posted on December 3, 2006 02:00:13 PM new
I've been listing a bunch of my own collector plates and my photos are all coming out with off-color shadings. The ‘whites’ in the china are all yellowish/pinkish. I’m using three different light sources, plus the outdoor light coming through the window. I've changed the lighting to include a white light, and a soft blue. I’ve bounced the light off the white ceiling, too. I’ve also changed backgrounds (black, blue, cream) but nothing seems to help.
Am I due for a new camera? Has my Mavica 73 finally pooped out on me?
It’s way to cold here to photo out-of-doors. Any suggestions would be MOST welcome!
posted on December 3, 2006 02:26:51 PM new
I can't be of much help to you, Pat, but I have noticed that with white items I'll get one tone of white when photographing the whole thing, like a plate, but when I go in closeup I get different tones. But I also know that the adobe pink-orange walls of the room I usually photograph in do reflect light on the things I want to photograph. (If your walls are white, never mind!)
posted on December 3, 2006 02:41:20 PM new
What does it mean when you say you have included a white light? There's tungsten white (orangeish), fluorescent white (greenish), etc. Bouncing a light off a white ceiling won't change its color temperature.
If you still have the owner's manual for your camera, see if there's a section on setting white balance. If so, you'll need a sheet of white paper (gray paper is best, but you probably don't have any NEUTRAL gray), and set the white balance of the camera to that sheet of paper UNDER THE LIGHTING CONDITIONS YOU'RE USING IN THE PHOTO.
posted on December 3, 2006 02:56:47 PM new
Your "73" doesn't have a switch for choosing white balance, it's done automatically.
Best suggestion I can give you is to wait and take the pictures in all natural light, or maybe try overexposing them a little.
You might be confusing the sensor with your different light sources.
posted on December 3, 2006 03:14:42 PM new
One thing I can tell you, Pat, is that you should stick with ONE lighting type.
The suggestion Cash is making would be a good one, but only if you've got ONE lighting type.
First step is to make sure you can set your camera for "Incandescent" or standard home lighting. It's often depicted by a lightbulb icon in an area that might also include an image of a sun, clouds and flash.
If you can do that, then proceed with the process below:
You should STOP adding different types of light - pink, blue, etc. - and start from the beginning.
Go get higher wattage bulbs from Lowes (I don't endorse THD anymore) and pick up a couple of shop or task light housings - the kind with the clamps on them and large aluminum reflectors. You should probably be using 100-watt or larger depending on the limits of the housings. And, they should be standard lights you put into your home light fixtures -- and NOT the different kinds that make the light "warm" or "cool" - just straight, standard LIGHTBULBS.
Take a photo of your plate with the lights on - and notice the difference when you switch between the different light source settings -- set on the sun icon will show your image as very yellow and set on the lightbulb icon should show it as it should look. Now - when you set it on the lightbulb setting - take a photo using sunlight - and you will see how blue everything looks.
Once you get a sense of what causes the different colors, you can begin to diagnose the problem.
I do hope this helps.
Wayne
Never explain -- Your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe you anyway.
~ Elbert Hubbard
posted on December 3, 2006 04:04:30 PM new
Another suggestion: use daylight. Make some reflectors out of tin foil if you don't have enough light coming through a window. Use a tripod if the exposures are too long.
posted on December 3, 2006 04:28:56 PM new
There is a light bulb that is available from electricial wholesalers called a daylight bulb.It is a blue color. I use them all the time for photographing opal. it is the best light that i know of for this purpose. Also set your camera on a setting that is for using under artificial light. i also use a manual setting and have my light set at about f2.2. to f2.5. I also use a non reflective light coloured backing. One last thing is your lights need to be fairly close, about 12ins and i use a light on 2 sides of the object. you may need to be a little further away. I do mostly closeup photos 6.ins or closer. The bulbs are also 100 watt nothing smaller.
posted on December 3, 2006 05:41:47 PM newroadsmith...
The ceiling is white, but I DO have a woven beige wall paper and lots of woodwork in this office. Maybe I’m picking up the yellow from the walls/woodwork. Hadn’t thought of that!
Time to get out the white paint!
cash...
I tried all of the settings with a plate on white paper, as you suggested. These are the “best” results of the 8 possibilities. All have been ‘lightened’ in PaintShopPro.
No, I’m NOT using a flash. Too much reflection/glare. And I always use a tripod. These old hands can get shakey!
I long ago misplaced the Owner’s Manual. Heck! Can’t even find the packing slips for shipping tomorrow in this mess! It’s going to be a looooong night!
