product photography help

[greenhorn]

Hello everyone!


I am attempting to learn product photography using basic DYI equipment.


I have very limited space in my garage and this is the best set up that I can manage



and the picture turned out looking like this :



More info:


For the light bulbs I am using 2 150W sylvania CFL that generates 2600 lumens each.


Thank you so much in advance and looking forward to your suggestions.

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[Forkie]

You've actually done pretty well considering the equipment you have to use. The obvious problem is your white balance. With continuous lights with bulbs like the ones you have, set your white balance either to Tungsten or Auto. Or even better, if your camera is able, shoot in RAW so you can correct the WB afterwards.

It may just be my eyes and the size of the picture, bt the rim of the hat towards the back is slightly OOF, so perhaps you could dial your aperture down a stop or two.

But overall, not a bad effort.

[greenhorn]

Hello Forkie!

Thank you for your advice.

Answers to your comments:

Yes, it is out of focus, I played around with the white balance by setting it to auto and tungsten, but i still seem to have the "yellowness". What additional steps do you recommend?

Lastly, I have no idea how to work with Raw files, although I do have access to CS5. (still learning that as well) would you please point me in the right direction?

If it helps, I am using a Cannon Rebel XSI with a manual external flash.

Thanks again!

[EIngerson]

For the white balance issues, I would get a grey card and set the WB manually. Being that you are in a controlled environment you can take one WB shot and use that in post to get it correct in all of them. I used an XSI and I was always fighting with it to get the WB correct. Another thing that might help is parchment paper. shine the light through the paper to act as a soft box. You can pick up a roll for a couple bucks. Make sure to set the timer or remote shutter release. I've done some of the same set ups as you and had a blast doing it. Best of luck and I hope you have fun doing it.

[Buckster]

Try this: Set one of the lights further away than the other to give the subject more 3-dimensional definition through the use of light and shadow. For a 1:2 ratio, one light needs to be twice as far away as the other light, per the inverse square law.

For white balance, until you get a gray card or other white balance tool, try using the white board you're using for your background. Light it with the two lamps, then take a photo of it, then use that photo as a custom white balance reference in your camera. This video should be able to help you:

Canon EOS 450D Rebel XSi - Setting a Custom White Balance - YouTube



Refer to your camera manual on how exactly to do this if you have any trouble with it.

[amolitor]

For a 1:2 ratio, one light needs to be twice as far away as the other light, per the inverse square law.

Isn't that a 1:4 ratio?

[Buckster]

For a 1:2 ratio, one light needs to be twice as far away as the other light, per the inverse square law.

Isn't that a 1:4 ratio?

Yes, quite right. Good catch. I stand corrected.

[amolitor]

I always have to shove my thinking cap on extra hard for those, and then I typo it anyways because I'm thinking of a number halfway through instead of at the end.

[MLeeK]

A light tent would definitely help to soften and bounce your light around.

[greenhorn]

questions:

What exactly does a remote shutter release do compared to a timer?

Does it make that big of a difference if i press the button even with a tripod?

Thank you so much for everyone's advice. Will keep you guys updated!

[davisphotos]

All things considered, not bad. A bit flat, it could benefit from a backlight. The remote release and timer will get you the same results by eliminating shutter shake, but with a remote cable, you won't need to be quite as patient. And yes, if you are on your tripod, having a cable release will still help, pressing the shutter on the camera, even on a tripod will result in some blur.

[greenhorn]

Here is my second attempt:

Set up: (I have wax paper and parchment paper lined in front of the pan lights.



I also attempted the 1:4 ratio but the results were presentable. (perhaps I did it incorrectly)

but here is the result.

I also added a LED backlight by the hat's 2 o clock. Not sure if that's the proper way to do it.