Medusa Knife

[Murray Bloom]

This was a commissioned shot (one of several) of a custom made knife, which features Medusa. Complications were the mother of pearl engraving, gold accents, and an engraved blade which was nearly black. It was for magazine and online publication.

Any comments or suggestions?

 

[weepete]

I really like the way you've lit the handle Murray. The Medusa and mother of pearl really pops, but the blade looks underexposed And fades a bit too much into the background.

I think if it were me I'd try putting an extra flash to the side and flag the handle so it stays lit like you have it here but gets a bit more light on the blade

 

[tirediron]

Nice job on a TOUGH subject; I agree that a little more light on the blade might 'even' things out, but given the drastic difference in reflectivity between a nearly black blade and mother-of-pearl, I'm not sure that'd be such a good idea.

 

[KenC]

You could try double-processing the raw file to get one optimized for the dark area and then blend.

 

[baturn]

The knife looks like a liner lock folder. Close the knife to 3/4 closed and light the whole thing a little more evenly. I presume for a magazine and website that there will be more than one photo. So feature the blade in another shot. My 2cents.

 

[CameraClicker]

I like it. It looks like it was shot with a short lens.

Improvements? A lighter background might improve it. You could try lightening the dark areas in post.

 

[Derrel]

I like it. It looks like it was shot with a short lens.

Improvements? A lighter background might improve it. You could try lightening the dark areas in post.

Yes, it does look like a short lens was used, because the handle looks disproportionately large for the blade, which looks inelegant and impractical due to the very rapid drop-off in on-screen size compared against the size of the handle. If it's a folder, and I can see the hinge pin, I wonder, "How would I access the blade? The blade would be inside that deep a handle when closed." I also think the angle of view is a bit steep: I would love to see the knife shot from more directly above. It's a gorgeous creation though! Loving that Medusa head!

 

[Murray Bloom]

Thanks for all of your replies. Actually, the lens was a bit of a tele; a 60mm macro on a DX sensor (90mm equiv.). It was originally shot against a black background so that the blade would stand out more. However, the client felt that it should have some color, hence the maroon, which was applied to most of several views I shot. Since I was also shooting detail views, I didn't feel that I needed to maximize each aspect, just provide an overall pleasing shot.

The mother of pearl was lit from high and beside, with a large reflector. It's sort of ethereal stuff to capture. That's where I placed my emphasis, since I considered it the most beautiful part of the knife. Here are a detail of Medusa's head as well as a composite used in the magazine.

Flickr

Flickr

 

[Derrel]

Oh WOW, Murray! The Medusa head detail is even more beautiful than I imagined it would be! You are right about mother of pearl being somewhat ethereal to capture...same thing with peacock feathers and their irridescence...some things are very tricky to capture on film/sensor. I just wanted to say, it;s good to see you back, Murray. I had not heard or seen anything from you since I sent you that PM maybe a year ago. I hope you'll be around here a bit more, always enjoy your experience and point of view and such!

 

[Murray Bloom]

Thanks, Derrel. Yeah, I often flit in and out. Not sure why, except maybe the pace of TPF is a bit slow for me. I dunno. I also run a bit hot and cold on photography in general.