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I have never seemed to get the hang of photographing my art, oil paintings and charcoal sketches. I posted my first painting a couple days ago, but the photo I took looks like crap and really doesn't do my painting the justice it deserves! How in the world do I take a really good photo of my work? I realize that the photo is never as good as seeing it in person, but it seems like the photos of everyone else's work on this site and on artwanted.com are so professional looking. What am I doing wrong?

I can only say what works for me...

I have only tried pencil drawings and pastel paintings so far.

The pastels, I always photograph before framing behind glass. (In the case of an oil painting, I would photograph the thing before applying any vanish?)

I always take the photographs outdoors - in a bright spot but out of direct sunlight.

I make sure that the flash is turned off and I am not casting a shadow on the painting.

If there is enough, well diffused light, I don't think you need a tripod - just try to hold the camera reasonably steady while you press the shutter.

The cameras that most people are using these days all have auto-focus...

If you are using auto-focus, usually you have to depress the shutter half way, keep it like that for a second or two, in order to allow the focusing mechanism to do its thing - and THEN press the shutter all the way.

Lastly, before taking the shot, I make sure that the camera is positioned exactly on the axis of the center of the painting and not skewed at an angle.

Oh! And then you really need to use any simple photo editing software, just to crop your image before uploading. It also helps if you can reduce your image file size to about 350Kb or less, so that it doesn't take for ever to upload. (I use U-lead Photo Explorer - both for cropping and reducing the image size. Mine came with the camera - but I believe if you do a search on Google, you can down-load U-Lead Photo Explorer for free?)

'Hope this helps!

More info here on how to get the lens for your camera, or at least what to look for on the camera to see if you can even add it!

What features to look for in a digital camera

and more info on actually shooting the work.

Shooting your own work the easy way!

Of course, the best way to start taking great photos is to get out there with your camera and start shooting! However, most of us can also use a bit of a grounding in the basics - or even some of the more advanced techniques. And there is nothing like a good book on a cold, wet and windy day, now, is there?!

If any member would like to share the details of any great photography books that they have come across, they are encouraged to do so here - either by way of a reply to this article or by publishing a new article of their own.

Members can also, of course, start a new topic in the artfreaks.com forums, if they prefer:

https://www.artfreaks.com/forums/forum/9-photography/

More input from the members of this community site for artists and photographers will always be appreciated!

Thank you!

I offer cheap service for shooting in my city and around... or audio video and 3d design...

Mount the painting taught and flat on a stiff board - secured with some masking tape around the edges.

Site your painting in good, well-diffused light - preferably natural sunlight - in order to bring out the best of the colors.

If you have a tripod, set your painting-up so that it is perfectly perpendicular to the camera. If you don't have a tripod, just site the painting in such a position that you can hold the camera perpendicular (or 'square-on') to it without straining yourself! This is very important. You need the camera to be 'square-on' to the painting - otherwise, your image will be distorted.

With or without a tripod, your camera also needs to be pointing at the center of the painting and not located off to one side. So, perpendicular to the the surface of the painting and located so that it is pointing at the center of the thing!

If you have a tripod, or if you can borrow one, it will allow you to use a longer exposure, without getting any camera shake. This, in turn, will mean that you will be working with a smaller aperture - thus helping to keep the whole painting well focused.

You can even get away with photographing the painting behind glass if you use a polarizing filter but, you will always get a better photo if the painting is not framed behind glass.

Oh... And don't forget to crop your photo so that it shows only the painting itself... We don't really need to see half of your furniture or the color of your wallpaper!!

I am not an expert on anything - least of all photography. So please, can I have some input from some of the members?

Let's make artfreaks.com a website by the members - and for the members!

If you don't want to start your own article, you can just reply by way of a comment to this article.

And new members are always welcome!

Everyone loves to see photos, so here is just a random shot of the so-called "Bullet Train" or Shinkansen in Japan!