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Do-It-Yourself Photography
Photographing your own work is a skill that any artist can learn and master with the right setting and the right photography equipment. The most important factor is consistency. Here are some tips:
- Setting - Set up a clear area against a neutral background, preferably an area that you can use again in the future with out difference.
- Lighting - It's preferable not to rely on natural light that can change from time of day, or day to day. Use natural coloured studio lights. Their setttings and position can be same each time to give all your photos consistent lighting.
- Production - When shooting, be organized. Have a production-line so artworks can be moved in and out of place easily, with each artwork measure it, take your photo/s (flash on, flash off, lighting alt2 etc) and then document it in writing too.
- Equipment - Use a tripod. Especially when shooting digitally. It also helps to keep photos consistent and can help in achieving a straight-on focal plain rather than looking down or up at a painting.
- Image Resolution. Images can be used for printing then as well as for websites. If you shoot in low resolution you may find you don't have the quality to print the photos very large.
If you have the interest in improving your Photography skills, you can always do a short course in photography. Local Community Colleges and some Art Education Centres often have affordable weekend workshops or evening courses than run during school terms.
Professional Photography
The best option if you have limited photography skills. If you require your artwork photographed to show prospective Art Galleries, Buyers or for Promotional Materials it is well worth the investment to have your artwork professionally photographed. See ART-SEARCH Australia for a list of Commercial Photographers. When hiring a photographer it's best to ask how & where they can work first. Transporting Artwork can be costly and risks damage. Also, ensure they can provide all your images on CD.
Documenting the Artwork
It makes sense that at the time of photographing your artwork you should document the artwork itself. It's easiest to use a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel to do this, or buy a columned note book.
Photo editing via computer
Popular photo editing software such as Adobe Photoshop have functions that enable to you brighten, lighten, saturate, or change the colour balance of a photo. You can also remove backgrounds, crop and rotate images etc. Sometimes simple 'tweaking' makes a world of difference in presentation.
Using the photos for Print
Shooting at a high resolution, generally 3mb and up, but preferably 8mb will enable you to easily reproduce the photo at a large size for a physical portfolio or poster. It will also enable you to print the photo in printed promotional material too. Printed material generally requires that images are at least 300dpi at presentation size.
Using photos on the Internet
A photo online needs only be 72dpi at presentation size, this is the most a computer screen can display. So if you have your artwork photographed for print, you'll always be able to scale them down for the internet no problem, but not in reverse. If you are using your photos on your website see: Online Image Tips.
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