onewilyfool Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 Hi guys....any advice on how to photograph guitars, especially glossy finish guitars? I'm looking to make a photo record of my guitars, and would like them to be good quality, and appreciate any advice or web links that you can offer....thanks...wily Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taylor Player Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 One thing I find helpful is to cover my flash on the camera with a sheet of tissue paper. This diffuses the light so you don't get glare, especially on the glossy Gibson finish on my AJ.... Neutral dark backgrounds are also good. If I am getting specific about it, I also will line up my tuning machines on the headstock. A photo doesn't care if the guitar is in tune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ballcorner Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 Diffused lighting works very well. It occurs naturally on cloudy days, or you can put paper or sheets of white material in front of main light sources to create the same effect. With a digital camera, you can put a piece of tissue paper over the flash and that will spread the light in a softer fashion as well. Another technique is to reflect the light onto the subject by putting tinfoil on a piece of cardboard and aiming a light at the tinfoil - of course you angle the board to reflect on the guitar. It works best with tinfoil that is crinkled rather than smooth. All of these ideas used together can produce amazing results - natural light from a cloudy day with diffused flash and reflected light will combine to provide an array of interesting results. I hope these ideas are useful to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wonderful remark Posted November 24, 2008 Share Posted November 24, 2008 natural light works the best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wild_Rose Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 take it to a room where there's enough light so the flash won't enable! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 Great advice guys....I'm finding that getting the lighting right is THE most important thing....here are a couple I did with overcast lighting and a neutral background....it's a start....This is my '94 L-20 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajsc Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Great job "onewilyfool" I definitely have a love-hate relationship with digital camera's!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
news36 Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Forget about flash, find yourself a big, bright window, set your guitar on a stand so it roughly faces the window, crank the ISO, (or ASA) on your camera as high as you feel comfortable, then spend a while looking at your guitar before you shoot anything, with it on a stand you can make minute adjustments in position to eliminate reflections, sometimes it is best to use a long lens if you have the space rather than a wide angle, you don't have to shoot the whole guitar, look for what makes this one look special, look for art in the curves, remember lenses, especially wide angles can ruin the fine lines of any $2000 guitar, if you are shooting digital - shoot a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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