Shooting Artwork: Less is not More
Frank Van Riper on Photography

By Frank Van Riper
Special to Camera Works
Tuesday, October 31, 2006 12:47 PM

It's bad enough being a starving artist. Having to make good pictures of your art to submit to galleries, funding agencies and competitions is even worse -- especially on an empty stomach.

While the transition from film to digital may make things a little easier for the average amateur photographer to produce good images of his or her flat artwork (i.e.: paintings, drawings, etchings, prints and the like) shooting flat art, like playing baseball, is at once easier and harder than it looks.

After all, anyone can stick a camera in front of a piece of artwork and, especially with the camera set to Program, make a reasonably well-exposed photograph. By the same token, anyone with a pair of sneakers and a glove, can take the field in a pick-up game and not necessarily be an embarrassment to one's teammates.

But to do either thing well--that's something else again.

For the purposes of this column, I will confine myself to photographing two-dimensional (flat) art, not three dimensional sculpture. The rules for photographing sculpture are similar to those for shooting paintings and such, but require far more attention to correctly lighting the planes, surfaces--and background--of the piece.

As a practical matter for most amateurs, photographing flat art is difficult enough.

Probably the biggest mistake an amateur can make when photographing his or her artwork is thinking that this can be done quickly, easily or on the cheap. [The response to each is No, No and No.] In the old days, gallery owners told me they were amazed at the poor quality of slides submitted to them by artists, some of whom otherwise produced stellar work. Granted, some lousy artists also produced lousy slides, but that's not what I'm addressing here.

My guess is that bad slides could have been the result of ignorance of good photographic technique, but also in some cases the result of a naïve belief that the beauty of the artwork would shine through the mediocre photography and let the artist get away with not having to: A) learn a whole new discipline or B) go out and hire a professional shooter who does this all the time.

Bottom line? In today's competitive art world, even Da Vinci's work would be round-filed if it came over the transom reflected in crummy slides or poor digital images. Trust me: I have been there as a judge and I know that nothing turns off a panel more than images that say "I don't have enough regard or respect for you (read also: myself) to make professional-grade photos of my work."

In working with flat art even a comparatively small investment in two strong floodlights can make a world of difference to your images. Ok, I admit: in addition to the floodlights you have to buy lightstands, diffusion covers for the lights, a tripod for your camera and a half-way decent exposure meter. Still, all the gear I have mentioned will be good for years to come. Think of it as a onetime investment in your future as an artist.

Film or digital? Nowadays, even a film-loving, Leica-toting, troglodyte like me probably would opt for high-resolution digital photography, especially as more and more galleries, competitions and the like accept e-mailed transmissions, or CD's. Face it: it simply is a pain in the butt to shoot slides, edit the best and then spend a fortune on good dupes. That having been said, though, people who are used to shooting film should take comfort from the fact that now it is a cinch to have a good custom lab scan chromes or negative film to CD. (Important note: Granted, most website usage calls for nothing more than 72 dpi. But I would have both hi and lo-res scans made at the same time; the hi-res ones then being available should a gallery, museum or other space need the image for magazine or catalog reproduction.)

When shooting film--or digital, for that matter--color balance is all-important. While it is possible to correct or compensate for color temp mismatch (i.e.: shooting tungsten film outdoors, or shooting digital with the color balance incorrectly set, it's a hell of a lot easier to get it right the first time. Hence: tungsten film matched to tungsten bulbs, or blue (daylight-balanced) flood lamps used with daylight film.

In addition, always shoot in manual mode and bracket exposures liberally-whether film or digital. Go two stops over and under the recommended exposure reading, going by half-stops. When shooting film, I always would shoot three of each bracket, just so I would have shot several "dupes in camera".

It's a fool's errand to recommend a particular brand of camera or lens. Most "prosumer" digital SLRs offering manual operation are perfectly fine for shooting flat art. One must always, however, use a tripod. A cable release is useful only for very long exposures; I do not think it is all that necessary for this kind of work. I would recommend a good zoom lens that allows you to fill the frame of the camera with what you are shooting. And always keep picture and film planes parallel. It helps to have the work of art hung on a wall to be sure it is perfectly perpendicular to the floor. Then all you have to do is make sure your camera is perpendicular as well (a vertical level comes in handy here.)

Important: for this kind of work forget cheap point-and-shoots. In most, if not all, cases they simply lack the manual controls necessary to make a decent picture.

