A Little of What You Fancy

...Seems to go further than a lot.  And that applies to images of work.  Taking photographs of work to appeal to viewers is an art in itself.  Beware of feeling compelled to spell it out  by just cramming an image of a whole work in unless you absolutely have to do so for submission or customer.  Images need to be attractive, have their own appeal and tease the viewer leaving them hungry for more. Which is why I often use partial or macro shots for main gallery images with the nuts and bolts overview shots coming in as secondary or additional images. Occasionally they are good enough in themselves...but for a higher ratio of success we are talking super duper camera equipment and a decent setting, or studio resources, or a pro photographer. I also need men on tap to lift my work around during a photo shoot trying out different lighting and backing.  Not too many of those just hanging around all day, so I content myself with interesting elements and sections...an important lesson taught to me by esteemed artist, photographer and writer Brit Hammer. Brit calls the bland overviews, and the straight on captures functional shots.  I even use sectional shots or clips for work in progress updates if there something really interesting that needs a sense of the real essence of the piece, or design element. Showing off material is vital too. Ultimately, it's all about cutting out the noise to convey the wow factor in our work that everyday snapshots can kill...bit like a hair-do, or hire a professional art photographer. Below are some sectional shots of recent work in progress, and a small video clip of the major design area of a table surface.  For non-professional photographers like me, this is manageable, I eventually grab a few shots that capture the love for my work and the beauty of texture and material. Some works are much harder for me to capture than others, and I always get in a sweat for full overviews for exhibition submissions asking if they would like arty or functional shots for publishing!

See Brit Hammer's photography course here.   

Some great photography tips here from Saatchi.com...it has to be easier 2D.  

Work in progress: bespoke bicycle themed table and chairs...Bespoke could be a great title!!

 

Above and below: Stephen's table in progress

Finished work: a gallery image in three quarter cutting out too much visual interference without totally losing context and still showing enough of the piece for the viewer's imagination to fill in the rest. 

And a small video clip

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZplkFLSLzkM&list=UUzJt4bWyBjKW4bf-YGv_mXQ&feature=share&index=2