New Booth Shot

Larry Berman July 16, 2010 at 8:15am

The harsh whiteness wouldn't be there if the time of day or type of day were chosen more carefully. Do not shoot a booth picture on a sunny day. It needs to be overcast or cloudy. You'll get more even lighting in the shade and the camera mounted on a tripod will make it easier to deal with the longer shutter speed necessary.

Another way to deal with the bright wall is to double up the back wall with the side not being used that would have been in the front. The tables should be repositioned so that they hide the bright area under the back wall.

Clip the outer corners to the legs of the canopy to prevent the wind from blowing the sides and letting in more light underneath. Clip or tape the table covers to take out all wrinkles.

Remember that you only have to set up the booth for the picture once, not every time you do a show.

Larry Berman
Digital Jury Services
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100

Katherine Graham Sarlson July 16, 2010 at 8:01am

One more thought (sorry, I'll be quiet after this one). If you got a couple of panels of fabric in a pleasing color and hung them along the back wall, it would soften the harsh whiteness back there. Between a softer fabric back (heck, I hang mine with those black office butterfly clips I find on my desk) and centering the framed work, it would look not only very inviting but offset some of the shine from the back wall tarp.

Gary Haynes July 15, 2010 at 11:04pm

Was writing this as the the system dropped out yesterday. Some easy tricks to make this image rock along the lines of Larry's suggestions. Use a tripod. Position the camera lens half the height of the tent (4' for an 8' tent etc). Center the camera left to right. That top set of supports in your tent top should be in a straight line. The camera should be level, back of camera perpendicular to the ground. A bubble level helps.

Since our eyes are drawn to white you really don't want that white line at the bottom as has been pointed out. You could slightly lower the tent if that's possible or maybe use photoshop but based on the brightness you have that might become to obvious.

Take your time, shoot a bunch of photos, run inside and throw them on your computer and see if you got some keepers. Repeat and rinse as necessary :)

When I took my first pass I was really happy until I saw to my chagrin that I hadn't taken off all of my protective corners on a couple of canvases. duh !!!

Gary Haynes
www.reflectionsimaging.com

Marc Stewart July 14, 2010 at 6:37pm

Hello! My name's Robin Stewart. I'm the marketing half of Aviation Art by Marc Stewart. My hubby is the artist but I've been by his side, doing shows for 15+ years. I agree with the other comments about the distracting white space in your photo. I just have a few other suggestions, meant only as constructive criticism.

I see a mirror on one table. I'd add another. Perhaps hang it on the other side.

People LOVE looking at other people. You could add color and pizazz by adding a few photos of pretty gals wearing your jewelry. Print a larger photo, mount on foam board and hang or if small enough, stick on a tabletop easel! Just do so sparingly so it doesn't look like a department store. Hanging a photo of a close-up of your jewelry might also help overcome the problem of your work not being readily seen in booth photos. (Actually, I think you've done this thing in the back of the booth.) Perhaps go bigger?

A long time ago, we had our booth critiqued. One thing we learned was to 'theme' our booth. Your theme obviously is jewelry so go for it: add a couple of jewelry boxes into the display, perhaps a tall jewlery armoire, and maybe a mirrored vanity where ladies can sit and try on your wares. It may be more than you want to do but you get the idea. Help them "see" your work in their jewelry boxes at home. These additions could help fill your open space in the back of your booth.

I would try tablecloths that cover all sides of the table as seeing the sides/underneath takes away from the initial impression. Can buyers reach the hanging racks over the tables? That was a concern, too. Are there "head" mannequins like the ones you have for the necklaces? If so, showing how your longer, dangly earrings actually hanging from an ear (length, look, etc.) goes further than just showing them in the display box.

I beleive that some identifying signage is good during the selling hours of the show but perhaps not while shooting booth photos for show/fair jurying purposes.

What materials do you use? Point out the unique features of your work. Consider framing and hanging an 8.5x11 artist bio. Obviously this won't make much difference in terms of the look of your display but it's a nice extra that helps potential customers connect with you.

We also have a pop-up tent so I understand the convenience but consider wrapping the roof beams with artificial ivy or garland or something to warm it up a bit.

I hope this is helpful to you! I wish you much success in your shows and all artistic endeavors!

Regards,
Robin Stewart

Larry Berman July 14, 2010 at 4:48pm

The reason they didn't like your old booth shot was because of the logo hanging on the wall. Absolutely no identification in your booth. No names, no logos no web site URL's. No signs at all if possible.

Give me a call if you want me to work with you on creating an improved booth shot.

Larry Berman
Digital Jury Services
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100

Shana Keiser July 14, 2010 at 4:08pm

It's all broken down, but not that big of a deal to set back up. In the last booth photo I shot, I had something hanging in the back that showed up very well, but the fairs I applied to didn't like it. (It was a wall-hanging with a version of my logo on it.) WEll, I'm not sure exactly what they didn't like, but they definitely didn't like the booth photo.

I'm currently more concerned with how good the booth looks in a photo for jurying rather than how it'll look to people at the shows. I know those two aren't really the same thing!

I know part of the problem is that the jewelry is so small. One jury said they really liked my work, but they didn't like that they couldn't see it in the tent in the booth shot. (huh?) I've done several fairs with that old booth shot, but apparently, at least a few shows want something different. I've even gone to the fairs I didn't get into and looked at the booths... they aren't all that different from mine.

Thanks for the advice. I'm still tweaking things as I used to show with another artist and we had a joint setup. Now, I'm doing more shows myself, and I'm figuring out what to do to make the booth stand out. (There are some larger photos for the booth and some brighter colored under-tablecloths being worked on, as well as a banner with my logo/name.)

I'm working on things to hopefully have everything together for my next fair in August. If everything is good to go then, I'll make sure to take more photos.

Katherine Graham Sarlson July 14, 2010 at 2:44pm

I agree with Larry. There is a lot of very light negative space and that is what my eye is drawn to, not the art.

Larry Berman July 14, 2010 at 12:18pm

Initial reaction is that your tripod is set too low and the camera is looking up. Also the back wall is way too bare. I'd like to see the tables either placed across the front or at the very least set up at right angles to each other. Your pictures on the back wall are too small and don't do anything to show people what you're selling from more than a few feet away, at which point they can see the work. The streak of sunlight under the back wall or the canopy roof are the brightest areas in the picture and draws your eye. Try shooting when it's overcast or cloudy so there is even lighting throughout the picture.

Can you move things around and reshoot or is it broken down?

Larry Berman
Digital Jury Services
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100

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