Unless you can get all your photos done in the morning’s soft natural light or have plenty of north facing windows, more often than not, the sunlight from a window is just too harsh. That’s why I use a light diffuser very often to help reduce hard shadows, reflections, and highlight blowouts. It helps to keep food to their true colors and give me more flexibility in post-processing.
Shot without a diffuser
Shot with a diffuser
From the photo shoot without a light diffuser, you can see:
-the reflection of the light on the table made many white patches.
-highlight blowouts (the soup in the top bowl; the white part of the kitchen towel)
-the shadows of the bowls are clearly defined.
The right side photo is shot with a diffuser.
Both photos are shot with iPhone 6 plus without any editing.
Another example with pumpkins:
The shots were done on a raining day when natural light from a window is not very strong, but you can still see the differences from the shininess of the pumpkins and the reflections on the table.
Shot without a diffuser
Shot with a diffuser
This is a photo showing how I set my diffuser against a window.
This 5 in 1 Portable Reflector/Diffuser I particularly like since it’s big enough, the triangle form make it possible to pose it against a window. The material is very sturdy. And the handle is extremely useful if you want someone else to help you hold it, or you can hang it on a light stand. The best part, you can fold it into a 14-inch disk and carry it with you. It comes with a pouch that has 4 surfaces: silver, gold, white, and black (2 inside 2 outside). The first 3 surfaces can be used to direct light. I’ve used the gold surface to reflect warm light onto my daughters’ faces when I took their photos for Christmas card this year. The black side can be used to reduce/block light. I have two sizes 24’’ round and 43’’ triangle (see image below).
I hope this post is useful for you. I also use some DIY tools for my photography, including these foam reflectors and DIY shooting surface.
If you have any questions please ask in the comment area.
Keep learning,
Qi
*All photos in this post are shot with an iPhone. And they have NOT gone through any editing. The one you see on the front page has been edited.
The exact 5-in-1 portable diffuser/reflectors I use:
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