There are many different ways to go about this so try not to focus on specific approaches and more on end-result. For example, do you move a light or rotate an object to soften shadows? Sometimes it’s not always an easy choice. It’s important to keep in mind the positional relationship between your object and lights. This is what you’re pointing the camera at (in most cases), the relative point from where you’ll be gauging the balance of your lights, and what your clients are going to be looking at. This is what we’re rendering-our 3D model. For example, a green backdrop (green screen) is often used on Hollywood sets to allow digital backdrop replacement later in production lines.

This helps “collect” your scene light and plays an integral role in defining the overall feel of your scene. The backdrop is the “background” you see in the image. Backlights are especially popular in portrait photography but not always required in product photography.

Backlights are used to help separate the object of your scene from the background and highlight its edges. Backlightīacklights can also be referred to as “rim” or “hair” lights depending on the context in which they’re being used. In 3D studio setups, an equivalent effect can be achieved simply by scaling up your light’s size. In real-world studio setups, these lights are diffused to prevent creating harsh shadows of their own. Fill Light(s)įill lights help create a more balanced appearance by softening the shadows created by main lights. In cases where natural lighting is present, such as sunlight, one could arguably consider that light as a second main light as well. The main light is, as its name implies, the primary source of light in your studio setup. Here’s a list of parts of studio lighting we’re going to discuss a brief word on the role they’ll play in our scene. We’ll be mimicking a basic 3-point lighting setup with a little bit of corner-cutting since we’re not working in the real world. That’s all we’re focusing on here-the basics. Of all the many combinations one could find, there are some aspects of studio lighting design that are pretty universal. Many of the same concepts of real-world studio lighting translate to 3D software as well.

Blender studio lighting setup