Product Shots for the Not So Dumb

I get questions all the time about how to shoot ceramics without an expensive or involved set up. I have looked online for a tutorial to share with my fellow mudders, but I cannot seem to locate one. So, I decided to create a tutorial here. I am using Photoshop 7.0 on my beloved iBook.

My set up is very basic. I have an inexpensive Kodak EasyShare camera and a piece of white poster board. I shoot my product shots outdoors at dawn, when the sky is bright but the sun is not yet casting shadows. As seen in the first screen shot, I just prop my poster board up (in this case against a dead potted plant) and set my pieces on it.
Once my photo is imported, my first step is to go under Image > Adjustments and select Curves. If your version of Photoshop does not have curves, you can do the same adjustments by choosing Levels and continue following along.
I little box will pop up. just under the Options button there are three boxes with what look like droppers in them. Click on the white dropper. We are going to set the white point. We are going to click on the darkest area of the picture that should be white.
In this case, I clicked on a spot just above and to the left of the top of the sake bottle. For some reason, my cursor does not appear in the screen shot. Bummer.
Now it is time to crop my photo. I know Etsy says to crop photos to square, but I do not. I believe most people view the site in gallery mode which is the default. Also, the front page and treasuries are seen in a gallery view, so I crop with those views in mind. In the tools menu on the left hand side of the page, I selected the upper left tool, which is the rectangular marquee tool. I simply click and drag my mouse to create the box shape I want.
Then under the Image menu, choose Crop.
Once the image is cropped, remember to go again under the Image menu and choose Image Size. Etsy requires out images to be under 1000 pixels wide, so I always set my width at the maximum of 1000 pixels. Click OK and save. You should have your product shot.
Below is the image ready to list on Etsy: a fabulous Pumpkin Pie Sake Set glazed in a rich orange and then dipped in whipped cream white. It's perfect for getting you warm during those first autumn cold snaps.

Perfect Day!

We spent our Labor Day at the family cabin.

We caught salamanders and crawdads and played in the creek.

We spent time with family learning the old ways of doing things.

We caught a little snake who felt like the finest velvet.

We played pick up sticks on the front porch with cousins.

We sat around the fire talking and roasting hot dogs and marshmallows.

We also walked barefoot on soft deep moss.
We worked clearing paths.
We took loads of pictures.
We laughed, played, and loved spending time together.

Back Yard Inspiration

When I took my first ceramics class and it came time to glaze my pieces, I was so disappointed with the drab colors are matte surfaces. I wanted bold colors and shiny glazes! Within a semester, I was in love with the earthly browns and the variations on the surface of the pots. My pieces felt equally at home in the kitchen as in nature. My coffee cups were as welcome on the front porch of a mountain cabin as in a New York apartment.

Now I have the experience and choice to have bright and shiny if I want it, but I still tend to steer clear of it. My favorite glazes are all browns and golden browns, soft green and blues. I tend toward a peaceful muted palette on my pots. I allow myself any whim that passes, but overwhelmingly, my pots are the soothing sort, not the jarring sort.

I would, however, love a glaze that mimicked the skin of a watermelon, in colors and in texture. Not everything earthy is brown after all! And if I could capture the charcoal gray and teal blue on that butterfly, I would be inspired beyond measure.

Winter Blues

When the weather is nice, Alex and I hike a lot. We love to get out into the woods and explore with our kids. We are the kind of people who turn over rocks, pick up bugs or snakes, and end up on all fours repeatedly! We love to take photos of everything; it is not uncommon for us to return from a hike of a mile or two and realize we have taken 200 pictures!

Right not it is in the teens outside and hiking is not on our agenda. However, it is nice to go through pictures from last summer and fall and find little gems we might not have noticed before. It gives me something to look forward to in the spring and helps to take the edge off the cabin fever.

This picture of a duck was taken not far from out house. It was late winter or early spring. I remember we saw Canada Geese that had goslings that day. It was cool but still. I was most interested in snapping pictures of the geese who were not enthused at being subjects of my photos. Then we hiked on a little farther and stumbled across this lone mallard. When I snapped the photo I didn't think it would be anything special. I got home and put it ono the computer and I could see every tree reflected in that murky water - I knew it was the prize of the day.