SharpByCoop 

I have been enjoying myself immensely in the past year restoring mostly Chicago-era Schwinns.

Like you, I like to share my hard work and love for bikes. ALL bikes.

I'm a professional photographer in a niche market: Handmade Custom Knives. Specialized, shiny, varied, and potentially dangerous. Sound familiar?

When it came time to reveal my bikes I wanted *better* than a clear cell-phone shot. We ALL can do that reasonably well.

Initially I tried suspending a rudimentary white painter's drop cloth at first, with lackluster results. Next, I found an INEXPENSIVE cloth 10'x8' backdrop on Amazon for less than $20.

It has a pocket to accept a holding bar, which a long piece of PVC would do just fine. I made a frame for this out in my driveway with a wooden base. Cheap. However, the SLIGHTEST breeze would try to topple it. Frustrating.

Then I took the long bar and suspended it in my basement, where I DO my restorations. I already had good side lighting (courtesy of Lowes and Harbor Freight 4' LED shop lights.) I added one more directly over the bike.

Additional fill lighting provided by large WHITE posterboard reflectors.

Here are a few shots, and here are my setup(s). As is the case with ALL great photography, it's more about the lighting and positioning than the camera.

Outdoor and indoor setups with black backdrop:


Here is how the OUTDOOR lighting came out:


Here are the images from my indoor setup:


There are slight differences, and I like the consistency and ease of my indoor setup better now. You may not have this space.

My initial attempt with a light background is disappointing comparatively. Note the small quick attach-to-axle sidestand I use to hold them nearly upright.


My Camera: EOS R5 Mirrorless camera. Canon Telephoto 24/105 zoom lens, handheld 1/125sec, f-8 f-stop with at 2500 ISO (indoors).

ANY Good camera will suffice (including a cell phone!)

Yes, I edit in a program (Adobe Camera Raw) to make the darks darker and the brights brighter. A time-honored photographer's toolkit is editing.

I post this in case you wish to extend your skillsets. There are MANY other methods and setups, and I am a beginner at THIS form of photography, so your tips will guide me, too. I'm NOT an authority.

See more examples: My Vintage Restoration Gallery: https://www.knifegallery.com/Vintage%20Stuff/index.html

Thanks for viewing! Jim Cooper

rumrunn6

SharpByCoop

nice job. nice & clean. I too have photo'd collectable knives. inherited my Dad's collection. they are a challenge to light

roadcrankr

Superb setup and shots. The black backdrop adds considerable dramatic effect.
Way back when, I did a fair share of amateur studio work with female models. Gorgeous ladies, in fact.
Still own all that 80's lighting equipment and film cameras! Except for a nice white roll of paper backdrop.
I suspended that roll from two tripods using a stiff eight foot wooden rod. The tripods could extend ten-feet high.
Think paper towel dispenser, which allowed me to pull fresh seamless paper out for my photos.
Imagine this working well for bicycle photography. They probably sell paper rolls in other colors.
Yes, get the lighting right and everything falls into place. And bicycles are far less fussy than people!

Mojo31

As a photography hobbyist with a long shooting history, I do not care for the folds, wrinkles and other details of the drop showing as much as they do in those pictures. I would move the focal point out about 10' from the backdrop, and then select an aperture that puts it out of focus. I would also get a tripod, lower your ISO to 200, reduce your aperture from f8 to f4 (which should be sufficient with your 24-105 - if like mine it's sharp wide open), and be prepared to use long shutter speeds. This shows how much better the background is when there is separation between the subject and the black background (granted it's easier to accomplish with small items due to space constraints):



If you have some money to spend, you could invest in some Alien Bee or other strobes and shoot down through a white cloth, essentially make yourself a light box.

If you want to shoot into a white background, you really have to very powerfully illuminate the background to blow it out, kind of like this:

roadcrankr

Evidently, Mojo31 missed the part where the OP stated he works as a professional photographer.

SharpByCoop 

'Inexpensive Studio Photography Setup' My objective for the masses: Emphasis on Inexpensive.

You have a keen eye. I don't love them, yet the complexities involved in removing them involve more than my intention for here. I wanted to offer a repeatable setup for the the 'ordinary' member with less skills.

The outside setup with the perimeter frame attempted to achieve that by pulling it taught. It was hard. I decided it was more important to emphasize the subject than be too concerned with the neutral background folds.

If I moved that far away from the black background, I would need a background about twice the size, and a space twice the width. Not happening. But... I understand.

Shooting at ISO 2500 is completely intentional so I DON'T have to use long shutter speeds and a tripod. The viewer cannot see the 'grain' a high ISO includes. They CAN handhold at 1/125th of a second like I did for clarity.

