CosmeticsPhotographyinaNutshellVichySoundshellSimplestepsforphotographingcosmeticsAsyoumayknowbynow,cosmeticsisverydifficulttophotographbecauseitreflectsinmanycasesupto99%ofthelightisreceives.Itisveryshiny,highlypolishedandaboveallthisitmaycontaincolorstonesordiamondsthatmakethejobevenharder.Inmanycases,photographingapieceofcosmeticsisliketakingapictureofamirror–youwillseeallkindofitemsbeingreflectedintothepiece–thelights,thecamera,yourself,thetableetc.Alsoifyoutrytouseyournewdigitalcameratodothejob,twomajorthingsmayhappen.Ifyouuseaflash,youwilleitherwashouttheitem(overilluminated)oritwillbeunderilluminatedwithlotsofdarkareasandunevenlightingfromonesidetotheother.ThesolutiontoCosmeticsphotographyistheuseofanenclosedlightingsystem.Thereasonsaremany.Theenclosedsystemwrapsevenandbalancedlightaroundtheentireproductyou’rephotographing.Theadvantagesincludeanevendistributionoflight,consistentnaturallighting,eliminationofglare,andilluminationofhardtoreachspots.TipsforPhotographingCosmetics:1.Useaclosedphotographysetupwithsoftwrap-aroundcontinuouslighting2.Performacustomwhitebalanceaccordingtothelightyouareusing3.Besureyouhavesetyourcameratomanualmode4.Ifyouaregoingtophotographringsorbands,setyourmaximumaperturetothehighestf/stopinordertogetthemaximumdepthoffield.5.Turnofftheflashonyourcamera,andifyoucan,connectthecameratothewallusingapoweradapter.Thiswillensurethatyounotrunoutofbatteriesduringtheshootingsession.2.TheBasics:KeyelementsincosmeticsphotographyAsyoumayknow,cosmeticsisoneofthehardestproductstophotographbecauseofthenatureofit'scomponents.Themetals,preciousstones,diamondsandotherelementsthatmostfinecosmeticsismadeupof,havereflectivequalitiesthatcaneasilyshowreflections,shadowsandhardspotsinphotographsiftherighttoolsarenotusedTherefore,understandingthenatureofcosmeticsandobtainingtherighttoolsforphotographingitisessentialforproducinghighqualitycosmeticsphotographs.Inouropinion,herearethesixmostimportantelementsincosmeticsphotography:1.Continuousnaturaldaylightlighting:Toevenlyreproducethecolorsincosmetics2.Diffusedlighting:Toeliminateshadowsandhardspots3.WhiteBalanceadjustment:Toadaptyourcameratothelightingenvironmentusedtophotograph4.DepthofField&Focus:Togetasharpandclearimage5.ShutterSpeed/Exposuretime:Tocontrolthelightnessanddarknessofyourimage6.Stablecameramounting(tripod):Toensureyourcameraisstabletoavoidablurredphoto.1.ContinuousNaturalDaylightLightingCosmeticsisverydifficulttophotographbecauseit抯shinyhighlypolishedsurfacereflects,inmanycases,upto99%ofthelightitreceives.Ifyouuseflashphotography,you抣lusuallyendupwithglaresandhotspots.Thekeyistousecontinuousnaturallightwhichhastheabilitytoevenlyandaccuratelyreproduceallthespectacularcolorsfoundinthedifferentelementsofcosmetics.Therefore,forphotographingcosmeticswewillbeusingfluorescentdaylightlight.Remember:allofourphotographylightingsystemscontaincontinuousfluorescentlightinginatleastthebottom/platform,rightandleftpanelsofthebox.Otherlightingsystems,liketheMK"TheBox"alsocontainlightontheback,topanddoors.OtherfeaturesincludeLEDlighting,rotatingplatforms,halogenlightingandmore.2.DiffusedLightingWhenilluminatingcosmetics,youhavetomakesurenevertoexposeittolightdirectly,asdirectlightwillbereflectedonthecosmetics,andwillcreatehotspotsandshadows.Whatyouneedtodoisexposecosmeticsthroughdiffusedlighting,whichislightthat...
