Tips for Luxury Yacht Feature Photo Shoots

Hey guys! I am taking some photos for a web site I am working on for a friend who restores and details luxury yachts. Basically we need photos of shiny and luxurious details of the ship that has been worked on to show it off, so I guess you can imagine this being like a photo shoot by someone going to a boat show? Few questions are

• What time of the day is best for such photos? Its all outdoors in the boat yard, non-negotiable for location
• Are there any basic settings I can use or is auto just best? I need to go tomorrow so I would love to learn all the manual settings but just dont have time right now... so if u r experienced with such things, I would love to hear them
• I assume flash, no matter how good, wont help here?
• In the broad daylight I assume a tripod is not necesary?
• What light angles? I assume its best with the sun kinda behind me, or just to feel out the best gloss possible? Since the ship is not movable, I guess I'll just have to go with visual decisions on the spot?
• Which lens should I use, if it matters at all

This type pf photo:
http://www.charterworl​d.com …edit-Roberto-Malfatti.jpg
http://www.businessins​ider.com …hing-gear-on-board-too-22
http://static5.busines​sinsider.com …chts-different-levels.jpg
http://www.liveyachtin​g.com …roject-Nautilus-Yacht.jpg
http://www.charterworl​d.com …yacht%20Mangust​a%2094.jpg

ANY other advice that may help is much appreciated, since we dont have many chance on these fast moving projects, when its done, they have to let them go unfortunately, so some pressure here. The saving grace is that it is for the web, not a magazine, so we have some wiggle room for non-perfection, even though its hurts me to say that.

And for those of you who may not know me from before or whatever else, I want to say, in no way am I disrespecting the photo industry and looking for quick schemes etc... I understand this is a lifelong process of learning and adapting... unfortunately right now I have neither luxury, so trying to do the best I can with what we have.

Thanks!!!

Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i
Flash: Speedlight YN560x2
Lens: EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS , Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS II Telephoto

There's just too many variables for what you're describing.

Auto is not best. You want manual, but you want to know how to use it.

One easy way not to mess up is to shoot auto with exposure bracketing. You take three shots instead of one: Normal, darker and lighter, then pick the one you want.

It'll be ok. You'll get some pictures. Look at the back of the camera, and adjust from there.

So u mean for every shot take 3 different brightnesses through what setting? And wouldnt that make the shoot last like 5 times longer? I may have to take over 100 shots over couple of hours in waning daylight.

And ya no point in even trying manual unless I at least have a starting point. Canon also has that P mode, like semi-automatic, not sure if I should use that if it improves results at all.

You'll probably be best off in P mode and bracketing; it's getting a bit late to be asking this now so you'll have to rely on the automatic settings, but you should get something useable.

Your camera will have a bracketing function somewhere in the menu where you can keep the shutter button pressed (assuming you have it on continuious shooting mode) and it'll take 3 photos, one normal, one bright, one dark, so it won't really take any extra time to shoot it.


Your 18-55mm should be fine.

As for time of day, that rather depends on where in the world you are and what the weather is like -- if you're likely to have a beautiful sunset / sunrise i'd shoot throught that (plus a good hour before if doing sunset). If it's just going to be half dark and cloudy at those times of day then do it at lunchtime.

Flash will probably help when photographing interior details.

A couple of thoughts come to mind. There are often uncooperative shadows in boatyards if the boats are stacked close together. Consider using a fill flash to fill these in. However, that won't get you far if your shot is from the bow to stern or vice versa. Too much depth. Watch your aperture in these situations too. Make sure you have enough depth of field. The other thing is that most boats are white. Your camera's meter will try to make them 18% gray. As a matter of fact, I didn't look at all the links you posted, but in the two that I did look at the boats were underexposed. So you may need some exposure compensation. Or shoot in manual as has already been suggested. However, make sure that you don't blow out the whites. You want to keep the detail your friend's work. Try to pick a time of day when the shadows are least troublesome.

Generally speaking use f11 or f16 and adjust the shutter speed for proper exposure. If your shutter speed is not high enough, increase your ISO. You probably won't need a tripod for exterior shots.

JMASTERJ wrote in post #16808709
So u mean for every shot take 3 different brightnesses through what setting? And wouldnt that make the shoot last like 5 times longer? I may have to take over 100 shots over couple of hours in waning daylight.

Not really. Most of the time is spent finding a good angle and framing, the shooting would only take an extra minute of holding down the shutter button.

In photography, you often only want one shot and it takes 20 milliseconds to "take" it, but sometimes a week in setup and years in "learning to see" and other silly things like that.

But anyways - it would not affect your time spent there, but would likely save some pictures.

