[Torqueguru]

@Rudra
WOW! u r a photo monster. Phew!

[bmw_m5_titus]

Rudra, Stunning! I thought it was taken from catalogue.

[Sankar]

Those are awesome shots, Rudra da. The cars look more beautiful in the photos than it would look in real.

Originally Posted by bmw_m5_titus

Rudra, Stunning! I thought it was taken from catalogue.

This is what goes into a catalogue

Originally Posted by shajufx

Guys I need an urgent help. My order with adorama didnt go through, althogh the order number was generated. My credit card transaction was shown as approved, but I never saw the Mastercard Secure password page. Now adorama support mailed me to try again, but also revealing there is no 'gift' option for international shipping. Means it will invite customs duty here.

Is there any other way I could get the product here without duty ? My total order is only worth US$209. Please advise. I have seen someone posting their international shipping somewhere in our threads. Any suggestions welcome ! Thanks.

I experienced the same problem while trying to order directly from Adorama and the CC transaction wasn't succesful. So i bought the same item from Adorama through their Amazon store. Indian CCards almost always work with Amazon even if it doesn't work elsewhere. See if Adorama has the item you need listed in Amazon and buy it from Amazon if its there.

I doubt if big sellers would mark the item as "Gift". Some ebay sellers do but major stores don't do that. The item shipped across will be insured, so the value ought to be declared.

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Trial lighting shot for a black car. Done with 1:18 model to know what all lights and numbers of white screen/reflector panels we need before working out any cost estimate.

Is that a 1:18 model? Then it is a perfect model and of course a perfect shot!!

Any suggestions for a decent but not too costly DIY lighting setup at home for taking shots of subjects of that size? How about two table lamps and a soft-box setup with black bottom and background?

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by bmw_m5_titus

Rudra, Stunning! I thought it was taken from catalogue.

You are right! This will be in the catalogue

[phamilyman]

Rudra - THAT is crazy. I would've thought it to be pure photoshop!!

[HellwratH]

Rudra Sir,

Awesome shot. If I may, how many reflectors/lights were used? I am trying to reverse engineer the lighting, but not successful yet.

Originally Posted by clevermax

Any suggestions for a decent but not too costly DIY lighting setup at home for taking shots of subjects of that size? How about two table lamps and a soft-box setup with black bottom and background?

You need to be careful with the lamps. They heat up quickly and can cause fire in some cases. Also, add a couple of thermocoal sheets to your list which will act as reflectors. And last but not the least, get your hands on "Light Science and Magic" book. One of the best book EVER written on lighting.


EDIT: I have been trying to get people to have a "strobist" meet in bangalore. Haven't been successful yet. Let me know if fellow bangaloreans will be interested. We will require flashes and triggers and ofcourse the cameras which have a hotshoe on them.

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by clevermax

Is that a 1:18 model? Then it is a perfect model and of course a perfect shot!!

i was wondering how in the world did he get up there and take a shot like that!

Originally Posted by clevermax

Any suggestions for a decent but not too costly DIY lighting setup at home for taking shots of subjects of that size? How about two table lamps and a soft-box setup with black bottom and background?

i tried with two table lamps to shoot my McLaren GTR, one fluorescent and another soft-white bulb. kinda trial and error. yet to achieve good results. i think the direct light from these sources will not work - maybe putting a white paper in between might help. tried to use folded white paper in front of the flash (since i don't have a diffuser) to reduce the harsh light and that didn't work.

for base i used printer paper curved it on the sides to avoid the sharp corner edges. i've a better idea now though - i've a 5x3ft white board. will use that.

btw, i've a book on 35mm cameras and techniques. in that there is discussion on taking pictures of objects. light positioning, background setup and the lot. will see if i can get that here.

PS: i think you'll need more than two lamps, coz two will cast shadows (see the first picture in the link). open to suggestions.

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by HellwratH

You need to be careful with the lamps. They heat up quickly and can cause fire in some cases. Also, add a couple of thermocoal sheets to your list which will act as reflectors. And last but not the least, get your hands on "Light Science and Magic" book. .

Thanks Hw. Incandescent or CFL bulbs? I guess the former is also okay provided I fix the WB later. Planning to buy these stuff this weekend. Thinking of making a softbox by cutting out two opposite sides of a cardboard box and fixing thin white paper (oil paper?) there. The lighting will be through these, while the background side and the box's floor gets black paper lining. Is it the right way to go?

@IronHawk: Saw your post now. Your pics looks good but it needs some PP to fix the background a bit, didn't you try with black surfaces on the background? Yea straight lighting won't be good.

[navin]

Originally Posted by shajufx

You are like a magician to me, can not miss a chance to meet you anymore (team-bhp meets). !

If you ever get the chance to meet Rudra please remember to take you camera aloing. My photos have improved after he used my camera.

BTW Rudra-da my camera is APS-C not 24/36.

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Use minimum 6/7 format. Large format will compensate for large blowups with less magnification.

So what happened to all your Hassies, Pentaxes, Mamiyas, Sinars ...

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Agree on this part. His 20mm with be 32mm, so he will need a canon 10-22 or Tokona 11-16 F2.8 to get equivalent Focal length
I feel, if Rudra is given a 7D with a Tokina 11-16 and sent off to shoot cars for a week, he will return a convert, and gift me his entire gear in gratitude

No just the 14/2.8 will do. Prime lenses are sharper even cheap primes like the 28/1.8 and 50/1.4 are quite sharp.

