 1/13
• Aperture: f14
• ISO 200
• Light Power: 75%

My continuous light is positioned to the left of the image with the bulb fully exposed rather than shooting through a soft box. I did this so I would get more power from the light and used a separate diffusor to keep the light soft. The power of the light was set at 75%. You can see the final image below.

You can see the final image below.

Strobe Light Example

Strobes are my personal favorite to use for food photography because I love how powerful they are. They require a wireless trigger to communicate with your camera. You need to be sure your light modifiers are compatible with the strobe light’s mount so you can securely attach your modifier to the light.

Setting Up Your Strobe Light

For my strobe light example, I used the following lighting equipment:

• FujiFilm XT5
• FujiFilm 80mm 2.8 lens
• My overhead setup
• I shot while tethered to my computer
• Profoto B10x
• EZ Glow Soft Box
• Profoto Bowen’s Mount Adaptor
• Light Stand
• Profoto Wireless Transmitter

Camera Settings

• Shutter Speed: 1/200
• Aperture: f14
• ISO 160
• Light Power: 7.5 Power

My strobe light is positioned to the right of the image with a large softbox. This softbox helped me keep the light soft and even on the tomatoes. The power of the light was set at 7.5 power with a lot of power left to play with, if needed.

You can see the final image below.

READ MORE ABOUT: HOW TO SHOOT A BOTTLE WITH ARTIFICIAL LIGHT

In conclusion, artificial lighting for food photography doesn’t have to be intimidating. And, honestly, I wish I would have switched to artificial lights much sooner in my food photography career. Learning how to shoot with artificial lights elevates your abilities as a photographer and opens the doors a wide range of creativity and client projects.

To learn more lighting tips, read “Lighting for Food Photography and Food Videography.”

Reach out with questions anytime and be sure to follow me on Instagram!

Happy Creating!

This post contains affiliate links which means if you click or make a purchase through my site, I might make a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only promote products that I actually use and support. 

All images ©Regan Baroni 2020.