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Photographing art work
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Message
Posted
Hello,
Any experts on photography.....? I photograph my paintings to keep a record of them, and to sometimes convert to prints or cards.
I use the camera, on a tripod, outside on an overcast day (as recommended on a topic on this forum 😀), but my photos tend to come out blue-er that the actual painting.
I then have the task of trying to correct it on the computer (and I'm not the most tech-savvy person in the world!).
Am I doing something wrong on the camera? Again.... I'm no camera whizz, so have it on the 'auto' setting (digital SLR, about 15 yrs old), or is this normal, and adjusting on the PC is inevitable? The first pic is an Ipad shot, amd the second is a camera shot
Edited
by Helen Martell
Posted
Well that’s quite a difference!
You’re doing everything right at the onset, so you may need to have a look at your camera settings.
You need to be in RAW format with the correct ISO shutter/film speed setting.
Definitely can’t understand why it’s so blue so I’m not a lot of help here!
I edit on an iMac with Photoshop, but you still need a pretty accurate image to start of with.
Edited
by Alan Bickley
Posted
This looks to me like a problem with the white balance. I’m surprised that your camera has got it that wrong though. I get this sometimes on my very expensive SLR but it is usually my own fault for selecting the wrong settings. If you can you could try and change the white balance within the camera but that would mean taking it out of auto, and take a number of shots at different settings. Alternatively try taking shots in different lighting conditions.
All light has a colour and in general on a bright day the colour errs towards blue, this causes the blue cast if the camera is thinking it is a warmer colour (eg evening) . Professional photographers often take shots of white or grey card to ensure they get this right iPads also seem to get it right more often than not.. Sorry... I’m not very good at explaining what is a difficult subject.
Posted
I used to have a camera that produced blue photos if the setting was AI. This setting would allegedly work out all the correct setting for you. But if it was just set to the P on the dial it came out perfectly. It looks like the I-pad is the best option, until you work out what is wrong with the camera. There are lots of videos on You tube for specific cameras or just ask the manufacturer.
Posted
Thank you Alan, Alan, and Linda.
I generally don't use the RAW settings as they take up so much memory space, but will now do this if it's a pic I want to use as prints /cards also.
I am amazed at how well the ipad captures the true colours, even in poor light. It's a shame it's not a good enough resolution to use for prints.
I did go on a one-day photography course a year or two ago (essentially to help me understand all the gizmos on the camera), and I remember snippets but not much. I've looked at online tutorials specific to my camera too, but one of these (specific to taking photos of paintings etc) caused me to reset all the settings so that all the photos came out over-vibrant and very deep (if that makes sense!). I've since reset it all back to whatever it came in the box as!
I will research the 'P' setting too, Linda, for my camera.. (I assume the singled-lettered settings mean the same on every camera).
Similar hair-pulling issue with printers and different papers and the different settings on the computer! It's a wonder I have any hair left at all sometimes.
I used to paint with a lot of blue... I don't know why, maybe it's my eyesight! ... I had a really dark blue that (I thought) was great for really dark areas.
I once I overheard someone at an exhibition, looking at one of my efforts and he/she commented, 'that's the artist that likes to use a lot of blue...' (or words to that effect). Since then, I have really really tried NOT to use blue so much, particularly for dark areas. Now when I upload my cameral photos onto the computer I still go, 'Really...?!'
Posted
The proper way to take photos of paintings (according to Plymouth College of Art) is to put your painting on the floor. Put a daylight lamp on either side and take the photo from above. However many people have daylight lamps. In these winter months I prefer to take pictures of my work in sunshine. Shadows do evoke blueness.
