Take Better Phone Photos, Part 5, Indoor Lighting Tips

by Jenifer Juris

Before I start this blog post, I need to start with a small disclaimer.

When it comes to photography, the subject of light and how to use it properly is something that has been talked about in depth by people who are much smarter than I am. There are classes, books, and seminars that offer to teach you all about how to use light to make better photos.

I know that I could never cover all the ins and outs of indoor lighting in a blog post series on taking better phone photos. So, I’m not even going to try. What I am going to do is share some common-sense tips with you to help you take better phone photos while indoors and dealing with indoor lighting.

Indoor Lighting Tip #1: Don’t Stand Directly Under a Light Fixture

Just like the sun in the midafternoon, standing directly under an indoor light fixture is not going to give you the most flattering photo. The light shining straight down on you will create some shadows, especially around the eyes.

Instead, take one to two steps back away from the light source (so that the light source is in front of you), and you’ll see fewer or no shadows at all.

Here’s a series of photos I took in my hallway to demonstrate how this works. None of these photos have any editing done to them, so you can see the effect straight out of the camera. (Also, my hallway has two light fixtures. So in every picture, you will see a light source behind my head. This light source is actually much further back or behind me than it looks, and it’s not to be confused with the light I was actually standing under.)

The before photo is me standing directly under the light fixture. The after photo is me standing a short distance back from the same light fixture so that it is in front of me.

You can clearly see that the before photo has shadows around my eyes, on my cheeks, and under my nose. The after photo does a much better job of lighting up my face (especially my eyes), and I look more awake and lit up than I do in the before photo.

I also decided to see what I would look like if I took 1-2 steps forward from the light fixture so it would be directly behind me, and it was even worse than when the light was directly above me:

When the light was directly behind me, my face was darker and even more shadowed. So when possible, find a light fixture and then take 1-2 steps back from it to try to get the best lighting you can while indoors. It doesn’t guarantee a great photo, but it will be better than standing under or in front of the light fixture.

Indoor Lighting Tip #2: Turn in a Circle and/or Move Around

Indoor lighting can be complicated. In my main part of the house, I have windows, light fixtures, and lamps. Sunlight coming in a window is a different temperature (or warmth) than the light shining from my lamps.

This also means there are multiple light sources, coming from multiple directions, and it can be tricky to find a good spot to take a photo inside.

That’s why my tip is to pull out your phone, use the selfie camera, and slowly turn in a circle. Watch as the light changes and stop when you look your best. This even works when you’re taking a photo of someone else because you can just put that person in the place where you just were.

Here are a few photos I took while trying this tip:

In the first two pictures, I was standing in the same spot, just facing a different direction. The rest of the circle of photos wasn’t much better. Lots of shadows and uneven lighting on my face. When the entire circle doesn’t give you a flattering option, then you have to move around. In this case, I moved to the other side of my dining table and immediately got the photo on the right. My face is more evenly lit, and I have less reflections showing up in my glasses. It’s not a professional portrait, but it’s much better than the other two photos.

Indoor Lighting Tip #3: Tilt Your Glasses

As we just talked about, indoor lighting can give you multiple points of reflection on your glasses. One tip I found online years ago was to tilt your glasses slightly in order to reduce or eliminate reflections. I was skeptical when I read it, but it does help. I put my glasses on like normal except instead of putting the bows all the way down onto my ears, I leave the bows slightly above my ears so that the lenses of my glasses are slightly tilted down. Here’s a before and after showing this action:

Tilting my glasses didn’t quite remove all the reflections, but the reflections were greatly reduced. You can also tilt your head down a tiny bit, too and that will help reduce reflections.

I hope these tips help you get better phone photos when you’re indoors. Small changes in where you stand can make a world of difference in how indoor lighting affects your photo.

_____________________________________________

Author: Jenifer Juris | Contact Us
All comments are moderated.
Please allow time for your comment to appear.