Watch and Eyeglasses Photography - Anti-Glares Techniques to Remember!

Red eyes and glare from eyeglasses are common problems of photo shoots. How to avoid these problems is an art. Some shutterbugs have learnt after years of experience.

How can the eye glare appears and spoil a picture? It happens when a person wearing glasses is the main subject of the shoot. If there is light reflecting on the glass, it will reflect of the transparent eye lens. The glare appears as a result and ruins the shot. Editing out the glare is important and is done via photo processing. But while shooting with the camera itself the glare can be minimized. This is also a problem faced when watches of various dials are shot against several lights. Actually all glass wares like goblets, bowls also face this problem. Hence when these subjects are being prepared for shoot the lighting element has to be perfect. A degree here and there can make or mar the quality of the frame shot. When the still life of wristwatches or eyeglasses is being done the light patterns are first taken care of. This is the fundamental requirement of anti-glare techniques. This sets the mood of the rest of the work. When the watches are being shot the time ideally (on the dial) should be 11.00 or 1.00 for best visibility of all the elements in it. And when it comes to eyeglasses if they are shot with a person wearing it, needs to be positioned well.

Let’s start with clicking pictures of people who wear glasses. Ideally a photographer will ask the person to remove the spectacles or glasses. That is the easiest thing to do.  But if the person is very used to wearing the glasses then the photograph taken will be odd. Such a person is not accustomed to look without the glasses. The pictures may be out of focus and it will be very apparent that the person is ‘missing the glasses’ in the picture. However when the same person is shot with the glasses on then it is a challenge for the photographer. Hence it is the duty of the photographer to adjust the lights to avoid the problem. If the source of light is coming from above the subject the focus will have to be tweaked. The glasses may be tilted around the ears to get the right photo. The use of catch lights is also used to avoid the glare.

In the same manner shooting watches and clocks that have reflective glass is a fine art. All kinds of timepieces feature glass as a protective covering. Hence they are subject to possible glint while shooting. The use of a black background is proven useful for watch photography. It brings out the richness of the time keeping device. Getting close up of the dials brings the details out for the buyer. With the right DSLR this main problem is mitigated. What makes the black background ideal here is that it will work as an anti-glare canvas. The white background tends to throw additional light hence it is avoidable. The gradients of the glass dials or any other transparent objects appear clearly on the dark canvas. The photos turn out crisp and with additional photo editing the sharpness emerges leaving out the glint.

Bags and Shoes Photography

Both bags and shoes are very important accessories for fashionable men and women. People make style statements wearing these fashionable items. They buy the products after seeing impressive photo shots!

Most people own a couple of real stylish bags and shoes. And there must be considerable number of them who may have bought these items from the Internet. They have done that after looking at the beautiful pictures that have been shot and displayed in picture galleries in the websites. Bags and shoes photography is quite a dedicated way for some professionals. They have helped their clients to promote their wares online. Many web-stores are using flat lighting to get their products on sale online. And how do they make such amazing pictures?

Each studio has tools like the camera and its equipment, clamps, tripod, flashes and tables of varying sizes. A good studio will house various props that will help the products shine in the pictures. To shoot a single item-shoe or handbag choosing the right background is imperative. A contrasting drop is better. If the item will be placed on the table it’s positioning is important. A shoe cannot be placed on the table. Ideally it can be hung with a tape that will prove to be invisible and can be removed later during image editing. A feeling of the suspended shoe will be ideal for clicking pictures. While it is in suspension, a photographer will have to deliberate if the top angle will be needed or the eye level. According the lighting will be set. Simultaneously the light meter will be placed to check the right exposure. Tents or umbrellas will be required to given the overall lighting uniformly. Both the light sources will have to be equal in proportion. Once these tools have been placed. The camera needs to be adjusted before clicking the pictures.

In the same manner stylish bags of different shapes can be shot with élan. To ensure that the bag can be seen inside out and also from all angles the use of 360 degree technique is also used. So when the buyer comes online he can zoom on all the properties of the bag. It is as good as touching and feeling the product. Many studios are now using in depth picture angles to prove that they can deliver creative ways of professional work. Accessories like bags have several compartments. Hence it is worthwhile to change the flat lighting and use another method to attract end users. Bags of reputed designers are every expensive, hence buyers prefer to check out the detailing before they buy.

A professional is aware that he will need to tweak the pictures even after they are clicked. Since he has set up the lights he will know if there are any hidden shadows lurking behind to exposure the light sources. Once he has done the shoot he can later experiment with the lighting and the focus. One of the reasons bags and shoes photography has caught on is because of the eye-catching visuals. The hard work of the studio workers is now paying off for several clients. They now have sleeker presentation of their valued products.

Food and Drink Photography-Hungry for Some Tricks?

Specialty restaurants have sprouted all over urban dwellings. They also like to have tantalizing pictures of their mouth-watering menus. Photographers specializing in food and drink photography are making a killing doing this work. How do they capture the delicious items?

Thank God some tricks can be shared for all to imbibe. As food and drink photography becomes more niches, restaurant shutterbugs are in demand. Shooting irresistible pancakes and making them look oven fresh can be demanding. The trick lies in capturing the ‘freshest and ripest moment’. You may ask how many pancakes and honey syrup it takes to get the shoot right? Not more than a triple-decker of three pancakes! And the strategy lies in setting up the props before the ‘subject’ has arrived fresh out of the non-stick pan. A shutterbug with decent skills can do the lighting well in advance. So if you are in catering business, which is online, having delicious pictures of the menu can be the best bet for getting good business.

To make the food look digestible, the lead photographer will have the assistants arrange the studio bay first. The setting may take an hour or two. Why are we saying this? Because hot steaming food can look limp if it is bought before the shoot. The assistants will assemble the cameras, lens and the tripod stand. The controlling lights, white balance, bouncers and scrims will be positioned for the table top still pictures.

A photographer might use a camera that he can manually adjust to control the way he will shoot. A use of a compact camera is common for food and drink photography Once the camera is loaded, the lens is another major component to choose. A good quality lens is fitted. A Canon has 50mm 1.4f. It is the best focal length that can capture great shots. A camera mounted on the tripod is steady and better suited for still photography sessions like this. The next comes formatting, i.e. Jpeg or RAW images. Most digicams have the two options. Why Jpeg is more popular-Because, it easily helps pictures to upload on the websites. It is lighter and speed is important when many images have to be seen together. Jpeg images are not necessarily of low quality. They can be scaled while photo processing. Some photographers like to use the RAW format too. The biggest advantage here is the many other elements around can be captured. If they are not required they can always be deleted during the editing. Several new age photographers are using live shot demos before the actual shots are clicked. Shooting tethering has become common. When the camera is plugged to the USB port of a computer the real time image is seen. It becomes easier to shoot the right frame. If a big difference needs to be made to a final shot this can be really helpful.

When these elements are done, the last thing that needs to be done is lighting. It creates the final impact on the product photography. Yes artificial lighting can be controlled and can do wonders. There is a choice of soft light box or halogen lamps with umbrellas. Throw off the lights or bounce them across the items on display. This makes the photographer take the delicious shot eventually.