Make a Photography box!

A gal from Oriental Stamp Art asked me how I photograph my cards and artwork, she was curious about the handmade setup I had. Well I thought I would share it with everyone here on my blog. To kill a couple of birds with one stone I decided to use the card I made with this weeks sketch at OSA as an example {I’m proud to say that they picked my sketch to feature this week} Here is my card photographed in my photobox:

Stamps: About Art Accents, Paper: K&Co, Other: Assorted clipart and vintage efemera, hand crochted butterfly

I use a Canon Powershot point and shoot camera, nothing fancy 🙂 The pretty stamp I used in this card is from About Art Accents. I crochted a butterfly with white cotton and chalked it to match my card. To photgraph the detail I used the macro mode button on my camera and got close to the card:

here is a close up of the stamped image and croched butterfly

Here is the box, it is made by taping 3 different sized rectangles of foamcore  together. I have a hook on one of the sides so I can photograph hanging projects like ornaments or necklaces. I just turn the box however best fits my project.

this is made from foamcore and tape

I used plain ol’ masking tape to put it together. I made this box about 3 years ago and I use it daily so as you can see it is sturdy (it’s also a bit grimy so I’ll need to make a new one soon 🙂 } it is also cheap to make, all you need is a sheet or two of white foam core and you can get that at the dollar store or wal-mart on the cheap! Other than that you need a utility or craft knife, a metal straight edge (ruler) and a roll of masking tape. cut 3 rectangles of foam core and tape them together on the back to make a 3 walled box, easy peasy!

I work in my basement so I need good constant lighting, here is my set up:

the daylight CFLs shine at a 45 degree angle towards my photobox and the shop light provides an all over light.

It was lucky for me that we have a pool table under the flourescent light, I simply put a large plastic storage tote on the table and my photobox on top of that to get it close to the light. I like to shoot my work on white most of the time but if I decide to use a background cloth I make sure I have part of the white box showing (I will crop it off later) so I can white balance it if I need to when editing. I don’t use the camera flash. usually I open my photo in Paint Shop Pro, click adjust then curves and select either levels or contrast. If it still doesn’t look right I balance it by clicking on the white eyedropper icon, then on a white spot on the photo, and black if need be.

Here is the same project shot on white:

Here is the same project shot on white. Have fun experimenting with your artwork!

I hope this helps anyone interested in taking good photos of their cards and artwork. Thanks for stopping by and till next time happy crafting!