Thanks for the suggestions guys.... Here are the first run photos... I feel as though some of the smooth surfaces are very grainy. I used

• The "P" setting
• Used the exposure brackets and tossed out all the bad ones... I think I set the brackets too wide apart (full range selected) so basically only one was usable in most cases.
• I was also a bit confused in that I manually held down the shutter for 3 shots every time, but are you supposed to do that for the bracket to work or... what happens if u hold it down for like 5, 10 shots?
• Used a tripod for most of these (no remote, but real gentle trigger finger)
• All taken from 17:45-19:45 in South Florida (sunset was at 19:38)
• The closeups were taken with the 18-55 and the ones from the right side across the water were taken with the telephoto (all tripod of course for long range)
• AI Focus
•RAW+L(hi-res)
• Images below were the JPG downsized to 20%, no post work at all yet

http://dathaeus.minus.​com/m4MVhYqTfY0Qm

Any suggestions welcome for the next shoot.... Thank you.

A lot of your images in the series are underexposed in my opinion. The solution will require some learning on your part, of course.

In my opinion, obviously tilted horizons are something to avoid in most cases. Many of your shots have tilted horizons and there seems to be no reason for it in the composition.

I see a lot of fairly radical perspective distortion (near objects appearing much larger than reality as compared to objects further from the camera) which is caused by being very close to some elements of the scene and using a short focal length. Getting further back and using a longer focal length would help to retain the natural look of the scene.

The composition of many of the images does not seem to show off the boat's features well. Part of this is because of the perspective distortion that I mentioned above but in some images I'm simply seeing things that just don't make sense as to why the photograph was made. Improved composition is what a lot of the images seem to need.

Choosing the time of day for the photography could potentially result in much better lighting. This could mean an all-day shoot, of course.

I agree pretty much with Skip. Re the darker images you can probably lighten those up a bit and they should look fine. Overexposing risks losing details in the whites and boats usually have lots of whites. The reflective white surfaces and brightwork do tend to lead to underexposure. The bow shot #5 might have been saved by moving more to the right. I think that being a little too far off-axis to the bow-stern line increases that distortion. Of course longer fl would help if you have room. Look for elements of lines and symmetry that are commonly seen on a properly outfitted boat. Things like nicely coiled lines, a cleat hitch on a shiny cleat, etc. have a lot of eye appeal and you can usually shoot that type of thing irrespective of the background. If you are detailing a boat, show some details not just the larger view.

Well, OK then!

I'm not going to critique your shots, because, well, I'd probably do a lousy job of it!

So then, some comments on your technique!

JMASTERJ wrote in post #16811074
I used

• The "P" setting

There's nothing "wrong" with shooting in the P mode as a "starting point", where you may be unsure of how to handle a scene and want to let the camera make some decisions. However, the P mode does in fact let the camera make decisions, ones that looking back you may not be happy with! In fact, shooting outdoors scenes with specific "targets" may really not be the best scenario for the P mode. You not only have to factor in a good exposure for your scene and your target but also you will want/need to factor in things like Depth of Field (consideration of your aperture setting) and also the possibility of movement where you'll want some shutter speed control. The P mode allows you to adjust Exposure Compensation, but that's about it! Av Tv and Manual modes are things you'll want to look at for future tasks!

That's "normal" unless you are doing "High Dynamic Range" (HDR) shooting, where you take several shots at different exposures and "blend" them together in software.

But if you want to pick a "keeper" out of a set, then yeah, you can shoot a few, either using the built-in bracketing, or you can manually shoot and then adjust.

How bracketing works will depend on your camera, its firmware, and then whether you are using something such as the Magic Lantern "add-on" software. Take the time to read up on things!

I myself haven't used "Automatic Exposure Bracketing" much. What my approach tends to be is to shoot in Manual then if I do want a "bracketed set" I'll manually tweak my settings.

If you're shooting with a tripod and are concerned about camera "shake" (due to slower shutter speeds than you wish for) then I'd suggest you use either the Mirror LockUp function or the camera Self Timer function (or both).This way you set it to shoot and then either take the shot with the mirror up (useful for some slow shutter speeds) or, an approach that I often do when shooting with a tripod but without a remote or a cable release, using the self-timer can come in very handy. Squeeze the shutter, then hands off, and (with my body) 10 seconds go by and then the shot is taken, no hands-on shaking allowed!

Well, that's a tricky one...unless you are shooting a "stable" object but need to be prepared for it to move during your shot, AI Focus won't do you much good and, in fact, it can throw you off. For subjects that are not moving, I'd stick with One Shot AF so that your focus will "lock" onto the target. For moving subjects, AI Servo AF can be pretty dependable, but you don't have focus "lock".

