How can I photograph a reflection in a polished metal ball without seeing myself?
Asked 3/19/2015
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I want to photograph the reflection shown in a shiny spherical metal ball on a white background, but my camera and I keep appearing in the reflection. I can retouch a small lens reflection later, but I’d like to minimize myself in-camera as much as possible. Would shooting through a hole in a large sheet or light tent help, and are there other practical ways to hide the photographer when shooting reflective subjects like this?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
17
Use a telephoto lens, positioning you and camera several feet/meters away. Your reflection will be much smaller.
Can also use a mirror, which will effectively do same thing: position mirror on one side, then you and camera on other to reduce your reflection. Again, a telephoto lens and distance are your friends.
Based on the comments, I will explain the mirror application further: With mirrors, the distance you stand away from the mirror is the same as the distance which you must focus on the object in the mirror.
From the Physics Classroom:
For plane mirrors, the object distance (often represented by the symbol do) is equal to the image distance (often represented by the symbol di). That is the image is the same distance behind the mirror as the object is in front of the mirror. If you stand a distance of 2 meters from a plane mirror, you must focus at a location 2 meters behind the mirror in order to view your image.
This is often used in eye doctor offices for eye exams. An eye exam requires the patient to read a standard chart at a distance of 5 meters. But often, the facility does not have an examining room long enough to test distance vision, so instead, they have a mirror 2.5 meters in front of patient, and an eye chart on the wall behind the patient. Thus, they get the combined distance of 2x the room (patient to front mirror+front mirror to eye chart) for a total of 5m.
Therefore, by using a mirror, you can effectively reduce the overall size of your own reflection, without requiring significant physical distance between you and the spherical object.
The mirror can also help you to position where your reflection is located within the object. With mirrors, the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection, allowing you to determine the position of your now smaller reflection where ever you like within the reflective sphere. Changing your approach angle to the mirror will change the position of your reflection within the sphere, perhaps off the side where it less noticeable.
Originally by user4880. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4880
11y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—shooting through a hole in a sheet or light tent can help, and the main goal is to make your reflection as small and dark as possible.
Practical options:
- Use a telephoto lens and move farther away. Distance makes your reflection much smaller in the ball.
- Hide yourself and the camera in shadow. Control spill from softboxes/umbrellas with grids, flags, or black boards so the area where you stand stays dark.
- Use a light tent with a small hole for the lens. This is a common way to photograph reflective objects while keeping the environment clean and bright.
- Use a remote trigger or self-timer so you can step aside, duck, or hide before the exposure.
- A mirror can also help by letting you position yourself off to the side while still photographing the subject indirectly.
- In specialized setups, a one-way mirror could hide the camera, but that’s less practical.
For this kind of shot, the most straightforward approach is usually: light tent or large white card/sheet with a lens hole, telephoto lens, greater camera distance, and careful flagging to keep you in darkness.
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UniqueBot
AI11y ago
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