In still-life photography, lighting an object from underneath creates a surreal look. This is called base lighting. Instead of hitting the surface, the light travels through the subject. This reveals the internal shapes of translucent items, like a seashell.

The setup is simple. Place the object on a sheet of white opaque acrylic. Position a flash directly under the sheet. The acrylic diffuses the light. This makes the subject appear to glow from within.




Even though the base is white, the background stays black. This is a visual paradox. You achieve this by eliminating ambient light. Set your camera to a fast shutter speed, like 1/200th. Use a small aperture like f/22. This ensures the camera only captures the flash.

If the top of the subject is too dark, add a fill light. Use a snoot to aim the light precisely. This keeps the light from spilling onto the background. It adds detail to the shadows while keeping the "glow" as the main story.

Pro Tips and Refinement

Check your color temperature. Light passing through an object often changes color. Use an orange filter on your fill light to match the internal glow. Finally, use software like Capture One to pull back highlight details. This creates a polished, professional result.



Video and images via Camera Club Live