Gentlemen, I'm asking for some help here.

pitw · January 31, 2011, 12:31:49 PM

As most of you know I am possibly the worst picture taker in the known universe

. I have decided to cataloge my rare, old, new, different or whatever pieces. I would like to know if I ask an intelligent but stupid question{s} if some of you camera guru's would help out.

I realize this has nothing to do with hunting, fishing or Fn but I would appreciate the help and maybe we could all learn something

.

I've researched the camera enough now to get it on a tripod

. Can get it to quit shaking as it takes it's own pictures, but I need a light or some something to show names or fine details. What kind of light do I want?

Examples:

straycat · January 31, 2011, 01:26:32 PM

Barry, try getting ahold of Al Woodard [THO] and see if he will send you pics of his light box talked about here.

http://forum.finsandfur.net/index.php?topic=3834.msg42631#msg42631

pitw · January 31, 2011, 01:44:36 PM

Thank you my good man.

How come you ain't at the LBL

, I'll surely miss you this year

.

Hawks Feather · January 31, 2011, 01:47:11 PM

Barry,

In part it depends what you are happy with and how you want to use the images. If you are shooting for your own records and are just trying to get a better (could be read as able to see details) image or what your plan is. If it is just records and not publication (web, etc.) you could get by without a light tent. A light tent is nice, but your tools look like they would need a larger tent than would be used for a call. They both work the same, serve the same purpose, etc., but I need a little more information before I start giving you the old "this is what I would do" line. Also, what camera are you using? If I can find a manual for it online it will also help.

Jerry

pitw · January 31, 2011, 02:00:58 PM

Jerry, right now I'm just trying to get something together in case I do like a good frog

. I want the family to have some idea what all they have and possibly a value as well so they don't get robbed blind. I would like to be able to have the pics good enough to go online as well cause I sure as [L] don't want to learn all this [stuff behind a horse] again

.
The camera I' using is a Canon powershot A550[7.1mega pixels] or I could use Kodak easyshare dx7590[5megapixel. I also could buy a new camera if you have a good choice for me.

Hawks Feather · January 31, 2011, 02:30:32 PM

I found the manual and will start reading it. More later.

Jerry

pitw · January 31, 2011, 02:58:26 PM

Quote from: Hawks Feather on January 31, 2011, 02:30:32 PM
I found the manual and will start reading it. More later.

Jerry

I've had the manual for three years and just found it last week

. How in the [L] did you find one or have you got them all kicking around your house

.

straycat · January 31, 2011, 03:29:41 PM

Quote from: pitw on January 31, 2011, 01:44:36 PM
How come you ain't at the LBL , I'll surely miss you this year .

I'm leaving Wed morning.I do wish that you and Art could be there again.

Maybe next year.

BigB · January 31, 2011, 07:33:15 PM

Barry, I posted this a while ago helping Bill take pics of his calls, but the same exact thing applies to what you are wanting to do.

You can really spend countless hours researching photography stuff if you aren't careful. There is a ton of information out there on photography. I sat down one weekend and all I did was try to learn as much as I could about taking good photos. I spent the whole weekend reading the internet photography sites, and just barely scratched the surfaces of most topics. I'm far from an expert, but I did pick up a few tips that weekend.

Light sources - different lights have different "colors" of light. If you mix different light sources, say a halogen and a flash, the camera will have a hard time depicting the different colors and focussing on the object being photographed. The digital processing of the image will be different with multiple light sources versus just one source. I have a light box with halogen lamps. I turn off all other lights in the room when I take my pictures.

The next tip has been mentioned - use a tripod and a self timer. The slightest movement will make a good picture blurry. Here is my settup of a light box, tripod and camera. The photo tent is made out of poster board. And I use vellum paper to soften the light coming from the halogens.

Camera settings - you can spend a few years studying the different types of cameras and the settings that are out there. The biggest help will be to use the Macro mode. It's the setting that is usually depicted by a little flower. Here is my camera that I use, and you can see the flower on the left side of the dial. The macro mode is for close up pics. The camera adjusts itself to take pictures of items close to it.

White balance - If you are using a white backdrop, then this setting will try to ensure that the white background is just that - white. My camera has setting for a cloudy day, a sunny day, inside lighting, etc. All it is doing is accounting for the different "colors" of light, so that the photo will reflect the true colors that are being photographed.