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Phase 1:
• David Busch D90 guide
• Bag(s): Kata DR 467
• Flash (perhaps SB 600)

Phase 3:
• Prime 50/1.8 Nikon lens
• 70-300 VRII Nikon lens

Phase 4:

2. What’s the Indian condition feedback about the Kata DR 467 bag? I was also looking at Lowepro Fastpack 350

3. What tripod option should I go for...Has anyone used Slik?

4. Is there another budget lens combo that you would like to suggest instead of what I have chosen? Keep in mind that:
• I have already bought the 18-105
• I want the 70-300.

Phase 1
a Get flash. On camera flash cant bounce.
b. Think Kata 3N1 series if you are hking a lot. you can remove camera without putting the bag down like the Fastpack 350. The 3N1-30 has better shock protection than the 350 (I checked both of these as well as the Tamrac Aero 3385). The Kata however is not as well protected against dust and rain unless you use the supplied rain cover.

Phase 3.
c. Ref: Prime lenses. What are your primary subject the 50mm lens will be 80mm on your D90. The 35mm will be a normal lens. Other than this the 85/1.8 is good value but the 85/1.4 is a killer lens. The 85/1.4 will give you 135/1.4 which can be perfect for potraits but it is 3x the price of the 85/1.8.

[sparkguy]

Originally Posted by shajufx

After waiting and cross checking the prices over a month, I have finally ordered my Nikkor 35 mm f/1.8 G AF-S DX prime lens from Adorama for $199.95, added adorama blower to it for 8.95 and the UPS shipping 51.65, total 260.55, marked as gift. Excitement of waiting starts.

What is the advantage of marking it as gift? Some custom benefit? If yes then what is the calculation. What is the process to mark shipped item as gift?

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by clevermax

@IronHawk: Saw your post now. Your pics looks good but it needs some PP to fix the background a bit, didn't you try with black surfaces on the background? Yea straight lighting won't be good.

to be honest, i don't know much of PP, never tried. am interested though - got myself a book on that subject.

i've never tried a black background. i just use what i find lying around in the house. hey, wait a minute! the white board has a back which is black (how ironic). will try to clean it up and see if it's of any use.

btw, when using dark objects on black surfaces, won't the details kinda not show up? taking Rudra's scale model as example, i can see the rims, but not the tires. also, the running board and the rear bumper are not visible (not that they've to be very visible).

@Rudra: did you use a non-reflective base? also, would using a 50mm for such a shot be advisable? i mean, it would give a shallow DOF, which could help blur out the background.

[HellwratH]

Clevermax,

You can find a lot of tutorials on how to make softboxes using cardboards on the net. I'd suggest that the inner part of the carboard/softbox should have aluminium foil on it to minimize the light loss. Also, the opening through which you are going to put the lamp head should have black paper to minimize the light spill and have more control on the direction of light.

One link you could follow is,
Low On Budget? Consider A Desk Lamp + Softbox | DIYPhotography.net

I had made a light tent for a couple of shots using the collapsible laundry storage thing (which is usually sold at signals or big bazaar for about 50 bucks). I used butter paper to cover all the sides and used an A4 paper as a seamless background to shoot couple of products. The only mistake I did was that the butter paper was outside and hence at times, the inner lining of the storage box was visible in the reflection. Check out the attached picture that I got from this tent. Not the best of shots as these were experimental shots .


IronH4wk,

Always remember the basic principle of lighting: The bigger your light source, the softer the shadows will be. So, increase the "apparent" size by using something like a softbox or just move the lamp away and use an A4 sheet between the model and the lamp. That will do wonders to your shot. Also, you need to manage specular reflection. If you see Rudra sir's shot, you will see that he has managed these reflections and placed them very well which inturn gives a pleasant look to the entire image. If you see my shot, I have not managed the specular reflection as well. Hence the light spill on the screen.


EDIT: Does anyone know a place in and around Indiranagar where I could possibly some acrylic sheets? Thanks in advance!

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by HellwratH

One link you could follow is,
Low On Budget? Consider A Desk Lamp + Softbox | DIYPhotography.net

wow! that simple! and Andy's pictures are just awesome!! can't believe he took them with just that setup.

Originally Posted by HellwratH

Check out the attached picture that I got from this tent. Not the best of shots as these were experimental shots.

the picture is very nice

Originally Posted by HellwratH

Always remember the basic principle of lighting: The bigger your light source, the softer the shadows will be. So, increase the "apparent" size by using something like a softbox or just move the lamp away and use an A4 sheet between the model and the lamp. That will do wonders to your shot. Also, you need to manage specular reflection. If you see Rudra sir's shot, you will see that he has managed these reflections and placed them very well which inturn gives a pleasant look to the entire image. If you see my shot, I have not managed the specular reflection as well. Hence the light spill on the screen.

hmm.. will fool around a bit and see how it goes! will post pictures if it comes out good.

Originally Posted by HellwratH

Does anyone know a place in and around Indiranagar where I could possibly some acrylic sheets? Thanks in advance!

you might want to try the Thippasandra market road. there are a lot of shops on that road, maybe you could find what you're looking for.

[rjstyles69]

Originally Posted by shajufx

Is there any other way I could get the product here without duty ? My total order is only worth US$209. Please advise. I have seen someone posting their international shipping somewhere in our threads. Any suggestions welcome ! Thanks.

shaju since the price is in the whereabouts of 200$'s don't bother much. Pay the duty and pick it up. It would cost you less than 1500 bucks if they even levied duty. Generally small stuff doesnt attract much duty.
The easiest way is getting items shipped through speed post. They take their own sweet time , but that's ok you aren't charged a bomb.

OT : I never knew Adorama shipped to India.