A still life photographer told Morse about which rooms in an apartment can easily replace a professional studio

OLGA SINEGUBOVA

still life photographer

They say that still life is a genre that photographers do not come to right away. Usually they start with nature, portraits, genre photography. When did you realize that this was your direction?

I am an ecologist by training, but I am a passionate person. I used to seriously go in for sports, read, knit, try myself in different types creativity. But the photo really captivated me. It started three years ago. At first I tried myself in a variety of genres, except, perhaps, still life. I constantly participated in online competitions among photographers. There I learned that there is still life in photography. Since then I've mostly been photographing only this.

This genre cannot be called popular and fashionable. In quantitative terms, it loses to all other areas of photography. “Selling” it is more difficult than portraits, product photography, nudes and love stories. How in demand is it?

I cannot agree that this is not fashionable. Perhaps in Kursk I am the only one who shoots in this genre, but on the Internet I see a lot of excellent still life painters. Yes, and you can make money from still lifes. I haven't tried it, though.

Do you remember your first still life?

Of course, I remember, but it was more of a parody of a still life. Then I didn’t understand that this was a difficult genre. I filmed it at home in the bedroom. I took items that absolutely did not fit with each other. She took what was at home: a vase with a flower, books and, for some reason, a cap. It’s even funny to remember now.

You still take many pictures at home: you don’t rent a studio, you don’t use professional lighting. Is this your principled position or a temporary phenomenon until there are enough funds for all this?

Yes, I shoot at home: in the kitchen, in the bedroom, on the balcony. The lack of professional equipment is my principled position! I believe that for a spectacular still life, a sense of taste and tact are most important.

What items do you most often choose for compositions?

I mainly use antique items with history (kerosene lamps, clay jugs). I found all this in the village with my grandmother. I try not to use modern things.

Olga Sinegubova conducts master classes for those who want to work in the same genre as her. Classes (again, as a matter of principle) are conducted at home. The editors of Morse looked at the conditions under which its works were created.

Backstage from shooting a still life with rowan:

Result:

The most important thing is light. You need to shoot near the window, it serves as a large softbox. The sun should not look out the window, otherwise the light will be too bright and harsh. No need to turn on chandeliers and lamps. You can highlight individual objects with a flashlight (if required).

2

It is advisable to use a uniform background (dyed Whatman paper, fabric).

3

Items in the composition should not only be combined in color, but also be correctly arranged. There shouldn't be too many items. The correct vision of the frame is to cut off everything unnecessary.

4

Use a tripod.

5

Learn basic camera settings. Set individual values ​​for each still life.

Hello, friends! We continue our acquaintance with the theory of photography.

Still life is one of the popular and favorite genres, and today we want to talk about the basic principles and rules of photographing it.

When photographing a still life, each photographer faces the main task of locating the objects in the composition, their relationship with each other, as well as accurately conveying the shape of the objects and their volume on the photographic plane.

What you photograph is entirely up to you. If you look around, you can find many interesting and fascinating things that are worthy of a photo. Don’t follow stereotypes and don’t shoot exclusively flowers and fruits; there are many more possible subjects to shoot. Unconventional thinking is welcome even in the most standard genre.

Pay attention to the things around you, try to find images and subjects for still life in ordinary everyday things. Look at this or that potential subject from different angles and from different sides.

Lighting for still life photography does not have to be expensive; you can get by with improvised devices. You can use standard lamps very productively if you know how to work with them. Be sure to try to illuminate the object from different sides; the option with direct lighting is not always successful, and sometimes it’s just boring. If you have a bright and beautiful light source from a window, try taking photographs with them. Sometimes you have to use a reflector, especially when shooting with natural light. If you don't have a reflector, you can create your own, for example, from foil and cardboard.

If the surface of an object has an uneven or pronounced texture, it can best be shown using side lighting. If the light comes from the side, it brings out details well.

Objects with glass or metal surfaces deserve special attention, that is, any shiny objects whose surface creates glare and reflections of light. Shooting such objects is quite challenging, but at the same time very attractive, since objects made of glass or chromed metal can look interesting in the frame. You can experiment with them and take a creative approach to the shooting process itself.

What is the first thing to pay attention to when shooting glass objects in order to get high-quality results?

1. Turn off the flash

It produces very bright and harsh light, which contributes to glare and reflections that spoil the image.