Exposure - this is essentially your shutter speed. The longer the exposure, the more light and colors that will be let in. I have my camera set for a 1/2 second exposure for taking photo's of calls. This is where the tripod and self timer are a necessity. You can't have a long exposure level and try to free had the camera because you will always get a blurry pic.

But the biggest thing in taking good photo's is post processing. This is done after the picture is taken with a software editing program like photoshop. You can adjust the sharpness, hues, colors, etc with a post processing program. If your white background isn't white, it can also make it white now.

Brian

pitw · January 31, 2011, 08:09:27 PM

Quote from: BigB on January 31, 2011, 07:33:15 PM

But the biggest thing in taking good photo's is post processing. This is done after the picture is taken with a software editing program like photoshop. You can adjust the sharpness, hues, colors, etc with a post processing program. If your white background isn't white, it can also make it white now.

Brian

Brian I read that with great interest[and thank you from the bottom of my heart] but that last part ain't gonna happen soon as I can't even make my damb m work half the time on a computer

. From what you guys have said I think the answer to my question is Halogen[I can do that]. I also have a plan to use two window blinds on hinges to make the light box

. I ain't got access to camera shops the way you guys have but I'm going to go look for a better tripod on hopefully Wednesday[Bobs saxophone should be fixed and I can kill a couple birds with the one stone].

Bills Custom Calls · January 31, 2011, 08:12:52 PM

Yes BigB I have been using some of your suggestions
I wait until it is dark outside I turn the lights on in the dinning room and kitchen use a white background and the gray card thingy that Jerry suggested
Then use Kodak easy share to crop and adjust the color on my pics and some of them turn out better then expected
I haven't picked up a tripod for my camera yet but I will get one some day

Bills Custom Calls · January 31, 2011, 08:15:36 PM

Barry when processing a photo all you need to use is the mouse you don't have to type in the commands

pitw · January 31, 2011, 08:18:59 PM

Quote from: Bills Custom Calls on January 31, 2011, 08:15:36 PM
Barry when processing a photo all you need to use is the mouse you don't have to type in the commands

I agree Bill, a mouse would be better at it than me

.

Hawks Feather · February 01, 2011, 01:27:17 PM

Barry,

It looks like you can do quite a few adjustments with your camera and think that maybe we should take â€œbaby stepsâ€ (stole that quote from the movie What About Bob?). Below are a few things for you to consider. The best advice that I can give you as you start to look at this is DONâ€™T panic. There is a lot there and I donâ€™t expect you to know it all by the end of your reading. As has been said, experience is a great teacher and you just need to get some experience. Since you can view the images on your computer and not need to pay to have them printed like the old film days, it is a bit easier. Make one change, capture an image, view it, and then go on. If you change everything at once you wonâ€™t be able to see the difference that each change can make. WARNING: Donâ€™t forget to reset you camera to original conditions or there will be problems in the future. For example; if you have it set for Tungsten lighting and go outside to take a picture in the sun there will be a color shift as your camera takes the lighting from the sun and converts it. Or you leave it in Macro Mode and take a family picture only to have it all look out of focus.

The Macro (flower) Mode doesnâ€™t list the maximum distance that you can be from the subject, but it will be something you need to watch. When shooting calls there is not a need worry about this, but some of the items you have pictured are much larger than a call. If you have your camera set to Macro (flower), are not real close to the subject, and get a fuzzy picture you will need to move from Macro to off.

Flash: If you have the lights set up, I would turn the flash off. Flash is sunlight balanced and unless you have special lights, they will not be sunlight balanced. Also, you will not be able to see reflections and blown out areas until you look at the image. By using lights (no flash) you should be able to get what you see â€" so if you canâ€™t see the wording on the tools for example, you will need to move the tool so that the lights show the wording.

Focus: Your camera has a focus lock, which you might want to use if you are shooting several pictures where you will remove an item that is about the same size as the next item, and put the next item in the same place for the picture. To get started, you can get a focus lock by pressing the shutter halfway down and holding it. This will allow you to have the focus on the area of the image that you want. To use your first picture as an example â€" the tool and the lines on the paper at the front of the image are not sharp while the back of the paper and tablecloth are much sharper. This can be caused by either the camera focusing on the center of the image or the need for the Macro focus. For a trial, put a piece of cardboard, a magazine, or something similar right behind the tool and then press the shutter halfway down. This will lock the focus at that distance and then WITHOUT letting go of the shutter remove the focusing aide and press the shutter the rest of the way down.

