Replies

1. 
   FitandCut | Jul 10, 2005 07:42pm | #1

   Looks good to me - photograph & shelf

2. 
   JohnH | Jul 10, 2005 08:49pm | #2

   I've done some "serious" photography and here are some tips:

   1. If you must photograph outside, do it on a cloudy day. Direct sun produces too much contrast. Shady areas affect the color of the illuminating light. Set the camera's white balance to the appropriate option.

   2. If at all possible, use Photoshop or some other photgraphy manipulating software. Then you can put a gray object in the corner of the image and use the color correction functions to "get the color right."

   3. For best results, use a good quality camera. Single lens reflex is the ultimate, but a high quality amateur camera will have better focus, better color balance, etc. You get what you pay for.

   4. For posting on the web, set the image resolution to 72 dpi and reduce the pixel count so the image is less than 256 Kb or less. For dial-up connections this size downloads in about one minute.

   Even if the photography is not what you wanted, your work looks great!

1. 
   MarkRD | Jul 10, 2005 09:38pm | #4

   John, I've got a decent camera
   5MP Minolta A1
   I'm handy with PhotoshopI'm really struggling with lighting...
   Assuming I use a bunch of tungsten flood lights, should I be trying to eliminate shadows, have subtle shadows?Naturally the bigger the piece, the bigger the backdrop.Does backdrop color matter? (I've got tons of red velvet - from an old stage curtain)Thanks,
   Mark
   

   Measure it with a micrometer, mark it with chalk, cut it with an ax.

1. 
   JohnH | Jul 10, 2005 10:00pm | #5

   Mark,

   The best book for learning lighting is Light: Science & Magic by Fil Hunter and Paul Fuqua. I bought my copy from Amazon.com. Also to really make Photoshop sing, I like Photoshop Artistry by Barry Haynes and Wendy Crumpler. I liked it so much I went to a week-long seminar to learn it better! Is that obsession?

   The short answers to your questions:

   1. The IDEAL lighting produces one soft shadow. But this is only practical if you are going for an artistic competition. So a bunch of tungsten lights is OK. Actually, I use a bounce flash off a white ceiling for large objects (6' x 3') and a bank of daylight flourescent bulbs for smaller ones (2' x 1'). Be sure to set your camera's color balance to the appropriate value.

   2. Yes, the color of the backdrop does matter. It throws its color of light onto the object being photograped. You can buy gray backdrop paper in rolls 5' wide from a photography store or on the Internet. I put mine on a length of closet rod and hang it above and behind the object being photographed. If your objects are wider you'll need two sheets and fix the seam in photoshop or make up a wider roll and tape the seam.

   In my experience, lighting is a frustrating learning experience. The image may look great in the viewfinder, but terrible in the print. Thanks to digital photography, mistakes are cheap to fix.

   Good luck, John

3. 
   Paul_Snyder | Jul 10, 2005 08:58pm | #3

   The picture of the shelf looks good! The back-drop makes it stand out better with the contrasting color and reduces any background "busyness" that detracts from the piece itself.

   Natural lighting is great, but working in the shade, possibly with a white carboard reflector to cast shadow, is a lot better than direct sunlight. Use the flash for fill, only as needed.

   Paul S
   Website

4. 
   Peter36 | Jul 11, 2005 02:57am | #6

   Hi Mark. First let me say that you are a better photographer than I am. What I would change about the picture that you posted though ....... the lighting, it does not illuminate the object well enough and I think it produces too much shadow on the back drop. I would also change the backdrop, I don't think the colour match was in balance. Lastly I would also change the arrangement of the backdrop. I think it looks much better when you can not tell that the sheet is hanging behind the object, rather it is infinitely extending beyond it. [I don't know how to do it...just suggesting.]   Peter

1. 
   MarkRD | Jul 11, 2005 05:18am | #7

   Peter, thanks for your comments. I think I try to re-shoot tomorrow...As I look at the image, what I see going on is that the wood is too light and the grain is washed out. That could be because my camera's meter read the dark background and overexposed the light parts in order to get the green cloth right.ANother problem I now realize is that there was light coming in from the left (a sliding glass door). Had I drawn the curtain that would have reduced a bit of the shadow.Also, as you noted, the shadow on the backdrop is too dark - The light I had above the subject was not as bright as the light next to the camera plus the wrinkle in the back drop created a place for shadow....Glad all is "digital" makes the film and processing cheap :-)Mark

   Measure it with a micrometer, mark it with chalk, cut it with an ax.

1. 
   Jimma | Jul 11, 2005 05:20pm | #8

   ...one more comment to ponder. If your camera has a zoom function, shoot as far from the subject as possible without showing unwanted stuff at the edges of the scene (or use a lens with a relatively long focal length). This way you minimize distorting the image which occurs when being too close to the subject. It's hard to do this if you have a large object, or you can't back away from it, but the longer focal length (or zoom) will render your piece more like it looks to your eye.

   Edited 7/11/2005 10:25 am ET by JimMacMahon

1. 
   MarkRD | Jul 11, 2005 05:57pm | #9

   Great point. I had noticed that the shelf looked a bit "distorted"Backing up will help and I can always crop away stuff beyond the background with Photoshop.Mark
   

   Measure it with a micrometer, mark it with chalk, cut it with an ax.

1. 
   Jimma | Jul 11, 2005 06:30pm | #10

   Always look behind you as you back up. Might be cliff back there.