Want to add some epic to your photos? Use some smoke, and here are 9 ways in which you can produce smoke for photography.

2. Love is a smoke
made with the
fume of sighs
William Shakespeare

3. A SMOKEY SITUATION
Want to add some drama and epic to your
photos? Smoke and fog is probably one of
those answers, but some photographers
don’t even know where to get started.
After searching much of the Internet, I
found several ways to create smoke for
photography. I put my hands to try some
of those, and share my thoughts in this
compiled slides.

4. 01 : SMOKE MACHINE
Probably the easiest method, and produces the best
result. Some people may think that fog machines are
expensive – but they are not. You can get a decent
fog machine from eBay for about $35-$50.
Pros : Inexpensive, consistent thick fog.
Cons : Requires a power plug. Not good for
outdoors without power.

5. 02 : HAZE-IN-A-CAN
One of my personal favorites. These spray
cans produces thick smoke that hangs in the air
long enough.
Pros : Nice thick smoke, portable cans, no
electricity required.
Cons : Expensive. A can does not really last
that long, and it cannot be refilled.

6. 03 : FOG CAKE
This is quickly becoming my favorite. Fog
cakes are pieces of small round cake
like… things that produce a lot of smoke
when burnt.
Pros : Cheap, nice thick smoke, portable,
no electricity required.
Cons : Smoke can go out of control…
bring your own fans. Burns for about 2+
mins.

7. 04 : INCENSE
We all know that incense produces smoke… so
what happens when we burn a ton of incense?
Epic failure. It catches on fire, but still produces
some smoke.
Pros : Portable, no electricity required, repels
insects.
Cons : Fire hazard. Choking when burnt in
large quantities.

8. 05 : PHOTOSHOP
When all else fails, there’s Photoshop. Find a
stock photo of smoke, paste it in, and after
some editing – magic.
Pros : Magic. No physical products.
Cons : Can be time consuming to get the
smoke to look realistic.

9. DISCLAIMER
OK, from this point on, I have not
tested these methods myself – But, I
have heard they work from friends
and YouTube videos… Don’t shoot
me if things go wrong.

10. 06 : WATER &
DRY ICE
I am pretty sure most people have tried
this in their science class… Yep, it works.
But not really well for the purpose
photography.
Pros : Cold fog that hangs low, good for
eerie feel. Easily available.
Cons : Have to lug a load of dry ice and
water to the shoot location.
Screenshot from :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsO1B-
FWD6I

11. 07 : BABY
POWDER / FLOUR
What is the next best thing to smoke?
Powder. Inexpensive and effective.
Pros : Very thick, possible to control the
direction… if the wind does not mess it
up.
Cons : Messy, probably have to do some
Photoshop work.
Screenshot from :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBjYS4S
TX5M

12. 08 : PING PONG
SMOKE BOMB
With some science, you can make your
own DIY smoke bomb. Aluminum + Ping
Pong Ball + Lighter = Smoke Bomb.
Pros : Not bad quite heavy smoke,
relatively easy to make.
Cons : TOXIC... Probably not good for
photoshoots.
Screenshot from :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBjYS4S
TX5M

13. 09 : MOSQUITO
FOGGER
Don’t be fooled. These insect foggers are
actually just gas can powered fog
machines. Simply change the insecticide
to fog fluid, and it works.
Pros : Portable, works like smoke
machine.
Cons : Still somewhat expensive, requires
butane to run.
Screenshot from :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzwLf_fQn
w8

14. Thanks!
That’s all for the short slides. You can find
me at : http://xlightphotography.com
The original article for these slides :
http://xlightphotography.com/ways-create-
smoke-photography/

15. Purchase Links
For you guys who are looking to buy some of those
cool stuff to produce smoke, here are the eBay
links.
Note : These are referral links though, I will make a
commission if you buy through these links.
[Fog Machine]
[Haze Can]
[Fog Cake]
[Incense]
[Insect Fogger]

16. Credits
Special thanks to all the people who
made and released these awesome
resources for free:
✗ Presentation template by
SlidesCarnival
✗ Photographs by Death to the Stock
Photo (license)