What kit do you need?

A standard zoom or macro lens will give you lots of options

The beauty of still-life photography is that you don’t need much kit at all: any camera and almost any lens can be put to good work. You don’t need a great deal of space either. Having room to set up a tripod is going to help, as it will allow you to frame your still-life set-up with precision, as well as enable you to use the optimum camera settings.

A different selection of backgrounds will prove useful. For tabletop set-ups, a sheet of white card and some black velvet are going to be well-used assets, but backdrops with more vibrant colours and those with interesting textures can also come in handy.

A reflector or two is good to have around – you don’t need anything fancy, as a couple of sheets of white card or foamboard will be fine – and a flashgun or affordable LED light will allow you to carry on shooting into the evening.

Background Some backdrops are ready-made. Here, a slate floor tile on a bathroom floor, shot from above and lit from a slight angle to bring out the ridges, adds a visual contrast with the organic shapes of the beetroot.

Set-up A small table (or piece of MDF on a cardboard box!) allows you to set up anywhere.

Subjects Food, flowers, forks, toys, antiques… prepare a variety of objects for a still-life session.