8 Great Ideas For Winter Indoor Photography

Are winter blahs getting you down? Winter is often a difficult time of year for photographers. It’s cold outside, the days are short, and winter light can be rather harsh on your subjects. However, winter does offer some unique opportunities to capture beautiful winter indoor photography!

Here are 8 ideas to get you off the couch and be creative again.

For each project, I’ve included a video from a photographer that explains the technique step-by-step. This will help you get off to the best start and make some great photos!

Get into Floral Photography

Nothing can brighten your day better than a vase of beautiful flowers, except maybe getting some wonderful pictures of them. Flowers are great subjects for winter indoor photography because they come in so many different shapes, sizes, and colors.

The basic setup for Floral Photography is to arrange some fresh flowers in a vase and place them in front of a dark background (foam core or suspended fabric). Set the camera on a tripod and adjust it to be level with the flowers.

Natural light is great for Floral Photography. So if you can, set the flowers near a window. If you don’t have a window you can use artificial light by shining a desk lamp or LED light panel on the flowers. If you need to use artificial light, make sure to use a diffuser to make the light soft and airy.

Basic lighting for the flowers should be in the front or to the side of the flowers, with the light above the camera so that the flowers are light from the 10 or 2 o’clock direction. This will bring out the shapes of the petals and create some dramatic shadows in the flowerheads.

To find the composition that works best, you will need to be very flexible. Adjust the camera location, rotate the vase, adjust the flower locations, and move the light looking for the combination that works best for the flowers. Since every flower arrangement is different, and the flowers will move as you start to shoot them, keep up trying different things until you are satisfied.

Try photographing them on top of a table or bookshelf near some window light. If there isn’t enough natural light, you can use a flash or other artificial light source. Experiment with different angles and compositions until you find what works best for you.

Tips –

• Get the freshest flowers available. Cut the stem ends by at least 1/4″ and keep them well watered.
• Place your camera at the same level as the flowers (or below) looking down at the arrangement is less interesting.
• For a moody shot, place the light sightly behind the flowers. For a cheery shot, move the light in front.
• Use some kind of diffuser to soften the light source
• Use natural light whenever possible. Window light is great for photographing flowers because it is soft and diffused.
• Flowers are like people, keep moving them around and look for their good side
• Mist the flowers and leaves with water for a dewy look. Don’t overdo it though, a little goes a long way.

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• Tripod
• Movable and Adjustable Lighting (table lamp, desk lamp)
• Dark Background (foam core, bed sheet)
• Light Diffuser (tissue paper, bed sheet)
• Tweezers (to adjust flowers or petals)
• Water Spray Bottle

Watch this tutorial by expert Amrita Bhortake to get started –

Dig into Food Photography

Warm and cozy comfort food, another great subject for winter indoor photography. Whether it’s a luscious feast or a steaming blow of chili, you know it will make a great photo.

The basic setup for Food Photography is to lay out a scene as if it were a meal, with a plate of food, silverware, and other meal items. The camera is placed to take an image from the eater’s point of view. There are no distracting elements in the background or in the place setting, it’s all about what’s on the plate.

Lighting for Food Photography should never be harsh, so use a diffuser on your light source or set up next to a sunlit window. And in both cases, the preferred lighting direction is side or front lighting. Backlit food is not that appealing, but you can use it in combination with other light if you want to highlight the shine on a particular type of food.

Food photography can be a challenge for any photographer. It involves the right lighting, correct exposure, and time management to create that perfect shot of food. But with a little bit of practice, you can create amazing food photos that will make your friends and family hungry.

Tips –

• Keep the food simple. Start with one item on a plate with silverware.
• Place your camera slightly above or directly over the food.
• Standard lighting should be even and surround the food making it look inviting.
• Use some kind of diffuser to soften the light source.
• Make sure you are working in an uncluttered area or have a backdrop to hide distracting backgrounds.
• Experiment with different angles to change the photo’s perspective and composition.

