TAG Photo Guru

[Big Harry]

OK I know, there is no such a thing like a photo guru especially for TA guitars :D
From other side I realised lots of guys, including my self , are making so ugly photos from so beautiful guitars , simply because we don't know how to do that properly .

A huge different between guitar appearance in live and some of ours ugly photo look is simply not acceptable anymore ! :mad: :)

Any insights ,advices , " how to do it " ?

Thanks,
Zoran

attached is one brilliant exemple from TAG site how to do proper image with Sweet Sour Red Cobra .

[coaltrain]

Use a tripod and don't use a camera flash. Set the camera to manual mode and set the F stop to the largest number, my Fuji S9100 goes to 11 (not trying to be funny there, it really goes to 11). The highest F stop will give you the greatest depth of field, which you need when you shoot the guitar from a low angle looking the long way across the guitar. The image in your post may have had better focus on the head stock if the F stop would have been set as high as possible, the colors are fantastic in the photo.

Because you now have the F stop set high you will need to slow the shutter speed down to let enough light in. My camera has a meter on the back that I can watch to see when I get the correct amount of shutter speed. The nice thing about digital cameras is that you can take a photo, if it looks too dark then slow the shutter some more until you get a good photo. every different angle you shoot from will require adjusting the shutter speed because of the way the light reflects at different angles, but you don't need to adjust the F stop.

It is also important to set the white balance to get an accurate color of the guitar. Some camers have some presets which can work ok, again set it, shoot it, and try a different one until it looks good. My camera has some presets and then custom. The custom mode has you fill the view finder area with a white sheet and the camera will set the white balance to match the room lighting.

Jeff

[Big Harry]

thanks man !
sorry what is the F stop ?
Should I have it on my Canon 30 D ?

[Suriel Zayas]

Use a tripod and don't use a camera flash. Set the camera to manual mode

i agree with jeff, however, i set my camera to aperture (A) priority mode and use a remote not to create any movement on the camera. that i learned from photo guru's such as roy(maybe) & enrico. my .01 cent (sorry, all i could afford, because i'm on a budget).

[tom]

roy waits for just the right time of day so he can use natural light from a big skylight in the shop. we would love to have a place with lights in the shop so we could take pics anytime, but there just never seems to be enough time to set that up.
he always has to do some work to color balance and clean up reflections.

[Big Harry]

I see ,tnx :) !
Maybe Roy maybe or maybe :cool: somebody else would be so kind to explain just one more thing :how to achieve that dark , almost black background ,or this is photo-shop ?

[markus]

Yup, that's pretty easy to do in Photoshop.
However, you want to be a bit careful with the background when you take the picture as you might see reflections of it on the guitar in the picture later on.

I once took some pictures of one of my Drop Tops on my daughter's multi-color carpet - thinking that I just black out the background using Photoshop afterwards. But the reflections of the carpet were all over the guitar, so it didn't look good at all. Doh! :rolleyes: I'd recommend to take the photograph with a dark background and then clean it up in Photoshop if you want an all black background. Here's an example (though I didn't clean up the reflections):

http://ninamarkus.smugmug.com/photos/257201227_FMVzP-M.jpg

[Suriel Zayas]

almost black background

that might just be some black felt material (well, that's what i use) and just crop the photo to taste.

[tom]

many things here have been shot on the black background. lately he has been shooting against a dark grey because he thinks it sometimes easier to define the edge in photoshop. sometimes the black just blends in with the guitar.

[guitarzan]

If I'm shooting a guitar, I always open all the windows in the front of my house (which is almost all windows coincidentally) and I let the natural light pour in. Lamp light or overhead lighting tends to yellow up the pics and I like the crispness of natural sunlight instead. And I almost always shoot against a dark leather ottoman just so there's some darkness in the background. And a humongous +1 on using a tripod. It allows you to shoot lower light pics with little to no blur.

[chriswhite]

I try to always shoot outside with natural light as much as I can. I have also found that overcast light and not direct sunlight make it easier and more evenly distributed light.

Jeff has it exactly right, you wanna put it on a tripod with a longer shutter speed (lower the number) and a smaller F-stop (Aperture; larger number) this will give you a greater depth of field and it will help make everything stay in focus so you dont have the body in focus and slowly the neck to headstock get out of focus.

Your Canon 30D should be able to produce amazing pictures being that its a DSLR. I would set the aperture even higher than Jeff's 11 and maybe go to like ~22 for your Aperture and if you set your camera to "P" it should automatically set the appropriate shutter speed. ("P" is usually what they call automatic, I'm not super familiar with the Canons its been a while since I used one.) Practice Practice Practice and you'll turn up some amazing photos

Hope this helps! Good Luck!

[Big Harry]

Tons of good advices ,thanks guys !
My first TAG,Fat'n Sexy Redy will be shipped tomorrow from USA to SA , so I will practice meanwhile with my existing guitars (practice playing and play with light,appertures ,etc...)
Good Night from Africa ! :)

[pipedwho]

You don't need photoshop and the like to produce a decent photo, although for the really professional stuff you see around, it can make a huge difference.

A handy thing when using a cheap consumer style camera is to use the 2/10 second timer to fire the shot (after you've taken your hands off the camera).

This obviously requires some type of mount for the camera. A convenient surface is usable if you don't have a tripod handy.

Oh.. and most importantly: toes in the field of view are a BIG no no! :eek: :)

[coaltrain]

I would set the aperture to the largest number possible (which is actually the smallest size aperture). My camera only goes to 11 but some go to 22, my film camera goes to 32.

A trick to shooting with a small Aperture (largest aperture number) and a slow shutter speed is to have the camera either on a tripod or sitting on a stable base, then set the shutter timer (most cameras have two to pick from, a 2 sec and a 10 sec time). Set the timer and push down the shutter, then let go of the camera so it is not shaking.

I also agree, natural sun light is great for true colors, but you don't want it to be glaring, unless that is the effect your going for.

Jeff