Best color for background of parts photos

I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting. What
would you suggest?

eganders wrote:
: I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
: parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
: from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
: would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
: that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

: I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
: I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
: for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
: lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
: not for marketing, but for engineering study,

: I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting. What
: would you suggest?

Unfortunately there is no one perfect solution. Some of the better
background colors may also blend in with some of the components. So for
example, a grass green background would work fine for yellow or white
components but a green circuit board would blend in causing the edges of
the board to be difficult to discern. In this case I would probably go to
a dark tan for contrast. On the other hand a black IC chip or a tan
capacitor would show up nicely on a green background. Your trickiest
subject would be things with transparnet housings, like an LED. In these
cases you may want some dark painted foam blocks that you can stick the
leads into in a semi upright angle and use macro and DOF to set the LED
off from the blurred background.

I would suggest darker colors such as navy blue, grass green, dark grey,
dark leather/tan, etc. Bright colors like bright red, white or yellow may
be needed in extreme situations but in general the large expanse of bright
color might cause the metering to be fooled and reduce the contrast on
the component enough that faint details and writing may be obscured. I
would also tend to use something that is less reflective than a hard
surface, such as velvet or felt. Then I would just use the background
that best gives a contrasting color to the component. So what if you have
3 or 4 foamcore boards with two different colors of felt glued to the two
sides. This gives you a flat surface with a choice of background. All you
have to do is hold the component against the various backgrounds and
judge by eye which one is best for that component. And maybe you will
find that the majority of your components are best with a minimum of two
colors. Then you can make a single board with these two colors and leave
the others in the car or office (behind the file cabinet) for those rare
occasions when you still need the odd color.

Randy

==========
Randy Berbaum
Champaign, IL

eganders wrote:
I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting. What
would you suggest?

How about looking up some images of similar items on Google images, looking
specifically at what works/doesn't work?

Do you care about aesthetics, or this ONLY for study of the part itself?

--
Images (Plus Snaps & Grabs) by Mark² at:
www.pbase.com/markuson

eganders wrote:
I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting. What
would you suggest?


A Neutral (18%) Gray background would give you the most accurate Auto
Exposure and White Balance for the subject.
Once you have the subject accurately rendered, you can select it in
Photoshop and place it on any one of 16+ million different colored
backgrounds you want.
Bob Williams

On Mar 2, 1:11 am, Bob Williams wrote:
eganders wrote:
I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting. What
would you suggest?

A Neutral (18%) Gray background would give you the most accurate Auto
Exposure and White Balance for the subject.
Once you have the subject accurately rendered, you can select it in
Photoshop and place it on any one of 16+ million different colored
backgrounds you want.
Bob Williams

My thought, exactly. When photographing stuff for Ebay, I use a
neutral gray background. Tends to have the subject pop out a bit and
makes the exposure easy.

-Karl

Karl Winkler wrote:
On Mar 2, 1:11 am, Bob Williams wrote:
eganders wrote:
I often take photos of components such as circuit boards,
mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are
typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these
parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue
foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the
best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best
contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos
are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting.
What would you suggest?

A Neutral (18%) Gray background would give you the most accurate
Auto
Exposure and White Balance for the subject.
Once you have the subject accurately rendered, you can select it in
Photoshop and place it on any one of 16+ million different colored
backgrounds you want.
Bob Williams

My thought, exactly. When photographing stuff for Ebay, I use a
neutral gray background. Tends to have the subject pop out a bit and
makes the exposure easy.

-Karl

Most of these - practically all, I guess - were on a gray Foamcore
background. I bent a right angle into a 20" x 30" inch sheet, so there
was a 20" x 20" base and 10" x 20" backboard. Using a heat gun made
the angle hold its shape when cooled. I'm not that great a craftsman,
so it was not a neat job: you can see how the paper wrinkled at the
crease in some shots. Nevertheless, it's easy to store in the corner
of a room or under the end of a sofa, and sets up instantly.
http://www.fototime.com/inv/12D1D7E1E223D16

Camera with a few exceptions was Minolta Xi or Xt. Lighting with a few
exceptions was Southern California sunshine diffused by a collapsible
white reflector/diffuser.

--
Frank ess

On Mar 2, 2:01 am, Randy Berbaum
wrote:
eganders wrote:

: I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
: parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
: from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
: would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
: that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

: I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
: I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
: for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
: lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
: not for marketing, but for engineering study,

: I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting. What
: would you suggest?

Unfortunately there is no one perfect solution. Some of the better
background colors may also blend in with some of the components. So for
example, a grass green background would work fine for yellow or white
components but a green circuit board would blend in causing the edges of
the board to be difficult to discern. In this case I would probably go to
a dark tan for contrast. On the other hand a black IC chip or a tan
capacitor would show up nicely on a green background. Your trickiest
subject would be things with transparnet housings, like an LED. In these
cases you may want some dark painted foam blocks that you can stick the
leads into in a semi upright angle and use macro and DOF to set the LED
off from the blurred background.

