Guitar Photography - How i do it

[highace10]

I've been asked if I could run through how I take photos of my guitars. The good thing about my process is that you don't need any fancy gear or a degree in photography...the honest truth is I have neither. The proof is in the pudding I guess.

The basic items you will need are;

- A camera. The camera doesn't have to be a fancy digital SLR but a camera that you can shoot in manual mode of possible. What I mean by manual mode is that you can adjust settings such as shutter speed, aperture and ISO. If you're not sure what each of these terms mean, google it and there will be many places that will throw some light on the subject.



- A light source. Personally, I use a Speedlight and wireless triggers for my source of light but the average photographer may not have gear such as this. A simple desk lamp or two is all that is needed. I say desk lamp because its easy to manoeuvre around and change how the light casts over your subject.

The flash pictured I purchased off EBay for around $150 and the wireless triggers were about $30 from memory. Not a bad bit of kit and it opens up a lot of options when taking photos of other things, not just guitars.



- A black sheet. I use a simple black bed sheet. The black sheet is used to provide a contrasting background and help bring out the details of your newly finished guitar... WARNING: If you don't ask the Mrs first and she catches you with the sheet all dusty and dirty...its not my fault ;-)

- Time and Patience. If you have that Photography Degree you will find setting up your camera an easy task but for the average amateur, it may take a few goes before things start to look right. Take your time and things will work out eventually.

- Tripod. Not an essential bit of equipment but it is a nice thing to have. The tripod allows you to keep the camera dead still when taking photos that require a slow shutter speed. It gets rid of that ugly fuzzy, blurry photo due to not being able to hold the camera still enough when taking the shot. taken.

- Photo Editing Software. Once again not an essential item to have but it does help with tweaking the final result. The photos I have taken do not require a massive amount tweaking. Processes such as sharpening and changing contrast are the major things I change. Most software has the ability to change these things. A free and easy one is from paint.net its extremely easy to use and best of all free!

[highace10]

Step 1...

Firstly, I have a look at the guitar I'm photographing. I ask myself questions such as; Does it have a "good side"? Is there an angle that the grain really pops? Is there anything I don't want people to see? Questions like these will help you narrow down the angles that you can use to take the photograph and ultimately make your guitar look its best.

A good tip is to give the guitar a good wipe down with a lint free cloth. Things like smudges, fingerprints and dust will only be highlighted by flashes and lighting.

Step 2....

Lay down the black sheet on a flat surface and place the guitar down on top of it. To avoid scratches etc, make sure you give the area a good sweep first to make sure there isn't anything that can harm your pride and joy.

I take my photos on the floor of the garage. The garage gives me the ability to control how much light enters the room by opening or closing the garage door. You don't want a huge amount of light as this will flood your photo and cause an over exposure situation...this can be controlled in other ways but for this "how-to" there is no need to know it. You will want the flash and/or the lamps to give you the light you need to take the photo.

Step 3...

Setup your camera so that you are looking down at it at an angle and adjust the guitar to that special angle that makes it look a million dollars. If you have that tripod, now is a good time to use it. If you don't have a tripod, use some books or something that you can lean the camera on (safely).

Place your lighting at angles that help display your guitar. The trick to lighting is to have a soft light rather than a harsh/sharp light. I used a small piece of white cloth over my flash and you can do the same with the lamp. This cloth helps soften the light and also helps reduce the harsh shadows you would normally get with a flash. On my flash, I have the ability to manually adjust the strength of the flash, in the case of the 335 photos I had it on the lowest setting. I also had the flash pointing at the roof. This may seem a bit strange but it utilises the reflective properties of the white ceiling and helps create that "mood" I guess you would call it.

In the case of lamps, just place them close enough but not too close. You are after a balance of light rather than a spotlight effect. You can even experiment with different colour filters over your lighting...something you will have to experiment with.

[highace10]

Step 4...

Now its time to start taking some photos and honestly the more difficult side of things. If you are unsure of how to change settings like shutter speed, aperture and ISO then now would be a good time to have a read. Also, have a look at your camera manual.

These are the settings I used for the photos involving the ES335.

Manual Mode
1/4 second shutter speed
F14
ISO 3200
Automatic White Balance

These setting will vary depending on the amount of light you have, whether you have a tripod or not and lots of other factors.

Ill make some comments both good and bad about the settings used to take the photos of the 335.