Depth of field: This is the area that is in focus and is more difficult to adjust with point and shoot cameras than single lens reflex cameras, but can be done. The easiest thing to use as an example here is filling a cup with water. You can let it be filled one slow drip at a time for a long time, or you can let it be filled really fast for a short time. In images slow drips (slow shutter speeds) and long time (closed down exposure f/stop) gives great depth of field (large area in focus) while quick fills (fast shutter speeds) and short time (wide open exposure f/stop) will give you less depth of field (small area in focus). That is a really simple example but is based on the amount of light that is reaching the camera. If you capture an image outside when the sun is shining almost everything will be in focus (great depth of field) and if it is shortly after dusk and the flash is not used there will be much less in focus (small depth of field). All three of the images you captured were at a f/stop of 2.6 â€" this is as low (wide open) as the camera will go and gives you a very limited depth of field (area that is sharp in focus). By having more light (higher wattage bulbs) the camera will use a higher f/stop and more will be in focus.

White Balance: You have; Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, and Custom. Depending on your lights, you will probably need to use Tungsten or possible Fluorescent to get a decent white balance and not have a color shift in your images.

Recording Pixels & Compression: You currently have your camera set to the lowest recording pixel level 640 x 480 that your camera has. This gives you LOTS of shots, but the quality of the shot is not the same as having a higher recording rate. Think of standing in front of your house looking for coyotes â€" at the low pixel rate you think you can see one. Then pick up your binoculars and look (higher recording of pixels) and you can see much more detail. The trade off for having more pixels is that each image takes up more space on your memory card so you will not get as many images. This isnâ€™t a problem since you will be inside and can just download them to your computer. Where it is a problem is when you only have one card, are on an extended vacation without your computer, and want to capture lots of images. Then (on the vacation example) you are going to need more cards to get the higher quality and number of images. Your camera allows for 5 different recording pixels. If you have a SDC-128M card in the camera you can capture 40 images at the highest number of pixels and 460 images where you have the camera set right now. Just me, but I always have my camera set to the highest pixel capture value that I can.

Shooting Mode: You shot in Auto mode and you might want to try indoor mode. It will use a few different settings for the light source and shake.

Metering Mode: Right now your camera is set to Pattern Mode and you might want to try spot metering.

Jerry

pitw · February 01, 2011, 03:10:48 PM

A lesser man might just quit

, but I really want to do this so I'm reading and playing with all you tell me. I was going to ask about the pixel thingy but you saved me asking another question

. So if I set my pixels higher I could zoom in on this better to see the letters right?

You realize of course that the more you tell e the more questions that arise

, but like my spraying career I'll take this slowly cause I've watched far toooooo many people get burnt trying to do more than their capabilities would allow.

I don't even want to know[yet] how you can tell all these things from a picture

. What is this metering thingy you speak of here,"Metering Mode: Right now your camera is set to Pattern Mode and you might want to try spot metering."?

I thank you

for your help and it's much appreciated as I'm hoping some of it will rub off on my boys as well.
Just wondering how you knew I'd already screwed up a whole drive about worth of pics by not setting my camera back to a mode that would actually work for that

.

golfertrout · February 01, 2011, 04:04:42 PM

dont you like electronics Barry

pitw · February 01, 2011, 04:11:18 PM

Quote from: golfertrout on February 01, 2011, 04:04:42 PM
dont you like electronics Barry

I got a response for you to Dave but I' afraid the filter would smolder for a week

Hawks Feather · February 01, 2011, 04:30:40 PM

Barry,

Shadows (more light on one side than the other) will give you a feeling of depth and it will also show the lettering that I think you are wanting to see. Flat lighting will not show the shadows.

The pixels will allow more detail.

Jerry

HaMeR · February 01, 2011, 04:56:48 PM

Barry-- I took a couple pics today with 2 different shutter speeds. I did this before Jerry wrote that well informed post. If you don't completely understand the shutter speed & what it does for you these pics should clear it up. The camera was slightlyly moved as I fumbled with the settings for the 2nd pic. Otherwise everything stayed the same except the shutter speed. I also used the timer mode & the auto mode setting. Hope this helps you a little more.

Shutter speed was set @ +1.0. Shutter open for a long time gathering all available light.

Shutter set at -1.0. Shutter wasn't open long enough to grab the light needed.

pitw · February 01, 2011, 06:05:48 PM

Cool
I understand the principle Jerry but not the application of light.

If I' using a light box how does that create shadows

.