Incandescent lights - Perfect Indoor Macro Lighting
Incandescent lights - Perfect Indoor Macro Lighting | ||
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Good old-fashioned incandescent lights are usually your best tool for lighting indoor close-ups of things that don't hop around or wiggle. While not as intense as electronic flash, that's not usually a problem with your camera locked down on a tripod and with longer exposures. Most of the close-up illustrations in this chapter were taken with incandescent lighting. Their main advantage is that you see exactly what your lighting effect will be (indeed, studio flash units usually have an incandescent light, too, not for illumination but as a "modeling light"). Incandescent lights are cheap, too, so you can use several to achieve the exact lighting effect you want. The most important thing to remember when using them is to set your white balance manually, or make sure your camera's automatic white-balance control is turned on. These lights are much more reddish than daylight or electronic flash. Any gooseneck high-intensity lamp or table lamp that you can twist and turn to adjust its angle will work great as illumination for close-up pictures. Other types of lamps can also be used, but will be less flexible, so to speak, when it comes to positioning. High intensity bulbs may have too much contrast, especially for shiny objects. You can use reflectors to soften their light, or investigate adjustable neck lamps that can use conventional "soft-white" light bulbs. Watch out for the heat generated by your incandescent lamps! They are a poor choice for photographing ice sculptures or chocolate candies but a good choice for illuminating burgers and fries you want to be toasty warm after the shoot is over. | ||