Topic: Photographing clear and translucent glass on a light table

[KevinH]

For trouble with colour tints in photos of clear glass items due to various types of lighting, try the "Remove color" option that should be available in most photo editing applications. It simply creates a "black & white" image, which could be acceptable for many photos.

[dirk.]

Like David already said it is very helpful to have light-bulbs of different lengths. I´ve used one upright e.g. for a tall Empoli
decanter (pics will follow).
Additionally - I´m switching to LEDs at the moment. They tend to produce less tints in the photos.

[David E]

Colour tints can also depend on other variables, but it can get rather complex to remove them.

1. If you are using a standard fluorescent light then the colour temperature can vary wildly - such is the importance to use the same bulbs throughout. A 5500-6500K colour temperature is equivalent to a daylight setting and is something I would always prefer. You can get fluorescent lamps with this temperature. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_temperature - it looks as if Nic's lamps are spot on (unless he photoshopped them  )

2. If your tent, or setup, is open to the light (not enclosed) then natural daylight can cause awkward tinting due to different colour temperatures. The solution is to eradicate the daylight with blinds or take the photos at night! But never use room lighting at the same time either, such as incadescent, fluorescent or LED.

3. Your camera settings can make quite a difference too. There may be a white balance setting, but this means setting it up for each session. This is where you 'tell' the camera what the light source is.

4. Photoshop or image editing software can remove any colour anomalies for you, providing it is a single colour cast.
a) Photoshop has Photo Filter setting for warmer (orange) and colder (blue) adjustments - use this in conjunction with the 'Info' panel to check that the whites and greys are equal for R, G and B settings (white is 256, mid-greys are 128, black is 0). Or use the 'Colour Balance' (Ctrl-B) tool to define the colour setting for Shadows, Midtones and Highlights, by boosting the blue values and reducing the red values to make a 'cooler' temperature. Or, the reverse for creating a 'warmer' (orange) image - this can also be used as a crude way to create sepia tints
b) Irvanview has similar settings, but not so easy to use. Just press Shift-G.

There is never the perfect photo and virtually all needs a little tweak along the way. Hope this helps.

[dirk.]

Here´s the picture of the decanter. I used a ´normal´ tube for the lighting underneath and an LED for
the back light, which gives a nice colour difference.

[David E]

Very nice, Dirk! Is that a strip of LEDs at the back?

[WhatHo!]

Thanks Dirk

[Pinkspoons]

it looks as if Nic's lamps are spot on (unless he photoshopped them  )

Because I buy/sell, and run through lots of photos, I have to make post-production editing as quick and pain-free as possible... so they're definitely spot-on! 

Additionally, if going for fluorescent tube lighting and you anticipate photographing coloured glass, always try to get tubes with a high colour rendering index (CRI) - 90, preferably - it will ensure that your colours are as close as possible to real life. Again, saves post-production tweaking time.

It's usually indicated in the coding on the packaging, if not already explicitly outlined - so a 5500k tube with a CRI of 90, say, will be '955', 3500k with 70 CRI is '735', etc...

[Anne Tique]

Just an update on my progress ...  ...

I recently visited a well known Swedish store (i've bought an island! ) and I spotted these light panels by coincidence. The light tables i have seen for sale on the internet were a bit expensive for my taste, so I thought I'll give this a try.

Here's the link and I have to add that they are not supplied with a cable, it is just the panel, but the cables are in the same stand and you'll be needing a handy neighbour if you find yourself incapable of connecting the lot, like myself, but I've got a thing when it comes to electricity ... I'm already scared to change a light bulb and a real electrophobic. You can change colour from warmer to colder whites and change the intensity with the supplied dimmer. The lamp is surprisingly strong, I've even tried it with a vase weighing 3,5 kg.

http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/lighting/ceiling-lights/floalt-led-light-panel-w-wireless-control-dimmable-white-spectrum-art-40332210/

Here are some results, I have used a darker background for the clear pieces.