Hi there,
Well I've had a couple of images accepted from my first attempt with a light tent so I am quite pleased. I mostly take shots of landscapes and nature but I thought I would give something new a try. I bought a very cheap light tent and lights so I wasn't sure that my set up would be good enough but the end results weren't too bad.
I found it quite difficult to get the correct white balance and I think this would be improved if I invest in some proper light bulbs...the ones I was using gave off an awful colour cast. I also decided to make it easier for myself by using my canon ixus rather than my dslr!
I think next time I try I will invest in some better lighting and also plan what I am going to shoot in advance. I just threw a few things into the box just as test shots really and should take the time to plan different scenarios before I actually set up.
I don't think these shots are my best by far; but not too bad for a first attempt. I must say though that I prefer to be outside and shooting nature rather than having my head stuck in a tiny light tent with the bulbs burning my face...think I definitely need better lighting!
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Cleaper
Thanks for your help! I think I will invest in Photoshop Elements if it does have a RAW convertor. I will firstly try out my olympus software just in case it is up to the job...afterall it was free with my dslr! Cheers!
Niagaragirl
When I bought a little Olympus pocket cam for fun a couple of years ago, it came with raw converter software right from Olympus. It was called Camedia I think. You probably got something similar - I see your camera is listed as Olympus. I remember trying it and it was a bit wonky, but it did a good job. My main complaint was the adjustment for the color temp. It was hard to get "fine" adjustments. I compared against Photoshop, and in most cases, PS was just a little bit better. But on a few tricky pics, the Olympus software outperformed PS. I use PS CS2, but PS Elements has a Raw converter that has basically the same capabilities. And PS ELements, at a muck lower prce than full blown Photoshop, may give you some additional processing tools you don't have now. Good luck!
Cleaper
That's a very good point Noonie - I haven't used the software that came with the Olympus - I think I will check it out later! Bit silly of me really...but I usually just use a standard picture editor for exposure adjustments etc. I really should invest in something better. You've got a really nice portfolio so I can't believe that you take a lot of useless ones!! I know I do but that's what keeps it interesting and makes me always want to improve.
Noonie
Looks like you're on the way to a new game now. I love the outdoors, too and I haven't bought lighting yet, but I do work inside with the daylight in my shop to get some other pics. I just try everything without knowing what I'm doing and I take a lot of useless photos! My first expensive ($500) camera was an Olympus and it came with software but I didn't use it, did yours come with something you could experiment with so you could try the raw setting?
Cleaper
Thanks Niagaragirl. I will look out for the bulbs you suggest. I have not tried shooting in raw yet but I have been thinking of changing to this method for some time. Do I need to have a very good processing package such as photoshop for this? I do have a copy of a raw convertor that I might try.
Niagaragirl
See if you can find daylight balanced curly fluorescents with a 5700 degree or similar color temperature at your local discount mart. In UK, may cost a few dollars more than standard bulbs. They are prolific here in the USA. Also shoot Raw and then it's ine click in the raw processor to set the white balance. Much easier than trying to muck around with a camera jpeg. Hope this helps.
Cmarshall717
Not bad at all! And you know what they say, if you come away with even one decent shot, you've been successful. Congratulations for expanding your horizons and shooting differently. Hmmmmm? I should listen to myself, too!
Cleaper
Thanks for your nice comments! I will look out for flo-daylight bulbs. The lamps that came with my tent are not great and the bulbs are terrible! Unfortunately I don't have photoshop or anything so I have to try and get the readings as correct as I can so that I don't have to rely too much on postprocessing. Out of the batch I took on this day there was only a very small percentage that were usable.
Dcwcreations
Cleaper,
Remember you don't have to spend a fortune on bulbs. Some people think the flo- daylight bulb is the best color after they warm up and easiest to get a good white balane and exposure on.
Nature is a lot more fun to do but to balance out the port. some object shots are in need. Besides we need something for the rainy days.
Great shots by the way.