Good Lighting in Photos?

[FarDreamer]

How are you all getting such good lighting in photos?  I got a digital camera for Christmas 2010 so I can FINALLY post photos of my collection but the lighting always sucks.  It's the best camera we could afford, but my pictures just don't turn out as nice as everyone else.  I can't zoom in so close and still get clear images.  I also can't use the flash or it totally washes everything out.  I've started using an extra aquarium light we had for some extra light and that helps, but it still doesn't look as good as all of yours.


Do you all just have really expensive cameras?  What's your trick?

[kerry483]

The camera should have settings that should help out with the white balance and the amount of exposure to light. The colour balance and apeture will need changing also.
http://doctormowinckel.tumblr.com/post/11381804336/pictures-of-ponies-and-how-to-take-them explains the whole thing quite well, although the pictures are taken in a light box, many things can be learned from it.
I hope it helped.

[tinrobo]

I don't have an expensive camera but I always find the best lighting for photos is in a bright room during the day - our house is really dark so the only good place to take photos is in front of the window in the kitchen. Have curtains drawn and just try and get as much light in as you can.


I don't know how much experience you have with digital photography so If this is a really obvious tip then I'm sorry but check to see if your camera has a macro setting for taking close ups - or if not whether you can manually adjust the focus for closer objects. Otherwise the camera might be trying to focus on something in the distance, which is why it comes out blurry.

[Ginger]

Tinrobo, Hehe, I had my camera for two years before realized what the macro button does.    Now I use it constantly, it's amazing.

[banditpony]

I shoot manually (film and digital).

That said, I know point and shoots are pretty good now a days. And most (if not all) do have a macro function. And if I were to use a point and shoot, especially a cheaper one, I'd use all the settings on automatic. I find no need to change the options on something that is made to pretty much be automatic.

You don't need to wait for sunlight, if you have accurate lighting (bright lights), then that is good enough. Do you think professionals wait for sunlight? Nope. Some people will recommend a cheapo light box, but a piece of white paper and a good lamp or two does fine too.

[hokuspokus]

I'm also struggling with taking good pics. All pics on here seem to look so professional, except mine.
My camera just can't make a good detailed pic of the pony's symbols. It's frustrating me most of the time..

I'm gonna check out that macro function, might help!
Hope the people here had some good tips for you!

[sd_dreamcrystal]

I have a light tent that defuses the light, though I'm only using a single daylight bulb plus my camera's white balance/etc. Sometimes you just have to play with the settings A camera's flash also helps sometimes

[FarDreamer]

Ok, tell me what you think! 


I read through the tutorials and re-read my camera's manual.  Using the flash is still hit or miss.  On macro it works to hold the camera really close to the ponies but I still can't get the zoom right.  I played with the ISO and that was practically a disaster and I ended up changing it back to where I started.  I also can't get anything to focus in manual mode so auto it will probably be for me.


These are just me messing around with the settings.  No lightboxes or anything.  All with macro on.


Held close to the pony, no zoom, no flash:


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Held close to the pony w/flash:


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Using the zoom, no flash:


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I think the first 2 are a good start!  Those aren't the only ones that turned out decently either.


Thanks for all the tips!  I'll keep practicing!

[ZettaMomo]

You usually do not want to use flash when you are taking pictures of things such a ponies.
I usually take my pictures with a simple light box I made and two lamps with some daylight bulbs in them. It really helps out.

I think the pictures you posted are nice! Sometimes you just have to mess around with the settings until they are just right and you gotta practice! My pictures are nowhere near perfect, but I have improved the quality of them over the past few month with practice and reading a few online tutorials.

[Gingerbread]

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I like this one

I very rarely use my camera, usually just my phone. I always try and use natural daylight, but my best tip is clean, uncluttered backgrounds!

[Oneleo1]

I never use a flash anymore when taking pics pf my ponies I do use a light box though, and have 2 bright lights that I diffuse with the box.

[kCherry]

  I good pictures of ponies so I understand your desire to be able to take awesome pictures. Lighting is a tricky thing to catch sometimes, especially indoors; I will often take my subjects outside as my house is pretty dark. If I can't take my subject outside I will often add light to the subject. Natural lightbulbs work best to keep the ponies looking... well, natural!

  Flash is not evil, you just need to back off of your subject and crop what you don't want in the final picture. Sometimes I just can not get the shot I want without flash. Don't be afraid to play with it either!

  I also adore Picasa; I am Always tuning the light in that program.

  I think you're off to a great start, though! And practicing, practicing, practicing will certainly help!! Starting a thread here was a great idea!

[DoctorMowinckel]

The camera should have settings that should help out with the white balance and the amount of exposure to light. The colour balance and apeture will need changing also.
http://doctormowinckel.tumblr.com/post/11381804336/pictures-of-ponies-and-how-to-take-them explains the whole thing quite well, although the pictures are taken in a light box, many things can be learned from it.
I hope it helped.

I've updated this, reworded some things, and expanded the section about aperture, though for some reason when I try to edit it on my tumblr, it crashes my browser. The full and most recent iteration can be found on my blag; http://www.doctormowinckel.com/?p=668

Lighting is the most important thing. Find a way to control the lighting, then do the rest in post, which I cover in my tutorial.

You don't need a lightbox, but it will definitely give you more control over the quality of light, and make cropping things easier. In lieu of a lightbox, find (or put) a table near a wall, and tape a piece of posterboard against the wall (use painters tape so you don't damage your wall) so that it curves down from the wall, onto the table. You'll want to make the curve where it meets the wall, from the table is tight, but don't crase the posterboard. This will cause the light to reflect unevenly. If you have a tripod, you can get by without using lights, and instead use a long exposure, then adjust the highlights and contrast in post.