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Eileen Baird'sBears
Toronto
Posts: 3,873

bear_original Hey, Wendy, I just finished walking the doggies, eating my breakfast  and dishing up theirs. . . :crackup:

So far all I've done is rip up a tissue box so I can use the inside for grey balance. It's a start!

Stay tuned . . . .

Jare Hares & Bears Jare Hares & Bears
Polo, IL
Posts: 983

Zippy.jpgTeddy.jpgDon't know if this is what you want but here are the pictures that I took of the boys.
Teddy is on the left and Zippy is on the right.
I love my seamless white paper background paper.

Jodi Falk Bears by Jodi
Gahanna , Ohio USA
Posts: 3,463

Beautiful boys !!

psichick78 Flying Fur Studios
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Posts: 3,073

Hey everyone.

Good info here, I just wanted to add one thing, please forgive me if someone else has already mentioned it.

To get nice CLEAR close-up photos you need to make you sure you have your MACRO turn on. Usually it's the button with a picture of a flower on it. That will make all the difference.

Plus, I can't stress enough for everyone to read the manuals the camera comes with. Amazing what you can learn!

Jare Hares & Bears Jare Hares & Bears
Polo, IL
Posts: 983

Thanks Jodi -
I can express mail them to you if you like.

rkr4cds Creative Design Studio (RKR4CDS)
suburban Chicago
Posts: 2,044

I've followed the photography threads since I joined. Of interest to me as a miniaturist are the discussions on sharp, in-focus, great depth-of-field conversations.   
 
Just for definition's sake, I'd like to add that close-up and macro are quite different. All cameras have close-up capabilities, some additionally have macro settings or the ability to add additional lens(es) to get in even closer.   
 
Two of the biggest differences are   
1 - that in Macro mode, the depth of field is reduced (less back-to-front of the object) is in focus   
Note of interest  - Penny has a soft pink slubbed fabric behind her bear.  The linen-weave like slubs are hardly noticeable. Due to the size of the bear, the camera is at least as far away from the backdrop as the bear is tall. 
Jodi also used a slubbed blue fabric backdrop, but because her bear is small, the fabric rises up right where the wagon wheels end and she moved in closer to 'fill the frame' with a smaller bear, the slubs are more prominent.   
To counteract the sharp focus of the fabric features, bringing the bear forward away from the backdrop or by allowing the backdrop behind a small bear to fall away farther away from the bear before rising up, the slubs would also diffuse more and be more subtle. 
 
And second, that with a close-up setting you can bring the object closer to you by turning the focusing/distance ring while with macro you move the camera physically closer.   
 
Here are some sites to visit: 
http://www.pbase.com/merriwolf/close_up_lens_test 
 
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read. … e=19540362 
 
>>>>>>I was always told that macro was where there was actual 1:1 ration, i.e. the thing you were photographing was the same size on your sensor / film as it is in real life. 
Everything else is close up photography, but for convenience, everyone uses macro to refer to 'true macro' aa well as to 'close up' photography<<<<<   
 
 
For those that really like the technical angle: 
http://www.nikonians.org/html/resources … cro_1.html

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

Love the Kitty's Jared.  Great shots. I have a roll of white wrapping paper I like using for a seamless backdrop. Is that what you have used?

Thanks for the links Bobbie. I cant profess to be able to understand it all yet. But when I get a camera that actually has some of these functions I will at least know what to do then.  :redface:
There can never be tooo much infomation. bear_thumb

Heather I dont have a macro feature on my camera. :redface: and there's my problem bear_rolleyes

Jare Hares & Bears Jare Hares & Bears
Polo, IL
Posts: 983

Bobbie great tip!

That is the one thing that I could never get anyone else to understand. (That would be other family members that tried taking our pictures)
If you move the item that your are photographing forward away from your background you get a better picture.
Otherwise when you picture them right up against the background they look like mug shots (police photos).
And mug shots look bad.

Wendy -
I ordered a roll of white paper from a photo supplier.
http://www.bhphoto.com
They are a supplier here in the States. They have many great basic photo studio items are good prices.
I would like to have a room just for taking pictures... sigh someday... Then I would like to order some photo lights etc, etc.
But I get fairly good results with the equpiment that I have. All in all, it really is about making your equpiment work for you.
I suggest doing a search for photo tips. I found many good tips on eBay's discussion boards. I also found links to people about me pages with tons of good information.

Jare Hares & Bears Jare Hares & Bears
Polo, IL
Posts: 983

PhotoSet.jpgHere a picture of the photo set up that I have on the south side of the workroom.
I just use task lights and overhead lights to get the effects that I want.

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

WOW thanks for the pic of your setup Jared.  It makes things alot clearer with pics.

I have researched the ins and outs on photographing bears. I have gathered up my info. I know what type of camera I am now looking for. I know lots of questions to ask. ..................
But unfortunately nothing is going to happen till the end of the month............
What I do know though while waiting I'm going to set up a permanent  spot for taking pics. I have just the right spot in my dining room.
Thankyou everyone for your most appreciated advice. bear_thumb

Jare Hares & Bears Jare Hares & Bears
Polo, IL
Posts: 983

NP= No Problem

NP! Happy to help.

I always "play" with the lights to find the right positioning that lights up the bear, but provides the least amount of glare, least amount of shadow, and highlights the best features.
You can also use posterboard to reflect light or to create shadows if need be. I would suggest just picking up a few pieces of White posterboard or matte board (the kind use in faming pictures). The matte board is a bit heavier.
Just experiment and see what you get!
A little make up mirror to reflect light can be useful too... That reminds me I need to find mine... maybe little Sticky Fingers Ross (MaeLynn) made off with it... mmmm....

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