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Photographing paintings.
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Message
Posted
Why, when I photo my watercolours, do they appear different from when I look at them directly? The camera seems to see more detail, more grain, somehow.
Has any one any idea about what's going on?
I look at my apple painting, recently uploaded, and it shows all the grain of thwnpaper. Yet when I.look at it by eye directly, I don't 'see'this detail at all.
D
Posted
I noticed on the gallery that there was something showing through a section of paint and the artist said "you can only see this in the photograph, when you look at the painting this can't be seen" so the camera obviously see's some stuff your eye doesn't (though your eye is much better at changing to light conditions and some other stuff camera's don't get)
Its best to photograph things before they are varnished (because of the reflections) and I am guessing if you mention grain the camera is picking up surface texture, maybe you need to rethink the light source the painting is under. I am thinking natural diffuse daylight might be best but I am no expert on photography and am just throwing out possibilities.
Posted
Clothes are not varnished either, but I wouldn't make that statement since nobody said they are.
I said its best to photograph things before they are varnished (some of us paint in mediums other than watercolour) the point being that cameras pick up reflections, perhaps some paper is shiny, perhaps some is uneven, perhaps some has texture.
Posted
There is, in passing, such a thing as watercolour varnish. I've never seen it and obviously never used it, but - it's out there.
The point about photographing other paintings before varnishing them is a good one - I did that, when in a hurry to post something off a few weeks ago: the glare from the camera meant that I now have no record of the thing, because you could see nothing but the top quarter of it.
Posted
We are well aware that the original query was about watercolour, the opening line "Why, when I photo my watercolours..." was the give away so no need to state the obvious. However something learned in one area (such as the experience of photographing a varnished acrylic) can give experience and reason to inform another (the cure for reflections from varnish = diffuse ambient light source, therefore a good consideration for photographing other art) and given such thoughts were written in the same paragraph it should have been clear to see the connection.
Given that watercolour is not waterproof I imagine varnishing it might safegaurd to some extent against water damage, though I can't think of many circumstances where this would be necessary (hanging it in your bathroom perhaps?)
Posted
I read it too Hedgehog, thanks for confirming what I said about natural diffuse daylight (and a bit more) and sorry to hear that you have had health difficulties, I guess it is easy for us to take it for granted how easily we can type up a detailed and lengthy post without much effort. My nan had a bad stroke and before this she had been a voracious reader so I can sympathise what it must be like to have such abilities impaired.
Posted
Hedgehog - having to dash between here and the spam posts; yes, I did use flash and of course that was the main problem.
I agree the issue is less likely to be a problem if you turn the flash off - but a gloss varnish can still pick up reflections; snag was, I was in a hurry to photograph the picture and then post it, so while I hadn't intended to use the flash, I did - hence the issue.