Tuesday, 19 May 2015

lighting - What is the best approch to photographing a mirror or other highly reflective surface?


I have been asked by a client to take some product photographs of some vintage mirrors that they would like to sell and I am struggling with getting good clear shots of the mirrors. As such, what is the best way to approach photographing them such the mirror does not appear to be washed out or contain any unwanted reflections?



Answer



As Rob said, a tilt-shift lens is ideal.


I talked to a product photographer who specifically mentioned it's use. Basically, you position the camera on a tripod just to the left or right of the mirror so it's out of the reflection. With a normal lens it will be obvious that it's taken at an angle but by using the shift function of the lens you're able to correct the perspective distortion (just like an architectural photographer) so it looks as if the photo was taken head-on.


This article has an example shot: http://www.popphoto.com/how-to/2011/05/complete-guide-to-tiltshift-photography?page=0,3


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