Product Photography in Florida

Under, Over and the Right Exposure

For ages we have been hearing the term exposure as one of the key elements in photography and we are about to see it in a simple example, of the three benchmarking points: under, over and the right exposure.

Exhibit A

Not to mention the contrast between the fine cognac accented leather and it poor quality bracket, the picture is overly exposed and the highlights on the leading edge are taking a lot of picture real estate.

Best of all is that a situation like this has an easy fix and it is done by controlling exposure. Either lowering the ISO value, closing the aperture or speeding up the shutter speed.

Just a comment on this picture, it could have been shot against a darker background and probably gotten a richer result.

Exhibit B

It is actually hard to believe that Prada is cutting corners on advertising but in reality this must be due to an amateur photographer who wanted to use a high quality and fashionable product.

The verdict is simple: Underexposed.

We must not be fooled by the logo highlights and a touch of shine on the black matte surface.

Regardless, even with the shadows on the left side, the picture is underexposed. Better yet, is underexposed and poorly illuminated.

Remember that shadows help modeling a subject and still we need the control the projection and intensity of them, by placing the light sources on the right spots.

As I write these lines, I take another look at the logo and as an off the record statement, it seems like a copy-cat issue; Prada, would never lower their marketing standards with a picture like this. Anyhow, thanks to this picture we found a good example for exhibit B.

Exhibit C

The all-time saying of Exposure to the right has made me layout this blog about exposure always to the right, of course in terms of graphic composition.

And it reminds me the importance of the right exposure and the right background.

In this example we have a great representation of both exposure and background.

There are Strong highlights in the right proportion on the leather, there is a great background with a 20+/- % grey and a magnificent ambiance light directly from above.

The later, brings up the illusion of stardom to the product which is treated as royalty by the light beam shining down from the upper side of the scene. It all plays out right.

Remember a simple shot might get a tad complicated but if you star by getting down to the right exposure and right background, you will have a great chance to succeed in the making of it. Until our next issue,

Happy Holidays,

www.miguelperezphoto.com