Photographing Japanese tea ceremony

[jacknimble]

Hi all, I'm totally new to indoor photography of any kind. Recently moved to Asia and have become very interested in tea. I had a chance the other day to photograph a beautifully presented tea ceremony, however I was completely unable to capture any images of the steam pouring off of the teapot even though it was fairly thick. I guess the issue is the lightness of the steam and the darkness of the teapot.

Anyway, I will have a chance to photograph it again under more controlled conditions, the trouble is I have no idea what to control in order to make it possible to get shots that include the steam. Thanks!

[LearnMyShot]

to capture steam you need the light coming from behind. Darker background works best.
this video is not relevant to tea - but shows how the light positioned behind the smoke helpls...
http://www.learnmyshot.com/How-to-Create-a-Really-Really-SCARY-Photo

I love tea, I just discovered Lapsang Souchong tea -> it's smokes in pine .... fascinating.... kinda like puh-er but not aged. very smokie...

Here is my shot of white tea brewing -> light is a 10 degree grid from the back
http://www.sashagitin.com/UploadImages/food-drink/1288210886.jpg