How to Photograph Halloween Costumes

Taking a fantastic photo of your Halloween Costume is something that you're going to want to make sure to do once you've sharpened your fangs and gotten your fake blood splatter looking just right on the night of the 31st.  Not only will the photo enable you to record your amazing Halloween masterpiece, but it will make it easier for everyone to appreciate all the hard work you did when you post your costume on Instructables and enter it in the Halloween 2009 Contest. 

Here's a few quick dos and don'ts that will help you take a great photo of your Halloween costume.

Step 1 Photo Basics

The photography wizards over at Photojojo have some absolutely great tips on how to take perfect photos of your projects to post on Instructables even when it's not Halloween.  The main points are summarized below.  Check out the posting from their newsletter for all the details.

Lighting

• use natural light from outside, windows and white walls
• shoot in the morning or afternoon when there's nice even diffuse light
• avoid bright spots and shadows from flashes if possible
• build a light tent for taking evenly lit photos
• if you do use a flash, think about making a simple [http://www.instructables.com/id/Cigarette-Packet-Flash-Diffuser/ flash diffuser]

Backgrounds

• keep them simple
• cover a messy work surface a light colored piece of fabric or paper
• backdrops are great for serious portraits, otherwise, find something simple and pretty and stand in front of it
• watch out for reflective surfaces like mirrors and glass

How to shoot

• use a tripod to prevent blurry photos
• use macro mode when taking a closeup
• get a friend to help out if you run out of hands
• if it's digital, take a wider shot at a higher resolution and then crop it later
• take many photos, chose the best one, delete the rest

What to shoot

• take many photos from many angles
• document each step of the process and be sure to show all the details, inside and out
• get a shot of it "in action"
• if it's something you can wear, put it on
• if it's something that lights up, plug it in and let it shine
• put something recognizable into the shot for scale

Comments

[bigwibble6]

Also, zoom in on the costume and don't have too much background

[Clonebear]

This hasn't just helped me with taking pictures of costumes, but taking pictures in general. Thanks, Noah!

[Chikara]

Fantastic