2. Use even lighting.

This best allows you to emphasize the shape of an object and reveal its volume. When shooting something made of glass, proper, even lighting also helps show off the matte or texture of the glass. Glass usually looks better when lit from behind.
diffused light. This light can illuminate liquid poured into a glass or glass. Another light coming from the side effectively emphasizes the shape of the glass.

3. Choose the right background

Indeed, the background plays a significant role when shooting glass and things with smooth, reflective surfaces. It is best to use a plain background to accurately convey the shape of the object and small details. The classic is a white or black background. Sometimes interesting effects can be obtained by photographing glass against the background of fabric with numerous folds or an object that has some complex structure. True, here you need to ensure that the shape of the glass object does not get lost against such a complex background.

5. Fighting glare

There are several ways to combat glare and unwanted reflections on shiny surfaces. For example, you can try to enter glass product from a cold place to a warm room, or fill it with ice water. You need to take pictures immediately, when the glass surface becomes a little foggy and large water droplets have not yet formed on it. The surface will temporarily turn matte and ugly highlights will disappear. You can put a piece of ice in a glass goblet or vase before shooting - the effect will be the same. This method can also be used to photograph metal utensils.

A polarizing filter can be indispensable when photographing glass objects. With its help you can remove a significant part of the light glare. A polarizing filter is good to use when photographing through glass surfaces, as well as when photographing items made of glass, porcelain, polished or varnished wood, and plastic.

Depending on the lighting, you may need to use a tripod. It will help you use long shutter speeds and still create beautiful images.

Try not to let the tripod restrict you. Change the angles and point of view, do not be lazy to rearrange or reconfigure the camera and install it on a tripod in a new way. Otherwise, you will get a whole series of the same type, even boring, shots with minor plot changes.

Having a beautiful and successful background is already half the success of a still life. It is best when the background when shooting is simple, so that it does not distract from the still life objects. Monochromatic walls or a large sheet of white or colored paper with a simple pattern, or no pattern at all, work well as a background.

Think about how the background contrasts with the subject. If you don’t want to shoot against a simple background, then think about what shade would look good and harmonious with your frame and could complement the image of the still life. For smaller objects, you won't need a background as such, but will instead need a surface to place the items on. Here, black velvet or just a solid black surface that absorbs light well would look good as a background.

The compositional element of your photo is the most important component of a successful photo. When creating a photo composition, consider the rule of thirds and think about how they can be applied in your frame to create a strong composition.
To create an interesting and memorable photograph, it is important to think outside the box. Where does the eye fall when viewing? How do you use white space in a frame? How to present an object to the viewer so that it looks as attractive and advantageous as possible? By answering these questions, you will be able to create a good composition and successfully photograph a still life.

Atmosphere and mood

No matter how funny it may sound, the quality of the photographs you create is influenced by the atmosphere and your mood. Moreover, this rule works not only when shooting still lifes. When you are relaxed, focused and enjoying the process of shooting, you can be confident that your attempts will be successful. When photographing still life, it is important not to rush anywhere.
Unlike street and reportage photography, where the composition of the frame changes all the time and you need to take the photo in time, still life is static. It can take you as long as you want to create one still life photograph. That is why you should pay attention to the little things and prepare for the shot as much as necessary. Set the lighting, your subjects and take a closer look at what you get, make adjustments if necessary and start taking photographs.
When shooting still lifes, you have no excuse for blurry or blurry shots. You have an unlimited amount of time to focus.

When creating your own still lifes, thinking about lighting, composition and ideas, do not forget to turn to the classics of the genre for help and inspiration. Picturesque still lifes have been created for hundreds of years. You may find answers to many of your questions in the paintings of Renaissance artists or modern photographers.
Studying paintings will help you think about shapes, shades and colors. Exploring various solutions will lead to creating your own unique images in photographs.

Choose a suitable day when you know you won’t be distracted or rushed. Combine all the tips you've received so far and get to work.
Prepare the required still life components, charge and set up your camera, take care of the lighting and get creative. You can try shooting with an open aperture of f/1.8, if you have a fast lens, it will help in achieving artistic background blur.
And remember that a still life is not only a composition of vegetables, fruits and flowers, it can be anything. Find something that inspires you and photograph it!

Today we will tell you about what a still life is and how to create it. We are talking, you understand, of course, about a photographic still life. From this article you will also learn how to make a beautiful image of objects in just a few steps in an ordinary apartment.

