Pen Photos For My Website

[Jeff Walters]

Hi All,

I am finally getting around the building my website and need a little help with the pictures I snapped of my pens. I used a digital camera with a black background and the came our pretty good however there are some issues with glare and the images need to be sharpened a bit. So I am looking for advice on a piece of software that will help me and not break the bank.

Any suggestions?

Jeff Walters

[Steve Schlumpf]

Jeff, I have used FastStone Image Viewer (http://www.faststone.org/FSViewerDetail.htm) for years and it does just about everything I can think of. Best part... it's free!

[Dan Hintz]

Any suggestions?

Retake the photos.

Use a photo tent ($40 on eBay), and several 100W Daylight fluorescents in clamp-on reflectors. Total package should cost you around $100. You can't easily get rid of glare without blurring the picture.

If these are for a website where you wish to show your product in the best light (no pun intended), you really need to start with a quality image.

[Dick Mahany]

I use Gimp (free, but has a considerable learning curve) and a home made photo tent. The one below cost about $30 to make. It is shown without the white "tent" material that I use to diffuse the light. The tent is simply a piece of cotton t-shirt cloth from my local Hobby Lobby / fabric shop. I didn't glue the upper horizontal sections of the ells so the legs fold flat for storage. The pen photos were taken in the covered tent with a third light (not shown) and different color backgrounds. Lights and are from local big box store.
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[Jeff Walters]

Tanks everyone for the advise. Dan, you said to use 100W Daylight fluorescents. Is that the lights that are used for growing plants?

[Dan Hintz]

Tanks everyone for the advise. Dan, you said to use 100W Daylight fluorescents. Is that the lights that are used for growing plants?

Just look for "Daylight" fluorescents at Home Depot, Lowes, etc. It's a different (warmer) color temperature than the standard cool fluorescents. Price difference is minimal, if one even exists. I use three 100W bulbs (top and one on either side), practically next to the tent's diffusers... the 100W bulbs are bulkier than a typical incandescent/fluorescent.

See this thread for a few (older) photo examples... starts on page 3 (assuming you have max posts per page, like I do):
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?209239

[Don Kondra]

Look for the color temperature on the packaging, ideally you want 5500k.

Or purchase them here > http://www.alzodigital.com/online_store/light_bulbs_compact_fluorescent-daylight.htm

Cheers, Don

[Dan Hintz]

Look for the color temperature on the packaging, ideally you want 5500k.

Or purchase them here > http://www.alzodigital.com/online_store/light_bulbs_compact_fluorescent-daylight.htm

Cheers, Don

The Daylight bulbs I picked up were 6,500k. I think this was the one:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Philips-23-Watt-Energy-Saver-Daylight-5000K-Compact-Fluorescent-Light-Bulb-E-414078/203349671

My Canon T2i has settings for 6k and 7k lighting... 6k looked off (a bit drab, if memory serves), but the 7k setting gave me faithful colors. I haven't bothered to determine if I can set a specific color temp on my camera, but probably not worth worrying about since the 7k seems to work well enough.

On a side note, don't forget to let the bulbs warm up before starting your photoshoot to let the color stabilize... give 'em a good 5 minutes or more.

[Don Kondra]

It's also a good idea Not to mix light temperatures.

Sunlight is 5500 k, your shop lights may be in the 3-4000 k range.

Cheers, Don

[Jamie Donaldson]

Selling a product with photos is all about the product, not the setting. I suggest that the pens be isolated without distracting backgrounds or other props. Using the manual settings on the camera for color balance and exposure will give superior results time after time in the same set-up, better than using stupid Mr. AUTO all the time.

[Dan Hintz]

Selling a product with photos is all about the product, not the setting.

Opinions differ widely on this... some prefer what you're asking for, others prefer a setting.

Ever see a car advertisement where the car is stationary and against a white background?

[Jamie Donaldson]

Actually Dan, there are many such images of autos in a featureless setting, although the background is also often blacked out, and its called "targeting" in the advertising trade. For most internet image advertising purposes, KISS is the best policy.