So I finally bought one of those daylight desk lamps everybody in the group swears by, $60 on marketplace, barely used. Set it up Sunday to photograph two small landscapes I want to list before the fall fair. Photos came out flat and slightly blue and honestly the ones I took by the window with my phone propped on a cereal box looked better.

I think the problem is I've got it straight on and it's killing all the texture. Everything I read said side lighting and I did not do that. Also my camera is a phone and I refuse to hear otherwise.

Anyway if you use one of these, where do you put it. Left, right, higher up, behind a sheet of parchment paper. I have zero patience for a light box setup, I want to hear the lazy version.