So what is still life? Translated from French, still life (nature morte) means dead nature. Applicable to all types visual arts, a still life is an image on a plane of various objects. A still life can depict jewelry, fruits and other fruits, household and household items, antiques and much more, or rather, anything.

So how do you shoot still life?

First stage. Idea

Everything begins with it, with an idea. Absolutely any matter. Including work on still life. Before you start filming, you need to firmly understand for yourself: without an idea that you have clearly formulated for yourself, you will not succeed. Some amateurs sometimes think something like this: “now I’ll scatter objects on the table, and I’ll immediately understand what will come out of all this, what I’ll succeed.” But we’ll tell you right away: this approach to business will only take up your time, and perhaps even discourage you from shooting still life altogether. The idea of ​​creating a still life matures in the photographer based on his imagination, desire to shoot, and in general various everyday impressions. During the gestation period, the idea is gradually cleared of various superfluous and unnecessary details, fits into a certain framework, the composition of the future photograph is built, objects, background, draperies, etc. are selected for this photograph.

By the way, searching for objects to bring the idea of ​​a planned still life to life is quite a difficult task, and sometimes even costly in material terms. Some photographers buy these items, others borrow them from friends and acquaintances. Quite often, the composition of a still life arises from one thing. Then this composition becomes overgrown with other things, and one, two, three ideas for still lifes arise in which this particular object will appear. After you think about the plot of the still life and finally decide on the composition, you will need to constantly keep in mind the items that you have available. Well, at worst, buy them in addition or acquire them in other ways. In parallel with this, you need to mentally draw for yourself the composition of the photo in which your objects will be located. You need to work in this regard until the still life is finally “drawn” in your imagination.

Second phase. Preparing the backdrop and table

It is best to arrange the objects from which you will create still lifes at home on a coffee table that can move on wheels. Such a table can be easily positioned in a way that is convenient for you, for example, in relation to a window or other light source. A table is just a base, a stand for objects. It won't be visible in the photo itself. What will be visible in the photo, what will serve as the background for objects, is usually called the backdrop. The backdrop for a still life could well be a sheet of fiberboard measuring about one and a half by one and a half meters. On one side, for example, it can be painted with light or gray paint, on the other - with dark stain. This backdrop is quite enough for work. You will also need such a thing as bedding. What it is? The bedding can be, for example, a piece of burlap or other beautiful different color textured fabric, various boards from different types of wood, cardboard, pieces of glass, etc. The main thing is that both the mat and the backdrop should not be too active and would not distract the viewer’s attention, and would not fall out of the overall tone of the still life.

Third stage. Arranging items

The great Spanish surrealist Salvador Dali once said: “If your picture is clear to you before you paint it, you don’t have to paint it.” What does it mean? And the fact is that in the artist’s imagination the picture is usually drawn somewhat differently than how it will be in real embodiment on the plane. The reason for this phenomenon is many different little things. Not a single artist, even the most talented and educated, will ever tell you exactly how the proportions will line up in a given situation, for example, a rose in a vase in relation to an apple located a little further from it, how the light will fall on this entire composition, and much more. That is why the arrangement of objects for a still life, arranging them on the desktop, is just the embodiment of your fantasies. And our life, as we know, is quite far from ideal.

Real still life masters often spend a lot of time lining up objects. Sometimes they can do this for hours. And indeed, in this matter every millimeter is important. Sometimes, after arranging objects on a plane, the photographer realizes that he did not succeed, that the objects do not fit together at all, do not live a single life, that the still life being built turns out to be completely incorrect and boring. In this case, you just need, as they say, to strain your brains and return to the original idea of ​​​​your still life, and squeeze out of this idea everything that is really possible, to the last drop. But, unfortunately, often nothing comes of this. However, if you see that the composition is somehow coming together, there is no point in breaking it. It’s easier to modify it and still take a photo. By the way, sometimes it happens that a still life acquires its completeness only after processing the image in Photoshop. Don't forget about this too. Or the exact opposite situation may arise: you created, in your opinion, a decent, simply wonderful still life, but the audience did not like it at all and did not appreciate it.

Fourth stage. Light

Light in still life is a separate and serious topic. We can talk about her for a long time. But today, in order not to bore you with unnecessary discussions, we will talk about it briefly.