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• Tripod
• Movable and Adjustable Lighting (table lamp, desk lamp)
• Background (foam core, bed sheet)
• Light Diffuser (tissue paper, bed sheet)
• Tweezers (to adjust food or props)
• Props (plates, silverware, kitchen gadgets, flowers… anything you might have on a dinner table)

Watch this tutorial from Joanie Simon at The Bite Shot to get started –

Here is my list of suggested Food Photography Acessories

Chill out with Smoke Photography

Smoke photography is a great way to add some drama and intrigue to your photos. Swirling smoke creates an ethereal and abstract subject for your winter indoor photography.

The basic setup for Smoke Photography is very simple. Mount something that creates a stream of smoke in front of the camera. Some common items for this are a stick of incense or a match that you’ve extinguished. Once the smoke is drifting, using a high shutter speed, take pictures of the smoke trail.

Smoke photography is best done with light directed at the drifting smoke from the same side as the camera (though I have seen some interesting images of backlit smoke…)

Lighting in Smoke photography can use a constant light, like a desk lamp or LED flashlight. For the best images, try setting up a flash (Speedlight). The flash can be on or off-camera. Using this bright and fast pop of light will capture much more distinct images as the smoke drifts.

Tips –

• If you can, add a very slight breeze from one side to make the smoke create eddies across the frame.
• Place your camera directly in front of your smoke source.
• Light from behind the camera, so the smoke reflects the light.
• Use some kind of diffuser to soften the light source.
• Use a black backdrop to enhance the scene’s contrast.
• Experiment with different amounts of breeze and direction.
• Create a draft by gently blowing with your mouth or waving an index card.

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• Tripod
• Movable and Adjustable Lighting (table lamp, desk lamp)
• Background (foam core, bed sheet)
• Light Diffuser (tracing paper, bed sheet)
• Small clamp or base to hold incense stick /match

Watch this tutorial by Adam Karnacz at First Man Photography to get started –

Get small with Macro Photography

Macro photography involves taking photos that show you subject in life-size or better proportions. They can be a little trickier to photograph because you have so much more detail in the photo, but they also give an amazing look into ordinary objects and nature.

The basic setup for Macro Photography is to have a clean, flat area to place the subject, I tend to use a black piece of foam core to reduce reflections. If needed the subject can be held in place with some small clamps, a pin, or tape. The camera is placed on a tripod and positioned so the lens is very close to the subject. Then lighting is placed so that the camera does not cast a shadow on the subject.

If you get really close to the subject, you will find that the depth of field (how much of the image is in focus) is very small. In this case, you can take multiple images focusing on different parts of your subject. Then composting them into a single sharp image in Photoshop. This technique is called focus stacking.

This technique really benefits from using a tripod. If you are very careful and lucky, you can take macro shots handheld, but you will have a very difficult time getting the focus correct. 

If you don’t want to get a dedicated macro lens for your winter indoor photography, you have a few less expensive options. One is a set of extension tubes. These simple tubes sit between the camera and the lens to create a magnified image.

Another option is a lens reversing ring. This allows you to mount your lens backward, changing it into something more like a microscope. If you’ve ever looked backward through a telescope, you’ve seen how this works.

Tips –

• Start with a simple subject, like a coin to practice this technique.
• When learning this technique, place your camera above and parallel to your subject to maximize the focus area.
• Use the brightest light source you can find. A desk lamp with a bright lightbulb works well, but you can also try LED flashlights or off-camera speed lights.
• Lighting should be even and surround the subject. Use a diffuser if you can.
• Use a remote trigger, so you don’t bump your camera and have it lose focus on the subject.
• Place the subject on a black background to prevent distractions.
• Try experimenting with all kinds of household items. Cheese graters, salt shakers, computer keyboards all look mysterious in macro shots.

