World Wide Quilting Page

Question of the Week

Question for the week of March 6, 2000:

Our question this week comes from Barbara

How do you take good photographs of a quilt that show both the overall pattern and the detail of the quilt?

Lynette :
I lay the quilt on a floor and stand on a chair for the overall picture. If you have a wide-angle lens it would be easier. then for the rest, I just zoom in on several areas and hope that four to seven pictures will capture the quilt adequately.

Rhonda :
I hang mine from a wall and take the closest picture you can of the whole quilt, with or without a flash, depending on the lighting conditions, to get the complete quilt. Then to show the detail quilting, if it's a solid colour background zoom in on a particular section or turn the quilt around so you are taking a picture of the back of the quilt. You can then see the quilting instead of the fabric pattern on the top.

Maria of PA :
I'd just like to confirm that unless you have professional lights for photography, I'd stick with going outside. Most of the better pictures are outdoors. I usually wait till the last minute, like before I put it in the mail, and throw it over the sofa. Results have been mediocre.

ellen :
I've experimented with photographing quilts in several different ways.

First I thought I wanted to play up the quilting, so I photographed them in strong sunlight. My design "wall" is portable, so I'd take it outside and pin my quilt to it. I'd position it so that the sun cast a strong shadow. The resulting photos showed the quilt and the quilting very well. However, the texture was sometimes TOO prominent. Not only did the quilting show up, but all the seam bumps and ridges, as well. I now use this setup only on quilts where I REALLY want to show off the texture. Either way, it needs to be done mid-day. Otherwise, a low sun gives your quilts a golden cast.

Next, I tried photographing my quilts outside on a sunny day, but with the quilts themselves in shadow. This has worked well, and is the setup I recommend. (Again, I use the design wall.) I always take at least 4 photos: 2 overall, and 2 detail shots.

The 3rd method is for when I'm lazy or in a hurry - although it works pretty well. This time I photograph my quilts inside, in a room with lots of natural light. Of course, I use a flash. This can wash things out. If that's a problem, I have to head outside once again.

I usually use 200 speed film. My camera has an autofocus. However, I find that I often need to focus it manually - especially on the detail shots.

I've been shooting mostly slide film lately. I've recently heard about a way to mask out the background (non-quilt portions) of the pictures. Apparently it can be maksed off with "opaque" tape. I haven't quite figured out what kind of tape this is. I'll have to research it with my local camera/photo shop. Does anyone know about it?

gillian :
Take your quilt outside on a sunny day to take a photo of it and use 100 or
200 film. The flash that you have to use to take a photo inside tends to
make objects look dull and flat. But take the photo outside in natural
sunlight, and you'll be more likely to see the quilt's texture and the
colors will be crisper. The more overcast the sky is, the less contrast
you'll have in the quilt (so that's not good).
And for a more interesting picture, drape the quilt over a rocking chair or
wrap it around a kid. Have fun!

World Wide Quilting Page * Question of the Week