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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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 Posted: Oct 13, 2013 10:34 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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| Pierre Joubert wrote: | | Hi Michael. Your photography is excellent and so are your specimens, especially the Mimetite (TN 251) and Pyromorphite (1092). Do you mind sharing your light source info. with us? |
Thank you Pierre. I'm willing to share all I know about shooting mineral images - anything that I can do to help others take better pictures of their specimens, I am happy to share. I use 4 lights with halogen bulbs. The bulbs have a color temperature of 3200 K. My camera is set to match this light source, so I generally don't have to do much editing to get the true color of most minerals. In general, the lights are positioned one on each side of the specimen, and one on top, slightly towards to back. The fourth is located to illuminate the background, which is under the glass that the specimen is resting on. I use a variety of small reflectors positioned to highlight crystal faces and often a diffuser (made from a sheet of vellum) on one of the side lights that helps to render a more 3 dimensional form. The setup I use today has evolved over several years and lots of experimentation. You can't be afraid to shoot a lot of images to find out what works best. Of course, digital cameras have really made this whole process more efficient. I hope I have been helpful.
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Fiebre Verde
Joined: 11 Sep 2013
Posts: 944
Location: Paris Area
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 10:56 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Hello Michael,
Thanks for sharing your lighting techniques.
Any particular reason why do you choose warm light sources which are known to enhance reds and oranges?
Gérard
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Pierre Joubert
Joined: 09 Mar 2012
Posts: 1605
Location: Western Cape
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 13:20 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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| crosstimber wrote: | | Pierre Joubert wrote: | | Hi Michael. Your photography is excellent and so are your specimens, especially the Mimetite (TN 251) and Pyromorphite (1092). Do you mind sharing your light source info. with us? |
Thank you Pierre. I'm willing to share all I know about shooting mineral images - anything that I can do to help others take better pictures of their specimens, I am happy to share. I use 4 lights with halogen bulbs. The bulbs have a color temperature of 3200 K. My camera is set to match this light source, so I generally don't have to do much editing to get the true color of most minerals. In general, the lights are positioned one on each side of the specimen, and one on top, slightly towards to back. The fourth is located to illuminate the background, which is under the glass that the specimen is resting on. I use a variety of small reflectors positioned to highlight crystal faces and often a diffuser (made from a sheet of vellum) on one of the side lights that helps to render a more 3 dimensional form. The setup I use today has evolved over several years and lots of experimentation. You can't be afraid to shoot a lot of images to find out what works best. Of course, digital cameras have really made this whole process more efficient. I hope I have been helpful. |
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Pierre Joubert
'The tree of silence bears the fruit of peace. ' |
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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 13:24 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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| Gerard Martayan wrote: | Hello Michael,
Thanks for sharing your lighting techniques.
Any particular reason why do you choose warm light sources which are known to enhance reds and oranges?
Gérard |
Hi Gerard,
After having tried several other light sources, this is what I find gives me the best results. While the color temp of halogen bulb should enhance reds and oranges, I have found that for the most part the color in the images is very similar to the color of the actual specimen. There are exceptions of course, dioptase for one, needs quite a bit of manipulation to render a true color. I know some photographers who use CFL bulbs with good results, but I have not had good luck with them. The only thing I do not like about halogens is that they give off a great deal of heat.
Michael
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Pierre Joubert
Joined: 09 Mar 2012
Posts: 1605
Location: Western Cape
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 13:32 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Hi Michael, for some or other reason my thank you dissapeared from my previous message; nevertheless, thank you again for sharing your success wiith us.
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Pierre Joubert
'The tree of silence bears the fruit of peace. ' |
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Don Lum
Joined: 03 Sep 2012
Posts: 2919
Location: Arkansas
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 15:51 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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| Pierre Joubert wrote: | | Hi Michael. Your photography is excellent and so are your specimens, especially the Mimetite (TN 251) and Pyromorphite (1092). Do you mind sharing your light source info. with us? |
Hello Michael,
I also wish to thank you for sharing your photography tips with us. Is there a secret to how to make the back edge of the glass disappear from the picture? Is it the way you position the overhead light? I've always been a slow learner. Is there any chance of your posting a picture of your setup?
Sincerely,
Don
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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 19:39 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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| Don Lum wrote: | | Pierre Joubert wrote: | | Hi Michael. Your photography is excellent and so are your specimens, especially the Mimetite (TN 251) and Pyromorphite (1092). Do you mind sharing your light source info. with us? |
Hello Michael,
I also wish to thank you for sharing your photography tips with us. Is there a secret to how to make the back edge of the glass disappear from the picture? Is it the way you position the overhead light? I've always been a slow learner. Is there any chance of your posting a picture of your setup?
Sincerely,
Don |
Hi Don,
A photo of my photo setup appears below. The back edge of the glass never comes into play because it is large enough that it isn't in the frame. You can just see the head of the 4th light used to illuminate the background. It's down and to the left of the tripod. Hope this helps.
