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product photography

Mar 08
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A New Watch Blog is Born at WatchHunter.org

By Andrew Hughes, blog, horology, Masqueman Photography, product photography, watch collecting
A perfect storm of watch collecting, photography and blogging has come together in a pet project of mine located at www.WatchHunter.org. I just launched this blog last week and am trying to fill it with at least an article per week.

I started this to have an outlet (other than my patient wife) to write about my passion of being a horologist… also known as a watch nerd. You can often tell a watch nerd by the way he wears his sleeves just above the watch. He does this so that he can gaze upon the amazing timekeeping device on his wrist, much like a proud parent may look at a newborn. 
This can quickly get out of control with the advanced watch nerds skipping the wrist watch altogether and opting for the ultimate neck watch. Of course, you have to ask someone else “What time is it?”
Photo by Comedy Central
My plan is to write about the watches I own and ones I would like to own. I will have different series within the blog including “Strap Swap”, “Meet the Watch”, “Watch DNA” and perhaps a sales corner with product recommendations. The subject is limited only by the time I throw at it.

The www.WatchHunter.org blog will also create photo studio projects for me to hone my watch photography skills. Watches can be incredibly tricky to shoot. Believe me, every spec of dust, microscopic scratch and unwanted reflection tries to photobomb the shot. There are also industry standards as far as how the hands are set … usually at 10 and 2 just like they taught you in driver’s ed. Of course, rules are meant to be broken as seen in a sample above.
If you have an interest , please check it out and subscribe. 
Feb 09
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Confessions of a Star Wars Geek

By Andrew Hughes, Masqueman Photography, product photography, Star Wars
Normally, shooting product photos for a client does not remind me of anything from my childhood, but in the case of Uranium Flashlights… I had to chuckle.

Back in 1977 when Star Wars originally came out, I was a young geeky kid who loved my action figures and X-Wing fighter. Unlike some of my friends who had every Star Wars toy sold (I’m looking at you Noel Natividad), I had a few precious characters… and I loved every one.

I idolized Obi Wan Kenobi from the original film even though he was only in it for what seemed 30 minutes.

I vividly remember losing my Yoda action figure to a curious mishap when I tied it to a helium balloon and launched him like Ben Franklin into an approaching storm. Of course, I had no idea that the thread I had borrowed from my Mom’s sewing drawer was not attached to the spool. At that moment the string ran out, Yoda must have been at least 400 yards high (which is the length of thread on a typical spool), and he just kept rising. For all I know, he floated right back to his home planet of Dagobah. My hope is that some other kid found this sky treasure and gave him a good home.

Along with those toys, I always had a common household flashlight. During playtime it could become so many different things like a launching Saturn V rocket, an interstellar missile, a tractor beam, Han Solo’s blaster, and yes, even a light saber (especially around a camp fire where the beam would seem to solidify in the smoke).

Uranium Heavy Duty Flashlights or rockets… you decide.

So there you go… I admit it. Star Wars is part of my childhood that just won’t disappear… but I’m not the only one. There are legions of geeks out there… and more of us than you think… perhaps, even an army.

Jan 29
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Product Photography of BBQ Sauce for Atlanta Restaurant

By Andrew Hughes, Atlanta Business, Graphic Works, Masqueman Photography, product photography
Whenever I photograph retail products at Graphic Works, I try to standardize my workflow to save me time and our clients money. This may include setting up a single lighting rig that works for each similar object individually. In the case of this group photo, I shot each bottle alone and then created several versions of group photos and single product shots for print and web use.
This technique is often faster and much more versatile than shooting a group photo to begin with. This is because I can modify the spacing or composition “after the fact”. Plus, I don’t have to worry about nasty reflections of other bottles or complex lighting set-ups. Knowing this in advance can save a lot of headaches in post production.
Jan 25
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Photography of Trone Rocks for Large Chemical Company

By Andrew Hughes, Masqueman Photography, product photography
I am fascinated by the origin of products and the processes used to create them. I’m kinda nerdy that way, but this blog is not a confession. It is about creating photos of a natural raw material  named Trona and also the refined product named sodium carbonate. The photos were made for OCI Chemical which is one of the world’s largest producers of this material.
Sodium Carbonate is used in countless ways including glass making, baking, casting and scores of other manufacturing processes. It looks like white sand or maybe a movie prop from the set of Scarface.
Trona rocks are interesting things to photograph since they can literally dry and flake on the spot turning their gorgeous amber hue into a less interesting chalky brown. This rock below is on the verge of flaking. What is interesting to me about this one is the reflected yellow shadow which gives the illusion of the light passing through the rock like a crystal.

