With a little patience, it's amazing what one can do... Using a white cloth to diffuse a light source indoors can be a godsend. This photo is taken that way:
In photography, when shooting a closeup, if your camera has the setting, lower the f-stop down as far as it will go and you'll get a sharp subject and a soft background. Photo enthusiasts call this effect "bokeh":
Anyway, you get the idea. All are taken indoors with a tripod and a diffused (white cloth) manual flash setup. Camera is an Olympus E330 with an f2.8 35-70 lens.