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• Macro Lens, Extension Tubes, or Lens Reversing Ring
• Tripod
• Movable and Adjustable Lighting (desk lamp, LED flashlight, camera flash)
• Background (foam core)
• Light Diffuser (tracing paper, bed sheet)
• Tweezers (to adjust subject)

Watch this tutorial by macro expert Micael Widell to get started –

Here’s my list of Macro Photography accessories

Get Splashing with Water Droplet Photography

Water droplets can be beautiful and fascinating subjects for photography. In this technique, you are trying to capture the moment that a drop of liquid hits the surface. That surface can be a liquid or a solid, both options will create the most interesting splashes. This is one of my favorite Winter Indoor Photography ideas, I can’t wait to try it out.

The basic setup for Water Droplet Photography is to put a tray or bowl filled almost to the brim with water on a table, this is what your camera is focused on. Then you create drops of water that splash where your camera is focused, so you can get an image of the beautiful and abstract forms created by nature (honestly, physics is beautiful, just the equations are hard)

In Water Droplet Photography you will need to use a tripod and an off-camera flash (Speedlight). The splashes happen so quickly, your camera will not be able to capture them. Using a flash creates such a bright and fast burst of light, it does all the work of capturing the moment the drop creates the splash.

To add more interest to the drops, you can add some food dye coloring to the water. Additionally using a small amount of milk in the liquid you’re splashing into will help to create translucent splashes.

To drop the liquid you can use an eyedropper/pipet to create single drops. To create a continuous stream of drops, try a water-filled plastic bag with a small pinhole above your scene. In any case, you’ll get the best results if you attach your dropper to a pole over the liquid tray that will stay in a fixed position.

This one is so easy to set up with things you have around the house, you’ll be getting some impressive results within 30 minutes. It can be a little messy though, make sure to have a towel handy to clean up any liquid that gets on the table or on your lens.

As you see in the tips section, the hardest part of this winter indoor photography technique is setting up the scene and camera equipment. Once that’s done start snapping away.

Tips –

• Set your camera on manual focus and manual exposure, so it won’t try to take control of the scene.
• Place your camera on a tripod and aim it slightly above the liquid in the tray, looking across the surface. 
• Hang a weight on a string from your dropper. Focus the camera where the weight hits the water in the tray and remove the weight.
• Reduce or eliminate any ambient light by using a low ISO (100), a high f-stop (f-11 or more), and a shutter speed of 1/200.
• Mount your flash off to one side of your camera, pointed so that it goes across the area where the drop will hit.
• Use a remote trigger, so you don’t bump your camera and have it lose focus on the droplets.
• If creating drops by hand, shoot several in a row to try and get a feeling for the timing of the splash.
• Experiment with different colored backgrounds, flash angles, and rate of drops (getting one drop to splash into another creates very interesting forms)

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• Tripod
• Movable and Adjustable Lighting (table lamp, desk lamp)
• Shutter release cable/remote shutter
• Bowl, Pan, or Bucket for the landing area.
• Eyedropper, Pipet, Plastic Bag to drop water.
• Food Dye, Milk, etc to color the water.
• Towel, lens cloth, etc to clean up the expected splashes.

Watch these tutorials by Gavin Hoey and Jeff Cable to get started –

Oil and Water Abstract Photography

This is another very simple technique that will produce some amazing results. Here we are capturing the abstract colors and shapes produced by a little vegetable oil on water. Even though this is the least complex of my Winter Indoor Photography ideas, I think there is great promise and am looking forward to giving it a shot.

The basic setup for Oil and Water Abstract Photography uses a clear baking dish filled with water and suspended above a light source (say with two piles of books). A few drops of oil are placed on the surface. Since the oil will not mix with the water, it tends to form up into dots on the surface of the water. Then you use your camera to take pictures through the dots of oil.

The magic for Oil and Water Abstract Photography happens when placing a colorful background below the dish and shining the light on that surface. Because water and oil refract light differently, you will see all sorts of different lensing of the image below the dish (again physics!). With your camera focused on the oil drops, the background will be out of focus, and the oil drops create many different views based on their size and location.

For more interest, after working with the drops for a while, use a fork to mix them up into streams across the water and take some shots through that as well. These images can get really trippy.

