Technic Photography

[Tommy Styrvoky]

I would suggest Rawtherapee as an alternative to Lightroom, based on my limited experience in Lightroom, it allows for Tweaking RAW settings, though there is quite a bit of options, and the GUI is sort of complex. I would suggest it, as I haven't found any limitations to it so far. Also it's free.

Also a Camera question, would anyone recommend getting a Cannon T5i, As I may be studying abroad in Germany this summer, and I want a good DSLR with decent 1080p video quality/is compatible with the EF-S lenses from my Cannon XSI-Rebel, also don't want to break the bank too.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Tommy Styrvoky

[Jim]

6 hours ago, Myers Lego Technic said:

I am looking into adobe light room, and have my 50 mm arriving tomorrow. Thanks again for the great advice. 

That's taking initiative, nice!! 

5 hours ago, Tommy Styrvoky said:

I would suggest Rawtherapee as an alternative to Lightroom, based on my limited experience in Lightroom, it allows for Tweaking RAW settings, though there is quite a bit of options, and the GUI is sort of complex. I would suggest it, as I haven't found any limitations to it so far. Also it's free.

I wouldn't say complex, but like every Adobe program, you need to invest a little time getting used to. Thanks for the tip though. Since it's free, it might be a nice alternative for people getting started with RAW processing.

5 hours ago, Tommy Styrvoky said:

Also a Camera question, would anyone recommend getting a Cannon T5i, As I may be studying abroad in Germany this summer, and I want a good DSLR with decent 1080p video quality/is compatible with the EF-S lenses from my Cannon XSI-Rebel, also don't want to break the bank too.

If the camera allows for Shutter, Timer, ISO settings and RAW shooting you are fine! And I think the T5i has all of these features. Get yourself the beforementioned 50mm prime and you will be able to take great pictures! It's not the best lens for video.

[WvG_853]

I gave a demo on metadata management in Lightroom yesterday in my photo club. Some members have difficulty understanding the logic of Lightroom, in particular where it concerns file management. I would recommend following some tutorials to understand the Lightroom basics. You will find many online, e.g. http://laurashoe.com/lightroom-articles-and-tutorials-for-beginners-and-those-troubleshooting-lightroom-issues/

I'm looking forward to your pictures!

[Jim]

True. Library/content management seems to be the most difficult part.

[Tommy Styrvoky]

11 hours ago, Jim said:

I wouldn't say complex, but like every Adobe program, you need to invest a little time getting used to. Thanks for the tip though. Since it's free, it might be a nice alternative for people getting started with RAW processing.

I mean the GUI of Rawtherapee is rather complex, as there are pages and pages of tweak able settings, so it may be slightly deterring, though I found it rather intuitive to work with, but there still are some things I don't fully understand yet. Haven't looked into any tutorials, though it was rather similar interface to working with adjustment settings in Photoshop, and it behaves similar to Lightroom, by just saving a preference file for the photo, and not modifying the original RAW data.

[gabigo]

One of my favorites(8284).

[Jim]

12 hours ago, gabigo said:

One of my favorites(8284).

Hey. Welcome to EB. Can you explain why you like this photo so much?

[muffinbrick]

Shot on my kitchen working board, with only simple kitchen light with my 10 years old Nikon D70 + set lenses.

I think the result is not bad :)

[Jim]

It's not bad for a simple setup. Yet I do get the feeling that you should position the light in front of the object. The biggest (and most nearby) part of the picture is in the dark you. Or you can turn the object so the front of the vehicle catches the most light. Just my two cents.

[zux]

You can also put a reflective piece on the right side to give more lighten up the darkest place.

[Jim]

Just now, zux said:

You can also put a reflective piece on the right side to give more lighten up the darkest place.

Thinking like a pro   

[gabigo]

9 hours ago, Jim said:

Hey. Welcome to EB. Can you explain why you like this photo so much?

Hi, thank You !

The 8284 is one of my favourite, not the picture. Only I would like insert not official picture, a little other. :) 

[muffinbrick]

2 hours ago, Jim said:

It's not bad for a simple setup. Yet I do get the feeling that you should position the light in front of the object. The biggest (and most nearby) part of the picture is in the dark you. Or you can turn the object so the front of the vehicle catches the most light. Just my two cents.

 

2 hours ago, zux said:

You can also put a reflective piece on the right side to give more lighten up the darkest place.

Yes, you both are right. I'll have to try set sheet of paper on the right side of the camera. I've had one additional bicycle light on the right side, but unfortunately its battery wear off in abut a minute and I lost charger somewhere

[WvG_853]

As I have no special lights, I usually take a picture using normal warm light and then correct the colour temperature in Lightroom by selecting a white object.

