Lighting diagram for a product shot
Product work is edges and gradients, not faces: the big soft source comes from behind and above the object so its top planes carry a clean gradient, a white card in front returns just enough to open the shadow side, and a hard strip from the side draws the edge that separates the product from the background. Everything is centimetres: the plan matters less for where things stand than for the argument it records about what each source is for, because on a tabletop every light that is not doing a named job is doing damage.
- The productat 2.5, 1.8 mOn a 1m riser
- A camat 2.5, 3.4 mMacro, locked off
- Top softat 2.5, 0.7 m80°5600KBehind and above, the gradient
- White cardat 2.5, 2.6 m120°25%Opens the front
- Edge stripat 4.2, 1.4 m20°5600K60%The line down the side
- Flagat 1.0, 1.4 mKills the top soft off the lens
- Top soft · Behind and above, the gradient
- White card · Opens the front
- Edge strip · The line down the side
- Flag · Kills the top soft off the lens
- Softbox · from the lighting plans
- Lighting diagram for an interview
- Lighting diagram for a two-person interview
- Lighting diagram for a night exterior
- Lighting diagram for a car scene at night
- Lighting diagram for a green screen
- Lighting diagram for a portrait
- Draw your own in the free lighting diagram maker
- Three worked scenes from a real production
In a production, this plan sits next to the shots it lights, and the packing list above lands on the gear list for the day.