Some photos of recent work in my new light box.

BrianThie

BrianThie

Joined
Jun 18, 2007
Messages
382
Hi all.

I have struggled with taking photos of my knives for a while now. I had a light box that I had built but still had problems. I concluded that the one I built was too small, so I made a larger one hoping this would help. This seems to me to have made a huge difference. What do you think of these pictures?

Please feel free to comment / critique the knives, but I would appreciate input on the photos also.

knife6.jpg


knife7.jpg


Thanks

Brian
 
I'm not personally a big fan of the border treatment, but your pictures are crystal clear and not bad at all:thumbup:. Nice lookin knife, too.
 
No flair, but very easy on the eyes and nice and clear.

The knives and sheaths very nice. I really like the steel used on both knives.
 
Brian -- there is a good spot in Gallery for you to post and maybe this thread would be best there as there is a lot of good discussion re photography of knives. generally, you will find it better to do a couple of things. Work the images on the diagonal rather than horizontal or vertical. Also don't do a criss cross of knife and sheath. Thirdly, leave more room around the knife on the canvas. Check out how Coop and many others show their work and see if you can get an idea of the composition elements of scene of the knife image. Also, if at anytime you want assistance, feel free to email me and I'm sure other photographers will feel the same.
 
Lorien said:
I'm not personally a big fan of the border treatment
Click to expand...

I agree with that.

Those are two very nice knives, I particulary like the stag handled one, but the other one is very nice as well. The damascus is beautiful!

Kind regards,

Jos
 
Hi Brian,

Thanks for posting. The knives look great. Very worthy of clear photography. Nicely done.

The good things: overall lighting is well-lit. The sheaths and the handle love the soft light to show the curves and textures. You are having fun experimenting with the frame. You are doing it on your own. :thumbup:

A couple of suggestions: Use balled up masking tape in reverse under the knife or blade to position the knives. Don't just allow them to flop on their own. Mine are always manipulated, whether it's apparent or not.

Look at the difference of the upper photo to the lower one to see how much this affected the look. It's all about the angle of reflection.

That said, move your lights around to achieve the same. I see two distinct lighting areas, and it needs more to the upper left. (You may have more than two lights.)

Give the knives more breathing room around the borders. Maybe lose the large-width border, but keep playing around. You want a 'look' you can identify.

Take Murray's smart suggestions and post for gentle critiques in the Gallery. You will get more than you asked for.... ;)

Coop
 
Well, Brian, you got Coop and Murray to jump in.
Couldn't ask for better help than that.
I hope you bring that stag along to Ohio.
All good stuff.
 
very nice knives, Great pics also. It's usually hard to capture the full beauty and detail of damascus and Hamons!!
 
Hi Brian.
Glad to see some of your Damascus and I like what I see.

Not qualified to give technical advice on the photography but like what I see.
I feel the images are very clear in depicting detail and representing the knives.
The border treatment is interesting. I generally like when knives are depicted criss/crossed
over the sheaths as it draws the eye to a single point rather than having them compete against one another.

Nice job all around.
 
Gday guys,

I really struggle with photographing my knives and had never really had a look over in the gallery section unti I read this post. A lot of issues may be answered right there.

I tend to agree with Kevin here with the knife criss/crossed on the sheath, I tend to look at the central theme, being both of them. I quite often dont even notice the background and borders on some photos until someone mentions it and I go back and have a look. I guess as a maker I am more focussed on the knife. I think some of my better photo's have the knife laying across the sheath though.

Nice work Brian.

Cheers Bruce
Barnett Custom Knives-Australia
www.barnettcustomknives.com
 
I am not a fan either of the border treatment either. But, the pix are clear!! I LOVE that first knife!!
 
Thank you everyone for your input. I really do appreciate it. I did post in the Gallery also per suggestions here.

I appreciate all the pointers Coop. I will continue to play with lighting and manipulation of the knives.

Murray, thank you also for the input and offer of assistance. Are you going to the Troy hammer-in this year?

Thank you all again
Brian
 
SharpByCoop said:
Use balled up masking tape in reverse under the knife or blade to position the knives. Don't just allow them to flop on their own. Mine are always manipulated, whether it's apparent or not.
Click to expand...

now THAT is a great idea:thumbup::cool:
 
what I use to support the knife where needed is childrens plasticine which can be gotten at toy store or at an art supply store. the nice thing about it you will never run out lol and it can be molded as needed with as much as is needed.
 
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