How to photograph a paperweight (curved reflective surface) with no glare using strobe lights?

[MrsNesbitt]

Hi all -

I am a self-taught photographer in the auction inudstry and I have spent hours experimenting with photographing paperweights to achieve a result that does not reflect the strobe light.

I am at something of a loss because even photographs taken from the side or even somewhat from behind reflect due to the highly curved surface of the paperweight.

The first photo is what I have been able to achieve, the second photo is what I would like to achieve (no reflection of the strobe)

Do you think that putting the weights in a light box, putting my Canon DSLR at a high ISO and pointing the strobes up/away from the paperweights in a small room is the answer? I have not tried this because the room I shoot in is large and there are reflective objects.

Thoughts are welcome and appreciated!! This is driving me a little bit crazy.

 

[MrsNesbitt]

*Photographs taken where the strobe is to the side or slightly behind*

 

[RAZKY]

Hi all -

I am a self-taught photographer in the auction inudstry and I have spent hours experimenting with photographing paperweights to achieve a result that does not reflect the strobe light.

I am at something of a loss because even photographs taken from the side or even somewhat from behind reflect due to the highly curved surface of the paperweight.

The first photo is what I have been able to achieve, the second photo is what I would like to achieve (no reflection of the strobe)

Do you think that putting the weights in a light box, putting my Canon DSLR at a high ISO and pointing the strobes up/away from the paperweights in a small room is the answer? I have not tried this because the room I shoot in is large and there are reflective objects.

Thoughts are welcome and appreciated!! This is driving me a little bit crazy.View attachment 271348View attachment 271349

Personally, I would employ flood lights or electronic flash, with polarizers*, rather than strobes. You could illuminate the weights with a couple of light boxes in lieu of flood lights, but a light table or light tent would be more practical than light boxes..
* Sometimes you may need a polarizer on both the lens and the lights.

 

[cgw]

Just for laughs: have you thought of lighting it from below on a pedestal against a black/dark background to show off the millefiori? That's really what's striking about Murano-style glass.

 

[MrsNesbitt]

Personally, I would employ flood lights or electronic flash, with polarizers*, rather than strobes. You could illuminate the weights with a couple of light boxes in lieu of flood lights, but a light table or light tent would be more practical than light boxes..
* Sometimes you may need a polarizer on both the lens and the lights.

This certainly has me thinking. May I ask what the benefit of the polarizers would be?

Is a setup like the below similar to what you had in mind? He is using smaller flashes but you are suggesting flood lights and I guess a higher iso setting on the camera...I have used floods before and they did not seem terribly powerful but that was several years ago.

 

[MrsNesbitt]

Just for laughs: have you thought of lighting it from below on a pedestal against a black/dark background to show off the millefiori? That's really what's striking about Murano-style glass.

I have tried shooting them on a black background but not lit from below. The black background when directly below seems to drain out the color on weights with a lot of clear areas but works well for weights with color throughout

 

[RAZKY]

This certainly has me thinking. May I ask what the benefit of the polarizers would be?

Is a setup like the below similar to what you had in mind? He is using smaller flashes but you are suggesting flood lights and I guess a higher iso setting on the camera...I have used floods before and they did not seem terribly powerful but that was several years ago.

I was thinking that electronic flash would be preferable to strobes, and that a light table or light tent would be more practical than a light box, which is designed for viewing negatives and transparencies. Polarizers will reduce or eliminate reflections from non-metallic objects. Constant lighting enables you to see reflections, shadows, etc., before exposing. I like to to keep my ISO low, so seldom shoot hand-held and I don't worry about long exposures. I hope this clears things up a bit!

 

[smoke665]

As you're finding, lighting solutions are not necessarily a one size fits all. What might work on one, won't work on another.

Specularity occurs anytime you have a highly reflective surface that faces the camera. If the light is positioned such that it's direction is away from the camera, the specularity is still there, but the camera doesn't see it. A round or ball shaped object precludes most directional lighting unless it's from the back or bottom away from camera view.

The quality of the light also defines the brightness/size of the specularity. The smaller the light source in relation to the subject (hard light), the smaller/brighter the specular points reflected. Conversely the larger the light source (soft light) the more diffuse/larger the specular points (they're still there just not as noticeable).

Light tents work by diffusing the light source making it softer as noted above. However depending on the distance from the subject the tent, and the distance from the tent to the light source you can still have specular hot spots caused by unequal diffusion. One comment above might work with some modifications. Use a light table with diffuser and construct a 3 sided box of white poster board to set over the table and weight. Cut a hole for your lens in the side or top to shot through.

Cross polarization of lights is a method frequently used in the dental field. It's a process wherein two polarisers with perpendicular orientation to one another are used on the incident and reflected light to the camera lens. Here's a good description of how it works. Cross Polarization: What It Is and Why It Matters. I've used this method several times with macro. There are multiple light setups used, Google cross polarized lighting.

I've also had good success photographing glass with White Line and Black Line setups. Here's a good article that describes the process. White-Line and Black-Line Lighting

The last method is to bracket your exposures and combine post.