Manual Mode - this can be a frustrating mode to work in as you need a little knowledge to drive it properly. I took approx. 50+ photos before I started to see results I liked. Every setting can be changed individually rather than the camera doing all the work. In some instances I have been able to guess and jag a great photo right from the get go.

1/4 Shutter Speed - Basically, shutter speed regulates how much lights enters the camera and thus can make or break your photo. 1/4 of a second isn't slow at all but it is slow enough that the average human would find it hard to hold the camera still enough to stop the blur from occurring. A tripod will eliminate the shake all together. In the case of the full guitar shot I wasn't able to use the tripod and hold the camera by hand. There is a tiny bit of blur but I was happy enough with it.

f14 - This is the aperture. Use this in combination with the shutter speed to control the exposure of your photo. It also controls the depth of field ie. How much the photo is in focus. I try to use a narrow depth of field to draw the eye to a particular part of the guitar.

The photo below shows how I used DoF. The foreground of the photo is slightly blurred but the area around the pickups is nice and sharp. My eye has a tendency to look at the sharp areas rather than blurry. Its a good way to show people the level of workmanship and attention to detail you have when putting it all together.



ISO 3200 - ISO is the sensitivity of the camera's sensor. The higher the ISO the higher amount of noise you will get in the photo. Try and keep this setting as low as you can but in the end you may find it unavoidable going higher.

The unfortunate part about step 4 is there isn't a definitive guide on how to take the perfect shot. Everyone's situation is different and may not have a garage to take the photo in for eg. That's where the patience comes into it..experiment with different settings and take lots of photos! You don't need to worry about the cost of developing your film just the room you have left on your memory card.

[highace10]

I thought it best that I analyse a couple of the photos that I have taken. I have a couple of reasons for doing this, you can learn from my mistakes and also keep an eye out for aspects that help your photos look better.

This particular photo is one of my favourites. This particular angle really seems to show off the grain in the maple cap and also generally shows the build quality. As far as lighting is concerned, the flash was positioned in the bottom left corner of the shot and I repositioned myself around the guitar to change the angle.

I also like the tone cap peaking through the top F-hole. Adds to the photo I think.

One criticism of the photo is that I should have taken more care with the reflection off the pick guard. It makes it look a little cluttered and draws the eye to it. Its the handle of my Mrs bike btw ;-)



The second photo is of the Les Paul kit I built. In my opinion its not a bad photo but the sources of light off the nickel parts is a little distracting. I didn't have a huge space to take the shot in at the time and not the best lighting setup. In the end it did its job.



It may seem that I'm being really picky when it comes to my photos but I guess I have a pedantic eye for detail, basically a perfectionist in other words.

[highace10]

I just wanted to say one more thing, bit of a disclaimer in a way..im not a professional in any way when it comes to guitars or photography. The way I have done it is not the one and only..there are many ways to skin a cat as they say. I hope the tips I have given here can help people develop their own style of taking photos.

I am open to suggestions or new techniques and if anyone wants help individually, ill do my best to help.

I really hope this helps someone.

I have intentions of taking photos of my setup so its easier to see how I do things. I need a bit of time to set things up.

Cheers

Alex

[Tim]

Cheers for that Alex
I am lucky enough to have a decent camera but still learning how to use it.
And my MIDNIGHT build is nearly done so will be good to be able to take some great shots.
Thanks for the advice

Tim

[highace10]

No problems Tim. Its a really hard subject to write as the subject is HUGE! and quite detailed.

Ill keep adding things as I go.

[Brendan]

Alex - thanks for that - great job and great to see a detailed breakdown on how to get some awesome photos - I'll give it a go following my next build!

[adam]

Awesome stuff Alex, thanks for taking the time to document this, it's very easy to follow and really helpful. Took me back to my TAFE days. If I can add just one more element... people should check out some photo software to manipulate their images. I use Photoshop (badly), but there are plenty of freeware and inexpensive options out there. You just need something that can adjust brightness/contrast, colour balance and tone. A bit of editing power, to delete background distractions, doesn't hurt either. Maybe we need a separate Guitar Photography section... what does everyone think?

[highace10]

Thanks Adam. Still more to come!

Oops after you mentioned the software I realised I forgot to talk about it. I'll update it tomorrow with what I use. As I said, I have an idea for more photos on setup as well.

A photography section is a good idea! I'll add what I can.