All About Images
Taking, Editing and Resizing
Presented by
TIPS AND GUIDELINES FOR PHOTOGRAPHING, SCANNING AND UPLOADING ART IMAGES TO THE COMPUTER
Photographing Your
Original Art
In a perfect world we would all be
wealthy enough to employ professional photographers to take high
quality, and high resolution, images of our art.
In a perfect world the sun would shine conveniently through the sparkling clean window at just the right angle for a perfect shot.
In a perfect world the sun would shine just bright enough and the shadows would fall perfectly, on the day we need it.
In a perfect world the sun would shine conveniently through the sparkling clean window at just the right angle for a perfect shot.
In a perfect world the sun would shine just bright enough and the shadows would fall perfectly, on the day we need it.
In the real world, we have to do the
best we can with the equipment we can afford, with the weather and
the environment we have at the time, acknowledge the shortfalls
without letting them make us neurotic, and just concentrate on
getting the best shot possible.
Tips for the Process
of Photographing
1. Photographing at least three frames of each art piece is advisable: one at normal exposure, one at an over-exposed setting, and one at an under-exposed setting. This is called “bracketing”. When you’ve downloaded the images onto your computer, you can then decide which exposure you are most comfortable working with, and delete the other two bracketed shots if you wish.
I have to admit that I take quite a few more in case of shake and blurring. I also like quite a few detail shots, up close, as close as I can.
I have to admit that I take quite a few more in case of shake and blurring. I also like quite a few detail shots, up close, as close as I can.
2. Remember to photograph your
paintings before you frame them behind glass! Trying to
eliminate shadows and reflections from the glass while you take the
photograph, is impossible.
If photographing your painting behind glass is unavoidable, do not use the flash facility on your camera. Rather make sure the piece is in sufficient natural light for the photograph to be taken. Also, check for reflections in the glass, and remove as many of the reflected items from the area as possible.
Eliminating as many reflections as possible from the glass of a framed painting sounds like an impossible job. It's a long and fiddly job, but not impossible. The small the painting the easier it is and here is how you can try:
With the help of large sheets of cardboard, paper, or even bed sheets, create a "box" over the top and sides of the painting. Make sure to let in as much light as possible as the aim is not to make it dark, purely to create a setting where there is as little as possible which is able to reflect on the glass.
If photographing your painting behind glass is unavoidable, do not use the flash facility on your camera. Rather make sure the piece is in sufficient natural light for the photograph to be taken. Also, check for reflections in the glass, and remove as many of the reflected items from the area as possible.
Eliminating as many reflections as possible from the glass of a framed painting sounds like an impossible job. It's a long and fiddly job, but not impossible. The small the painting the easier it is and here is how you can try:
With the help of large sheets of cardboard, paper, or even bed sheets, create a "box" over the top and sides of the painting. Make sure to let in as much light as possible as the aim is not to make it dark, purely to create a setting where there is as little as possible which is able to reflect on the glass.
3. Leave a healthy border of space
around the art piece in the photograph so that you have room for
altering and straightening the angle of the image during the
computer editing process.
4. Make sure the image is straight
and upright in the viewfinder. It’s very easy to make the
mistake of photographing a painting at a slight angle, which is very
difficult to correct during the editing process on the computer. To
help you to do this, while you are looking through the viewfinder,
check that the border of space around the item is even all the way
around, and make sure the camera is being held straight. A camera
tripod is a great help. If the border of space around your painting
is wider at the top than the bottom, then your painting is leaning
backwards, and vice versa.
Here’s
an example of a badly held camera, which means that the image would
have to be severely cropped and misrepresented; followed by an image
of a better-held camera, aimed from directly above the painting,
which is on the floor, resulting in an image that hardly needs any
cropping at all. The good image just needs slight straightening and
the dark floor cropped away.
Badly angled photograph needing too much cropping
Well angled photograph needing only a minumum of cropping
If your painting is resting at
an angle on an easel during the photographic session, use a suitable
prop behind the painting to ensure that it faces the camera
vertically. Photographing a painting at an angle will alter the
perspective and cause a fair amount of the painting to be cropped
during the editing process. The first image below is not a good
angle, the second image is much better, and the third image shows
how when the painting was photographed in the upright position it
needs only a small amount of cropping.
Bad angle on easel for photography
Well-propped angle on easel for good photography
(Using husband's hand and patience! But a suitable
prop like a rolled piece of fabric or book is fine too)
Image showing a good, vertical angle for the
painting to be photographed at.
Check your light source. Make
sure the light is falling evenly onto the painting and not just from
one side. Check where your shadow is falling too and make sure it's not on the painting.
For best results while taking
photographs outside, slightly overcast days are better than very
sunny days. On sunny days, experiment with taking different shots in
the sunlight and in the shade. Direct sunshine can flatten colour.
Important tip :
Make sure you know how to get the best high resolution
photograph from your digital camera. At a later stage, you may
want to reproduce your image in a magazine, or you may want to
produce limited edition prints of a painting. Printers work with a
resolution of no less than 300 dpi (dots per inch).
