Shooting Pickup Porn

[ken]

Hello all,

I'm curious as to the best ways you have found to take photos of your pickups.

Does anyone have any ideas or tips on how to make your creations look their best?

Thank you,

ken

[big_teee]

Hello all,

I'm curious as to the best ways you have found to take photos of your pickups.

Does anyone have any ideas or tips on how to make your creations look their best?

Thank you,

ken

If your talking about just regular digital camera pictures?
I like the camera set on Macro, and for inside shots, I put the flash on red eye.
The red eye seems to keep from washing out the picture, and helps on the glare.
Good Luck,
T

[ken]

I was just outside taking pickup photos since it's a beautiful day.

I set up a small white paper photo tent to diffuse the sunlight, got out my pickups, set up my digital camera, and realized I forgot my drink.

I went in the house to get it, and came back outside just in time to watch my tent blowing down the backyard because a breeze picked up.

There has to be a better way...

ken

[rjb]

It's all in the lighting, man. And always be aware of the background.

Seriously, I'm a lousy photographer. But a while ago, I found an online book on "Digital Macro Photography" that you can either read online or pay for a paper copy. Apparently, getting consistently good results requires some basic knowledge of photography, rather than just random tips. ;^)

Anyways, this book (which I can't seem to find right now) provides the basic knowledge, and gives "case studies" showing how to shoot different types of objects to best effect. You might try to look it up.

I struggle with getting fairly accurate representations of my "subjects"- never mind sexy effects like creating a halo by placing the pickup on a backlit sheet of frosted glass resting on two paint buckets. Or whatever.

That said, here's what I do for basic macro pics:

I avoid using flash. For lighting, I use sunlight and/or two hardware store variety 5000K fluorescent flood lamps in clamp-on reflectors, placed "wherever seems right". I sometimes use tracing paper "diffusers" (mounted in frames made from old GFR album covers) to soften glare and/or white posterboard or foamcore "reflectors" to bounce light into dark recesses. I place a piece of white paper in the frame (which gets cropped out later) as a reference for color balance.

I've tried using my GF's tabletop tripod, but found it a PITA. Now, I just brace the camera against whatever is handy, or use the self-timer to avoid jitter while pressing the shutter button.

[rjb]

...set up my digital camera, and realized I forgot my drink.

...came back outside just in time to watch my tent blowing down the backyard...

There has to be a better way...

Maybe give up drinking?
Oh, you said a better way.
Never mind.

[ken]

The drink was iced tea, triple strong and triple sugar. Really.

I'm thinking about buying a collapsible photography tent, with translucent nylon sides so the tent walls acts as its own diffuser.
I saw one of these at an antique store once, the store owner was using it to take photos of things to post on Ebay.

ken

[rjb]

I'm thinking about buying a collapsible photography tent, with translucent nylon sides so the tent walls acts as its own diffuser.

Hmm, that sounds like it might cost more than a dollar.
I made something like a cheap-o version of that - just a cardboard box with tracing paper "windows" - but I don't use it much.

[David Schwab]

Not cheap, but here's an entire setup, lights and all.

Photo Studio In a Box

[rjb]

Not cheap, but here's an entire setup, lights and all.

That looks an awful lot like my cardboard box setup. I bought solid color placemats and posterboard at Dollar Tree for backgrounds.
Walgreens used to sell clothing hampers (white translucent nylon bag in a collapsible metal frame) for about $9.99- probably less on sale.

[ken]

I like rjb's idea of the clothes hamper, I'll have to try that.

I tried to make a photo tent a couple of times with varying success. I tried a white bedsheet, but that wasn't really translucent so the light didn't diffuse very much.
Besides, the material got dirty very quickly too. Next, I bought some white nylon? sail material from a local that made windsurfer sails... too opaque.

Why am I so picky? I want my photos to be as nice as possible the first time, so I don't have to spend all day in Photoshop fixing shadows.

ken

[rjb]

I want my photos to be as nice as possible the first time,

Me too.

so I don't have to spend all day in Photoshop fixing shadows.

Have you tried using fill light or reflectors to lighten the shadows?

[Peter Naglitsch]

I found an online book on "Digital Macro Photography" that you can either read online or pay for a paper copy. Apparently, getting consistently good results requires some basic knowledge of photography, rather than just random tips. ;^)

Anyways, this book (which I can't seem to find right now) provides the basic knowledge, and gives "case studies" showing how to shoot different types of objects to best effect. You might try to look it up.

This one?
An online book of Macro Photography - by Rhett Stuart (Macro-Photography.org)

[rjb]

This one?
An online book of Macro Photography - by Rhett Stuart (Macro-Photography.org)

That's not the one I had on my shelf, but it still might be good.
Sorry, I haven't found the hardcopy & can't remember the author or title.

The one I have (or had) contained some hints on doing things on the cheap (like making diffusers from tracing paper, with art-store canvas-stretcher frames), and a bunch of "case studies" - like how to make an old Pez dispenser look like the Holy Grail, and so on....

I promise to report back if and when I find the title.

-rb

[rjb]

Not cheap, but here's an entire setup, lights and all.

Gee, thanks for the fish.
Hey, David, don't you do some kind of photography-related activity on a professional level?
Can't you teach us photography in a sentence or two?
Please?

[rjb]

I'm curious as to the best ways you have found to take photos of your pickups.

Does anyone have any ideas or tips on how to make your creations look their best?

Getting back to the thread's title-
Say you're shooting a pickup with a shiny metal cover.
You could position a nude model or picture of a nekkid lady so she's reflected in that cover.
Ya know, like, subliminal advertising....
Just a thought.