Oops I forgot to title my last posting here...so this is it, hope it works

Does anyone know how I go about taking pictures of my acrylic paintings that are done on canvas? I need to put the photos on a website..and I cant get them to turn out ok. Anyone have any experience with this? thanx

i'm not sure if there's a good way to photograph paintings and have them come out good on the computer.. i'd say somehow having them scanned with a scanner would the only way to have them come out at great quality, but i can't say where you could do that.. i'm sure others here would be more familiar with doing this.

Cant scan them...they are on canvas with wood frame under the caNvas....and way too large for any scanner. I need to take the photos...with digital...but cant figure out the correct lighting...outside with natural light, inside with or without flash...just can seem to get them to turn out right....

well i was thinking of some sort of professional scanner, large size.. i've seen one before.... but i would say to stay away from using a flash and somehow make sure the light is even on the surface.. i've never attempted this but again, i'm sure others will have more of an idea.

I have a way that has worked well for me. I set my paintings up in a well lit area. I stand back as far as needed and at roughly a 45 degree angle from the painting. I stand at an angle so I will not pick up any reflection from the flash that I use. Of course, when I download the pics to my computer they have a distorted proportion. I correct that by changing the width of the image to bring it back into proportion using Photoshop (or other photo editing software).
I used to shoot the paintings from straight on and then edit out the flash reflections but I have found this way to be much easier.
I hope this helps.

alternatively you could just ditch the flash/angle and do a long timed exposure which will also help capture more colour depth and detail.

Verena I would not use an on camera flash as the reflections will ruin the image. If possible take the photographs outside and position your painting such that the sunlight hits it at 45 degrees to avoid most of the reflections. If possible use a tripod to get a good position so that the sensor plane is parallel to the canvas both vertically and horizontally. By doing that the image should be evenly focused and not distorted. Also, position the camera so the canvas fills about 3/4 of the LCD or viewfinder and take the picture. You will then crop of the surrounding background to leave only the image of the canvas.

If you shoot indoors with normal incandescent lighting you will want to change the white balance setting on your camera to Tungsten to get the most accurate color.

Well I use my digital......you all gave me something to go on at least..I will try the different ideas...I can use more if anyone has them too! smiles of thanx...

My wife and I have to deal with this problem a lot, she being a professional illustrator. On her most recent project the paintings (watercolors) I had to do 3 scans per image and merge them seamlessly in photoshop (easy technique given upon request). Our other options were an large format scanner ($50 per scan) or the most common in the industry, a professional digital photo by an imaging shop (about $20 per painting).

Photos must be done without a flash with oils - high surface reflection destroys the image color in places. It also needs to be a camera with low to no barrel distortion (the annoying fisheye effect which makes straight lines look curved, especially at the edges of the photograph). The shop you have do this should also do color correction for free.

One of our good friends had this last method done for her oil paintings for some reprints on canvas, and they turned out excellent. This method was even far beyond the limits of our digital camera (medium quality) and hers (high quality), too much barrel distortion.

If you must do it yourself, don't use a flash. Lighting type is mostly irrelevant - easily adjusted in photoshop or can be corrected internally on your camera by selecting lighting type. A tripod is an absolute must. Take the picture exactly perpendicular to the painting. There are filters in photoshop that can help reduce the barrel distortion, or so I hear. Mayne (Darryl) advises right to fill the viewfinder only about 2/3 to 3/4 as this will help reduce any barrel distortion you camera has, then crop it later.

Anyway, good luck!

zharazi..thank you a lot for the information. No I cant afford a large scanner...and I cant have it done..but I can do it with my digital..if I use your suggestions for the tripd etc...and camera settings..I dont use oils, I use acrylics...but I will definitely try these suggestions, thanx so much....

Aurelon PhotoPro LensTools is just about the best plug in for correcting lens distortions that i've seen. at around $200 it aint cheap but if you'd like to try it out you can download a demo of it along with their other generally excellent plugins from aurelon.com

Well that sounds good Phil..but I cant afford $200 at this time, unless I know for sure I will be selling my paintings online, thats my plan at the moment.I could try it out yes..thanx for the info...