[Irma]

My product photography gallery is missing a nice picture of a bottle of wine. I've been working on this picture already for few days and I can't get it better. I know that the right low corner is dark.... very dark actually, but I can't get it better.

How do you like my actual and only favorite from the lot? Any advice to light that corner without bringing into the bottle a new reflection

Setup. Soft box at the left, reflector at the right, gobo at the left for the label.

Thanks a lot for your advice...

[NT73]

I will leave it to the experts.

[Zig]

Ahhh...but I could argue that this shot is just right already!
You rightly mention the lighting difficulty in terms of unwanted rerflections if lit from bottom right. Chris might have some tips here...whereas I would say photoshop them out!
However, the reason I think the shot is already fine is this: the fade into black gives a sense of sensual mystery, allowing the rest of the bottle to be imagined: anyone already knows it is a bottle; the viewer does not need to be told. Keeping some of its outlines hidden keeps the mood evocative and also allows the present tones and reflections to have heightened interest. I think it is beautifully and sensitively lit already...I'd even go as far as to suggest using a soft black brush to remove a bit more of the bottle bottom left.
I've done a quick interpretation of what I mean: brushed some of the background colour over the bottom of the bottle, cropped a little of the resulting space away, adding a bit of saturation and the smallest bit of contrast: hmmm...just a thought anyway, as I'm not sure I've done your lovely picture justice...

[Irma]

Hi Zig...

I like to see the bottle vanishing in the background, it didn't occurred to me. I loved to read your interpretation about this effect, you are right I don't need to tell all that is already known...

When I saw your version first I thought, but why is this shining and mine not? It looks so stylish, so beautiful. I see that I missed very important things as saturating and contrast. Thanks a lot for your time to work with this picture and your advice. I appreciate it very much....

[Pavel]

Irma, I am out of my depth here. I do like the reflection on the bottom. I would have preferred more clearly defined text on the bottle and I like greater saturation - for me it makes the product more desirable. I think there is a simple solution to your closed shadow in the lower right that seems to bother you. I would expose for the highlights (spot meter in manual mode on the brightest area you do not wish to be blown, overexpose by about 1/2 f-stop and lighten the shadows in Lightroom. That should do it.

Pavel

[Toad]

I can't add anything other than what Zig has eloquently voiced - except that I think the image can use a slight straighten (I'm beginning to sound like Petographer now)..

[matthew]

There's not much that I can add either, but last night I found a tutorial on white-on-white (and black-on-black) photography. It's http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subscript...20wow.html

I'm slowly working my way through the entire website - the table of contents is http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subscript...index.html Some of the links are a little unreliable, but they can usually be puzzled out if they don't work.

[Pavel]

A very interesting link Matthew. I read a part of it. I will read the rest when I am awake.

P

[Irma]

Thanks a lot all for your kind comments and advice. All very helpful... Thanks for the link Matthew, very useful indeed....

I was very busy with my pictures I wanted to post.... following your advices... I got this...







Toad: I am taking my pictures with a 50mm lens. I don't know if I get some distortion in the bottle. I did my best to straighten this ones...

Pavel, the only way I can take my pictures with my lighting gear is in manual. The thing is the contrast between the label and the bottles is huge. Thanks for the advice... Reading a lot of comments out there I see that this is a difficult bottle because of the shape and label...

Good news is that we made some great improvements to my wooden scaffolding I use as a table and it is something else. I can work much better now, since we added something I could hang my backgrounds from. This gave a lot more room to my table and now I have another flash in the background.

It was a bit sad to read that pictures I was taking as models were made with different exposures and they were practically HDRs. Some others had a sophisticated setup I can't reproduce at home, and some others said they just change the background in photo shop. So, I tried to do everything from the beginning. Still for this picture I am missing a third light to have more light in the bottom of the bottle, but as I have no chance at the moment I left it like this. I see anyway some improvements...

I like very much this green background I might change the black grass for wood to give more light. I will be making some more experiments and showing to you... I hope you don't mind....

Now, some lasagna and a glass of Bardolino are waiting for me...

Thanks all for your support...

[Toad]

Very nice variations - I love the green.

[nia]

I am watching and reading and yes, learning too... Thank you for you all,
it was so enjoyable too,

with my love,
nia

[Irma]

Thanks Toad and nia...

I just finished my series on white and I will be done for a while with bottles....

[Keith Alan]

While the original was fine for me, the later versions are what I was thinking all along.
I'm trying to get away from solid black/white backgrounds myself, and both of your colored backgrounds are great.

The only point I could add is that we must decide if the subject is to be seen floating in negative space (all black or white background) or is it better in a wordly context that we can all relate to.
Both have their places, depending on what story we are trying to tell.
Or where the photo is going to be shown. What does the client require?

The later photos include a bar or kitchen countertop of contrasting color and lighting levels, but nothing else.
While they are both excellent studies of a wine bottle by itself, I would like to see additional information in either the background or subject.
A corkscrew or glass, for example.
Someone's hand.

A little taste of story.


I know that this complicates things a great deal--just thinking out loud here, my dear Irma.

[Irma]

I like very much the idea of showing my wine bottles in two different ways. One as you said floating, as to be used in a catalog and the other one more in context, to be used in advertisement.

That would give enough information about my work with glass in my product gallery...

Thanks Keith, I appreciate very much your comment on my pictures and your advice...

[Zig]

Keith makes a good point...I think even the background colour suggests a mood or tells a story, which might add or subtract.
Pavel's excellent recommendation of spot-metering from highlights is something I'd missed: that would really add to the mystery and suggestion of the shadows.