3. Double check your camera. Once your artwork is hung on the wall and lit with lamps, double check that the camera is set to where the lens lines up with the middle of the painting – with little to no background showing. The artwork should take up the majority of the frame in your picture. The ISO and aperture of your camera are very important to get clear, crisp and bright images of your artwork. ISO references what film speed used to measure. The higher the number, the more sensitive the film was to light and the coarser the image. In this case, since we want very crisp images, we want a low ISO. Studio shots will generally be shot at ISO 100. The f-stop of the aperture of your camera adjusts how much light is let through the lens by making the opening bigger or smaller. The higher the number, theless light is being passed through. With a DSLR the ideal range for shooting artworks is between f-8 and f-11. Set your camera’s timer to four or five seconds so that pressing the shutter button doesn’t create a shake in your image.
4. Take the picture!
Photographing sculptural work:
1. Place your artwork in front of a neutral background. You can achieve this by placing your artwork on a table pushed up against a wall or creating your own backdrop with a large piece of white paper/cardboard. The paper can be stuck on the wall with tape and the paper curved down to avoid a harsh horizontal line in the background. The aim is create a background with minimal distractions. This can be done on the floor if your artwork is too large to photograph on a table. See image below.
1. If photographing 2D work, hang on the wall. If photographing 3D work place on a neutral seamless background (see above). Find a place in your home/studio that gets the most natural light. We want touse natural light because it helps prevent images from taking on a yellow or blue tint, which can happen with fluorescent lighting, and provides much more even lighting.
2. Set up your iphone camera: Using a tripod will work best, but you can hold it if you don’t have one.
3. Prep the camera settings: You also have to ensure that your settings are ready and fine-tuned. Turning on the Grid feature, for instance, will help you ensure the lines aren’t crooked. Here’s how to do it.
a. Launch your Settings.
b. Go to the Camera.
c. Switch on the Grid option.
d. Close the Settings and open your iPhone camera app
4. Double check that you are holding your smartphone camera so that the middle of the artwork is parallel with the camera lens. Let the grid on the viewfinder of your camera guide you.On your viewfinder, you will see two crosshairs—a yellow one and a white one—if you’re not level with the easel’s angle. Adjust it until you only see one yellow crosshair. If you notice the edges are still curved, you must move further away from the artwork. Satisfied with the angle? Tap on the shutter button.
5. Don’t settle on one shot. Capture multiple photos and choose your best ones.The more options you have, the better you will feel after choosing your best photo since you’ve considered other similarly good picture
6. Edit your photo: If you’re not satisfied with the background of your artwork, then you should crop it. Just use the cropping tool on your iPhone.Here’s how to crop the artwork:
a. Tap Edit.
b. Select the Crop icon.
c. Dial to an angle until the edges straighten.
d. Pull the corners until you’re happy with its new size.
e. Tap Done.
Do you want more contrast? Exposure? Bolder colors? The following editing apps for the iPhone will help you improve your photo. Adobe Lightroom, SnapSeed, Moment app.
