Wine: Malbec close up

[Mike Buckley]

The subjects in this photo are the same bottles displayed in my first photo of them. My wife and I like the simplicity, embossing and texture in the labels but only the first of those three characteristics can be depicted when photographing the entire bottle. So, I decided to make this close-up of the label.

Please view in the largest version in the Lytebox to fully appreciate the label's texture and embossing.

Setup
The tabletop and background are paper with a mettalic-like finish. A medium continuous-light lamp is on the front left and above the subjects. A white reflector on the right side brightens the far right "star." It also casts a reflection on the right side of the front bottle to help define its shape. Lighting the label from the sides helps rake the light across the surface of the paper to emphasize its texture. A small LED flashlight (torch) taped to the camera and lens brightens the center star and "Malbec" on the main label.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Mike,

I hesitate to post a reply, since last time I mentioned distortion in your labels, you said it was deliberate

Also, I might be succumbing to an illusion of the optical variety.

With this shot; I get the feeling the image needs a slight anti-clockwise rotation (or some form of geometric correction), here's why I say that;
a) if I move the LyteBox image to the top or bottom edges of my screen, the left and right edges are not level (higher on left), although we do appear to be 'square on' to the label.
b) the right hand side of the bottle is obviously not parallel to the side of the image, but the bottle itself may not have parallel sides, or you might be angled looking down on it slightly.
c) The printing on the label also seems to be a tad higher on the left, even allowing for curvature of bottle and some of it not being centrally aligned (I know what I mean!)

I accept the background bottles on left of image look vertical at their necks.

I am surprised that you managed to illuminate the centre of the label with an LED torch without a more obvious 'tell', well done, the only clue is a very slight difference of WB there, you managed to avoid obvious pool(s) of light. You were either very lucky, or very skilled, in balancing the exposure; either at capture or in PP.

You certainly have revealed the embossing and nice texture in the label.

HTH, Dave

[Clactonian]

In Mike's original post Dave you can clearly see that these are not parallel sided bottles nor are the labels which may add to the distortion that you are seeing. It is of course not unknown for the labels to be slightly crooked even when machine applied.
All in all a difficult subject to meet a critical eye!

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks, guys!

I actually hadn't considered tilting the image ever so slightly to the left. Despite that it would be such a minor change, it might work. Unlike in my other image discussed a few days ago when the camera I was using has no electronic level, the camera I used to make this image does have one and I used it. The winery's name, Chicchitti, is dead level [EDIT: hmmm, maybe not!] and that's the most prominent designation on the label. If I tilt the image, that name will no longer be level but that may not matter.

Mike is correct that labels are sometimes crooked and they sometimes become stretched unevenly. Even so, if tilting the image makes it more appealing, great.

I would be willing to bet that if I hadn't explained the use of the LED torch, Dave wouldn't have noticed a change in color. Indeed, I don't notice one on my calibrated monitor but I'm not positive I see such fine tuning of color perfectly. For me, the indication of another light source being used in the center of the label is that that area is brighter and less textured because the lighting is flatter in that area.

My biggest disappointment is that I realized after making this image that I had made another image almost exactly in the same style with almost the exact same background coloration just one day more than a year ago. If I had realized I was going to make such a similar image, the least I could have done was make it a year later exactly to the day.

[Dave Humphries]

I would be willing to bet that if I hadn't explained the use of the LED torch, Dave wouldn't have noticed a change in color.

I'm sure that bet would have been won too.

[Shadowman]

The texture and embossing is clearly evident even without using Lightbox, also the lighting of the center of the label; as mentioned by Dave, works very well. I think the keystoning look of the label is more pronounced because of the close proximity of the border which shows the same slant.

[Mike Buckley]

The texture and embossing is clearly evident even without using Lightbox

That's great to know, John. I was concerned that it would not be evident enough for someone who had not already spent so much time living with the image as I had.

[Mike Buckley]

I forgot to mention that the slant of the sides of the labels is more pronounced than the corresponding slant of the bottles. For photographers who are aware of perspective distortion, I wonder if that makes the image seem distorted beyond the reality of the physical scene even though I can vouch that it isn't.

[Wavelength]

Excellent

[Round Tuit]

Mike,

Your wine bottle shots are so far beyond my skill level that I probably won't be attempting anything that even remotely resemble what you are doing for a long time. But out of curiosity, how come your main light on front left of the bottle doesn't create a reflection on the bottle yet the white reflector on the right does?

Andre

[John 2]

I forgot to mention that the slant of the sides of the labels is more pronounced than the corresponding slant of the bottles. For photographers who are aware of perspective distortion, I wonder if that makes the image seem distorted beyond the reality of the physical scene even though I can vouch that it isn't.

I matters not a jot Mike. It's the message that the shot conveys that is important and the message this conveys is one of quality. I hope the wine lives up to your rendition and on that subject - "close up" but it's not close enough. But I speak of the wine not the image. If I have one thought , it would be that the highlight in the central gold star and the lettering beneath could be toned down a bit but I would need to see it. Nice table top as always.

