Zack Arias Gives an In-Depth How-To for Shooting Photos Against a White Background

Shooting a photo in front of a clean white background seems like it should be the easiest thing in the world. Then, you actually try it. There are odd shadows everywhere and the background refuses to look even. Then, you blow out the background and get odd fringes on your subject. Or, the whole thing just looks gray. Lighting guru Zack Arias, has put together some extensive video tutorials on how to get effective shots against a white backdrop and it’s worth watching if you don’t have this type of shot on lock.

There’s a surprising amount of subtlety involved with getting everything just right and Zack does a really good job of explaining it. So, give it a watch and then give it a try. It will probably take a few tries before you’re feeling like Richard Avedon, but photography is a wonderful and sometimes frustrating process. That’s part of why we love it.