Using a Light Tent

[Former_Member]

I recently bought a light tent and have just now tried using it for the first time. It's completely white, and pretty big, fold up, and I put a daylight bulb shining down from above (outside the tent). I am disappointed in the photos, however, They don't seem to be anywhere near as bright as the photos I took out in the sun. I thought they would be brighter and clearer, but not so. See the best photos from the tent here:
http://s965.photobucket.com/albums/ae136/pallyndrome/Album2/

And photos I took in the sun can be seen on these items:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/88482336/blue-handmade-earrings-unique-earrings
http://www.etsy.com/listing/88559881/purple-bracelet-beads-bracelet-assorted
http://www.etsy.com/listing/88556865/black-necklace-lava-rock-necklace-lava

What am I doing wrong?

[BeMyBee]

I don't know - but I'll be checking this thread to see what tips you get - I'm in the same boat. I just can't seem to get my photos bright enough.

I wonder if just some photo editing would brighten these up for you? It's helped me a bit but my photos still need work!

[Former_Member]

I tried making one of the photos brighter in photoshop, but it made it look grainy.

[designedbyval]

Did any directions come with your light box? I have 3 light sources with my lightbox. I also brighten my photos using Picasa 3 (free from Google) - PhotoShop would work too.

@ Hannah - If brightening made your photos look grainy then you may be too close when you take your photos.

[LeesEarringBoutique]

Ah, the frustrations we have in trying to get good photos!!
I recently got a light tent also. I use one light in front and one on both sides. Sometimes they are gorgeous and other times not! Some stone colors are easier than others. I use Picasa to edit them which helps alot. I recently used Fotofuse to make the background really white. That works awesome, but I sometimes lose the true color of the gold and silver wire.

Looking for tips from anyone who has mastered this with a camera that isn't very sophisticated.

[Former_Member]

thank you, I will have to look into picasa (or try more things with photoshop) and fotofuse. And I will have to think about getting more lights (worried about money and space for storage issues). And thanks for the tips about getting too close - I have been adviced to zoom in from a distance rather than get closer, so I'll have to remember that.

[JewelleryByJora]

I got a light box for my birthday and it came with 2 lamps - I've added a 3rd so that now I have light from the sides and one from above. I get similar results to Hannah's photos for the most part but then editing them makes them ok (I think!).
http://www.etsy.com/listing/93744356/beaded-heart-ring-black-and-gold-delica
http://www.etsy.com/listing/92189873/chunky-beaded-bracelet-bronze-sparkly
Setting the ISO on your camera to 100 (ish) makes the photo less grainy to begin with so maybe that helps reduce grainyness when lightening - I always have mine set at 80 and have never had a problem that I'm aware of :o/ (I have a basic digital camera and I just have to set it to 'program (P)' in order to be able to change the settings. Setting it to manual makes it do all kind of weird things, lol!).
Increasing the brightness on your camera to +0.5 or +1 also helps sometimes, although sometimes it just washes everything out so experiment with each item.

[Former_Member]

The thing about a light box is you still need plenty of light. I have one and I set mine next to a bright window with 2 side lamps and usually one above. I think of the box as more of a vessel into which I can direct all the light. OTT lights are really great for light boxes, by the way. You can find them online or I think Hobby Lobby carries them or they did a year or so ago.

[AnneLondezGlass]

What Jeni said. You need a lot of light. I use a smaller one for photographing my glass beads and I have 3 heavy duty painter's lights, one on top and one on each side.

[ChantelandMe]

I'm just getting started with a lightbox and think my photos look better (I hope). I use 3 daylight bulbs; one on top and one on each side. I do still need to do some brightening in photoshop. I use the levels controls and feel like I'm not losing my colors as much as just adjusting the 'brightness'.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/94175658/makeup-bag-cosmetic-bag-lingerie-bag

http://www.etsy.com/listing/94353027/fabric-checkbook-cover-for-duplicates

I do get some vingetting which you can see best on that second listing. For the most part I've gotten use to it. When possible I crop it out or keep lightening the levels until it begins to affect my item colors.

One tip I have is to turn off all room lights so you aren't competing with different bulb colors.

[ChantelandMe]

hmmmm, I find it interesting that I thought my backgrounds were white, but compared to Rachael's above my backgrounds have a blue tint.

[DianeTurpinDesigns]

I think trying multiple light sources might help. It should help diffuse some of the dark shadows that the single light is casting.

Also, if your camera has any of the following settings, they can help you too. You may need to search out your manual to see where they are and how to adjust them.

-White Balance --if you can set a custom white balance that would be the route to go. If not, try some of the different preset options to see if any give you better results.