 I used a technique of vigorously scrubbing the scaly flakes from the sample rocks and photographing them before they became cloudy again. I might not have tried this if my client had not shown me this trick, and told me it would not damage the sample.
It was important to show the striations of amber color and not the darker “root beer” seen on the first photo… even though I think that lends some visual interest. I photographed several configurations of the rocks for the client including single hero shots. I also took photos of several together so now I can say that I have taken photos of “rock groups”. 
Finally, I combined the Trona rock with the sodium carbonate end product for a beginning-to-end style photo.

Jan 09
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Pain in the Glass

By Andrew Hughes, etching to perfection, glass, Masqueman Photography, product photography
Making photos of glass products can be challenging since the surface reflects everything including lights, reflectors,  the surrounding studio and even the guy behind the camera. To avoid this, the lights can be moved from the front of the product to the sides or behind. This allows the strobes to shape the edges of the glass product, not the center.  Doing this allows the glass to maintain the appearance of transparency while also showing the shape of the object. 



The photos were made for www.etchintoperfection.com, a company that makes customized chemical etched art on glassware for special occasions. Their artistic process creates unique keepsakes for weddings, showers, parties or just about any event you can imagine.


My plan was to set up one rig that would accommodate most of the different shaped glasses without having to make a custom shot for each one. This was important since I priced this job as bulk photography, and it was not in the budget to have a custom lighting solution for each style.

Here are a few examples of the glassware for weddings…


 bridal showers…
and even bachelor parties.

Apr 01
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Delicious Cake Photography for Couture Cakes in Atlanta

By Andrew Hughes, cakes, Couture Cakes, Lisa Humphreys, Masqueman Photography, product photography, weddings
Some cakes seem just too pretty to eat… even if that is the point. Such is the case with anything made by Lisa Humphreys of Couture Cakes, an Atlanta boutique bakery specializing in dazzling wedding and event cakes.

I collaborated with Couture Cakes to make photos of a showcase cake that looked absolutely amazing. The theme included delicate flowers, pearls and butterflies.
Lisa styled the accessories and we moved various items in a out of the photo in different configurations. Below is an early image that we later abandoned for a simpler design.

The final destination for the photos is Cake Central magazine. We made the photo below with lots of negative space so that it could be used as a cover which often require space for a magazine logo and article teasers.
As it turns out, we did not get the cover, but we did get a nice 2 page spread.
It is amazing to think that all of this is made with flour, sugar, time and talent.

A closer look reveals details like hand painted butterflies and letters, meticulously formed shapes, subtle color design and a variety of surfaces.
The flowers are made from edible fondent which may be a surprise to anyone viewing it. I would bet some people looking at these did not even realize that they were not real flowers. They are so delicate that it took several days of patient work to make them. 

Lisa is an absolute master of cake design and it was a pleasure working with her.
Photo details for this included 2-3 flashes, 1 humongous umbrella, and 1 soft box. An additional flash was sometimes used to lighten the background, which was a painted wall in her home.

Jan 11
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Medical Product Photography for Large Corporation

By Andrew Hughes, Graphic Works, Kimberly-Clark, product photography
Some products are more difficult to photograph than others depending on what kind of shape they are in when I get them. We all know that the products that we buy do not look like the photos on the package or that Big Macs look nothing like the idealized photo on the menu.

I have had wrinkled, crinkled, warped, folded, stained and ripped products sent to me which can make my job “interesting”. In cases where I could not get a clean replacement, I sometimes I could fix the product with anything from a hot steam iron and glue to retouching in Photoshop.