Michael
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35405 Time(s) |
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Don Lum
Joined: 03 Sep 2012
Posts: 2919
Location: Arkansas
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2013 19:49 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Dear Michael,
This picture helps a lot. This picture IS worth a thousand words. It is different from what I had imagined.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Don
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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Oct 14, 2013 09:27 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Back to more minerals from China.
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Arsenopyrite
Dachang ore field, Nandan Co., Guangxi Zhuang Prov., China
5.6 x 6.3 cm.
Silvery, metallic, wedge-shaped arsenopyrite crystals associated with flattened tan rhombs of siderite. |
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35278 Time(s) |
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Pyrite
Wuzhou Pref., Guangxi Zhuang AR, China
4.5 x 6.5 cm.
An ovoid concretion composed of intergrown cubic pyrite crystals. |
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35265 Time(s) |
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Calcite
Fozichong Mine, Cenxi Co., Wuzhou Pref., Guangxi Zhuang AR, China
4.2 x 6.7 cm.
Colorless prismatic calcite crystals with opaque white zones at the terminal ends on a matrix of smaller calcite crystals. |
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35264 Time(s) |
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Roger Warin
Joined: 23 Jan 2013
Posts: 1239
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| Posted: Oct 14, 2013 10:34 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Simple and efficient, thank you. But it also implies the art of Master.
Roger.
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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Oct 16, 2013 08:49 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Thanks Roger. You are too kind - I still consider myself a student.
Today, a couple from Guizhou Province, and one from an obscure location that I can't find much information for.
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Cinnabar
Tongren Mine, Wanshan Dist.Tongren Pref., Guizhou Prov., China
3.5 x 4.5 cm
Sharp, cherry-red, twinned cinnabar crystal on rhombic white dolomite crystals. |
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34828 Time(s) |
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Siderite and chalcopyrite
Kaiwu Mine, Hezhang Co., Bijie Pref., Guizhou Prov., China
4.6 x 7.2 cm.
Semi-transluscent brown siderite rhombs to 2 cm interspersed among brassy chalcopyrite crystals. Thanks to Berthold Ottens and Jordi for making the true location of these specimens known. |
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34925 Time(s) |
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Quartz
Zhengzhou Prefecture, Henan Prov., China
6.5 x 7.4 cm.
Three intergrown quartz crystals colored green presumably by fibrous actinolite or byssolite inclusions. In spite of doing quite a bit of research on a more definitive location, I have been unable to find out much more about exactly where this is from. |
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34797 Time(s) |
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Roger Warin
Joined: 23 Jan 2013
Posts: 1239
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| Posted: Oct 17, 2013 01:09 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Hi Michael,
Wow. I especially appreciate this twin of cinnabar so wisely sitting on a mineral cushion.
Roger.
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Martin Rich
Joined: 15 Aug 2013
Posts: 127
Location: Lower Austria
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| Posted: Oct 19, 2013 20:07 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Hello Michael!
Excellent specimens and photographs - I enjoy it every time! One question about your setup: do you use a diffusor for the lamps?
Martin
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We are living on the matrix. |
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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Oct 21, 2013 08:52 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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| Martin Rich wrote: | Hello Michael!
Excellent specimens and photographs - I enjoy it every time! One question about your setup: do you use a diffusor for the lamps?
Martin |
Hello Martin,
Thanks for your comment. Yes, I sometimes use a diffuser, especially when photographing white minerals. The diffuser I use is made from a sheet of vellum. This seems to work the best for me.
Michael
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Michael Shaw
Site Admin
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 2250
Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Oct 25, 2013 09:48 Post subject: Re: Collection of Michael Shaw |
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Each of the minerals I have chosen today are from Hubei Province. This province is located in the east central part of China and is sometimes known as the "Province of Lakes" for the thousands of lakes that occupy the central plain. Hubei Province has significant ore reserves, and copper mining and smelting can be traced back to the 6th Century B.C. in the Daye area.
| Description: |
Calcite
Daye Iron Mine, Huangshi Pref., Hubei Province, China
6.1 x 8.7 cm.
Dark amber-colored crystals on a thin plate of black hematitic matrix. |
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34275 Time(s) |
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Quartz
Fengjiashan Mine, Daye Co., Huangshi Pref., Hubei Prov., China
8.2 x 10.4 cm
Opaque white quartz crystals included with reddish brown iron oxides, preferentially coated with white dolomite and associated with chalcopyrite crystals. |
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34236 Time(s) |
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Quartz var. amethyst
Tonglushan Mine, Daye Co., Huangshi Pref., Hubei Prov., China
3.3 x 4.8 cm
A single amethyst crystal with a partial jacket of small scalenohedral calcite crystals with reddish-brown tinged terminations. |
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34283 Time(s) |
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Inesite
Fengjiashan Mine, Daye Co., Huanshi Pref., Hubei Prov., China
1.7 x 2.3 cm.
Acicular pink inesite crystals with scattered brown hubeite. |
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34266 Time(s) |
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