Shooting my own product for the first time in a studio. Help! :)

[simonjheadingsouth]

hi guys,

I have a product for surfers (surftripmap - The perfect gift for every surfer) and need new product photos. I was looking up prices for
professional pictures and it easily costs me about 400€ each time I have pictures taken. And the hassle with
distribution rights... so I decided to get myself a Canon 600d with an 18-135 kit lense and rent a studio to shoot my own
pictures. Tomorrow will be my first try, so I am thinking about what to do. i will use lightroom 3 to edit the pictures afterwards.

Under The Surftripmap – All About Surf Spots, Beautiful Art « surftripmap you can see some pictures I use at the moment. But with a redesign of
the website I want to boil it down to 3-4 pics max. Also I am wondering about lighting and composition.

Here are my thoughts/questions:
- which pictures shall I take? I was thinking: full map with a little item like a guitar next to the map to give a feeling for the dimensions. (dimensions added to the pic in ps), just one country like the us, an example of a framed map, maybe a map in a tube where it will be shipped in

--> any ideas what other parts i should shoot?
--> good idea to put a guitar next to the map? might be a little distracting from the map. any other ideas for items?

- i am not so sure if i want to go with a high aperture to have everything in focus or if i want to blur out parts of the pictures. what do you think?

- any specific ideas/tips for shooting such a paper product? i have the map mounted on cardboard so its fairly thick and also can stand alone.

Would be stoked for some help here! i will definitely post the pictures here fo feedback and even may give some maps away as a little thank you for your help.

Simon

 

[Kerbouchard]

Hey, Simon, I was thinking about buying a map that showed me details about all the best surf spots, but when I looked into pricing, I figured I could do it cheaper myself. would you mind sending me information on all the best surf spots and details so I can print out my own?

 

[simonjheadingsouth]

if you have some amazing tips about shooting it right for me i might give you one for free

 

[Kerbouchard]

hi guys,

I have a product for surfers (surftripmap - The perfect gift for every surfer) and need new product photos. I was looking up prices for
professional pictures and it easily costs me about 400€ each time I have pictures taken. And the hassle with
distribution rights... so I decided to get myself a Canon 600d with an 18-135 kit lense and rent a studio to shoot my own
pictures. Tomorrow will be my first try, so I am thinking about what to do. i will use lightroom 3 to edit the pictures afterwards.

See if the studio has a white balance tool or a calibration target. For product shots, color accuracy is paramount. A calibration tool or a custom white balance will make editing a lot easier.

Under The Surftripmap – All About Surf Spots, Beautiful Art « surftripmap you can see some pictures I use at the moment. But with a redesign of
the website I want to boil it down to 3-4 pics max. Also I am wondering about lighting and composition.

Here are my thoughts/questions:
- which pictures shall I take? I was thinking: full map with a little item like a guitar next to the map to give a feeling for the dimensions. (dimensions added to the pic in ps), just one country like the us, an example of a framed map, maybe a map in a tube where it will be shipped in

Seems like it would make more sense to use a surf board instead of a guitar for size comparisons. As far as adding the dimensions in PS, I would just use a caption, either on the mouseover or below it. Don't see why you would need to add text to the actual picture.

--> any ideas what other parts i should shoot?
--> good idea to put a guitar next to the map? might be a little distracting from the map. any other ideas for items?

A surfboard.

- i am not so sure if i want to go with a high aperture to have everything in focus or if i want to blur out parts of the pictures. what do you think?

I would probably stick around the f/8 range for most of your shots. Take a few at 3.5 and a few at f/11 or f/16 if you have some extra time. A lot of it is going to depend on if you have a tripod available(you should be shooting from a tripod), and the power of the lighting. I would shoot from a tripod, with two large diffused light sources, at base ISO(ISO 100), around f/8 to f/11, and a shutter speed within the sync speed for the lighting(less than 1/200th of a second most likely)

- any specific ideas/tips for shooting such a paper product? i have the map mounted on cardboard so its fairly thick and also can stand alone.

Use a custom white balance, watch the placement of the lighting to avoid glare. You'll want relatively flat lighting for a map mounted on cardboard. I wouldn't try to get too creative. The easiest setup would be two lights on either side at about a 45 degree angle. Take a test shot, and make sure the lighting is uniform across the entire map.

Would be stoked for some help here! i will definitely post the pictures here fo feedback and even may give some maps away as a little thank you for your help.

Simon

Really, you don't need a studio for this type of shot. A tripod, and a room with diffused light, or even an overcast day would do just fine. You just don't want a point light source or a directional light(unless there is a directional light from the other side to even things out).

Since you are going to the studio anyway, I might also try some shots without the strobes and just use the modeling lights and a longer shutter speed. Oh, and one more thing, try to use a focal length around 40-55mm. I wouldn't use anything below about 35mm. When taking a picture of a flat map, distortion can play a big role in this type of shot at very wide or telephoto focal lengths. Oh, and for the same reason, pay attention to the angle of your camera. Don't shoot up or down. Make sure it's level and your map is level. No sense in introducing distortion due to camera angle.

Good luck to you.

P.S., on your FAQ page, you need to capitalize your 'i' in "After I have bought it, when will i get it?"

 

[Kerbouchard]

So, how did it go?

 

[simonjheadingsouth]

first of all thanks for the great tips. i got back an hour ago and i was shooting for around 3 hours experimenting with stuff. just read your last post before i left so i decided to throw my surfboard in my trunk along other stuff and gave it a go. turns out the board looks best by far!

so if youre interested in getting a map i would love to send you one as a little thank you. your tips really helped a lot. you can send me your address to [email protected]

i am still going through the pictures as i took around 200 and i want to boil it down to three. ill definitely post them here once i worked through them and really am curious about what youll think when you see them!

 

[Kerbouchard]

first of all thanks for the great tips. i got back an hour ago and i was shooting for around 3 hours experimenting with stuff. just read your last post before i left so i decided to throw my surfboard in my trunk along other stuff and gave it a go. turns out the board looks best by far!

so if youre interested in getting a map i would love to send you one as a little thank you. your tips really helped a lot. you can send me your address to [email protected]

i am still going through the pictures as i took around 200 and i want to boil it down to three. ill definitely post them here once i worked through them and really am curious about what youll think when you see them!

I've never surfed, and I was typing my 'real' response right after I gave my first one. Didn't even see your offer until today.

In any case, I'm glad it worked out, and I'm interested in seeing how it comes out.