Zach Wolfson

Recently during some of my free time outside of work, I’ve been going through old stuff, donating most of it and trying to sell some of the newer, more useful stuff.  So with that mindset at the forefront of my focus, I began to reconsider other stuff that we have in our house that we no longer use (mainly some furniture).  And this eventually led to looking over my gear and considering what I might be able to part with.

So, if you don’t know this already, I’m quite particular about how I treat everything I use, from my car down to my dishes.  I enjoy owning quality stuff and that comes hand in hand with the joy I take in caring for it well so it lasts for a long time.  Little things like regular oil changes or cleaning a LCD screen can add up after a while.

All this downsizing consideration eventually led to taking photos of a few things to post on Craigslist.  I’ve had great success using it to make sales in the past – I sold my old car in just 3 days… with over 10 serious inquiries within 24 hours.  Craigslist is a great tool, but whether you’re selling a car or renting an apartment, quality photos go a very long way.  And in my book, they help expedite your transaction much more quickly – words are great, but nothing makes an impression more than a great photo (or video for that matter, eh?).

Being not only one who appreciates quality photos, but also a creator of quality moving images, I couldn’t just take the regular fill-flash shots.  Frontal lighting?  No thanks!

In considering one of my items for sale – which, ironically, is a DSLR body – and how I could make it stand out to interested parties in how I shoot it, I thought of the black limbo and white limbo interviews that I’ve shot before.  For those unfamiliar with the term, the “limbo” part means that the subject is in a nondescript location with a completely white or completely black background.  And, depending on the subject you’re lighting, as well as the story being expressed, either black or white may simply work better as the color choice.

Last night I made the decision to use white limbo for shooting my DSLR body (side note: it didn’t end up being true white limbo; I’ll get to “the why” shortly).  I chose white limbo primarily because the camera body is black and the white background would create the necessary contrast against DSLR body.  And I also wanted to create a clean, fun, commercial-quality collection of photos that would highlight the camera body in a complementary way – such that the viewer’s eye goes straight to the camera and is not distracted by anything in the background/foreground.

I created my impromptu mini photo studio with 1/2″ white foam core for the “floor” and the “back wall” – roughly 18″ wide, 12″ high and 12″ deep.  I prefer 1/2″ foam core over 1/4″ for its increased rigidity.  I lit the scene with just one light – my desk lamp (CFL) – backlighting the D300 and using a white bounce for fill.  Now, I’ve been calling this white limbo, but in its truest form, this isn’t white limbo since we can see the camera body’s shadow.  I’m okay with the shadows.  To me they add some visual depth, and I just simply like the look.  If I had wanted to cut the shadows, I could have done one of two things – (1) move the subject further from the background; or (2) introduce a fill light to balance the ratio of brightness across the frame.  Since my mini photo studio is so small, the second option would have been the easiest to accomplish, and I may have needed to flag the fill light from spilling onto the camera body, too.

With some simple, cheap, everyday tools, it’s a very straightforward setup to accomplish.  Keep in mind that with subjects that are dark in color and shiny, spectral highlights – or, essentially, white reflections – are necessary to create contrast in the shiny/reflective/glass areas; otherwise it’ll just be solid black.  Contrast creates more interest and brings your subject to life for the viewer.  It’s sexy and intriguing.  Notice the highlight on the LCD screen?  It’s no Photoshop illusion; I created it with a small piece of white foam core held in position such that we see it reflected in the LCD screen’s surface.

So how do you like product shots to look?  How would you light them?  White limbo?  Black limbo?  Natural setting?  Let me know in the comments, and thanks for reading and checking out my site.

And, if you’re interested in the D300 body, drop me a line.