Post pics here for critique - must have thick skin

BossDog

KnifeDogs.com & USAknifemaker.com Owner
Staff member
If you want to have your knife pics critiqued, post them here and ask for feedback.
Be ready to hear it if you ask for it.
 
You have three backgrounds. Get rid of two of them. (table, rug, black velvet)
use a lint roller on the black velvet.
try to eliminate the reflections in the bolster by moving lights, adjusting your tent or hand holding reflector cards (gray or blue cardboard) to block the reflections.
jpeg it a little less. There is a lot of color shift and artifacting in the blade steel from over compression.
 
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That last one I might of scaled down too much

It's the wrong side. Traditionally, knives are pictured makers mark side (face), which is the left side as you hold it.
You have shadows on every side of the knife. Rule of Thumbs (are all meant to be broken) is 2/3's of your light from the front, 1/3 highlight and behind with the shadow behind.
 
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One thing before this spins out of control. It was not my intent to critique every picture posted. It was my intent to solicit input from anyone/everyone on posted pictures. I am just kicking it off.
 
It's the wrong side. Traditionally, knives are pictured makers mark side (face), which is the left side as you hold it.
You have shadows on every side of the knife. Rule of Thumbs (are all meant to be broken) is 2/3's of your light from the front, 1/3 highlight and behind with the shadow behind.

Thank You, I will have to try playing with my lighting, I have a lot to learn on it.

So here is a funny story, I started off marking all my knives on this side, to me it seams logical to look at the knife from left to right like you read. So attention to the handle first then into the blade. I didn't find out that it was "wrong" until I had already produced a couple hundred knives :p As for now I think I will continue the way I have. I know it is different from everyone else but so am I. LOL I have thick skin so let me know what you think about that :biggrin: I may transition to the other side someday

It was really hard to capture the Mother-of-pearl's beauty and then the carbon fiber just looks dark. would love to be able to pick up on both.
 
MOP is crazy hard to photograph. I try and mostly fail. To get it done right, you will have to take multiple pictures and layer them. I use a strong LED flashlight to shoot the MOP and then regular light to shoot the rest of the knife. Then layer the two pictures together masking out the entire knife except the MOP on one layer and vice versa for the other layer.
 
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The new focus on photography is great. I know I struggle every time I get the gear out to take a few pics. I am really hoping to "figure it out" sooner than later.
 
Natural lighting (0615 am) with my celly. The before and After Gimp. Give it to me! This is a cool idea! I have only been making my own blades for less that a year. This is where you guys have got me to in that amount of time, Thanks!



Damascus bowie and sheath2.1.jpgDamascus bowie and sheath2.JPG
 
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Well boy! Am I glad you guys started this one. I have so many pictures that I'm unhappy with, that's why I don't post pictures very often, I'm embarrassed about them. Anyway, this really should help a lot if I can put some of these points that Tracy makes to reality. That will be the challenge though. And to think I have a niece that graduated from photo school and I don't ask for her help. Sometimes I'm stuck in that old perverbial rut! LOL

Wayne
 
I'm always looking to improve my skill
photos are inconsistent I know, critique away!!


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this one was a quick photo until I had time to set up the "tent" but I think it has some merits, at least compared to my older photography techniques!
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I'd settle to get even close to everyones pics.

I never really cared about photography and probably still don't but in the last couple years it seems really important to everyone else but me for some reason. I was talked into buying a fancy camera and still don't understand anything but the "AUTO" mode.....but I'll try to change that I guess. It just baffles me how you guys get such nice shots. This is my latest attempt after wasting enough time to make another knife.

Forgot to add that I stumbled onto 2 lights from a pro photographers' enlarging set-up today. These bad boys will burn your retinas out at 50 yards or they may just melt my handles....we'll see. Hope they help.

Rudy

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One of these has a large color shift. Which is most correct when compared to the knife? I think it is probably the after?
Use the local burn and focus brush to bring out the makers mark.... in my opinion is the most important detail of most any knife picture.

this is a good example of when the camera focused on one part of the knife at the expense of the other.
The wood handle had nice focus and responded well to the software. The damascus blade detail was lost a bit.
If this was an all auto camera, that's the way the are. If it was an SLR and you have some control, you want to get a bigger depth of field so both the handle and the blade are in focus.


Natural lighting (0615 am) with my celly. The before and After Gimp. Give it to me! This is a cool idea! I have only been making my own blades for less that a year. This is where you guys have got me to in that amount of time, Thanks!



View attachment 51808View attachment 51807
 
Shokr, it's hard to find a lot of fault with your series. Maybe some different choices in lighting but few faults. The dagger balanced on the shell if a fantastic picture.

The biggest thing I see is on most, one end of the knife or the other is quite a bit sharper in focus than the other. You are shooting at a fairly low angle and that requires a larger depth of field. You can put more light on it for a smaller aperature or go with a slower shutter speed but the easiest is to shoot them from less of an angle, effectively shortening the depth of field. I'd also give them just a bit more saturation to juice the colors a little more.

composition and cropping are perfect I think.
nice shots all the way.
 
Rudy,
bright lights are good. Cameras like them.
Learning to take great pictures takes a lot of time and practice but it's money in the bank if you sell at all over the internet.
Your picture could have the knife centered a bit more. The large black area above the knife really seems out of balance with the under the knife.
Mirror polish knives take a bit more work. I use large pieces of black or blue or gray paper and hold them up to blank our any reflections in the mirror finish.

I'd settle to get even close to everyones pics.

I never really cared about photography and probably still don't but in the last couple years it seems really important to everyone else but me for some reason. I was talked into buying a fancy camera and still don't understand anything but the "AUTO" mode.....but I'll try to change that I guess. It just baffles me how you guys get such nice shots. This is my latest attempt after wasting enough time to make another knife.

Forgot to add that I stumbled onto 2 lights from a pro photographers' enlarging set-up today. These bad boys will burn your retinas out at 50 yards or they may just melt my handles....we'll see. Hope they help.

Rudy

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