Lighting plays a key role in product photography. The right setup helps you highlight fine details, reduce shadows, and appealingly present your product. In this guide, we’ll explore the best light for product photography and show you how to build effective lighting setups to capture clean, professional images that stand out.
What is the best lighting for product photography?
The best light for product photography depends on your brand style, budget, and shooting environment. In this section, we’ll compare natural and artificial light, as well as hard and soft light, which are commonly used in product shooting. Each type has its pros and cons, so choosing the right one depends on the look you want to achieve and the product you are shooting.
Natural VS. studio lighting for product photography
Natural light is often used in product photography at home. It helps products appear true to life and is ideal for showcasing natural textures and colors. It is also free and energy-efficient, making it a cost-effective option for beginners. However, natural lighting can be unreliable, as weather and time of day affect brightness and direction, which may lead to inconsistent results during longer shoots.
Studio light for product photography is an artificial lighting source. It provides full control over brightness, color temperature, and direction. Common options include continuous LED lights, strobes, and flash guns. This type of lighting allows you to shoot at any time, achieve consistent results, and create a more polished, professional look. The tradeoff is higher cost, a need for stable power, and a learning curve in setting up equipment properly.
Here are their pros and cons:
| Natural light | Studio light | |
| Pros | Shows true colors; Makes photos look better; Saves energy |
Not limited by time or weather; Creates a professional look; Offers full control over lighting |
| Cons | Changes with weather and time; Difficult to keep consistent lighting |
More expensive; Requires power; Takes time to learn how to use |
Hard VS. soft light for product photography
Hard and soft light produce different lighting qualities in product photography and have a strong impact on how your product looks in images.
Soft light is best for shooting products like cosmetics, clothing, and other items that benefit from a smooth, flattering appearance. It produces gentle, diffused shadows with smooth transitions between light and dark areas. This lighting reduces contrast, minimizes imperfections, and highlights fine details and textures clearly, giving the product a more natural and appealing look.
Hard light works best for product photography such as jewelry, watches, electronics, and similar items that require bold, striking visuals. It creates strong, sharp shadows and bright highlights, increasing contrast and emphasizing textures dramatically. This lighting style helps these products stand out by highlighting their shape and details with high contrast.
Best studio lights for product photography in 2025
Finding the best light for product photography means balancing brightness, color accuracy, and ease of use. Here are three top picks that fit different shooting needs.
Best continuous light for product photography: COLBOR CL600
COLBOR CL600 is one of the best lights for commercial and outdoor product photography. This continuous light delivers a powerful 600W output, ideal for highlighting product details in bright, controlled environments. Its adjustable color temperature ranges from 2700K to 6500K and 0.1% precision dimming allows full control over lighting tone and intensity. With an IP54 weather-resistant build, flexible power solutions, and multiple control options including app, DMX, remote, and touchscreen, the CL600 is a dependable choice for both outdoor shoots and professional studio setups.
Best LED lights for product photography: COLBOR CL200
The COLBOR CL200 LED light offers stable output and accurate color for product photography. With a constant 220W power and a wide color temperature range from 2700K to 6500K, it maintains consistent brightness in any setting. A high CRI of 97+ ensures true-to-life colors and fine detail reproduction, making it ideal for capturing high-quality product images. Its Bowens mount and NATO compatibility give you the flexibility to use a variety of light modifiers, helping to shape light creatively and achieve the desired look in your product shots.
Best RGB for colorful product photography lighting: COLBOR CL60R
The COLBOR CL60R is the best color light for product photography when you want vibrant and creative images. It provides full 360° color adjustment and a wide color temperature range from 2700K to 6500K. This lets you easily create different moods and looks. With a high CRI of 97+, it shows true colors clearly, making your products look vivid and natural. The built-in sound recognition syncs lighting effects with ambient sounds, adding dynamic energy to your shots.
4 best lighting setups for product photography
How to use the best light for photography? Here are seven techniques to help you set it up properly and bring out every detail and texture in your products.
Overhead lighting to add mood in product photography
Overhead lighting is a popular setup for creating moody product photos. To set it up, use an octagonal softbox with an adjustable head angled downward, mounted on a tall tripod. This produces dramatic shadows and highlights, giving products a mysterious or edgy look. It works especially well for luxury items like high-end wine bottles.
Direct front lighting for clean and flattering product images
Front direct lighting offers a clean and flattering look that suits many products.
To set it up, position a single light source at eye level, facing the product directly. This creates even illumination but may reduce the separation between the product and background.
Then, use a simple backdrop or a fast lens with a low aperture to keep focus on the product. If the light feels too harsh, lower its brightness and adjust your camera’s ISO and shutter speed for a balanced exposure.
Even lighting to reduce reflections on shiny products
Reflections often appear in the center of reflective products, and this two-light setup can help fix that issue.
The best lights for product photography here are continuous options like the COLBOR CL600, allowing you to see changes in real time.
To set it up, place two lights angled toward the front sides of the product. This creates balanced illumination and reduces distracting reflections by directing light from the sides. Then adjust them slightly based on the product’s shape and size for the best effect.
3 light setup for balanced and dimensional product photography
Using three lights is a popular way to create balanced and professional lighting for products. Here are three common three-light setups for product photography:
- Three-light full coverage: Place three lights around the product to light it from all sides. This reveals every detail but may make some products look flat. Adjust the lights based on your product’s shape, placing more lights in front or on the sides as needed.
- Three-point lighting: Position two lights at the front and one behind the product as a backlight. This classic setup adds natural depth by separating the product from the background and avoids a flat look. It suits many product types well.
- Background illumination for separation: Change the triangle setup by aiming the backlight at the background instead of the product. This brightens the backdrop, helping your product stand out and adding depth to your photos.
Each setup fits different products and effects. Try adjusting light placement to find what works best for your shoot.
Conclusion
So, what is the best light for product photography? To be honest, finding the perfect lighting often involves some experimentation and adjustments. Different products need different gears to look their best. Use the lighting techniques above to create stunning images that highlight your product’s details and appeal.