Light Box Help

[Former_Member]

I recently purchased a light box on ebay ($35). I thought it would help make my pictures look better and my shop more cohesive. But I don't really like how they are turning out. Has anyone else had this issue? If anyone would like to take a peek I am open to opinions or suggestions. I only did the first few in my shop so far.I do not want to invest alot of time if it doens't look any better. Thanks :)

[Former_Member]

I think they look nice... very cohesive. You may try using a photo editing tool to lighten them up. Other that the slight darkness they look great to me :)

[Former_Member]

I tried the light box thing, but I found that natural light was always better, whenever I used the light box I found myself spending a good amount of time editing the pictures. The first few pictures in your shop (I am guessing you did with a light box?) look dark, try adjusting the exposure or the brightness. Good luck!

[Former_Member]

Yes, I thought they were looking dark too. I didn't expect that with the light box.

[MKuzPhotography]

You have the focus nailed, and you do a nice job with depth of field. But your exposure is too low. Bump up the exposure compensation in camera, and then adjust the "levels" in your editing software. Take a look at the histogram of these shots -- they will show a big void at both the low and the high end. That's why they look so flat. Use your levels adjustment to fix that.

You can read about histograms here:
http://gpix.wordpress.com/2010/06/24/histogram-help-2/

[Emariecreations]

Aside from them being slightly dark, I think they are fine. Try using a photo editing tool to lighten them or put the box in direct sunlight. That is what I do for a lot of my pictures and the direct sunshine works better than my lights.

[Former_Member]

I think light box works really well only with proper camera settings. So that the pictures look almost close to those which are taken under natural light. It took me a long time to learn which is the best setting (best for jewelry) You could see the difference in my pictures (the recent and older ones). Unfortunately i couldnt take pics during the day time..for some reasons. So i just went i bought the light tent on amazon. I think it solves my purpose. What do you think of this picture?
http://www.etsy.com/listing/93447934/antiqued-brass-hoop-earrings-brass
You definitely need a minimum editing with light tent. Atleast cropping. So that those tent edges are cropped.

[Former_Member]

BTW..would like to know your the settings which you took the pictures.
They look really good. The details are well captured. And you have tried from all possible angles. Only thing is ..they can be a little more brighter. Very little.
Otherwise..your pictures are good :)
DO you use any lights on the sides and/or top?

[spacefem]

I have the same problem with my lightbox! I sometimes wonder if it's my cheap camera, but reading this thread about how everyone else does post-editing, well now I don't feel so bad.

I open my photos in GIMP and add +50 brightness & contrast.

I worry about them looking "photoshopped" and oversaturated sometimes.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/93937908/birds-5in-wallet-card-holder-coin-purse

[ChantelandMe]

I built a cheapy lightbox last night and then posted this listing -

http://www.etsy.com/listing/93875273/checkbook-cover-checkbook-holder-womens

I did still have to work on the levels a bit.

What kind of lightbulbs are you using? Are you using daylight bulbs? How many are you using?

I see some shadowing on the edges of the photos in that listing. I think I need to get my camera farther into the box to get rid of those - it's my only thought right now on it.

[Former_Member]

Jaya, Your pic looks great it's nice and bright like I wanted for mine. My light box has a large light on top. My camera is a Sony Cybershot I purchased it a few months ago and it automatically picks the setting based on lighting and distance. I am not even sure if I can manually change the setting because I have never needed to before. Normally it takes excellent photos so this just seems like something I will need to edit on my computer.


Here is a link to the ebay listing if anyone wants to check out the light box I purchased: http://www.ebay.com/itm/PRO-WOODEN-PHOTO-LIGHT-BOX-PHOTOGRAPHY-STUDIO-TENT-KIT-W-PHOTO-BULB-LSW11-/2...

[Former_Member]

I agree with Maria that natural light is a lot better than any artificial light. Whatever you do, try to shoot all the photos under the same light. That will help keep things cohesive. Also, I would use a neutral background for all products, as you did with the bracelets. Let us know how it's going.

[Former_Member]

Sent you a convo. :)

[EZCraftingStore]

I made my light box. All you need is a decent cardboard box. Cut out two of the sides (the longest sides) leaving about two inches all the way around the sides. Your are cutting out the center of the three sides.So pretty much it looks like you have a frame on three sides, one of the short sides( that will be the top). Take some wax paper and tape it over the three separate openings. Then line the inside of the box with wax paper, the best you can. Don't do the inside frames again because you only need one layer of paper. You stand the box up so the short end with wax paper is at the top. You need at least two lights. One for the top and one for a side, preferably three lights so you have one for each side and the top. Take your pictures. I use the Windows photo gallery. I adjust the lighting if I need to so I can get the actual color, and I crop most of the pictures. So, maybe you just need to use some lights all around the box. Then crop your pictures if you need to.

[MKuzPhotography]

If you're shooting small items, you can do it with a single bulb:

http://gpix.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/a-shot-in-the-dark/

[Former_Member]

I hope I am not hijacking the thread, but I feel a little silly to start a whole thread just for one question.

So, this is probably a stupid question, but if you have a bended piece of paper as your background, how do you stop your items from sliding down to the bottom if I want a front on shot?

[ChantelandMe]

Fukuii,

The box I chose was pretty tall so the paper doesn't fit all the way to the top. So what happens (in either situation) is the paper is curved in the back but still lays flat on the 'floor' of the box. There is no sliding or problem. The curve gives a nice seamless background. Does that make sense?