In this episode I take you behind-the-scenes on my photography setup for food photography and stop motion!
Old Setup
Before I purchased surfaces and lighting for my food photography and stop motion kit I used natural light from my kitchen window, some kitchen boards to act as surfaces, and an old desk part to create a backdrop.
I’m a huge believer in using what you have to start and build what you need slowly.
New Setup
Surfaces
After a month of using this setup and loving stop motions I decided to spend a little money to level up my game. The first item I bought was some surfaces and clamps.
Previously when I was taking photos I was taking notes on what I could have done better or if anything hindered my process and the surface of my kitchen counter was a problem for me - it was really reflective so it reflected my kitchen window, the overhead light in my kitchen, the door when my camera sat at a certain angle.
Thus, I decided to purchase some surfaces from Amazon. I originally wanted to buy some Ink & Elm surfaces but I had issues at checkout shipping to Canada so I bought these affordable surfaces that came in a pack of 4 for $50.
I also bought these clamps from Amazon so I could firmly attach the surfaces to either my kitchen table or other surfaces.
Lighting
After I did my Highlights from Athens stop motion I decided to purchase some lighting for my food photography, stop motion and my YouTube videos. It’s really important for stop motion you use even lighting because you’re taking several photos over a course of a long time (maybe hours!).
Buying some lighting has been on the list for me for quite some time - all of my YouTube videos up to this point has been with natural light but with being in winter the day is much shorter. Because of the shorter days I was having a hard time creating when I wanted to create so it was time to buy some lights.
I did look into purchasing a Godox off-camera flash or a continuous light from Godox but I ultimately decided to purchase a more affordable softbox set by Neewer on Amazon for $150.
Images Taken Using the New Surfaces & Neewer Softboxes
Final Thoughts
The only larger item that is on the horizon for me to buy is a new tripod that is better suited for food photography and stop motion. The current tripod I have is great for travel and landscape photography but it poses its challenges when doing food photography and stop motion in that I can’t position the camera to do a flat lay.
Thank you for joining me today in a behind-the-scenes of my photography setup for food photography and stop motion!