Closer = Softer: A Somewhat Short & Sweet LED Lighting Tip Every LED Photographer Should Know

One of the most common things I hear from photographers experimenting with LED panels is this:

“Help me! The lighting is terrible”

And understanding why this might be happening will help you create softer, more consistent images in camera, while also avoiding blown highlights and tricky white balance issues in editing.

Let’s break it down.

Get Closer.

Soft light isn’t about how bright your light is — it’s about relative size.

When an LED panel is closer to your subject, it becomes a larger light source relative to them. Larger light sources wrap around your subject more, creating softer shadow edges and smoother transitions between highlights and mid-tones.

This is the same reason:

• Overcast days create soft outdoor light

• Soft boxes and diffusers work so well

• Window light looks gentler the closer your subject is to the window

LED panels behave exactly the same way.

The Inverse Square Law (hopefully without too much jargon and overwhelm).

When a light is close to your subject, the light falloff is faster. That means:

• Your subject is evenly lit

• Shadows are less harsh

• Contrast is reduced

As you move the light farther away, the light becomes harder, shadows deepen, and highlights become more defined.

This is why small distance changes matter. Moving a panel even a foot closer can noticeably soften skin and reduce contrast — especially in newborn and maternity photography.

The Trade-Off: Softer Light vs. Blown Highlights

Here’s where many photographers run into trouble.

The closer the light, the softer the light. The closer the light, the more intensity.

If you move your LED panels closer without adjusting power, camera settings, or the diffusion of the light, highlights can blow quickly — especially on:

• Foreheads and cheeks

• Newborn skin

• Light fabrics and wraps

How to Manage It

• Reduce panel power as you move closer (this is where a dimmer could come in handy but I don’t personally have my LED set up wired for a dimmer switch)

• Lower ISO whenever possible (If you have a proper LED set up, you really shouldn’t see yourself going above 100-200 ISO often).

• Watch your histogram, not just your LCD preview (Remember that LCD viewfinders are back lit and they are not an absolutely true representation of your image)

• Add diffusion (this is basically a non-negotiable with most DIY LED light set ups.

The goal is softness without clipping.

White Balance and LED Distance

Another side effect of working closer to LED panels is that colour shifts become more noticeable.

Even high-quality LED panels can lean slightly warm, cool, or green depending on:

• Panel quality and CRI

• Distance from subject

• Amount of diffusion used

Best Practice

• Shoot RAW for full white balance control

• Use a custom white balance when possible (this is where some good ol’ trial and error will come in super handy).

• Fine-tune in post rather than relying on Auto WB

This becomes especially important when working with skin tones.

Editing LED Images: Refinement, Not Rescue

When LED light is set up well in camera, editing should feel intentional — not like you’re trying to fix a problem after the fact.

That said, even with careful exposure, LED images can sometimes show:

• Hot spots in highlights

• Slight colour casts

• Brighter-than-expected skin tones

This is where thoughtful editing comes in.

Start global, then refine:

• Pull back highlights and whites gently to recover detail

• Make small white balance adjustments to neutralize warmth, coolness, or green shifts

• Avoid heavy contrast early — LED light already has structure built in

Once the global image feels balanced, move to targeted adjustments:

• Use local tools to soften highlight hot spots on cheeks or foreheads

• Refine skin tone without flattening texture

• Make micro colour corrections where LED light falls strongest

The goal isn’t to fight the light — it’s to support what you created in camera.

Why Shooting Choices Still Matter More Than Editing

Editing can help, but it can’t fully undo blown highlights or extreme colour shifts.

If highlights are clipped, the detail is gone.

If white balance is far off, skin tones become harder to correct naturally.

That’s why understanding distance, power, and diffusion matters just as much as knowing how to edit. The better your light is set up, the less you’ll need to rely on heavy-handed fixes later.

The Takeaway

If you remember one thing, let it be this:

Closer light is softer light — but I will edit to add: only when it’s controlled.

Move your LED panels closer to increase softness and wrap.

Adjust power and exposure to protect highlights.

Use editing to refine, not rescue.

This balance is what creates consistent, flattering LED-lit images — especially for newborns, maternity, and family photography.

Okay, okay. Maybe that wasn’t that short. Oops.

If you want a deeper dive into LED panel setups, exposure strategies, and a full editing workflow designed specifically for LED lighting, my soon-to-be updated Bright Ideas guide series will walk you through the entire process step by step from building to shooting to editing. Stay tuned my friends!