Tips –

• Use Manual focus so your camera does not try to figure this one out.
• Experiment with the distance between the pan of water and the backdrop. This will affect the amount of soft focus or Bokeh in the background image.
• Place your camera directly above and level to the pan of water.
• All light should come from reflecting off the background. If possible, turn off the room lights or use a flash.
• Bight and highly saturated images make for the best backgrounds.
• Adding a little dish soap to the water will help the oil clump together.
• To create the scene you want, use a fork or a needle to move the dots of oil around
• Use a macro lens if you have one or use extension tubes.

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• Tripod
• Glass dish or bowl ( more than 6″ wide)
• Light-colored vegetable oil (olive oil can be too green)
• Books to raise the dish above the background.
• Movable and adjustable lighting (Speedlight, desk lamp)
• Brightly colored background (magazine page, bright cloth)
• Fork/Needle to move drops.

Watch this tutorial by Andrew Lanxon to get started –

Explore Bokeh

Speaking of Bokeh, which I just introduced above, here’s an excuse to keep the Christmas lights out for a while longer. Bokeh is defined as “the effect of a soft out-of-focus background”. In essence, it is a pleasing out-of-focus element in a photo.

An excellent way to experiment with Bokeh is to use some bright lights in the background that you can use to be an out-of-focus element. This technique works great with portrait or product photography.

The basic setup for experimenting with Bokeh would be to get an interesting subject, say a book or a camera, and set up a simple scene with the subject lit and in focus. Then get a string of Christmas lights, the LED ones work great, plug them in and hang them over a stand or a chairback behind your scene but still visible. Use a smaller f-stop (f/2 – f/4) and focus on the subject, you will see the bokeh-fied lights in the background.

Take the time to experiment with moving the lights closer and farther from the subject to see the effect. I’ve also seen some neat images with the light threaded through the scene so they are out-of-focus both in front and behind the subject, this makes for an interesting leading line.

This Winter Indoor Photography idea is very simple and will lead to some great photo experiments.

Tips –

• The Bokeh will stand out more if the ambient light is low around your scene
• Try different colored led lights
• Modify the shape of the bokeh by putting a piece of cardboard with a shape cut out of it in front of your lens
• Try adding a string of Boheh lights to your Food Photography or Flower Photography shots – it’s a twofer!

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• A string of Christmas Lights
• Props (camera, books, lego figures to be your main subject)

Watch this DP Review tutorial by Don Komarechka to get started –

Create Optical Illusions with Water Reversal Photography

Did you know that when you look through a glass of water, the background is reversed – kind of like a selfie? However, when the glass is empty the background is not reversed (physics strikes again).

With the correct backgrounds, you can use this so-called “optical illusion” to create some interesting effects.

The basic setup for Water Reversal Photography is pretty simple. You will need a clear glass with some water in it. Place the glass in front of a background that has bold vertical or diagonal elements (stripes, divided 50/50, etc). Light the background, but try to keep light from striking the glass to reduce reflections in the glass. Then take pictures through the glass. Try moving the camera around to adjust how the background and its reversed image in the class interact with each other.

Tips –

• Make sure the color of the glass is as clear as possible. Colored and textured glasses will spoil the effect.
• For best results, use a flash (Speedlight) with a diffuser to light the background.
• Remember that things you put in the glass (straws, flowers) will appear to bend at the water’s surface. (more physics)
• Use some food dye to color the water and change the background colors

Suggested Equipment –

• Camera
• One or more clear glass containers (water glass, vase, wine glass)
• Movable and Adjustable Lighting (flash, desk lamp)
• Background (bold & highly colored)
• Light Diffuser (tracing paper)
• Towel

Watch this Adorama TV tutorial by Gaven Hoey to get started –

Here’s a link to Gaven Hoey’s example backgrounds if you’d like to print them out.

Wrap Up

I hope you found these Winter Indoor Photography ideas interesting, I know I did. In fact, I almost didn’t finish this article because I wanted to rush out and try every one of them.

So get your feet off the couch and get out there and make some art.

If you liked this article, check out more of my educational posts in the Guides section.