These were taken with one 65W Flood Light and one 100W standard white light, both in a collars. I do have one more Flood with collar that I could use – and I know where it is!
I haven’t tried your ‘tin foil’ idea yet. The sun has gone down and there is NO natural light now. Will try it in the morning. Opening the blinds for natural light causes window reflections on these shiny plates, but I CAN turn the blinds up and reflect that light off the tin-foiled ceiling. Sure worth a try!
# 1 -
# 2 -
# 3 -
# 4 -
# 5 -
Hope I am doing this picture load correctly. It’s a first for me.
max40...
I’m confusing myself!
No over-exposure setting that I am aware of. (Manual long lost) I will explore that further tomorrow, and thanks for the suggestion. I will probably find it when I look more carefully at this camera.
Wayne...
I’ve tried all of the settings (see above) and I think your suggestion of the ‘person/light bulb’ setting is the best (# 5).
agate...
I only do close-up for the back of the plates, and I am doing them from a distance. The pictures seem to turn out sharper that way (probably because of using the wrong settings – again). However, as I’m changing settings, as suggested by other good folks here, I may be able to do better close-ups at a shorter distance.
I’ve been using a black cloth background for most of my shots. I’ll get something non-reflective in a lighter tone and look for that ‘daylight bulb’ you suggested. Would that be like a light I use for my indoor plants?
Thanks all! You’ve given me a lot of possibilities – and a lot of testing for tomorrow.
posted on December 3, 2006 06:15:29 PM new
Was able to adjust the white in Pixia (free software and no, I didn't write it, just borrowed the name) in a second.
posted on December 3, 2006 06:15:54 PM new
Pat
When you turn your camera on, there is a small screen in the lower left corner. It shows Menu and timer icon on lower line. It shows -EV and +EV above it.
Navigate to +EV and increase it. It will show +0.5EV in upper left corner. (Number given as an example, you may go higher if you need to.
Also, click on the Menu icon, and navigate up to Quality, make sure it's set on Fine.
As I stated before, you don't have a control on that camera for color, it chooses the type of light automatically.
Edited to add--
Press the Program button and check the little icons in the upper left corner of the screen. You should be using the Portrait Program. It's the one with the little person with the mountain in the background.
[ edited by max40 on Dec 3, 2006 06:21 PM ]
posted on December 3, 2006 06:37:04 PM new
Thanks, Max!
I found everything you were suggesting in the camera settings. I've never paid much attention to those settings because, until now, my Mavica has always made great pics for me, indoors and out.
Can't wait 'til tomorrow to try all these ideas.
Then...Oh, me! I already have over 30 of my plates listed, with 4 to 5 pics per listing. Guess I'll be busy re-doing those AFTER the Holidays. (Hope a lot of them sell before January!)
posted on December 3, 2006 07:02:53 PM newMax...and ALL of you...unbelievable!
What an improvement on these pics!
I’ve labeled the pics with what I used to get them brighter. For the ‘non-reflective’ background I used an old file box lid (a temporary fix) and I like what I’m getting a LOT better than what I was dealing with before.
posted on December 3, 2006 07:24:01 PM new
That happens to me when I don't have enough light!--------One more thing, it ALSO happens to me when my batteries are low.
[ edited by paloma91 on Dec 3, 2006 07:36 PM ]
posted on December 3, 2006 07:52:17 PM newPixia...
I downloaded Pixia Software and froze my computer playing with it. Guess I had too many windows open, plus my PaintShopPro, which eats up a lot of space.
Paloma...
I hadn't thought about the battery! It is pretty old and may be contributing to these problems. It doesn't seem to hold its hours as long as it used to. It's in for a re-charge tonight. And I'm shopping eBay tomorrow for a replacement. Thanks!
posted on December 3, 2006 09:09:08 PM new
You might try using a piece of white felt for the background. Or maybe a piece of real light blue.
I have scraps of white, light blue and black that I use to shoot all my photos.
posted on December 9, 2006 09:51:56 PM new
Just wanted to say thanks to all of you who contributed to the solutions of my image/lighting problems. I have employed EVERY suggestion you folks made; played with the lighting and camera settings, purchased different background materials and got new batteries for the camera. The pix are coming out MUCH better than before! I'm SO pleased with the results. Without your help I would still be frustrated with the results...and all the disclaimers I had to add to the listing about the 'poor' images.
posted on December 10, 2006 07:36:54 AM new
It's really nice to know that someone appreciates the help they get here enough to thank us for it.
So many times the person with the problem gets their answer and "disappears".
We never know if we helped or not.
