Tuesday 11 June 2013

Keith West's advice on photography

Keith West gave a talk after the Woodbury Woodturner's 2008 Annual General Meeting on photographing the items we produce. This is a summary of his advice.


Move back, Zoom in

The most important tip that I took from Keith's talk is to move back and zoom in. He explained that modern digital cameras are wide angle lenses by default (when switched on) and that this leads to distortion when we place the camera very close to the subject. The result of this is that round items appear oval, and items such as goblets have disproportionately large tops or bottoms depending on which is closer to the camera. This is compensated for by taking the camera further back from the subject and using the zoom feature to fill the frame with the subject.


Isolate the subject

Keith suggested purchasing a large (A3) sheet of white or pale grey card and draping the sheet from a chair or similar object so that the card provides a smooth curve from the portion that lies flat on the table or floor, and rises to the seat of the chair with a smooth curve. This provides a featureless backdrop that isolates the subject, bringing it to the viewer's sole attention.


Add light

Keith used the available light from the fluorescent hall lights and explained that there is no need, with digital cameras, to compensate for these, or tungsten bulbs. Keith often photographs subjects in his conservatory, which has a plastic roof that diffuses the natural light wonderfully. If this is not available, he suggested working close to a window to benefit most from natural light. Digital cameras are very well equipped to produce accurate colour representation regardless of the light source.


Keith added light from a 40W tungsten bulb in an ordinary anglepoise light. By placing the light to the side, Keith created a gentle shadow to the rear and side of the subject. Keith showed how placing the additional light source behind the item and shining across the surface of a subject can highlight the texture on the surface of an item.


Set up once, shoot many

Keith reminded us that digital photographs cost nothing. Once you have the camera (with memory card) and a battery, there is no per-picture cost. Keith advised we take lots of pictures with the card and subject set up, trying different angles and possibly with and without, or moving additional light sources.


Many of the photographs are taken without flash, and even with a tripod we might nudge the camera slightly when pressing the button to take the picture. Keith's simple and ingenious suggestion is to use the self-timer on the camera to allow it to take the photo without being bumped.




Samples

At the beginning of the evening I saw the goblet Keith brought and was impressed with the idea and execution so I took a photo. Keith let me take another at the end of his talk. The results (below) are testament to how much he taught us.



Too close, hard flash, and not isolated from the background.


Too close, hard flash, and not isolated from the background.

Zoomed for correct proportions, no flash, isolated with white card background, and enhanced with a subtle additional foreground light.


Zoomed for correct proportions, no flash, isolated with white card background, and enhanced with a subtle additional foreground light.

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