Other products are too complicated to shoot without simplifying them. This is the case of some of the heart monitor pouches I photographed for Kimberly-Clark. Imagine a small pouch connected to several feet of ribbon to tie it to the patient. Instead of showing ALL the ribbon (which looked like tangled spaghetti), we got permission to cut them down to a manageable size.

Hopefully, you wil never need to get an IV drip inserted. If you do, these will make the job easier.

These baby items were very small. It is amazing that humans start out this tiny.

Jul 05
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Product Photography for the World’s Hottest Pepper Sauce

By hot sauce, Masqueman Photography, product photography, The Extreme Gourmet
What happens when the previous title holder for “the world’s hottest pepper”, “Jolokia,” gets dethroned by a new king? A special hot sauce is made from it to delight those with a daring sense of adventure.

I am told that the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion pepper is likely to leave an impression since some specimens have measured over 2,000,000 on the Scoville heat scale. For comparison, Tabasco Sauce is rated at no more than 5,000. Extreme caution and common sense is a good idea, unless you want to burn your taste buds clean off.
These pepers are locally grown in Georgia and packaged fresh so none of the potency is lost. If you are brave enough to try “Scorpion”, then visit the Extreme Gourmet web site. You have been warned.
This product photo was taken with a soft box and strip box to control the reflection shape. Flames were added later from some explosions I photographed… What, do you think I wanted to burn the building down?
Apr 20
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Product Photography & Head Shot Portraits for Georgia Expo

By Andrew Hughes, corporate photography, Georgia Expo, Graphic Works, headshot portraits, Masqueman Photography, product photography
It was time to update the company directory for Georgia Expo, an Atlanta manufacturing company who I had previous worked for. This time around, I made 10 head shots portraits. It was a simple lighting setup. Nothing elaborate going on here.

The tricky part was timing the portraits with the ear splitting industrial noise in the warehouse where we were shooting. No office space was available so we set up a portable studio in the only place left in one of the cavernous warehouse rooms. Every 10 minutes or so the world’s largest air compressor would crank up reproducing the sound of 50 blacksmiths hammering horseshoes, machine gun fire and a pipeless Harley Davidson sounding off at the same time.

The portraits were just part of a 3 day product shoot for their web site and catalog. We took product photos of items ranging in size from 20 foot trade show booths to small hand sized parts and pieces. If you have ever been to a trade show or convention center, you have seen Georgia Expo’s products without knowing it. They make curtain and drape barriers that make up the different booths at events. They make huge divider curtain walls, stanchions, tables and so on. Here is a sampling…

Here are the carts for the moving all the trade show parts. Some weigh several hundred pounds.

Some candid environment photos were taken too. All those curtains are sewn by hand by fast seamstresses.

The storage area is huge and contains lots of already manufactured parts.

These tough guys only smiled after I promised lunch… just kidding. I had to pay them money.

Apr 08
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Cut Resistant Glove Search Engine by Showa Best Glove

By Graphic Design, Graphic Works, product photography, web site design
Last year I had the opportunity to work on a complex web design project for Showa Best Glove. They are one of the largest glove manufacturers in the world producing gloves for general purpose, disposable, chemical resistant, cut resistant and hi-tech applications.

Our task was to create a search engine for their cut resistant product line. With so many choices available to customers, it can be overwhelming to find the perfect glove for the job. The new search engine allows customers to select gloves based on different parameters and compare their favorites. The parameters include options of materials, color, cut resistance rankings, grip texture and so on.

Once a glove is chosen, they can elect to read detailed information about the glove, order a sample or download a product tech sheet. The site is meant for global use and has been translated into French and Spanish and also supplies different product options for 5 regions.

The site is driven by a massive database which alone was a herculean task to whip into shape after years of bloat and inconsistency. As simple as this site seems, it represents months of work by a small team of programmers, designers and photographers.

It is an ongoing project to update the photography on this site. We have set up a dedicated rig in the studio to make product photos of the palm and top of the glove. This allows us to shoot at a consistant angle in similar lighting for a reduced cost to the client.

We also shoot application photos of the gloves in use… This can involve setting up scenes in the studio or going to a location.

The site can be visited at www.cutrest.com 

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