Today Sprokkit came by the studio for a product photography session. We photographed a signed Fleabass guitar, a hat, some guitar straps, and several t-shirts.

As a product photographer, one of my most difficult subjects is glassware–more specifically, glass photographed on a white background. And although there are thousands of photographers in Los Angeles, product photography for catalogs remains a specialized expertise. There are several ways to approach the photography of glass objects and here’s just one example–a simple wine glass. The key to photographing glass is to use black cards around the object along with specialized lighting to accentuate the shape of the glass. The other challenge is to ensure that nothing extraneous is seen in reflections on the glassware. If you’re looking for a Los Angeles product photographer who has the requisite skills to photograph your glass and glassware, I hope you’ll consider me!

The folks from Sprokkit and Fleabass came over to my Los Angeles studio today for an intense product photography session featuring Fleabass guitars. These guitars are part of a new bass line by Flea (of Red Hot Chili Pepper fame). They come in two sizes (Model 32 and Junior Bass) and four amazing color schemes (Punk Bass, Water Bass, The Wild One, and Sunny Bass). I spent most of today taking hundreds of photos of these crazy cool instruments and hanging out with some of the nicest clients ever! Some days, I really love being a product photographer!

The folks from Friedericy Dolls brought a few of their fine-art dolls by the studio today for a few product photography photos. This batch included Picasso, Degas, Dali, and Van Gogh. There were only ten (10) today, so here are all of them.

Yesterday I was experimenting with some new specialized photo processing software and my neighbor Claudia Endler was kind enough to drop by with a few of her rings allowing me to experiment with a new method of photographing jewelry. I’m thrilled to say that my experiments worked! I’d share more details, but then I’d have to tie you up with saran wrap and dip you in olive oil. And we wouldn’t want that would we? Here’s a photo of one of Claudia’s newest  rings.

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Jean Dousset of Beverly Hills dropped by the studio today for a photo of a recent addition to his jewelry line. As a Los Angeles product photographer, I always enjoy the challenge of photographing jewelry –  especially when the jewelry is as beautiful as the jewelry Jean brings by the studio!

Jule drove a big truck into our studio on Monday and unloaded a literal ton of her sculptures. I’m just glad she had an assistant to move things around! First let me say that her work was absolutely amazing! I would be absolutely thrilled to have any of her pieces displayed in my studio! She’s having an exhibition on Saturday, April 11, 2009 so make sure you check it out. You can find out more on her web site at http://www.rotenbergsculpture.com/.

A few weeks ago Jean Dousset returned to our Los Angeles studio with a few more rings. Here’s a huge yellow diamond engagement ring that I photographed during our product photography session. This ring is available through Jean and will retail in the low six figures. The depth of field (focus area) on this piece of jewelry was intentionally kept shallow to put greater focus on the yellow diamond.

I’ll often work with clients who’ve never had their product photographed. During our conversations, I’ll ask my clients if they’d like their products clipped from the background. The answer to that question will often affect my recommendations about how the product in question should be photographed. To illustrate what product clipping looks like, I’m posting two before and after photos. The "before" example shows the product before color correction, retouching, or clipping. The "after" photo shows the product after it has been corrected, retouched, and clipped.

Before

After

Before

After

One of my favorite jewelry artists, Claudia Endler, dropped by our Los Angeles studio on Friday. During her visit, I had the pleasure of photographing several of her new pieces. Unlike the photos I posted a few days ago, the backgrounds to these photos have been clipped to reveal a pure white background.