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you, all!

how come your main light on front left of the bottle doesn't create a reflection on the bottle yet the white reflector on the right does?

It's a matter of size and positioning.

The main light has a reflector that is 12" in diameter. Reflections of the reflector and light bulb were limited to the shoulder and neck of the front bottle. I positioned the lamp that way because it accomplished the lighting I desired and because the location of the reflections made them very easy to digitally remove. If I had made this image (and almost all of my images of wine bottles) using film, my lighting task would have been far, far more difficult.

The white card used to create the reflection on the right side of the bottle is much taller and wider than the bottle (though a much smaller card could have created the same reflection). The point is that it was much larger than the lamp, so it also created a much larger reflection that extended from the top of the bottle almost to the very bottom except for one small area shown in the image where the neck joins the shoulder. (Neither the top nor the bottom are displayed in the image.)

Considering that you're interested in reflections, look closely at the left side of the front bottle. You'll see a narrow strip of grey. That's actually a reflection of one of the rear labels. If I had used exposure settings that had displayed luminosity values of 255 (I intentionally didn't), that reflection would have been much brighter, perhaps bright enough to call it white.

If I have one thought , it would be that the highlight in the central gold star and the lettering beneath could be toned down a bit but I would need to see it.

My wife has seen it and she strongly agrees with you. It's exactly as I wanted it when I was lighting it, but that's not to say that I wouldn't like a different appearance just as much.

[bnnrcn]

Very nice Mike All it needs is a small rotation . I can see the texture and embossing without lightbox too.

[Round Tuit]

Thank you, all!



It's a matter of size and positioning.

The main light has a reflector that is 12" in diameter. Reflections of the reflector and light bulb were limited to the shoulder and neck of the front bottle. I positioned the lamp that way because it accomplished the lighting I desired and because the location of the reflections made them very easy to digitally remove. If I had made this image (and almost all of my images of wine bottles) using film, my lighting task would have been far, far more difficult.

The white card used to create the reflection on the right side of the bottle is much taller and wider than the bottle (though a much smaller card could have created the same reflection). The point is that it was much larger than the lamp, so it also created a much larger reflection that extended from the top of the bottle almost to the very bottom except for one small area shown in the image where the neck joins the shoulder. (Neither the top nor the bottom are displayed in the image.)

Considering that you're interested in reflections, look closely at the left side of the front bottle. You'll see a narrow strip of grey. That's actually a reflection of one of the rear labels. If I had used exposure settings that had displayed luminosity values of 255 (I intentionally didn't), that reflection would have been much brighter, perhaps bright enough to call it white.

My wife has seen it and she strongly agrees with you. It's exactly as I wanted it when I was lighting it, but that's not to say that I wouldn't like a different appearance just as much.

Thank you Mike,

Your explanation is very useful. Shooting to make pp easier is something that I sometime do but it hadn't occurred to me that the reflection had been there and that you removed it. Some days, the wheels turn slower than other.

Andre

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you, Binnur!

Andre: My motto with studio photography is to take the least time-consuming path. Sometimes that means getting it as wanted in the capture. Other times that means dealing with whatever the situation is during post-processing. I have absolutely no wish to get everything right SOOC simply for the sake of doing that; sometimes 5 minutes spent removing something during post-processing can save an hour of time in the setup. In the case of the reflections of the main light, I'm sure it took no more than a minute to digitally remove them. Perhaps it took another minute to remove the reflections in the two rear bottles that I forgot to mention.

[NorthernFocus]

Awesome capture of the detail in the label. One can visually get the feel of it. I like the way you added the light to get the reflection on the metallic print. The BG arrangement really tops it off. Excellent photography. Well thought out and made to look quite casual. Nicely done.

[Sam W]

Mike this might be the sharpest image ever seen on my monitor...well done! The only thing I see that might be the slightest of an issue is a pale blue area in the middle near the central star. I see it on two different monitors. The monitors have not been calibrated in a long time so the problem could be on my end.

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you to Dan and Sam!

a pale blue area in the middle near the central star. I see it on two different monitors. The monitors have not been calibrated in a long time so the problem could be on my end.

You may not have seen the discussion about that at the beginning of the thread. I see the blue tone you mentioned on my television, which is not calibrated. I don't see it on my monitor, which is calibrated. Even so, my eyes probably aren't perfect.

[Rob Ekins]

Mike,
I noticed the blue before reading your notes, I like to de construct your images before I get to the set up info to see how far out I was

Your mention of the result on your television prompted me to recalibrate my monitor. The result, the blue is more pronounced... go figure

[Mike Buckley]

Your mention of the result on your television prompted me to recalibrate my monitor. The result, the blue is more pronounced... go figure

Indeed! Sometimes there is no explanation for digital stuff.