Looking for Assistance

[MrStitch]

Hi, and thanks to all who are willing to take the time to help me with this project.....

I work for a fishing tackle manufacturer, which until recently, was outsourcing all of our photo work to a local photographer.

Unfortunately, he's fallen rather ill, and the process has been handed to me... who knows nothing of photography. hahahah

Ok,

Lets start with what I have -

One poorly lit room. Lighting consists of standard overhead fluorescent office lights.... you know... those long tubes.
For a camera, I only have a simple digital camera bought at Walmart. (i'll pause while you finish laughing. ) Anyways... it's a Fujifilm Fine Pix 2600 Zoom w/ 2.0 Mega pixels.
I have a table I can use... maybe some sort of lighting rack, adjustable in position, etc.????

Looking pretty pathetic, I know. hahahah

On the brighter side, I have some good software at my disposal. I have Photoshop 6.0, AND I have Corel Draw X3.

As of right now, I'm more accustomed to Photoshop, but will use the Corel if it's necessary. (just so happens, thats the software our photo guy was using)

Now, today I just finished drudging my way through some pictures, and it's become quite the labor intensive task. It consists of taking the photo, importing it into the computer, opening up Photoshop, deleting all the background (so I can get a clean white background when I process to JPEG), and adjusting the brightness/contrast/ and/or color, and usually adding a drop shadow for depth effect.

I'm not fluent in the software, nor do I have sufficient equipment to take better photo's (obviously)... so this process takes quite some time. Took all morning just to clean up and finalize 6 pictures.... uhg.

Anyways, could anyone give me some suggestions for a proper setup for taking photo's (indoors), of small products? I should note, that the biggest challenge so far seems to be reflections. A lot of our product is shiny metal, and curved.

Here is one of our websites where you can see some of the work our other photographer has done (really nice imo) - www.willylures.com/mmfishinglure.htm

All over that site, you'll see some amature stuff... that would be me, and my feeble attempt. hahaha

Also, not only do I need to process these things for the internet (decent looking photo's, but small file size), but I also need to create hi-res images that get printed to magazines and catalogs (TIFF files??)

Spending the money on lighting, etc... isn't a problem. The only thing i see being an issue, is if I tell my boss I need to spend $2500 on a camera.

Another forum told me that I should invest in a 'light tent'. What is it, and where should I get one? What sort of lighting in terms of bulbs and wattage should I be looking for?

Any and all help is VERY much appreciated!

Thanks

[SMcEvoy]

MrStitch, I've asked one of our other members to take a look at your post and comment.

In the meantime, to answer your question about a lighting tent. It's basically a diffuser for lighting to help eliminate shadows & highlights that you don't necessarily want. They can be expensive, but lots of people on our site have built their own with shower curtains and other translucent fabric and a couple of hardware store purchased halogen lamps. Here's a site with 'build-your-own' ideas. http://www.creativepro.com/story/feature/19002.html

Don't worry about your Wal-Mart camera. Fuji cameras take great pictures no matter how low a resolution they are so you should be able to get what you need out of it as long as you aren't looking to blow it up poster-size.

[Sambo]

Mr. Stitch...

A couple of suggestions:

A) Don't worry about a high dollar camera for what you are doing (i.e. online catalogue). The camera that you have is just fine unless, like Suzan said, you want to print fancy large poster ads.

B) Spend some of that $$$ on a light tent. For a tent to shoot something as small as fishing lures, you can get a relativly small one. I just looked at wolfcamera.com, and you can get one with lights and all for about $175.00. If your boss hesitates, tell him how much more productive you will be! Hang a lure up, shoot, edit, post, done! About 10 minutes a shot!

Hope this helps and good luck!

Sam

[famjad21]

I hope this doesn't come too late.

For metal objects stay away from windows...they tend to show up as reflections.

Use a tripod with your camera which should be okay for this type of work. If your shutter speed goes below 1/60 sec for the shot, try using the camera's timer so your finger doesn't add blur.

Invest in the upgrade to PS CS2 about $150.

There is a color temp adjustment that can adjust for any type of light so your whites will be white and blacks will be black.

Sambo is right...get a light tent. There are bargains on ebay. I got one for $70.

If you can't take a look at this:
http://www.bytephoto.com/photopost/s...cat=500&page=4

This should get you started and don't hesitate to ask again. This kind of work isn't easy.

[Kombizz]

Dear friend
I hope this reply is not too late for you.

First of all you do NOT need a $2500 camera to capture few simple images that any 5MP compact digital cameras do.
As famjad21 mentioned, you need the light tent just for metal objects that show up the reflection, that's all.
If your object do not have shinny surfaces, then you do not need to spend money for that.

Simply put your subjects near to a window that has ample lighting come thru and simply point and shoot.
Then simply take those images to your computer and change them based on your needs and requirements.

If your boss decided to spend money for a camera, then you could research on the following sites or show them to your boss for final decision.

Steve Digicams
Digital Camera Review

or read my answer to a fellow who wanted to buy his first digital camera. It could be a guide for first timers to digital photography.

Here

Good luck