Lighting for Photography

[Denver Road Doug]

I want to work on getting a little better consistency when photographing n-scale models.  (mostly rolling stock)  I've taken some decent photos but it seems I can never reproduce good results easily.  I think the biggest part of that is lighting so I want to get some advice from the collective.

Here's what I have...
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And here's what I figure I need to be shooting for...
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So I guess I would like suggestions for 2 or 3 lights like are shown.  Not sure if it can be done with some type of LED lighting but that would be preferred to keep heat and power draw in check.  Money is not "no object" but if there's a good product at an appropriate value-point I don't have a problem spending a little more.  (but the $600 for that second setup is way out of my budget.  I would be surprised to have to spend over $100 for two lights.)

I have the Ott-Lite show in the photo and can still use that as the overhead so perhaps I can get by with two to supplement that, but I'm not sold on keeping the Ott-Lite as part of the solution if it's not a good idea.  I typically use another gooseneck lamp I have that I lay on the side directly in front, and prop it up at the "right" angle so that's where it's kind of a crapshoot.  I have also used foil placed in front of the model to get lighting underneath the model and other tricks to diffuse light, reduce shadows, etc.   I just figure it's not magic...I just need tips on what exactly I need to do and I'll do it. I do have a tripod but could probably upgrade it as well.

Thanks in advance for any advice.   I'm not trying to go over-the-top with this....just want to  get a "little better" and get some consistency.

[mmagliaro]

Well, what you've depicted there will work, but I have some suggestions.

First, you will need a way to control the relative light levels of those 3 lamps.  I usually find
that any direct overhead light is too strong for the top of the model, and just adds alot of
unwanted shine and glare.  Plus, it blows out the exposure, meaning that by the time I get
enough light into the front and undercarriage (especially on a loco or freight car), the topside is
way too bright.

To that end, I have a little jerry rigged thing made from dowels that looks kind of like a football field goalpost,
that hold a plain sheet of white paper, but holds it horizontally.   I place this over the model, so that the direct
overhead light is muted and reduced in intensity.  It is also spread through the white paper and softened.

I shine one light from overhead, and just one from the front, usually up and to the right or the left.
You can use two lights coming in from the front.  It would probably light more evenly, but for these little models,
I think one does the job.

The other parts you show are about what I use: basically a big white folded card that provides a white base
and a white backdrop.  I have shot with sky backdrops and other things, but I like the white the best.

As for the actual lights, heck, I'm just using regular incandescent bulbs in those cheap metal dish clip-up reflectors
that you find in the hardware store.   I use a 75 or 100w (like you can still buy those!  ha!).
Since I'm shooting with a tripod and a time exposure, that's plenty of light to get a good photo in 3 to 5 seconds depending
on the object.

On my "on the layout" shots (the ones I take "seriously" when I'm pitching them to a magazine), I actually
just use the room lighting, which is incandescent up in the ceiling, and I use one clip-up light to aim some into the scene
or model from the front.  Again, if things are too bright on the top, I will actually just hold a sheet of white paper
over the model to soften that top light.

That's my $.02
Bear in mind, I am in no way  professional photographer, nor have I had any real training in photography,
other than reading articles on photographing trains over the years.  But I think my method is working for
me good enough to get photos into magazines so I'm happy with it.

Oh, one final thing: white balance.  To be honest, I totally depend on the camera's "auto white balance" to
set that right.   About the only thing I "process" in a photo editor after the fact is to crop the picture,
and to correct the lens curvature distortion.  The latter is especially important on close-up macro shots.
Gimp has a decent lens distortion correction which  I apply to strighten out the warped/curved image that you get
due to the barrel distortion in the lens.

[tom mann]

Check into a light tent.  I'll post more later.

[Denver Road Doug]

Check into a light tent.  I'll post more later.

Something like this work?
http://www.wayfair.com/Square-Perfect-Photography-Light-Tent-Photo-Cube-Softbox-SQPF1004.html

That seems like a great idea and it folds up too.  Price is right.   Looking forward to your additional thoughts, thanks.

[tom mann]

If you diffuse the light with a light tent, you can get away with two lights (placed on each side of the tent).  The light bounces around in the tent to the point that I've never needed a top light, and never had an issue with shadows. 

Also, get some nice 5000K bulbs: http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/spiral.html. They will reduce the need to do any color correction, since the colors of the model will be shown naturally.  Just some basic fixtures with reflectors would work just fine.

You'll need a tripod, since your camera settings (ISO+Aperture) will be adjusted so that each photo might have a 2+ second exposure time.

And this is what I bought a few years ago:  http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/20eztasttwol.html 

[BCR 570]

Check into a light tent.

+ 1:



=




Tim

[Denver Road Doug]

Cool, great recommendations.  Thank you.

What about this?
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=1082596&Q=&is=REG&A=details

[tom mann]

I really would like to see a photo of something taken with it.  The lights look a little small, and I imagine that they would be like two spotlights shining through the sides.

[Denver Road Doug]

I really would like to see a photo of something taken with it.  The lights look a little small, and I imagine that they would be like two spotlights shining through the sides.

Yes, the more I researched the reviews were stating the lighting was weak.

Here's another...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Table-Top-Studio-Lights-with-Photo-Tent-Kit-/330955616191?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4d0e7defbf
Has the similar bulbs as you were mentioning...might be a good starting point.

[tom mann]

Well, the housings look too small to be any good!  Kinda looks like a knockoff of what I have!

[Denver Road Doug]

Well, the housings look too small to be any good!  Kinda looks like a knockoff of what I have!

OK, back to the drawing board.   Was just trying to avoid a $200 solution but I guess I may have to end up there.

[Bendtracker1]

Doug,
When I was looking for one I found a great video on Youtube, which of course I can't find now. 

Anyway, they used 1/2" PVC with several different connectors that wound allowing the tent stand to fold up for easy storage.
I did find this video, which is very similar to the one I first seen.

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For the material I used several old window shears that laid over the PVC frame, I made several so I could choose the amount of light I could diffuse with more or less layers. 

For the lights, I went to Home Dumpo and found some small aluminum work lights for $6 each


Then I found some the 5000k CFL bulbs.



Then I clamped them to the tent frames, later I made some quick cheap 3/4" plywood bases to clamp them to.

I think I spent under $40 total.
Do a search on Youtube for DYI PVC light tent

[daniel_leavitt2000]

This is kind of funny. I use the same exact setup as Tim, down to the light tent and little flood lights. I replaced the factory bulbs with 5000k LED fixtures and it makes a world of difference. I also use those cheap aluminum clamp jobs Allan uses when I need a lot of light in a large project.

[Scottl]

This is a very interesting thread.

What is the thinking behind a white background, vs what Tim has?  The latter makes more sense to me because the white creates the potential for such strong over exposure. 

[peteski]

This is a very interesting thread.

What is the thinking behind a white background, vs what Tim has?  The latter makes more sense to me because the white creates the potential for such strong over exposure.

Sometimes plain white background gives the desired effect - to have a pure white surrounding the model.  When published the model appears to be sitting right on the magazine's page.