-Since you are not shooting a moving object, set your ISO as low as possible AND use a tripod. The lower ISO will reduce grainy-ness. You may need a tripod to avoid blurriness at the lower ISO.

-If you are getting really close to your object, use a macro setting if available.

-If you have exposure adjustments, try using some of those. This is getting kind of technical, but some cameras have a +/- button that will allow you to kind of override the default setting for the camera so that the picture is lighter or darker than what the camera thinks is optimal. Sometimes going to the + side (.5, 1.0, etc) will brighten your photo without having to take it to photo editing.

Lastly, google the web for tutorials on taking better photos. There is a wealth of free information out there about taking better pictures. It may not apply directly to product photography, but any knowledge about better using your camera will help you in the long run.

Happy Snapping!

[Former_Member]

i do have a light tent and do not use my lamps at all. For some reason,the shadows disrupt the final image. I try taking pictures on a really sunny day. But I put the blinds down and keep the table really close to the window. I take the pictures and then tweek it on picnic or fotoflexor.

[Former_Member]

Thanks for all the info! I am also battling my photos right now. I tried a light box this weekend and Picasa. I'm still trying to figure it all out. I take the photo and it looks great and bright on the view back on my camera. But once I get it onto the computer they look really dark. Ugh! Maybe a light box isn't the way to go with scarves and half a manequin

[seemomster]

It may be all the white. Your camera may be setting the (effective) exposure dimmer because it thinks there is too much light...when really it's just all the white. I have to have mine set at +1 to get my exposures right...and I STILL end up brightening in picasa a bit...

[AnneLondezGlass]

The camera screen is not good enough to make sure your pics are good enough, Over the years, I've adopted the bracketing strategy, which makes for a lot less aggravation with exposure, This mieans that my camera is set up to take 3 pics each time, one at the exposure it deems correct, one underexposed and one overexposed. Different colors need different exposures so it save time even if it does increase the storage space required.

Re: shadows, it helps to have light coming from all directions, which is the point of having several light sources.

As to vignetting, one way is to shoot your image larger than you need to, i.e. not to take a close-up of your item, and to crop it later. You do need to find the right balance between the definition you need for your item and the amount of vignetting you can leave with.

[AnneLondezGlass]

Melanie, you do have a point, which is why I shoot on a light grey background and not white. White reflects too much light, creates hot spots and makes for wrong exposures.

[seemomster]

Yes...but my white background is my grandmother's linen napkins...and the look works for my stuff...I need to figure out how to get my camera to bracket automatically. I know it CAN...just haven't figured it out. Right now I'm changing it manually...

which takes forever.

[seemomster]

AAAAAND--it turns out my camera doesn't have a bracketing feature...next camera! (It's good to know all that DIY bracketing was necessary!)

[Former_Member]

light boxes are..light diffusers they make it so you dont end up with Light bulb reflections in your pieces.

Personally Ive found that Nothing beat natural sun light.
I only drag the light box out with the lightest color glass.(like I've got a purple that just looks clear in the photos if I dont use a light box)

[ashleynchl]

I am using a light box and just like Kristen (above) said, my my photos look really bright and the backgrounds are white on the screen of my camera but when I upload to my computer, the pictures are dark. I usually try to brighten them on Picasa. Sometimes it works and sometimes it leaves the picture looking too grainy or over exposed. I'm not a pro at editing but I'm trying to learn.

[Untwistedsister]

I like the ones you took with the lightbox better than the sun because of all the shadows in the sunny photos. Remember to turn off your flash when using the lightbox. I always have to almost overexpose my photos before I upload them to etsy or they come out too dark. I haven't tried it yet but there's suppose to be a way to adjust the white balance on my camera.

[Former_Member]

You need multiple light from outside into the tent. You still have harsh shadows, set the light to come from the side, not the top, Use a light on each side of the tent.

Do not use your auto exposure.

Your photos are underexposed, use a manual setting, a slower shutter speed and/or a larger aperture setting.

Bracket your photos to see the difference the changes make, that is take several photos just changing the exposure each time,

use a tripod.


You need to do all of these things to get great photos,

Best regards

Gary

[Former_Member]

You need more than one light over the object. One goes over the top of the tent, and the other two go on each side at a 45 degree angle pointing to objects. Do not use any flashlight or sunlight. Close your windows before using the tent. I've built myself one over the weekend and can't wait to photograph everything in my shop again and add new items that were waiting for better lighting. There are tons of videos on YouTube about how to use a photo light tent. That's where I learned all this stuff. Let me know when you get better results and good luck!

[Former_Member]

I have never taken good photos with my light box either. I'd love to try some of these tips.