I would suggest darker colors such as navy blue, grass green, dark grey,
dark leather/tan, etc. Bright colors like bright red, white or yellow may
be needed in extreme situations but in general the large expanse of bright
color might cause the metering to be fooled and reduce the contrast on
the component enough that faint details and writing may be obscured. I
would also tend to use something that is less reflective than a hard
surface, such as velvet or felt. Then I would just use the background
that best gives a contrasting color to the component. So what if you have
3 or 4 foamcore boards with two different colors of felt glued to the two
sides. This gives you a flat surface with a choice of background. All you
have to do is hold the component against the various backgrounds and
judge by eye which one is best for that component. And maybe you will
find that the majority of your components are best with a minimum of two
colors. Then you can make a single board with these two colors and leave
the others in the car or office (behind the file cabinet) for those rare
occasions when you still need the odd color.

Randy

==========
Randy Berbaum
Champaign, IL

Your comments are interesting and sure bare out with my experiments.
I have been experimenting with various fluorescent color temps and std
3200 incandescent photofloods. In using a white background, I found
that I got NO detail no matter what light source I used. If I changed
the white foamcore to a blue foamcore, the detail really came out.
See these photos to see what I mean.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...rwhiteback.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...orblueback.jpg

Your comment about the meter being fooled may be the reason. I
noticed the exposure was a lot longer with the blue and I wondered
exactly what it was with the blue background that improved the quality
of the image. The blue foamcore is old and worn, so you also see
the detail of that.
After seeing what a white background does to my detail, I wonder if I
should avoid white background. Would a gray background be even
better? Is there something I can do about camera settings to help the
exposure problem and still use the white background? By the way, I
used 6500K fluorescent light on both of the photos in the links. The
6500K fluorescent lights seem to work just fine. At least I like the
results with this subject and background.

eganders wrote:

: Your comments are interesting and sure bare out with my experiments.
: I have been experimenting with various fluorescent color temps and std
: 3200 incandescent photofloods. In using a white background, I found
: that I got NO detail no matter what light source I used. If I changed
: the white foamcore to a blue foamcore, the detail really came out.
: See these photos to see what I mean.

: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...rwhiteback.jpg
: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...orblueback.jpg

: Your comment about the meter being fooled may be the reason. I
: noticed the exposure was a lot longer with the blue and I wondered
: exactly what it was with the blue background that improved the quality
: of the image. The blue foamcore is old and worn, so you also see
: the detail of that.
: After seeing what a white background does to my detail, I wonder if I
: should avoid white background. Would a gray background be even
: better? Is there something I can do about camera settings to help the
: exposure problem and still use the white background? By the way, I
: used 6500K fluorescent light on both of the photos in the links. The
: 6500K fluorescent lights seem to work just fine. At least I like the
: results with this subject and background.

When using a white background, if your camera takes an average of the
light intensity over the entire image and sets aperture and shutter based
on that average, the large expanse of white will trick the meter. On the
other hand if you are able to spot meter the object specificly the white
background would overexpose and possibly even bloom in the image causing
the edges of objects to blur slightly. The best idea is to make the
background have a similar brightness to the subject but of a contrasting
color so the subject stands out. So for your example photos I think a dark
grey, navy blue or even a dark tan background would probably give you a
nice exposure on the subject, and still be different enough to let the
subject stand out. The darker colors would boost the visible detail in the
subject as the camera will not be assuming the dark subject is a "shadow"
and thus not too important.

Of course these suggestions are JMHO and almost each of us hanging around
on this group may have different (and equally valid) suggestions. My
best advise is to read everything, try any that you can, and choose what
works for you.

Randy

==========
Randy Berbaum
Champaign, IL

eganders wrote:
On Mar 2, 2:01 am, Randy Berbaum
wrote:
eganders wrote:

I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting.
What would you suggest?

Unfortunately there is no one perfect solution. Some of the better
background colors may also blend in with some of the components. So
for example, a grass green background would work fine for yellow or
white components but a green circuit board would blend in causing
the edges of the board to be difficult to discern. In this case I
would probably go to a dark tan for contrast. On the other hand a
black IC chip or a tan capacitor would show up nicely on a green
background. Your trickiest subject would be things with transparnet
housings, like an LED. In these cases you may want some dark painted
foam blocks that you can stick the leads into in a semi upright
angle and use macro and DOF to set the LED off from the blurred
background.

I would suggest darker colors such as navy blue, grass green, dark
grey, dark leather/tan, etc. Bright colors like bright red, white or
yellow may be needed in extreme situations but in general the large
expanse of bright color might cause the metering to be fooled and
reduce the contrast on the component enough that faint details and
writing may be obscured. I would also tend to use something that is
less reflective than a hard surface, such as velvet or felt. Then I
would just use the background that best gives a contrasting color to
the component. So what if you have 3 or 4 foamcore boards with two
different colors of felt glued to the two sides. This gives you a
flat surface with a choice of background. All you have to do is hold
the component against the various backgrounds and judge by eye which
one is best for that component. And maybe you will find that the
majority of your components are best with a minimum of two colors.
Then you can make a single board with these two colors and leave the
others in the car or office (behind the file cabinet) for those rare
occasions when you still need the odd color.