Here is a picture I took with my iPhone without any colour correction and a normal warm light from the top.

I have bought a used Nikon D700 for a good price and intend to start experimenting a bit with Lego Technic photography in the coming time. I will keep you posted on progress ...

 

Edited January 25, 2017 by WvG_853
Changed URL to picture

[Myers Lego Technic]

Not with my new 50 mm (It has not arrived yet...) 

[offroadcreations]

Hi everyone,

I don't know much about photography, but I would like to know how to get a really white background, that blends in with webpages. I have seen it in most pictures, and it looks really nice, so I would like to try. Does anyone have any tips? Thanks.

Edited February 4, 2017 by Offroadcreat1ons

[VKTechnic]

8 minutes ago, Offroadcreat1ons said:

Hi everyone,

I don't know much about photography, but I would like to know how to get a really white background, that blends in with webpages. I have seen it in most pictures, and it looks really nice, so I would like to try. Does anyone have any tips? Thanks.

@Sariel has a great writeup on this: http://sariel.pl/2011/07/photo-processing-tutorial/

Hope I'm not too late to jump into this thread myself! Dug up a few of my favorites from my Flickr, first of which is my current wallpaper:

Photoshoot Teaser by VKTechnic, on Flickr

Action shots are always fun:

LiMad by VKTechnic, on Flickr

Jeep Lower Forty by VKTechnic, on Flickr

Final_03 by VKTechnic, on Flickr

Echoing everyone else, outdoor shots are definitely where it's at!

Teaser by VKTechnic, on Flickr

Edited February 4, 2017 by VKTechnic

[Jim]

9 hours ago, Offroadcreat1ons said:

Hi everyone,

I don't know much about photography, but I would like to know how to get a really white background, that blends in with webpages. I have seen it in most pictures, and it looks really nice, so I would like to try. Does anyone have any tips? Thanks.

Sariels tutorial is indeed a good starting place. Basically, it boils down to post-processing. You won't get good results without. I have used Lightroom for this task, but you can use Photoshop, GIMP or whatever. Another option would be chroma keying (using a green or blue background) and removing the background programmatically.

If you are really interested, simply invest some time to search google for "removing photo background" or "white photo background".  I just did that and I noticed there are some online tools as well. Not sure how good they work, but it's worth a try.

https://clippingmagic.com/

[doug72]

I just use a sheet of white faced foam board or hardboard.

[Jim]

26 minutes ago, Doug72 said:

I just use a sheet of white faced foam board or hardboard.

While that's okay, you will never get a 100% white background. You need post processing for that.

I used a white background for me reviews when I started and it took me a long time to post process all of the pics. That's why I shifted to a grey background....which accidentally looked very cool, so win win.

[Sariel]

On 5.02.2017 at 10:19 AM, Jim said:

Another option would be chroma keying (using a green or blue background) and removing the background programmatically.

The problem here is that Lego pieces are quite shiny and the green or blue background will reflect on your model, especially if it has smooth sides. This can be mitigated to some degree by shooting with a polarizing filter on your lens, but I'd still recommend a plain white backdrop over that.

Edited February 6, 2017 by Sariel

[Lucio Switch]

Despite the post processing is almost mandatory, starting from a good pic can help to reach the desired result with a small effort.
For what I know you have to illuminate the white background with twice the power that you use to illuminate the subject...eg, if you use a 100w lamp for the subject you need a 200w lamp for the background (or 2 x 100w). Doing that the background tends to be overexposed compared to the subject so really white.

[Jim]

You're talking professional photo studio here. This is very hard to achieve at your home studio, since the 200w lamps will illuminate the room (and subject) very much as well.

[offroadcreations]

@Sariel That is a great tutorial, it will definitely help.

Thank you everyone, I will look into these solutions.  

[dr_spock]

7 hours ago, Lucio Switch said:

Despite the post processing is almost mandatory, starting from a good pic can help to reach the desired result with a small effort.
For what I know you have to illuminate the white background with twice the power that you use to illuminate the subject...eg, if you use a 100w lamp for the subject you need a 200w lamp for the background (or 2 x 100w). Doing that the background tends to be overexposed compared to the subject so really white.

Thanks for the tip.  Reviewer's Academy standard is white background. I am finding it hard to get the background white white in PP without blowing out the highlights and white LEGO. I use a 3rd light to illuminate the background but it has the same power as the 2 main lights.  Would putting diffusers in front of the 2 main light help reduce its output without having  to buy new bulbs?