Tripods are advanced and CLUMSY and require a lot more setup and adjustment. I am WELL AWARE of the usage. I have made a living and grown to worldwide stature for 20 years largely because I can move quickly and not be hindered by a tripod.

That and, again, this largely places this out of the realm of the hobbiest members here.

This is true in this case. GREAT shot! But showing me a macro image and discussing the possibilities applying to an object 10 feet away is Apples and Oranges.

Ummmm...... right next to my basement shop is my actual Studio. With strobes, lightboxes, adjustable table, light tent, mirrors and more.

Gotcha on that. That crummy shot of the yellow Varsity on the tarp was actually lit by strobes last Spring. I hated it so I kept learning. You are correct that's a whole nuther area with VERY specialized studio setup.

The irony that you would uses an example photo of a knife to guide me is not lost.

I'll point you towards my body of better work, or.... Just Google me.

SharpByCoop Photography

I want to remind ANYONE that this is an achievable setup / tutorial for occasional bike captures, beyond cell phones outside against a wall. Goal met.

Packrat1947

You are right. Apparently Mojo31 missed the "reading comprehension" sessions in the third grade. We see this all the time.

BTinNYC 

SharpByCoop Wow, serious knives! That Loveless-style Big Bear...yowsa!

john m flores 

Great tips for a cheap setup in a small space, Jim. I encourage all cyclists - not jut classic and vintage owners but owners of some beautiful contemporary bikes as well to document their rides for future generations to ogle over.

Note to all about the background and wrinkles - it's much easier to control those aspects of a photograph for small objects like knives, but it becomes much more challenging with just a small increase in size. My ex wife photographed pottery for fellow potters (the kinds of photos you put in portfolios or use to enter and announce juried shows), and photographing a 12" glazed vase was much more difficult than you'd imagine, controlling for seamless backgrounds, shadows, reflections, depth of field, etc.

A bicycle would be on a whole other level. I have photographer friends who photograph cars professionally and would rent studio spaces like this:



There are studios like this built in industrial areas just for pro photographers to rent because creating and maintaining a space like this is not cheap. All the photos that you see on bicycle manufacturer websites and in catalogs and magazines (remember them?!) are shot in spaces like this.

I photograph motorcycles usually, and will go to a park to get my static shots. I try to choose a place where the stuff in the background isn't too distracting and also far from the bike so that it will be out of focus. Cloudy days are actually better than sunny days because the clouds act like a giant diffuser and prevents harsh shadows. I then step far back, get low, and then zoom in to get my desired framing and background blur.



These tips also work for bicycles



As Jim mentions, modern phones are good enough these days to get some nice photos.

SharpByCoop 

john m flores Great post. Thank you. Much like Mojo31 suggested, having the bike in focus and the blurred background really changes the dynamic. I did not have that space in my narrow basement. Well done!

mr,grumpy The name checks out.

Coop

BTinNYC 

BF, Always enabling...now I want to buy black sheets.

BTW, great lighting from just overhead fluorescents.

Siu Blue Wind

Mr Grumpy please leave this thread.

axelwik

You can blur the background by stepping back and using a longer lens with an open aperture (instead of using f/22 or f/16, use the widest aperture - you'll have to reduce ISO, decrease flash intensity, or increase shutter speed to compensate). Longer lenses have narrower depth of field given the same aperture.

With artificial lighting the background can be made to go dark as long as no other lights illuminate the background (inverse square law).

cb400bill

Here is a link to another great DIY setup by Ray Dobbins.

https://www.raydobbins.com/photosetup.htm

SharpByCoop 

Siu Blue Wind axelwik cb400bill Thank you ALL!

Bill, thanks for this. ^^ Especially keen on that white setup. Beautiful. Same concept also with white foam boards. Never saw that page, yet we arrived at the same destination. Wonderful.

What I encourage more than suggestions are EXAMPLES, like shown above. If you can provide a better example show me/us.

The focus / depth-of-field thing works well if the background is more than 18" away. That's my limitation. I'm aware of the methods. Love john m flores examples outdoors to display that look.

Keep adding to this. (I also appreciate the moderators for their diligence.)

Coop (Who JUST purchased another Vintage Paramount. Look for it soon....)

SharpByCoop 

So a few of you wanted MORE bike and LESS background. I get it. OK. I am LIMITED by the size of my space and could not pull my subject away from the draped background much to make a huge effect.

However... I DID stretch the *cloth* backdrop to minimize wrinkles. They are still there. Less so.

FIRST: The subject line of this thread includes 'Inexpensive' so I offer the least expensive option. I captured the following TWO images with my Samsung S23+.

Yes, I then edited them in Adobe Camera Raw as I did my others (with my $4000 camera!) Darks darker, midtones brightened, and highlights reduced.



