DIY 'Studio' Photography Hack

Hello everyone and welcome to my first blog, in this blog I will be putting one of the most famous photography hacks to the test, to work out if it is actually possible. In this tutorial and review I will be covering exactly what to expect and if I think it can be pulled off to the standard it claims to be.

The video states that by using a reflective surface against your laptop that shows a colourful, studio like background and by placing a product in front of it then you will capture a reflective studio style image.

Here's what you will need:

-A laptop or monitor, even an iPad will do as long as it has a big enough screen

-A black piece of paper or card, as long as its back

-A sheet of glass or Perspex (either will do)

-A phone or camera to take the photographs in the end

-A product or subject (this needs to be relatively small)

First find a background image, find one with plenty of colour and one that will reflect nicely too. I found one that suits my product and also contains enough colour and contrast that it should reflect onto the surface.

Place the black card onto your keyboard right under the screen of your laptop and cover it with the sheet of glass or Perspex. Add the product in the place and angle you are happy with, however this can be adjusted at any time. Now tilt and adjust the screen monitor so you can see a reflection on the other side.

For this to work, turn off all the lights in the room or “studio” as this will increase that reflection further.

Grab your camera or phone and compose your shot to a frame you’re happy with.

Now snap away!

Let me know in the comments how you got along, click the youtube video to see how i got along as well as a full tutorial and review...

I found that there was a few elements wrong with this hack, firstly there was simply not enough detail on the product, even adding a light to gain detail would have ruined the reflection on the screen. I could only really get silhouettes which wasn’t what I was after or expected.

Additionally the screen appears washed out, you can tell that it is a monitor screen however the reflection does appear clear and visible.

Overall I would say that this is a…. LIE, the studio effect is simply not there, it looks ammeter, although it was easy to complete I believe this shows and the effect is not up to 'studio' standard.

Thank you all for reading, please subscribe to my blog and feel free to comment any opinions or other videos you would like to see me take on.

References:

5-MINUTE CRAFT (2018) 33 Easy Diy Photo Hacks and Tricks [Online Youtube video Film] Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZoiHQPL2vY&list=WL&index=85&t=39s [Accessed: 26/10/2020]

HAGFILMS (2015) Comedy Theme [Music score] FreeSounds

SONOPLASTICO (2010) Samsung SL50 click - photo capture with flash [Music Score] FreeSounds

#master #photographer #story