It is good to use different types of lighting in a still life depending on the season and the subject of the still life itself. For example, with natural sunlight From a window (or even on the street) it’s good to shoot still lifes, the main “characters” of which are fruits, vegetables, berries, flowers and in general something that was recently alive. But the so-called “male” still lifes, in which such attributes of this half of humanity “take part” as a pipe, an expensive lighter, a beautiful knife, a bottle of good cognac, are best photographed in artificial light. You can use a flash, you can use other light sources. Artificial light gives the still life an atmosphere of night, calm, some kind of loneliness and comfort. But, nevertheless, you can change a lot in a still life by setting, for example, two flashes instead of one when shooting, or shooting a still life with a different white balance value. Well, and much more.

Sometimes when shooting a still life it is good to use shutters that block the path of light, or reflectors that illuminate objects with reflected light. In any situation, when creating a still life, serious attention must be paid to the light pattern. The overall mood of the still life depends on it.

Fifth stage. Shooting

Well, the objects have been placed on the table, the still life has been arranged, the light has been set... Now we begin to shoot. The camera, of course, needs to be mounted on a tripod.

We would like to notify you that this stage, photographing, also imposes some restrictions on the work. Sometimes it may happen that the still life composition, lighting, and much more may look slightly different in the photo. And then you will be forced to change places of objects, move them from place to place, create a different light pattern, etc. This stage of work is very closely related to the third stage of working on a still life (with the arrangement of objects). That's why it can also take many hours. Plus, when shooting, the photographer often has to change the camera settings.

After you see a picture on the camera’s miniature display that you seem to be happy with, you can remove the flash card from the camera and insert it into the computer to see the result on the big screen. Of course, you will probably find a huge number of minor flaws and mistakes in your still life. Well, for example, a blockage of the horizon, or inaccurate focusing, some kind of extra glare on the subject, etc. You have to again take the card into the camera, change the shooting parameters, move objects from place to place, replace them with one another, build a new light pattern... Take a few pictures again... Then again - the big screen. And so on ad infinitum. Sometimes this can last for several hours. Sometimes you can spend the whole day working on one still life. Sometimes the light from the window can change, become different both in intensity and color temperature...

But without painstaking work you'll never get a good still life. As the old Russian proverb says, you can’t even take a fish out of a pond without difficulty.

Sixth stage. Post-processing

Post-shooting processing of photographs in various graphic editors (Photoshop, for example) on a computer is a necessary stage of work. Those who deny this and believe that there is no need to interfere with photography, that this deprives it of reality and naturalness, are deeply wrong. Post-processing of images is required. Sometimes it is simply necessary. In still lifes you can’t do without it at all. True, in some cases post-processing is needed more, in others less. Graphic editors open up another, new, unknown facet of creativity for the photographer just recently, with film photography.

For example, in Photoshop you can age a still life, or put some texture under the image. We would like to offer you something like this still life post-processing scheme:

1. Open the RAW file and edit it in Adobe Camera RAW.
2. Give the image a vibrant contrast.
3. Darken or lighten some areas of the photo, even out the overall tonality.
4. If there is a need and desire, put a texture under the image.
5. Increase sharpness if possible.
6. Well, the final stage is fine retouching of the defects of the objects themselves depicted in the photograph: abrasions, cracks, etc.

All. Save all changes to the image. The work is completed.

By the way, this stage of work, these six seemingly short steps, can also be quite long in time and last several hours... Let's give one more little piece of advice here. The best time to post-process a photo is a few days after shooting. Let your head and your creative thinking rest after hard work. It is quite possible that during this time you may come across new wonderful ideas.

We wish you creative success!

In this article we will look at the basic rules that will help you understand how to photograph still life correctly. And it is quite possible that this genre will interest you. But in fact professional photography still lifes have many advantages that many underestimate, for example, financial side affairs. Such photographs are often ordered for magazines, websites and other products.

Let's get to work and look at the main misconceptions of novice photographers. To shoot still lifes, contrary to popular belief, you don't need a studio. The usual space in your home is enough, and use natural light from the window as light for shooting.

Also know that when creating a still life you need to take into account much less detail than when shooting a landscape or portrait. And when creating a future photo, you have many opportunities to expose objects in the frame and spend as much time shooting as you need.

Selecting a subject

What will appear in your photo is entirely up to you. If you look around, you will find many interesting worthy things that deserve a shot. You should not focus only on the classic themes of still lifes, which consisted of flowers and fruits. That is, if you like these themes, then shoot them, but you should not think that this is the only direction of still life. In this standard genre, out-of-the-box thinking is especially encouraged!

