Walnut Khukri and some Photography Experimentation

Erin Burke

Erin Burke

Well-Known Member
Good morning y'all. I finished this knife up a couple weeks ago, but had been struggling to find time to take photos.

Back in '04-'06, I was really into khukris, and spent a decent amount of time (and money) hanging around the Himalayan Imports sub-forum over on Bladeforums. In time, my interests evolved -- transitioning from the H.I. sub-forum, to the Balisong sub-forum (where I started playing with kits), then over to BF Shop Talk -- but I never lost interest in the khukri form.

This is not a traditional khuk... no Cho, and a long flat grind with no fullers... but, in the broader sense, I think the name still applies.

Some Stats:
Length: 13-3/4"
Blade: 7-13/16" (Tip to choil),
Weight: 350g (0.77lbs)
Steel: Differentially Heat-Treated W2
Handle: Stabilized Figured Walnut w/ Mild Steel pin
Bolster: Mild Steel


This first photo was taken in my home-made light tent. It's a decent enough image, but doesn't really bring out the activity in the walnut. Further... it wasn't until I downloaded the image that I noticed I had forgotten to darken the pin to match the fittings. Oops.

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I new I should shoot a few more photos, to see if I could bring out some more detail... so I started exploring Youtube for tips on product/knife photography. That's when I stumble upon THIS little gem of a video from Andy Shinosky on light painting and product photography. He comes up with some really nice knife photos using nothing but his camera, a tripod, an iPad, a keychain flashlight and a dark room. Oh... and Photoshop. :p

This was my first attempt with his method.

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Not too bad, but I still wanted to show more angles... and setup for multiple angles was a snap without big lights and the bulky tent.

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Thanks for looking.

Erin
 
Thanks for the comments guys.

rmbonham said:
love the link, but that knife is so beautiful it doesn't need any trick photography
Click to expand...

Haha... thanks.
Honestly though, I wouldn't consider this to be trick photography. It's just a really cool way to get light where you want it without a cumbersome set-up. Maybe not an ultimate solution, but it's another tool in the toolbox... and I'll definitely be exploring it more in the future.


stezann said:
That's pure gold!! both the kukri and the light painting. A big thank you!!
Click to expand...

Dan Pierson said:
Thanks a lot Erin. That's a very valuable pointer -- and a great knife.
Click to expand...

Yeah... I ended up downloading the same app that Andy uses in the video for both my iPad and iPhone. For the green shot, I set the white balance of my camera to shade (7000k) and matched it with the iPad. I also tried to add highlights with a keychain LED flashlight, similar to the video. The white balance for the flashlight images was a bit off though, and needed to be tweaked when processing the RAW files. I think I may need to adjust to an even higher color temp on the camera and iPad if I use the keychain light again.
The last shot (shots really) was done 100% with my iPhone for illumination. Both camera and phone were at 7000k again

Best of luck playing with this method.
Erin
 
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