Lighting for Food Photography

I’ve been trying to improve the lighting on my food photography for a while. A big part of what I enjoy about photography is the reverse engineering on the shots I enjoy, and that includes both technical and artistic aspects. In this shot particularly, most of the hurdle for me was the lighting setup and the fine adjustment in post-processing that added the final touch that made it look natural.

Two Nikon Speedlights (flash) were used in this shot: The first is ahead of the camera positioned slightly higher pointing down shooting through a small softbox; and the second on the right of the camera reflecting from a silver umbrella. A white reflector was used on the opposite side to fill some of the shadows. I’m sure this can be further improved with a little more fill light for the front of the cupcakes. I’ll probably try another reflector above the camera next time and see if that helps. I guess I found more things to buy… again… reflector(s), reflector holder, light meter… argh this nonstop purchase list never seems to end. :) At this rate, I’ll never be able to save enough photography budget to get a D300 I suppose.