Mike Ruslander Posted March 3, 2009 Report Share Posted March 3, 2009 A better (but not very good) photo of the completed Cyclops. 3-3/4" tall. Head carved Tagua Nut. Pedestal made of Purpleheart wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ruslander Posted March 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 18, 2009 Reposted pic above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nelson Lepine Posted March 18, 2009 Report Share Posted March 18, 2009 Now I can see what you are talking about! Interesting subject and presentation. Jumbo sized nut! I have seen a nut of this size from West Timor that was supposedly boiled for a long time and literally turned inside out before carving. I have tried to do this myself without success I'm afraid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil White Posted March 20, 2009 Report Share Posted March 20, 2009 Hi Mike, I think this is a great little piece. You should share your inspiration. Still a better photo of the pot than of the carving, though. I have the same problem sometimes with my autofocus. Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ruslander Posted March 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2009 Phil, I've had nothing but frustration since getting our digital camera. It's fine for family snaps, but that's all. I'm tempted to go back to using my 35mm SLR and film and just converting over to digital. I used to do that using Kodak photo discs, but stopped using film and hence taking "serious" photos since going digital. (We can't justifiably afford a Nikon SLR digital right now.) And now the inspiration for the piece: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toothy Posted March 20, 2009 Report Share Posted March 20, 2009 Phil,I've had nothing but frustration since getting our digital camera. It's fine for family snaps, but that's all. Mike What camera are you using? maybe I can help. PM me if you prefer Toothy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janel Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Mike, Thoughts for focusing on small pieces: 1) Find the distance (could be in the camera reviews on web based camera forums, like Steve's Digicams) that is the closest distance for focusing. Try to get an in-focus photo with that distance, or even further back from the piece, at the highest resolution. Crop the photo to remove the excess background. 2) If you have control of aperture and f-stop, set the aperture or f-stop at the highest number (which makes the aperture the smallest opening). The duration of the photo will be longer, so a tripod and timer would offer a steady shot. Good luck. Janel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ruslander Posted March 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Thank you Janel. Idon't have control over that stuff and I cropped out much the background to make for faster loading of the pic. That also pixelates it some. Thanks for your suggestion. Toothy, my camera is a Sony Cybershot DSC-S650 7.2 Megapixel. Surely nothing special. Thanks for taking interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janel Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 I looked it up on Steve's Digicams and will write my thoughts to you in an email. I sure would like to make it work for you somehow, but it may be that you are doing what is possible already. Janel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toothy Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Hi Mike Your camera has a macro distance of 2" and a normal close focus of 20". 1. Using macro won't photograph anything larger than +- 1" diameter, 2. Between 2 & 20" the camera won't focus properly. 3. Over 20" you should get proper focusing. In order to frame the "Little Critter" take the photo from further than 20", use the optical zoom but if you need greater magnification don't use more than 2x digital zoom otherwise you may lose too much detail. Flash will give a 'hard' picture and possibly unwanted shadows. Use fairly bright natural light to get an even lighting and a small aperture (to get depth of focus). Side lighting supplemented with flash may give you more surface modelling. Check if the camera has a setting for close objects but not macro. (My little Nikon has a setting for 'museum' and 'documents' that adjust exposure for close and poorish light). Use a neutral medium density background ie a medium grey or other colour to contrast with the carving and to bring out the colours. Use white card to reflect light onto the subject if necessary and possibly some form of steady ie tripod, beanbag etc. Have fun and patience will be rewarded Toothy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ruslander Posted March 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Thank you both for the great advice. I will give the tips a go and see if it helps. I am much obliged to you both, Janel and Toothy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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