Photographing the pride and joy?

[jackeb]

I was wondering if any of you guys can give me some tips on taking a good photo of my Tiger?
Obviously I'm not very good at these things, hence the question, but when I attempt to take a snap the colours come out very unnatural. They come out looking very blue. So I'm after some tips on camera settings and lighting.
I'm rather pleased with the way the Tiger came out and would like to post a few pictures to see what you guys think.
Many thanks.

[brizo58]

Hi Jackeb
What camera have you got? .Do you have DSLR or compack cam?? I use AV on my camera on a tripod outside in the sunlight don"t use flash to bright.Hope this might help!!...Brian

[Tankbear]

Hi Jackeb.

I always leave mine on automatic and it normally comes out best. Generally as long as the lighting is ok i.e. not to dark or strong contract bright/dark, you can't go wrong.

Are you using a camera or camera phone? I just ask because when my wife got her sony ericcson phone it had an 8mp camera and for some reason all the pictures had a blue tint. She changed something and now all normal.

[jackeb]

Thanks for the replies guys.
I'm using a Lumicron, point and shoot digital camera. Now you've mentioned it I think the problem is taking the photos in artificial light with a flash. I'll try some shots outside when; a) it's stopped raining, and b) I've given the tank a blow over with some matt varnish to protect my carefully done weathering (up 'til 2 O'clock last night!). Still it's been worth it because my eldest boy commented this morning that it looked like a tank that had been out on the battle fields for a few years.
Cheers.

[Athelstan]

So far everyone has been extremely helpful toward me so I hope with this post I can help re-pay the favour.

Having only had my tank a short time - and with some early issues preventing me really using it - I haven't many in the way of photos to show you but I just took my camera and StuG outside to point out a couple of bits.

You mentioned a blue tinge to your photos; this is likely down to the camera judging white balance incorrectly. As an example, look at these three versions of the exact same photo:

In this version the white balance is too 'cool', resulting in a blue tinge


In this version the white balance is too 'warm', resulting in a yellow tinge


In this version the white balance is just about right. It is extremely bright sunshine here today and that's not particularly ideal conditions, hence the photo does appear quite bright and washed out.


Most cameras have the option to change the white balance, normally via presets for certain situations. You'll likely have presets for situations like cloudy, sunshine, fluorescent lighting etc. Don't be afraid to play around with those options, they can make a considerable difference to the end result.

If you want to focus on a specific part of your tank try zooming and get close to the vehicle. The combination of a bit of zoom and close proximity to the model yields a short depth of field, drawing your eye just to one part of the photo, just like this:



This can take a bit of practice and getting the right part of the model in focus can sometimes be a problem but it's fine to play around.

Particularly 'zoomed out' shots can create a disproportionate sense of size, which can be nice depending on what look you're going for. In this shot I had the camera right up close to the tank but the lens was set to a very wide angle; if it wasn't for the fact the model is sat on a garden table you'd be forgiven for thinking it was larger than it actually is.



Note though that the barrel is out of focus, somewhat ruining the photo in this situation. This is caused by me having used a wide aperture. By changing the aperture to one much narrower I can take the same photo but have more of the model in focus.



Altering the aperture will also have an effect when zooming in to take photos of specific parts of the model. Wider apertures will give you less in focus, narrower apertures will give you more in focus.

Sorry I couldn't get some more interesting photos; I have problems with my health that make it hard to move around or bend too much. I did get one of her sat in the grass, though!



If there's anything you want to ask please feel free! I'm sure I'm not the only keen photographer on the forum but I never mind trying to help out

[jackeb]

Wow thanks for that Athelstan, that's a (mini) masterclass in photography! I'll try all the tips you've given me and I'm sure I'll get some high class results.
Once again,
Thank you.