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I have had countless problems with pastel fixatives and I have totally ruined many a good painting by using too much of the stuff. The first solution here is to use as little as you can get away with. Even the absolute best quality fixatives will tend to have a slight dulling effect on the colours and, if you use too much, you will make the surface "frosted" - or even shiny. (And it's quite difficult to apply pastels to a shiny surface!) I want the fixative to bind the pastel particles sufficiently to be able to add a subsequent layer - and nothing more. For this reason, I never use fixative on the final layer... This helps to maintain the vibrancy of the final layer of pastel on the painting. If you choose to follow this method, just be very careful with the painting until you can get it framed behind glass... Building up a pastel painting with several layers - as long as you don't overdo the fixatives - can actually make the painting more vibrant. Unfortunately, though, it's quite hard to build your layers if you are not fixing between the layers... My advice here is to simply go for the very highest quality product that you can lay your hands on... For one thing, the price of a very high-quality pastel fixative will put you off using too much of it!! And you will stand much less chance of getting any very undesirable "frosting" effects if you do accidentally use too much. My fixative of choice is the one made for pastels by Senellier. (Senellier also do a very similar fixative which has been formulated especially for charcoal drawings. I find that it also works very well with pastels but it does seem to be a bit lighter - and so you really need to use more of it when working with pastels...) I can not get hold of Senellier fixative in the Philippines but I find that the museum grade varnish, satin, produced by "Golden" suits my purposes quite well. The only real problem that I have with the Golden varnish is that it takes quite a while to dry. But then again, that usually gives me a good excuse to go out for a beer! I buy my Golden varnish at Diovir in Santa Cruz, Manila I wouldn't touch any of the other so-called fixatives that you can buy in National Bookstore, with a bargepole!!

I already have a topic in the Forums on the subject of some good photography book recommendations, so I am not going to duplicate what I have already written there. 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!

If the painting has been framed behind glass, then the first thing that you need to do is to remove it from the frame. Obviously, it is better to photograph your pastel painting before you have it framed in the first place, if you can! 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!!

It took years for me to learn some very basic stuff about photographing my art. Today's point and shoots digital camera's are so much better, but be careful, there are some very special features that you really have got to have in order to shoot oil paintings. One feature that will allow you to get about 95% glare out of the print! Using a CPL filter, circular polarizing lens. 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!