Although it’s necessary to take a high resolution image right from the start, it is often during the process of downloading the image from the camera to your computer, that high resolution is lost. Take the time to chat to a printer or to a camera specialist, and learn how to take high-resolution photographs with your camera – and how best to download them to your computer. Do not assume that it will automatically take the highest resolution image and also do not assume that in the downloading process the high resolution will be maintained. It is essential you seek professional guidance during your learning curve.
I have found that taking the memory disk from your camera and inserting it into the computer for downloading purposes is where it is possible to lose resolution.
I have found a USB cord linked to the computer and to the camera is the best method of downloading images and retaining high resolution.
Although it’s necessary to take a high resolution image right from the start, it is often during the process of downloading the image from the camera to your computer, that high resolution is lost. Take the time to chat to a printer or to a camera specialist, and learn how to take high-resolution photographs with your camera – and how best to download them to your computer. Do not assume that it will automatically take the highest resolution image and also do not assume that in the downloading process the high resolution will be maintained. It is essential you seek professional guidance during your learning curve.
I have found that taking the memory disk from your camera and inserting it into the computer for downloading purposes is where it is possible to lose resolution.
I have found a USB cord linked to the computer and to the camera is the best method of downloading images and retaining high resolution.
Scanning or professional
scanning of your artwork is another option to consider. Do check the
disk supplied by a professional scanner before you leave their
premises, as sometimes the colour of the image is not correct or the image is too grainy.
The Editing Process
This section assumes that you have
already downloaded your photographic images from the digital camera onto the computer, at a high resolution. It also assumes you are familiar with a graphics program (eg. Photoshop or Gimp) to digitally edit the images.
From the three bracketed images,
study them all closely and choose the image that most closely
resembles the true colours of the art piece. Expect colour
differences.
Once you have spent long enough
studying all the images, delete those you have chosen not to
use, to prevent confusion later.
Important tip : Save the chosen image in a file, or
directory, where it will remain unedited. This is a safety measure in
case you are not satisfied with your picture editing and wish to
start the process all over again.
Make sure the image is at the
correct angle. If not, use the “Rotate” tool, or the “Transform”
tool if you have one, on the program you are using. The Transform
tool is very useful for straightening images one degree at a time.
However, it cannot correct an image which has been photographed
badly, with the painting leaning forward or backward.
Using the “Select” tool,
crop the image as neatly as possible. If you can, eliminate the
picture frame from the image, if the painting has already been
framed. It is always best to upload images without the frame, on the internet. A buyer may like the painting but not the frame – which
may cause you to lose a sale.
If necessary, edit the image
using the “Brightness and Contrast” and the “Colour Balance”
tools - but don't go overboard and keep everything as close to the original as possible.
Save the image separately to the
original unedited version. It is advisable to save the image both as
a .tif file and again as a .jpg or .jpeg file. If you want to make
limited edition prints, printers often prefer to work with .tif files. Jpeg
files are often requested for art submissions to galleries.
Resize the image for convenient
emailing to 72 dpi and 640 x 480 pixels. I recommend a free download program called Irfanview for resizing images. I have used it for years! www.Irfanview.com. Save it for a fourth time in a directory for images at 72 dpi.
If you wish to create thumbnail
size images for a website, resize the large edited image again at
150 pixels or smaller/larger, depending on your requirements, also
at 72 dpi. This means you are saving your image for the fifth time.
Tip
: It is not advisable to resize an image from an already
resized edition. Perform all the resizing operations using the first,
large, edited image.
This is how I label the Files in which I save the various sizes of one image:
I open a File in the name of the image eg Pink Rose
Within that file I open the following files:
Original Pics
Edited Version jpeg
Edited Version tif
Small Version
Thumbnails
I open a File in the name of the image eg Pink Rose
Within that file I open the following files:
Original Pics
Edited Version jpeg
Edited Version tif
Small Version
Thumbnails
Scanning your
Original Art
If your art is conducive to scanning
instead of photographing, it will allow you to file good quality
images suitable for printing. It’s best to scan work at as high a
dpi resolution as possible. Between 600 and 700 dpi is good, if your
scanning program and your computer memory will allow it. Higher than
700 dpi, if you have the memory space on your computer, and if it can
handle it! No lower than 300 dpi is acceptable and quite adequate.
Most domestic scanners will scan up to an A4 size, some up to an A3
size, image. For larger sizes you need to find a professional printer
who has the facility to scan much larger pieces.
If you plan on producing *Giclees
from your work, speak to your printer (the man, not the machine!)
first, and find out at what definition he would like to work from, so
you can make the best arrangement for your work to be scanned or
photographed. It’s a good idea to be very familiar with your
scanning program before you speak to him, to avoid mind-boggling
confusion. Study your scanning program, and make notes to take with
you, in regard to dpi sizing as well as paper sizing. Familiarise
yourself with the terms “.jpg or .jpeg” and “.tif or .tiff”.
Otherwise, have the program open in front of you while you speak to
him.
* Giclees are high quality prints
where pigment is used instead of inks, to create the image. Inks have
a tendency to fade over a period of approximately twenty-five years,
whereas pigment has a life of approximately seventy-five years or
more.
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