In my book, Talking Photography (Allworth press, $19.95), there are two pieces devoted to photographing works of art, quoting Lee Stalsworth, then chief photographer at Washington's Hirshhorn Gallery, about the techniques he uses--some of which would be beyond the scope of even advanced amateurs. But he notes, as do gallery owners and other visual professionals, how bad slides can cripple an artist's chances immediately. Some people, for example, think it's fine to prop up a picture by an exterior wall, a fence, or even a car tire, on a sunny day and then shoot away. In fact, it's a great way to have your slides -- and therefore your artwork -- rejected out of hand.

Invest in a seamless grey paper backdrop or other neutral background if a clean wall is not available. While outdoor sun is fine, it is very unpredictable, especially when you are shooting artwork. If you have to work outdoors, work on a tripod in open shade, the better to have even illumination of your piece.

Far better to work indoors, by artificial, continuous (i.e.: non-flash), illumination so you can see exactly what you are getting. Two 3200K tungsten-balanced photofloods in silver reflectors are certainly the cheapest way to go, but they must be used well. Especially when working with art behind glass, angling your lights at 45-degrees from the artwork is vital, ideally with the floods' light softened by plastic diffusion covers. This helps create an equal, nearly shadowless, light on your artwork. In portraiture this lighting ratio would be called boring; when shooting flat art it is essential. (Note too that a polarizing filter on your lens also can help eliminate glare under these conditions. Sorry, yet another purchase I failed to mention earlier -- but worth it.)

In fact, instead of direct photofloods, I might use two studio flash units in softboxes to light the artwork, but these are simply too much equipment for the non-pro photographer and there is no need to discuss them further. However, to nicely diffuse your floodlighting if you do not have diffusion covers, you might think of aiming your floods away from the artwork and into two large pieces of white Foamcor in order to shower your artwork with more benign, diffuse, lighting from both sides. [You do lose at least a full stop of exposure this way, but that's why you are on a tripod, right?]

Finally, as for images looking different on different monitors, make sure your own monitor is fairly well calibrated. Then, with digital images, learn how to tweak them in PhotoShop, arguably the best photo-editing tool out there. The color balance controls can help you make your images look as much as possible like the real thing. In fact, it probably would not hurt to have the actual artwork by your side when you are working at the computer.

Frank Van Riper is Washington-based commercial and documentary photographer and author. His current book is Talking Photography (Allworth Press), a collection of his Washington Post and other photography writing over the past decade. He can be reached through his website. http://www.gvrphoto.com/

NOTE: Join Frank Van Riper and Judith Goodman for their next Photographic Field Trip--to the East Wing of the National Gallery of Art--Sunday, January 28th, 2007, sponsored by PhotoWorks at Glen Echo Park Maryland. For information, contact Frank and Judy directly : GVR@GVRphoto.com or go to the PhotoWorks section of the Glen Echo website: http://www.glenechopark.org/

DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY CLASS WITH FRANK VAN RIPER

I will once again be offering my 6-week evening workshop in Documentary Photography and Project Printing this coming winter at Glen Echo Park's PhotoWorks studio in Glen Echo, Maryland. The winter session will run from January 11th through February 15, 2007. Classes run from 7pm to 10:30pm each week.

The previous session of this workshop, which ended last March, was fully booked and had a waiting list, so those interested in attending in the future might want to sign up now.

In the class students will be expected to initiate or continue a project of their choosing, with the goal of producing a finished picture story by the end of the session. Course includes basic location lighting instruction and practical hints on both assembling a picture story and approaching people in order to photograph them. Students wishing to accompany their photo essays with written text are encouraged to do so. Class size is limited. Early registration is suggested. [Note: Though the class offers hands-on bxw darkroom instruction, students who prefer to work digitally may do so and are welcome.]

On a personal note: I first started teaching this course several years ago and have found it to be a delightful, simpatico experience that can resonate with photographers of all experience levels. It's also held in a beautiful setting: PhotoWorks' newly refurbished gallery/darkroom/computer lab in the middle of beautiful Glen Echo Park.

Additional note: I also will be offering my popular one-day evening workshop, "Flash Photography Demystified," on Thursday November 9th and Thursday March 1st.

Hope to see you.

For information: 301-320-7757. Or see website: http://www.glenechopark.org/

Frank Van Riper columns before 2005 -->