Randy

==========
Randy Berbaum
Champaign, IL

Your comments are interesting and sure bare out with my experiments.
I have been experimenting with various fluorescent color temps and std
3200 incandescent photofloods. In using a white background, I found
that I got NO detail no matter what light source I used. If I changed
the white foamcore to a blue foamcore, the detail really came out.
See these photos to see what I mean.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...rwhiteback.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...orblueback.jpg

Your comment about the meter being fooled may be the reason. I
noticed the exposure was a lot longer with the blue and I wondered
exactly what it was with the blue background that improved the quality
of the image. The blue foamcore is old and worn, so you also see
the detail of that.
After seeing what a white background does to my detail, I wonder if I
should avoid white background. Would a gray background be even
better? Is there something I can do about camera settings to help the
exposure problem and still use the white background? By the way, I
used 6500K fluorescent light on both of the photos in the links. The
6500K fluorescent lights seem to work just fine. At least I like the
results with this subject and background.

Looks to me that your white background is simply underexposed. Remember
that your meter wants to turn white into grey (by underexposing) and black
into grey (by overexposing), and the blue simply told your camera to expose
longer. Crank up exposure compensation by a stop or two with the white
background and you'll have a better result. Better yet, meter off of a grey
card under the same light, and then set manual exposure based on that. Once
you do, you'll be able to throw whatever color core you want, and you'll get
correct exposure.

--
Images (Plus Snaps & Grabs) by Mark² at:
www.pbase.com/markuson

eganders wrote:
On Mar 2, 2:01 am, Randy Berbaum
wrote:
eganders wrote:

I often take photos of components such as circuit boards, mechanical
parts, etc. The parts can be just about any color and are typically
from 1 inch square in size to 12 inches square. For quick setup, I
would like to have a foamcore background to be used for these parts
that presents them the best way for contrast and lighting.

I have been using a bright white foamcore and a royal blue foamcore.
I am wondering if there is a color for general use that is the best
for making the digital cameras I use end up with the best contrast,
lighting and color presentation of these components. The photos are
not for marketing, but for engineering study,

I am looking for the best color balance, contrast and lighting.
What would you suggest?

Unfortunately there is no one perfect solution. Some of the better
background colors may also blend in with some of the components. So
for example, a grass green background would work fine for yellow or
white components but a green circuit board would blend in causing
the edges of the board to be difficult to discern. In this case I
would probably go to a dark tan for contrast. On the other hand a
black IC chip or a tan capacitor would show up nicely on a green
background. Your trickiest subject would be things with transparnet
housings, like an LED. In these cases you may want some dark painted
foam blocks that you can stick the leads into in a semi upright
angle and use macro and DOF to set the LED off from the blurred
background.

I would suggest darker colors such as navy blue, grass green, dark
grey, dark leather/tan, etc. Bright colors like bright red, white or
yellow may be needed in extreme situations but in general the large
expanse of bright color might cause the metering to be fooled and
reduce the contrast on the component enough that faint details and
writing may be obscured. I would also tend to use something that is
less reflective than a hard surface, such as velvet or felt. Then I
would just use the background that best gives a contrasting color to
the component. So what if you have 3 or 4 foamcore boards with two
different colors of felt glued to the two sides. This gives you a
flat surface with a choice of background. All you have to do is hold
the component against the various backgrounds and judge by eye which
one is best for that component. And maybe you will find that the
majority of your components are best with a minimum of two colors.
Then you can make a single board with these two colors and leave the
others in the car or office (behind the file cabinet) for those rare
occasions when you still need the odd color.

Randy

==========
Randy Berbaum
Champaign, IL

Your comments are interesting and sure bare out with my experiments.
I have been experimenting with various fluorescent color temps and std
3200 incandescent photofloods. In using a white background, I found
that I got NO detail no matter what light source I used. If I changed
the white foamcore to a blue foamcore, the detail really came out.
See these photos to see what I mean.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...rwhiteback.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...orblueback.jpg

Your comment about the meter being fooled may be the reason. I
noticed the exposure was a lot longer with the blue and I wondered
exactly what it was with the blue background that improved the quality
of the image. The blue foamcore is old and worn, so you also see
the detail of that.
After seeing what a white background does to my detail, I wonder if I
should avoid white background. Would a gray background be even
better? Is there something I can do about camera settings to help the
exposure problem and still use the white background? By the way, I
used 6500K fluorescent light on both of the photos in the links. The
6500K fluorescent lights seem to work just fine. At least I like the
results with this subject and background.

Looks to me that your white background is simply underexposed. Remember
that your meter wants to turn white into grey (by underexposing) and black
into grey (by overexposing), and the blue simply told your camera to expose
longer. Crank up exposure compensation by a stop or two with the white
background and you'll have a better result. Better yet, meter off of a grey
card under the same light, and then set manual exposure based on that. Once
you do, you'll be able to throw whatever color core you want, and you'll get
correct exposure.

--
Images (Plus Snaps & Grabs) by Mark² at:
www.pbase.com/markuson