Well, that's all from me! !

First, thanks guys, for taking the time to help, this is awesome.

SkipD wrote in post #16811266
A lot of your images in the series are underexposed in my opinion. The solution will require some learning on your part, of course.

In my opinion, obviously tilted horizons are something to avoid in most cases. Many of your shots have tilted horizons and there seems to be no reason for it in the composition.

I see a lot of fairly radical perspective distortion (near objects appearing much larger than reality as compared to objects further from the camera) which is caused by being very close to some elements of the scene and using a short focal length. Getting further back and using a longer focal length would help to retain the natural look of the scene.

The composition of many of the images does not seem to show off the boat's features well. Part of this is because of the perspective distortion that I mentioned above but in some images I'm simply seeing things that just don't make sense as to why the photograph was made. Improved composition is what a lot of the images seem to need.

I actually did bracket and some overexposed as well. Obviously at my level getting it just right is ummm, u know... so I actually posted only the ones that were ok or under bec I have heard under is always better than over, and I tend to agree with that for post. I just need to learn how to bracket better bec I literally had to throw out about 300+ shots because I set the limits to far apart.

I knew about the tilting when I was on the tripod, but was too lazy to try to get it just right then, figured I would just correct for the right angles in post. As a web designer first, I make it a point not to perfect my composition on the shot wasting time with the setting sun when I can just rotate them a few degrees later, considering we are only dealing with 72dpi. Is this wrong, am I being negligent with some other technique that is hurting me here?

I guess I didnt care too much about the "natural" look because these are feature shots set to impress current and future on the gloss and cleanliness of the surfaces, since most shots will be detail shots. I am still learning about focal lengths, aperture, etc., so if you think this is still a priority for me, I will go study it first before the other 20 things I need to tidy up.

Can you give an example, if it were you, of a composition that is missing that u think a client would have loved to see? I dont deal well with generalities since I dont have enough experience to know what u mean exactly. I looked through some boat show and yacht photos but couldnt really find a definitive site that showed some beautiful photos so I guess I did wing it to just taking as many different angles as possible... I did post only a fraction of about 300 angles I did take.

J Michael wrote in post #16811414
I agree pretty much with Skip. Re the darker images you can probably lighten those up a bit and they should look fine. Overexposing risks losing details in the whites and boats usually have lots of whites. The reflective white surfaces and brightwork do tend to lead to underexposure. The bow shot #5 might have been saved by moving more to the right. I think that being a little too far off-axis to the bow-stern line increases that distortion. Of course longer fl would help if you have room. Look for elements of lines and symmetry that are commonly seen on a properly outfitted boat. Things like nicely coiled lines, a cleat hitch on a shiny cleat, etc. have a lot of eye appeal and you can usually shoot that type of thing irrespective of the background. If you are detailing a boat, show some details not just the larger view.

LOL unfortunately I did not have a rowboat or a crane to get me out there, that was the farthest to the right I could go on #5! But I did have some straight on shots from farther away from the pier using my telephoto, just that those are from boat high since again I didnt have a way there to get up high with a crane or something.

I will definitely show details... The reason you dont see a lot of detail shots here is because of time constraints and I just took some full boat photos from different angles but at full resolution RAW, so almost any detail shot on each of these can still be used fine for the web after proper cropping... or is this not what u meant?

tonylong wrote in post #16812230
There's nothing "wrong" with shooting in the P mode as a "starting point", where you may be unsure of how to handle a scene and want to let the camera make some decisions. However, the P mode does in fact let the camera make decisions, ones that looking back you may not be happy with! In fact, shooting outdoors scenes with specific "targets" may really not be the best scenario for the P mode. You not only have to factor in a good exposure for your scene and your target but also you will want/need to factor in things like Depth of Field (consideration of your aperture setting) and also the possibility of movement where you'll want some shutter speed control. The P mode allows you to adjust Exposure Compensation, but that's about it! Av Tv and Manual modes are things you'll want to look at for future tasks!

Honestly, I watched a little tutorial on my camera on utube, and I am thinking for this shot the AV would have been a much better setting. I can tell already that yes, all these auto settings are getting very annoying because I feel like something is always "wrong." But my lack of knowledge is pissing me off in fixing whats wrong LMAO. Its like if I didnt know why I was slicing my driver off the tee and had no idea how to fix it, I would probably never play golf again, but I guess I'll have to stay patient here.

tonylong wrote in post #16812230
That's "normal" unless you are doing "High Dynamic Range" (HDR) shooting, where you take several shots at different exposures and "blend" them together in software.

Why do people even use HDR, I dont get it... if u take 3 brackets, u merge them, why not just take one and edit the middle one in the first place, just seems redundant. