![]() This means I won't go into exactly where the different tools are found, or how to use them - but merely which ones I use, and what I use them for. However, there are many editors out there, and most phones will also have a basic one where you can do many of the things I mention here. Time to do the editing Editing the photoAs said above, I use GIMP for my editing, and I edit on my laptop. I would recommend taking several photos, just in case some come out bad, and then selecting the best one. The artwork should be in focus, there shouldn't be dust or dirt on it (those small eraser parts especially have a tendency to stick to the paper), the camera lens should be clean, don't move while taking the photo, etc. Obviously, make sure the photo is technically good too. It will make for a smaller image in the end as you have to crop away more, but a good smaller image is often better than a larger one which is tricky to work with. In this case, you might want to take a photo more like the first example, as the part of the desk/the surroundings can make the camera understand the context better and give you more correct colors and values. (I use 3:4, which comes the closest.)Do note that some papers - black paper especially - reflect a lot of light, or can confuse the camera a bit. Note you can see part of my desk on the bottom - which is pretty much inevitable, as most paper aspect ratios don't like up with photo aspect ratios. If three of the sides line up, the fourth will too:,Here you can see I weighed the piece down with erasers, and then the "good photo" I will use for editing. If not, try to get three of the sides of the artwork lined up as perfectly as you can with the edges of the photo. ![]() Some phones will automatically tell you when you're taking a photo straight down (again, a reason for laying the artwork flat on a desk/table/floor). It's important you don't take the photo at an angle, as this will skew proportions, so take some time and make sure you don't do this. If the artwork is huge, you might want to place it on or against a wall.Now it's time to take the actual photo. Where you lie the artwork depends on where you take the photos - I myself usually use my desk, but a table or floor will also work. If it doesn't lie entirely flat (which can happen, especially with drawings), use something to weigh down the edges. Taking a photo will also be easier if you lay the artwork flat. Then, you place the artwork somewhere it's lit pretty evenly. The more ambient the lighting the better, so I find I get the best results in front of a huge window when it's overcast or eventually when the window is in shadow. Taking a photo in a dark area won't give you good results, and yellow lamp light will make the piece look yellow, so ideally you do this during the day. First, you need a place with good, natural-looking lighting. In my case, I very very rarely stage photos (as in place objects around them or similar), so I try to take a photo of the artwork only.Now, on to taking the photo. Some also have software optimization, which can be useful - or annoying, in which case it might be an idea to disable them.Taking a good photoFirst of all, we need to take a good photo of the artwork which we can edit afterwards. Most smartphones, and especially newer ones, will have cameras which are more than good enough for taking great photos of artwork. You should be able to do the same things in any editor, but the tools might obviously look a bit different.I use a standard smartphone to take my photos. Also, I occasionally use tools not shown here, like editing color saturation or color balance.I use GIMP (a free photo editor for desktop) for my editing. However, (most of) the editing part should work for scanned images as well.The example I'm using here is drawn on grey paper, but I use the same process for any kind of work, be it on black paper, white paper, or have a drawn/colored background.While everything is neat and linear here, it often happens I jump between stages and do small tweaks. ![]() Also, it can be daunting to start editing the photos you've taken and difficult to make them look like the artwork.So, I thought it would be fun to share my process, and how I do it A couple notes, first:I take photos of my artwork, rather than scanning it, due to not having a scanner. In other words, it can be tricky to get everything right. It's easy to get uneven lighting, or shadows, the white paper looks grey - or blue, or yellow -, your darks don't show up properly. How to take and edit photos of traditional art Making a traditional drawing or painting is one thing - but taking a good photo of it is quite another, and often harder than one might think. I already recorded this video a long ago and by the time this is posted, I just noticed that BeckyKidus also did a very relevant journal on this topic so check it out too!! ![]()
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