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photos/again

updated fri 5 dec 03

 

mel jacobson on mon 1 dec 03


john h., as usual, has it right.

do whatever suits you. it all depends.

if you are shooting 50 images that will go
with an article for cm...well , you had better get it
right.

if you take it to a pro, it might cost you a thousand
dollars.

i have scrabbled together a nice photo set up. it did not
cost me a great deal of money.
i mounted an old honeywell strobe about 6 feet above my
table. just hangs there. i put a simple soft box over the strobe.
used, 5 bucks.

i have 5 photofloods made from metal brooder lamps. (farm store)
5 bucks each. photofloods are about 5 bucks each, and last for
about 2 hours.

i have an old nikon with a macro lens. lens bought used for 80 bucks.
(the close-up lens is the most important aspect of pot shooting)
i hang a sheet of gray formica from the ceiling and clamp it to
a table. big curve. position the lights for best angle...hanging from wires
in the ceiling. i shoot all pix at f22/ quarter of a second.
same each time. i tested the lights with many settings, this is the
best. it always works. the strobe goes off when the shutter
is released. it takes out the back shadows, but leaves a few
highlights on the pots.

i get ready to shoot pots, have them all lined up. put a tape mark
on the formica, and set each pot on the mark.

focus, shoot. two each. never have to dupe my slides.
if you get a standard setup/keep things the same each time...
well, the slides are always very close to perfect.

the gray background sets the pots off well. no fancy background.

used photo supplies, cameras, lenses are becoming a great bargain.
everyone is buying digital. slides are still great...and will be for the
next 10 years.
from then on, who knows.
but, i will bet on 10 years.

i use the same set up for digital. just don't use the strobe.
two photofloods are enough.
use a high res/ they look just fine.
all the photos in the abernathy piece i did for cm are
from that little digital. my nikon stobe went to hell in
michigan, and i used the digital and shot about 80 pix.
they looked great in cm. the portrait i did of j.t. was
just wonderful in my opinion. captured him as he is.
that was fun.

the slr camera is not dead yet. and slides still work just great.
there is still a real need for that equipment, and i am glad i
bought a bunch of used stuff for my nikon. it was like stealing.
so cheap. i know folks can get old strobes, reflectors, slave units,
soft box stuff. it is around. just look.
and, with the push for digital, a great deal is being turned in
so `dad` can retire and do digital. they get rid of all those old cameras.
well, snap them up.
mel





From:
Minnetonka, Minnesota, U.S.A.
web site: my.pclink.com/~melpots
or try: http://www.pclink.com/melpots
new/ http://www.rid-a-tick.com

John Hesselberth on tue 2 dec 03


While this subject is one the table, I might mention that I have
written a series of 3 articles published in Clay Times on how to set
yourself up to take professional quality photos for about $500 starting
from nothing. The first 2, which focus on 35 mm slides using an
electronic flash and graduated background, are available in pdf format
on my web site at:

http://www.frogpondpottery.com/articles/photopot1.html

The third one, which broadens out to floodlights and digital is in the
September/October 2001 issue of Clay Times.

Regards,

John

>
http://www.frogpondpottery.com
http://www.masteringglazes.com

SusanRaku@AOL.COM on tue 2 dec 03


In a message dated 12/2/2003 8:15:22 AM Eastern Standard Time,
john@FROGPONDPOTTERY.COM writes:

> The third one, which broadens out to floodlights and digital is in the
> September/October 2001 issue of Clay Times.
>
> Regards,
>
> John
>

John, do you have a copy of this one also? I would like to read it.

Thanks.

Susan

Marta Matray Gloviczki on tue 2 dec 03


susan, if i remember well, you can read john`s photo article on the
claytimes mag`s website in the reference section.
there you can find some online articles.
hope this helps,
marta
=====
marta matray gloviczki
rochester,mn

http://www.angelfire.com/mn2/marta/
http://users.skynet.be/russel.fouts/Marta.htm
http://www.silverhawk.com/crafts/gloviczki/welcome.html

Paul Lewing on wed 3 dec 03


Hi, John. Are you only looking for slides of glazed work fired to cone 6 or
so, or would you be interested in slides of some china painted work as well?
Cheers, Paul
By the way, I have a friend who does some of the most astounding crystal
glazes you've ever seen in her electric kiln. Her name is Ginny Conrow and
you can see her work at www.conrowporcelain.com. She has some work that's
too new tto be there in shich she uses an iron microcrystaline glaze and a
zinc macrocrystaline glaze on the same piece and the iron glaze appears to
run in sheets behind and around the zinc crystals. Check it out- it's
pretty spectacular work.
Cheers, Paul

John Hesselberth on wed 3 dec 03


Hi Susan,

Send me your snail mail address off-list and I'll send you a copy. I'm
not aware of it being on line anywhere.

Regards,

John
On Tuesday, December 2, 2003, at 06:41 PM, SusanRaku@AOL.COM wrote:

> In a message dated 12/2/2003 8:15:22 AM Eastern Standard Time,
> john@FROGPONDPOTTERY.COM writes:
>
>> The third one, which broadens out to floodlights and digital is in the
>> September/October 2001 issue of Clay Times.
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> John
>>
>
> John, do you have a copy of this one also? I would like to read it.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Susan
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
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>
>
http://www.frogpondpottery.com
http://www.masteringglazes.com

Marta Matray Gloviczki on wed 3 dec 03


John Hesselberth wrote:

>>> I'm not aware of it being on line anywhere.>>>

hello john,
i am sorry, if this wasnt the same article you were talking about.
i just checked the claytimes` website, where i found this:
(part one and two, with pictures, great articles!)

"Taking High-Quality Photos of Your Work
story and photographs by JOHN HESSELBERTH
From the March/April and May/June 1998 issues of Clay Times"

your later article, the "update" is not on line.
sorry for the confusion...

marta

=====
marta matray gloviczki
rochester,mn

http://www.angelfire.com/mn2/marta/
http://users.skynet.be/russel.fouts/Marta.htm
http://www.silverhawk.com/crafts/gloviczki/welcome.html