To successfully shoot still lifes, you need to develop the ability to pay attention to detail. It is also necessary to be able to look at things from different perspectives and from different angles. When choosing a subject to photograph, try to avoid reflective surfaces such as glass and metal. These objects can distort the light and spoil the frame, but you should also know that with these objects you can get the most best shots, but it's much more complicated.

Lighting for still life photography

Many people think that to understand how to properly photograph a still life, you need professional studio light. But this is not at all true, at the beginning of the article I said that for a still life, lighting from a window is quite enough. Also, no one forbids you to use improvised means and devices.

It should be understood that to illuminate a still life you do not need a powerful, and therefore expensive, light that can stand at a distance of several meters from the subject, as is necessary in portrait photography. A few tens of centimeters and proper placement are enough. When using artificial light, experiment with angles, as most direct lighting is just boring. If you do not have additional devices, but have a well-lit window, use a reflector and create beautiful drawing. You'll be surprised how much you can do with simple light sources!

Camera fixation and shooting angles

Most likely, during your work, you will need a tripod, or rather, with a tripod it will be more convenient and easier. Using this simple accessory, you will save a lot of time and nerves, because if you don’t like some detail, you will change it, and when shooting without a tripod, time and effort will be spent on restoring the previous composition. Also, with the help of a tripod you will be able to use long exposures. You will be able to close down your aperture more, which will allow you to create more beautiful and deeper shots.

One of the most important, albeit simple, tripod lessons you need to learn before taking still life photographs is this: a tripod is a helper, not a limiter. Many novice photographers who have a tripod become too lazy to change the composition or angle of view. They begin to frame the picture around the camera attached to the tripod, rather than using it as an auxiliary tool. Avoid such mistakes!

Selecting a background

If you managed to find a beautiful background, then you already have half of the still life. It is best that the background is simple, but at the same time beautiful and does not distract the viewer’s eye from the main objects of the frame. As a background, it is best to use walls of a single color, large sheets of white or neatly colored paper, perhaps coarse plain fabrics.

Photography composition

Still life composition is another important point when photographing a still life. Since the frame is static, you can think through it in advance and efficiently. Please note that the main methods of constructing a composition are the rule of thirds and the golden ratio.

To create a successful and interesting still life, you should learn to think outside the box. It is also worth understanding very deeply what you are showing, so you can understand why and how much empty space is in the frame. How to show the main subject in a winning and interesting light? Answering these and other questions will help you create the perfect photo!

Also, before photographing still lifes, you should remember one more thing. In this genre, you will not be forgiven and you will not find excuses for blurry and blurry shots. You have no time limit and therefore be vigilant and very careful.

Still life inspiration

The last thing to discuss when photographing still lifes is inspiration. When choosing lighting, composition of objects and more, you can look through your favorite photographs and drawings of classics that will inspire you to create a new masterpiece! You can also find answers to many of your questions in the photographs of the masters, which is also very useful!

Good luck with your filming!

The goal of every photographer shooting still life scenes is to attract the viewer's attention as much as possible, to create a photo that they would like to print, frame and enjoy its appearance. However, photography has a shorter “wall life” than, for example, paintings. Much is explained by the fact that the artist receives maximum control and freedom of artistic expression in every millimeter of his canvas and is limited only by the circle of his vision and talent.

The photographer, in turn, accepts the challenge of capturing the image as it appears in reality, and unless he carefully considers every element of the exposure, the photo risks falling into the category of “almost perfect”. For most still life photography enthusiasts, the most difficult challenge is lighting. Understanding the nature of light, as well as the ability to control and change it, will bring you as close as possible to the understanding that a photographer must “paint with light.”

In this tutorial, we'll show you some basic lighting techniques and photography techniques, as well as introduce you to the basics of artificial lighting and show you how to best use it to your advantage.

Issues covered:
How not to shoot still lifes
Installing a simple studio light
Switching to manual mode
White balance correction
Setting the main light
Adding a Second Light Source
Changing the position of the light
Taking a backlit photo
Setting each light source individually
Shooting in B&W and Sepia mode

Equipment used:
Camera/Lens
- Olympus EVOLT E-500
- Olympus 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 Digital Zuiko Zoom Lens
Stable tripod
Set of lighting equipment

How not to shoot still lifes

First, let's look at how not to shoot still lifes. In our case, the Olympus EVOLT E-500 camera was used mainly due to the ability to shoot in both AUTO and manual mode. It's important to note that you're bound to get terrible results if you shoot in AUTO mode.

