Fixing photo glare?

[Lisa Luciano]

Can anyone offer one or more ideas for how to reduce glare in photos prior to engraving them on marble tile? We've had some trouble, especially with individuals who wear glasses.

Thanks!

Lisa

[Shaddy Dedmore]

Well, breaking down the problem... it's the flash bulb reflecting black into the lens. So the only way to get rid of it is to prevent it from doing that. You can use a diffuser and an external flash placed at a good enough angle and distance away from the camera, or use a good alternate light source(s) and don't use a flash.

Otherwise it's always going to be there. You have a flash source mere inches away from the lens, to any reflective surface is going to show the flash. the SLR cameras with more expensive flashes rotate or flip up to bounce the light, not hit it directly.

Otherwise buy some sheets and bright lights and difuse the light going to the object, and don't use flash.

SHaddy

[Barbara Buhse]

Lisa,
If you mean cutting out the glare from a FINISHED photo, one provided by the customer, I use (Microsoft Picture it!) and I adjust the brightness and contrast until I get it right. I usually brighten/lighten most photos before engraving anyway.
Before I accept pictures from people, I check them, and request another if I don't think it will engrave well... after all, if they get a less than quality engraving, it refelcts on me, whether the picture was bad or not...

I imagine you can use any photo editing program, but Picture It is simple and inexpensive.

These are the things I look for when accepting a customers (already taken) picture:

1) Do the people/subjects stand out from the backgorund.
I have no problem with ugly backgrounds, sometimes I will cut
away the subjects if the background is bad, but if they blend in
(dark hair on a dark background) then I can't cut them away, and
they will not stand out if I leave the background.

2) Are the poeple wearing glasses?
I always ask for a different picture if they have one. If not, then I
make sure they know the reflection may show up.

3) Are all of the people in the picture have the same tone value?
I don't know the real technical terms, but if I have two people with
the same color skin, and one is standing in shadow, the engraving
will come out with one person being much darker than the other. If
this is a problem, than I use (picture it) to lighten just one person
and even them out.

4) Does the picture have good contrast?
If its too dark, it can be lighteneed, as long as the contrast is good
enough to not lose the details. Same if its too light.

5) Are there teeth and are they too white?
Sounds silly, but I had this problem a few times already... if peoples
teeth (or their clothing) are TOO white, they won't engrave at all
(obviously). The finish of the wood will still be on the teeth, and
hey look "shiny" and sometimes odd.
With clothing, shiny is not usually a problem, but you can end up
with a head and no body if the shirt is too white.

just a few things to keep in mind... I do a lot of photos, and my customers are told up front that if I don't think the photo will engrave well, I will ask for an alternate.

Barbara