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Post by Tyrann on Jun 19, 2004 15:03:18 GMT -5
This is the second camera lesson I'm offering free to all of you. (Take advantage of this lesson, people pay me for this information when I'm at work.  ) Lesson #2 - Using the flash effectively. The flash symbol is shaped like a lightning bolt/arrow. it may be a button like the Macro Focus control, or in a menu screen. Here is the flash button on a Canon A Series digital camera:  Sometimes using the flash when close to an object will get you a bleaching effect on your photos, as seen here:  But just turning the flash off in a dark room may not give your camera enough light to get a decent shot, seen here:  So the best option would to be shoot at a medium range, zoomed in sufficiently, with the flash off, and with extra lighting to allow all the detail to be viewed.  Experimentation is the key above all. See what works, and what doesn't. Questions? |
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Post by Tilly on Jun 19, 2004 15:44:31 GMT -5
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Post by Kavid on Jun 19, 2004 16:12:28 GMT -5
Whenever I take pictures I use one of those bendy-neck lamps. I can aim it at the object and get the lighting just right before I take the photo. An extra source of light from the opposite side can help balance things out.
And I make sure the flash is off. Watch out for shadows, too.
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Post by zudo on Jun 19, 2004 17:20:17 GMT -5
Whenever I take pictures I use one of those bendy-neck lamps. I can aim it at the object and get the lighting just right before I take the photo. An extra source of light from the opposite side can help balance things out. And I make sure the flash is off. Watch out for shadows, too. Mine broke... Is there a way to get good photos for editing with out buying a 70 dollar backdrop? Should I use poster board or somehing? |
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Post by Tilly on Jun 20, 2004 6:34:39 GMT -5
Yeah, posterboard works. I've used it sucessfully a few times...although most of my Zoid photos still have the "whatever's in the dining room" backdrop. |
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Post by Tyrannotaur on Jun 20, 2004 7:27:36 GMT -5
Only problem I really have is the pictures being fuzzy.. Macro focus has gotten rid of most of the blurryness..but still I think I am going to buy one of those 12 dollar tripods to keep the camera steady.
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Post by Skvora on Jun 20, 2004 11:38:15 GMT -5
Low light, jus enough to see the object in camera, then flash and zoom. That works best for me, and lil bleach is better than overall dark pic. I back that with fresh 440 pics of my zoids lol. Heres an example  Idea was to do a mid quality 360 view for all my zoids, and it turned out quite well. |
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FoxGolem
Private
Applauding the little people.
Posts: 22
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Post by FoxGolem on Jun 23, 2004 2:52:56 GMT -5
Shouldn't this go in the Tips and Tricks forum? I must be going crazy.
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Post by Tyrann on Jun 23, 2004 13:40:46 GMT -5
Shouldn't this go in the Tips and Tricks forum? I must be going crazy. Normally, yes. But since this pertains to photos of custom Zoids, here seems just right for these tips. |
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lwizard5
Corporal
Thought of the Week (Sort Of)*Points to Sig*
Posts: 164
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Post by lwizard5 on Jul 10, 2004 15:40:24 GMT -5
or does it....
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Post by GallenWolf on Jul 16, 2004 3:57:56 GMT -5
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Post by trinitymurasame on Jan 31, 2006 23:16:57 GMT -5
I like the paint job you did. Did you use metalic acrylic paint or what cause i really like that style of color on the shadowfox.
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Post by Tilly on Jan 31, 2006 23:52:38 GMT -5
It's not painted, it's vacuum metalized, aka "chromed". I know they're different, but people call it chrome with Zoids. Leoshop used to do custom runs of shiny Zoids like that, and it and a blue one were part of a special order the ZoidFans group had done. I used Fox A there for a photography test because he's EVIL to do.
You can sometimes find their regular shiny Zoids on eBay, but they don't do them any more...
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Post by Alteka on Feb 1, 2006 1:54:31 GMT -5
Yeah, too bad 'ol Leoshop quit that side of things. But also.. I never noticed this thread before. I'll toss in my two cents for another budget option: I do all my photography with a $200 camera (Cannon A520), the back of a poster, and two cheap $7 walmart desklamps. You can see some examples in a thread here:  It's pretty simple. I pin the poster backwards (so, white facing me), with half of it touching the floor and the other half on the wall. It's important to have the corner section gently curving, so that there's no visable crease/fold in the background. I usually keep the poster up with two thumbtacks or pieces of tape. I position the two lamps on either side of me - morning sun to my back usually works best, but it's not required (the photo above was done at 11pm). I never use flash, as I find it too time consuming to calibrate correctly each time I want to take 2 min to snap some pics. If I need to highlight crevices and parts not lit up by the two lamps (only happens with awkwardly shaped things), I just prop up a white cutting board, box or whatever close on the left and right so that the light gets reflected around a bit. White looseleaf taped to cereal boxes or whatever can work. Photoshop's 'levels' tool is wonderful for balancing out contrast/brightness issues, even if you do use the flash and some areas get a bit too exposed. 'Auto Colour' can usually correct whitebalance issue (like, if the natural light tinted your photo yellow), so long as the background is supposed to be white. |
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Post by Tilly on Feb 1, 2006 2:43:51 GMT -5
GIMP has a good levels tool and other adjustment stuff. PSP 6 doesn't, but I don't know about later ones...
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