Having bought calla lilies at a flower shop, we put them in a vase and placed them on the table against the background of the wall. We then set the exposure to AUTO, activated the built-in flash, and took the photo (Images 1 and 2).

Taking pictures of beautiful flowers in this way is comparable to playing the piano with winter gloves. You may be able to complete the task, but who wants to watch?

Installing a simple studio light

Switching to manual mode
The first thing we did was turn off the flash. In the case of the Olympus EVOLT E-500, this means simply lowering the flash down until you hear a click. If you are using another camera, please refer to the user manual to disable the flash. The next thing we did was change the exposure mode to M (Manual) so that we could set the shutter speed and aperture manually (image 4).

White balance correction
Finally, we needed to adjust the white balance so that the colors in our image were neutral or balanced, for this we used the Tungsten (incandescent) setting. To change the white balance in the EVOLT E-500, you first need to press the WB button on the back of the camera, then use the directional buttons to select the light bulb icon (Tungsten/3000K). To confirm the selected setting, press the OK button (image 5).

Setting the main light

Once the camera was finally set up, we turned on one light and positioned it slightly to the side to capture the texture of the flower's petals. The advantage of working with constant light is that you can see the effect on your subject as the light changes.

Having adjusted the light to our liking, we shot several test frames, changing the aperture and shutter speed settings to achieve the best depth of field, as a result, the following combination was chosen as the most optimal (images 6 and 7). To learn more about depth of field, read our lesson on Controlling Depth of Field When Shooting Outdoors.

Despite the change, the photo still turned out to be high-contrast; it is noticeable in the image that the left side of the flowers remained in shadow.

Adding a Second Light Source

At this stage, a lot of people would think that the best way To minimize the contrast and illuminate the left side of the callas would be to add a second light source from the opposite side at approximately the same angle as the first.

Let's see what happens if we do this (images 8 and 9).

Changing the position of the light

The next step was to immediately turn off the second light source and slightly change the position of the first light to achieve something similar to what we were able to achieve using only one light source. We also changed the position of the vase with flowers to create a better composition in the frame.

Once the first light was in the right place, we took the second one, moved it closer to the background and pointed it directly at the wall. The second light served two purposes: first, it illuminated the wall, creating a tonal transition, and second, it reflected light from the wall into the shadow on the left side of the subject (images 10 and 11).

After installing the light, we took the following photo (image 12).

Taking a backlit photo

The following are suitable epithets to describe this photo: “pleasant”, “calming”, “cute”: There is a good exercise that will help you improve the result. Leave the room for a while, re-enter and try to look at the frame or image objectively. What definitions come to mind? Are they the emotions you were trying to evoke in the viewer? Remember that your lighting tools and how you use them will greatly impact the emotional quality of the image.

So, for example, let's say that you would like to change the shot from "pleasant" to "dramatic". What would you do about this? In our case, it was decided to use very effective method, the so-called “backlighting” or “halo effect”. Essentially, this lighting method allows you to backlight your subject while creating a beautiful outline in the background, capturing visible elements of texture, while leaving the front slightly darker, giving the lighting a more dramatic effect (image 13).

To start, we turned on the back left light, pointed it at our subject from behind, and turned around to see how the light affected the scene. After slight changes in the position of both sources and colors, we took the following photo (images 14 and 15).

Setting each light source individually

In the next step, we turned off this source on the left and turned on the right one. We recommend starting with artificial lighting to get into the habit of adjusting each source separately. It is much easier to see the effect of one source and change it than when two or more sources are turned on at the same time. While it may seem difficult at first, you'll be surprised how long you can struggle when dealing with multiple sources at once, especially as you add more lighting elements to your setup.

Once the second light source was in place, we took the following photo (images 16 and 17).

As a result, we got exactly the look we were aiming for. Each light source illuminated the flowers very effectively, making them stand out sharply against the beautiful transitional background. And due to their position, the sources do not negatively affect each other, as was noticeable in image 7.

Shooting in B&W and Sepia mode

Finally, it was decided to take the classic approach and take several alternative shots in grayscale (halftone) (black and white) and sepia mode. The EVOLT E-500 features these modes and more, all available with just a few button presses.

To change the setting to Halftone mode, you simply press the Menu button on the back of the camera and use the directional buttons to select Picture Mode, then Monotone, then press the OK button (images 20 and 21).

Toeing the same line, we decided to go a little warmer and used the Sepia color mode for our final shot (images 22 and 23).