Problem with photographing oil based paintings

9 years 11 months ago #378194 by Joan Barnes
I'm trying to help out a friend who wants her oil based paintings photographed.  She wants photos so she can post on her website to sell.  The problem is, I'm getting reflections.   I have tried using a polarized filter, but it doesn't cut all the glare out.  Second problem, in a few of her paintings, you can tell she came back and corrected them after the fact and the corrections seem to have a different brush stroke, making a glare that is different than the rest of the painting.  Meaning... I have reduced the glare in the main painting, but these brush strokes from the corrections are different, so they create their own glare. 

Any ideas of what I can do here? 


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9 years 11 months ago #378211 by KCook
Dunno, except keep fussing with the lighting.  Link for an online reference -

mgreerphoto.blogspot.com/2008/06/how-to-photograph-artwork.html




Kelly Cook

Canon 50D, Olympus PL2
kellycook.zenfolio.com/

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9 years 11 months ago - 9 years 11 months ago #378215 by garyrhook
Short answer: very diffuse light, and place a gobo between the light source and the painting to eliminate direct reflections if you are using a single-light source straight-on. At the very least 2 light sources far to the side, and very soft, should eliminate reflections and allow you to control shadows (which I think you want some of, but not too much).


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9 years 11 months ago #378262 by One Creative Girl
For something like this, would you remove the photo from the wall and place on the ground for more control?


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9 years 11 months ago #378283 by hghlndr6
Gary's on the right track.  You want your lens axis to be perfectly perpendicular to the plane of the art.  You want two diffuse light sources, one to the left and one to the right, aimed at a 45-degree angle to the plane of the art.  (angle of reflection = angle of incidence, so the 45º angle is to prevent glare reflecting back at the lens).  If your art has texture, and if you want to emphasize that more, You will need to introduce some shadows.  You do that by varying the lighting ratios between the two sources. 

More help here:  www.adorama.com/alc/0013417/article/How-...tograph-Flat-Artwork
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9 years 11 months ago #378290 by hghlndr6

One Creative Girl wrote: For something like this, would you remove the photo from the wall and place on the ground for more control?


Either way works as long as you can center the subject, keep the subject plane and your focal plane parallel, and light it right.  Large size art is best done on the wall; small size, either way.
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9 years 11 months ago #378399 by Connie K Photos
:agree: good post Gary 


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9 years 11 months ago #378481 by Alan Nunez
Not directly related but there is an interesting lighting technique for enhancing textures at about the 3 min mark of this video:



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9 years 11 months ago #378531 by Joan Barnes
Thank you for all the answers.  Alan I'm going to watch that video too.  


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