Inside of car

I'm helping out a company taking some shots of cell phones and PDAs mounted on the dashboard in an automobile. Dashboard is black, the screens on the PDAs are dim and through the windscreen is sunny California - I smell trouble.

Needless to say I can and will do some work in Photoshop, but for now the interior is my biggest concern. Anybody ever been challenged with something like this? I'm sure the owner won't let me take off the roof of his SUV ;-)

I have a softbox I can put in the backseat and strobes that can possibly light through the open doors (I wonder if there'll be room for the photographer). Any ideas will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks a bunch!
John

John Agger said:

I'm helping out a company taking some shots of cell phones and PDAs
mounted on the dashboard in an automobile. Dashboard is black, the
screens on the PDAs are dim and through the windscreen is sunny
California - I smell trouble.

Needless to say I can and will do some work in Photoshop, but for
now the interior is my biggest concern. Anybody ever been
challenged with something like this? I'm sure the owner won't let
me take off the roof of his SUV ;-)

I have a softbox I can put in the backseat and strobes that can
possibly light through the open doors (I wonder if there'll be room
for the photographer). Any ideas will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks a bunch!
John

Click to expand...

The lights through the window sounds like a good idea. Lighting the ceiling will give a reflectionn in the PDA/cell phone screen I would think, so perhaps you could stick some white card or foamcore temporarily on the ceiling and bounce something into that. It will brighten your exposure overall and any reflective surfaces will be considerably brighter.

My 2 cents,
Mark

--
always online at http://www.boomwallah.com

Do all the windows over with diffusion material (rip-stop white nylon will do) and fire strobes through all the windows, including front windsheild. Would be a bonus if the vehicle has a sunroof. In the absence of artificial light, natural light in outdoor sunlight will do.

Then you can drop any outdoor scenic into the windows in PhotoShop - maintaining constant camera height and angle of course.

I'd try to do it on location so it's a simple two-step process. Line up the scene you want to see throught the windsheild, do that exposure, leaving the camera on the tripod at exact same angle cover all the windows w/diffusion material, do interior exposure. Merge later in PhotoShop.

Doug B
Torontowide.com

Mark McNeilly said:

John Agger wrote:

Dashboard is black, the screens on the PDAs are dim and through the windscreen is sunny California - I smell trouble.

Click to expand...

Mark McNeilly said:

The lights through the window sounds like a good idea. >

Click to expand...

Mark is right about acheiving a balance with ambient. But brightening the inside of the car isn't going to help with recording the dim screens/displays.

To do that the light must be reduced to levels that permit long exposures. Typical of a laptop screen is 1/2 to 1 sec @ f8 (100 ASA/ISO).

So how do you you reduce ambient light? With neutral density (ND) filters big enough to cover the windows. They do come in sheets and rolls, and in a variety of densities. 0.3 reduces the light by half, 0.6 to 1/4 and so on.

In the UK we would get them from Lee Filters, In Sunny CA try ROSCO who supply the film industry which I believe you have there! ;-)
Fasten with GAFFER/DUCT/MASKING tape.

Any window/windshield that's in shot will need more dimming (0.6) than ones providing light (0.3 ?). Steer the light around with silver/white reflectors. This is a suck-it-and-see operation. You know when it's right when it looks right -- that is, when you view thru half closed eyes the display looks nice and clear. And of course you can meter ambient!

This isn't at all easy, but it might be easier than lighting the car with Strobes/flash, and then covering all the windows with black plastic for a burn-in on the displays. It will also be a LOT cooler!

Hope this gives you help. Best of Luck.

Barrie Davis said:

To do that the light must be reduced to levels that permit long
exposures. Typical of a laptop screen is 1/2 to 1 sec @ f8 (100
ASA/ISO).

Click to expand...

I'd just do a seperate exposure geared to the cell phone LCD and merge the LCD portion of the phone into the handset in PhotoShop. Would recomend doing it with the backlight on.

Basing your whole interior exposure on the light levels of the phone's LCD is going to give you problems.

Doug B
Torontowide.com

Doug Brown said:

I'd just do a seperate exposure geared to the cell phone LCD and
merge the LCD portion of the phone into the handset in PhotoShop.
Would recomend doing it with the backlight on.
Basing your whole interior exposure on the light levels of the
phone's LCD is going to give you problems.

Click to expand...

Doug is right -- but you're still needing a shot where the displays look good and read brightly; they are the main subject, after all.

Whether you achieve balance by lighting up the interior, or dimming down the exterior, is a matter of convenience and comfort on site.

Either way, a shot where ambient light is kept off the displays IS needed.

And I agree, you could keep the light off a small area around the units with cardboard screens etc. But that way you never see your shot(s) until you've pulled them together in PhotoShop. If there are multiple shots to do, and multiple manipulations for each one, the time involved increases greatly... I know, I've been there!

Since I posted I have checked the windows on my european PEUGEOT car. They are slightly filtered. Turns out to be not so "slightly". One and one third stops, to be exact. That's a density of 0.4, with a reduction in transmission to about 40%. So the power of any strobes put through them would also be more than halved. Hmmmm...

........If the client is into smoked glass the job may be half done before you get there with sheets of ND.

Ahh ... but what is the quality of the light?

By using diffusion you create transparent highlights all over the dashboard and upholstery. The scattering of light with diffusion will lower the contrast ratio, and get rid of distracting shadows.

Zoinks! It just occurred to me you could use both. The ND film to match exposure with the phone's LCD, in concert with diffusion for the quality of light (would also knock the light back a bit)
But I'd still shoot the exterior view as a seperate shot.

Doug B
Torontowide.com

you want to or have to spend on it.

I have shot similar pictures in 15 minutes (on location) and a day and a half (in a studio, d'oh!).

I am assuming the view is from the driver's position, looking at the thing on the dash...

If I were shooting out side, I'd find a semi sunny spot and I'd cover the lower half of the windshield with opaque black cloth, and drape a silk on the upper half of the window.

This cuts down the all over light and gives the effect of a strip light right above the object. I might stick a large white board up in the ceiling (unless there is a sunroof)to open up the shadows. White, black and silver cards of various sizes are used to give the PDA some form and to add or eliminate highlights and shadows. This is where lots of little stands and some clamps come in handy.

As far as the display goes, if you can read it in real life, you will be pretty close in digital capture. But lock the camera down and shoot raw or bracket a couple stops.

Then once you plop the background in using PS, you'll be all set!

Kel

... I think you have been given very worthwhile advice from all contributors so far. Sounds as if everyone has had real experience of shooting in cars.

Looking at my own comments, I think it shows that I have been doing this kind of thing since before all the digi-options became available. Well, they ARE available now, and I will try to remember that ....promise!

A most interesting discussion. Thanks for having me along.

Barrie Davis.

Just a note to thank all of you for your excellent suggestions. I really appreciate it. I'll post images if the client will let me.

Thanks again,
.John

http://www.pwb.bz

John Agger said:

I'm helping out a company taking some shots of cell phones and PDAs
mounted on the dashboard in an automobile. Dashboard is black, the
screens on the PDAs are dim and through the windscreen is sunny
California - I smell trouble.

Needless to say I can and will do some work in Photoshop, but for
now the interior is my biggest concern. Anybody ever been
challenged with something like this? I'm sure the owner won't let
me take off the roof of his SUV ;-)

I have a softbox I can put in the backseat and strobes that can
possibly light through the open doors (I wonder if there'll be room
for the photographer). Any ideas will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks a bunch!
John

Click to expand...