Chapter 3. Case Studies from the Digital Desktop Studio

When doing your own digital desktop photography, there is nothing like having lots of examples to draw ideas from. In this part we show how 16 objects are photographed. Within this collection you should find some case study that is close to the kind of object you are photographing. Seeing how we've tackled a similar object may give you ideas on how to approach your own. Look through all of the cases because different techniques are introduced in each one. By reading them all you assemble a tool box of techniques to apply to your own studio photographs.

Each case study presents three steps to completing an assignment. First we talk about composition— the way the camera, background, and subject positions relate to one another. Second, we look at how to arrange the lights. The way we've chosen isn't the only way. With a digital camera showing the scene on it's monitor, you can see for yourself what effect various lighting arrangements have on the subject. To get the results you want may take some experimentation, but that's the way photographers work. Lastly, we discuss camera settings such as depth of field, focus, white balance, and the like.