1st attempt at simple glass lighting C&C please

[qleak]

I was frustrated with my background options, and my attempts at lighting a more complicated liquid filled glass. I went and bought a couple of black pieces of paper and foam boards for some fun. In both I triggered the off camera flash with the on camera flash redirected with a playing card off the subject.

1) My first attempt at dark field photography. I had my flash reflected off the wall behind the black paper background.
DSC_0482 by n8.iverson, on Flickr

2) A light the background attempt. Same black background.
DSC_0469 by n8.iverson, on Flickr

I think 2) turned out much better than 1. It seems obvious to me now that maybe I need a little more space and a less cluttered environment to minimize reflections for the dark field approach.

Any advise and or comments welcome.

 

[Geaux]

more lights, different angles.

You'll get better dimension out of the glass.

 

[qleak]

more lights, different angles.

You'll get better dimension out of the glass.

Thanks for your advice. Much Appreciated

I think in my particular case more lights might be running before I can walk.

I only have 2 flashes so far, most of the glass multi-light setups I've seen do 3-4. What would you recommend for 2?

I may need to get some gels to make my background lighting more interesting

 

[AKUK]

Personally I prefer the first to the second shot, as it has more ambiance to it. I would grid the flashes and point them at the glass at about 45º degrees from behind in the first photo. This should stop the unwanted reflections (or massively reduce them) and keep the light high contrast due to small size of the light source.

 

[qleak]

Personally I prefer the first to the second shot, as it has more ambiance to it. I would grid the flashes and point them at the glass at about 45º degrees from behind in the first photo. This should stop the unwanted reflections (or massively reduce them) and keep the light high contrast due to small size of the light source.

Thanks for the suggestion. I can hardly wait to give it a try

Of course I will need to acquire another grid... maybe two! My only grid is a homemade drinking straw monstrosity.

 

[AKUK]

No problem. Check out Micnova grids on fleebay. They are pretty cheap and come in 1/4" and 1/8" grid diameters. You can probably get a pair for about $20 delivered. I have a pair and they work really well. Build quality is okay but I opted to glue the joints together after one came apart when I dropped it. Solid as a rock now!