What gear and setup are best for color-accurate reproduction of framed paintings for a gallery catalog?
Asked 6/12/2012
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2 answers
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I need to photograph framed paintings in a gallery for catalog use, with accurate color and minimal distortion/reflections. What equipment and shooting setup would be appropriate? I was considering portable studio flash gear, a tripod, and prime lenses, but I’m unsure about focal length choices and how to handle glass, shiny paint, and alignment.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
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- A flexible tripod with a level from a good brand
- A platform with two/three steps for shooting the artwork from an appropriate level (you may need, sometime)
- Consult the curator whether they will allow you to use a flash or not. Because in some art studios, it's strictly forbidden to use flash during taking a photo. If they allow using flash, get a ETTL flash (430 Ex II/580 Ex II for Canon is a good one) for correctly exposing the shots at ease.
- As you will have tripod, you will not suffer from the risk of shaking or low-light. So get a good lens which will give you better color contrast and sharpness. If you are using Canon, go for EF 17-40 f/4L or 24-70 f/2.8 L
- If they use glass in front of those artworks, a CPL filter will be very very handy to avoid reflections of any kind on those glasses.
- A reflector may be useful in some cases, buy/rent only if you have some bucks left.
Last, always shoot in raw for such types of works which you will save your time to correct the white balance during post processing. Try shooting in full frame to get better dynamic range and color than crops.
Good luck :)
Originally by user7318. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user7318
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
A solid setup would be a tripod, a sharp normal-to-short-tele lens, controlled lighting, and a color reference. Keep the camera perfectly parallel to the artwork and mount or position the piece square to the camera at 90° to avoid distortion. A tripod with a level is helpful.
For lenses, a moderate focal length is usually better than an ultra-wide. Wide lenses can introduce perspective and geometric distortion, so a normal or short telephoto prime/zoom is generally preferred.
If the gallery allows flash, use two studio flashes or similar controlled lights for even illumination. For framed work, glass and glossy paint can cause reflections, so a circular polarizer on the lens is useful. For the best reflection control, use polarized lights plus a polarizer on the lens. You may need to adjust light placement for oily or shiny surfaces.
Shoot RAW and include a color chart for accurate color correction in post. A small platform/step can also help if some works are hung high.
So: tripod with level, sharp non-ultra-wide lens, two controlled lights if permitted, circular polarizer, and a color chart.
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