^^^ Pretty darn good! (All images resized down to 1500 pixels wide here)

NOTE: I tried to use the 'Pro' settings in the Samsung menu, and truthfully they did NOT come out better. Too soft. That was surprising.

I reverted to simply 'auto' mode and edited instead. They had much more detail. However you can see how it captures the background clearly also. Overall it's fine.

***************************************

Now I used my EXPENSIVE camera: Canon EOS5R and Canon 28-105L lens (Probably about $4000 new)

Overhead LED 4' shop lighting. f/4.0 ISO 2500, 1/125th shutter. NO tripod. JPG, NOT RAW. So sue me.







So, unless I opted for a PAPER backdrops (NO wrinkles, I see) this is where I sit. Paper comes in rolls of 9' x 36' from B&H for under $100 shipped. White as well.

However this cloth including a PVC hanger was less than $25 from Amazon. Shop lights or daylight: Both work.

Show me your examples. Thanks for viewing!

Coop

SharpByCoop 

Well, I had a great project and utilized my indoor setup again.

it takes me 20-30 mins to get it right before I begin shooting. Fabric, reflectors, sidestand attach, and sweeping the floor.

A worthy subject I just restored, you will agree:

rm -rf

This thread reminded me of 55/Rad's extensive bike collection, and his use of a professional studio after hours.

One of the studio setups. I never thought about studio lighting, so this was very interesting, especially the black panels blocking and shaping the lighting panels.



Linked from an interesting 2016 thread: How To Photograph a Bike

More 55/Rad bikes. (wow, I've been lurking on BF a very long time!)
These were shot and edited with circa 2008 technology. Modern cameras and editors might be better for the perhaps too high contrast and overexposed highlights.

Daccordi 50th Anniversary

Carbon Orbea Orca with dramatic lighting

Giordana Spica updated

50PlusCycling

I’ve been into photography since I was quite young, I still have my first “pro” camera, a Nikon FE that was used to photograph Reagan’s inauguration.

There are two basic things which are important to photography and most other art, composition and light. The geometry of your subject, and the geometry of the background makes a huge difference in how the eye appreciates a photograph. Simply shooting something standing in the center of a frame is not going to do it, unless there is something else in the image which adds a sense of proportion, direction, or dramatic effect.

A picture of something like a big truck is best when you can make it look bigger, like shooting it from wheel-level near the front, with the grille, fenders, and wheels filling up one side of the image, and the rest of the truck diminishing in size toward the other side.

Photograph in a way which makes well-balanced use of lines and angles, and use background objects which fit into the formula.

Light is the next important thing, and can be used to either illuminate or shade, depending on the effect you are trying to get. Shadows can be used to add geometry and drama to what otherwise might be a stale photograph. Edward Steichen was the first master of using light and shadow back in the early days of photography, and Henri Cartier-Bresson was master of composition and geometry, but who also was very clever at using light and shadow in his photos.

SharpByCoop 

Excellent input. Thank you.

I ESPECIALLY like the long thread from 2016. SUCH great examples! (Linked from an interesting 2016 thread: How To Photograph a Bike)

I get that my images are "Just the facts, Sir!"

No emphasis on anything more than CLARITY, and to that end I hope: Goal met.

Even OUTSIDE, emphasis on non-distracting backgrounds is key.



This is right outside my house. There is a lot going on, yet with smart natural lighting the bike is truly the subject.

Thank you. Coop

john m flores 

Great example of how good a phone is in good light! One thing to add - the blurred background algorithms are getting better but they still sometimes blur spokes and cables




If you are going to use your phone and use the blurred background feature, I suggest shooting multiple shots, some with the blur feature off, just in case.

john m flores 

Get low and make your bike a hero!

rm -rf

The bike photography threads back in the 2005-2010 era always had (somewhat joking) comments on the bike setups: crank arm not in line with the seat tube. Tire valves needed to be both at the top of their wheels (or was it at the bottom of the wheels?), and props holding up the bike hidden or edited out. Big ring + small cog only! DRIVE SIDE ONLY!!
Picky!

Smaug1

Looking good.
I have a big piece of black velour that absorbs all the light. Yours has some reflection. You might look into that.

Don't forget to adjust your exposure to under-expose; all the black will trick your light meter into thinking things are darker than they are and it will tend to OVER expose. The opposite holds true with a white background. Cameras' light meters are calibrated for 18% gray, but the metering systems are getting more advanced now.

I just got a 1972 Schwinn Varsity that I really like. Very few of my club mates understand, one even calling it a "*****ty old bike". It's Campus Green. You have a nice collection there. It is heavy, but once moving it rolls very smoothly and has quite a supple ride, with that springy fork!