The umbrella is one of the most commonly used kit in a photo studio setup.
There are 2 main types of umbrella for photographic usage. They are:
1. Reflective Umbrella. This type is designed to bounce light and usually has metallic looking reflective surfaces.
2. Shoot-through umbrella. This type is typically translucent to allow lights to pass through.
Umbrellas are popular partly because they are a relatively lowcost solution.
With the advances in 3D modeling and rendering technology, sometimes it is quite hard to tell if an image is a photo or a computer rendering. Just take a look at King Kong the movie. King Kong was fully virtual and digital, yet he was so life-like that he managed to draw strong emotions from the audience.
What is also interesting now is that 3D modelling and rendering programs are freely available over the internet. In the past, they were the domain of high end and expensive graphic technologies. Not anymore…
Below is an image that was created using Blender 3D and Yafray.
Courtesy of Studio Rola
Blender 3D was used to create the 3D model, while Yafray took care of the photo realistic rendering. The best thing is that both software are totally free and can be downloaded from their respective websites.
There are many software programs that can replace some of the role traditionally held by product photography studio setups. These are 3D programs with high quality renderers. These renderers are usually based on Global Illumination technology that allows the software to fully mimic the properties and materials and light sources.
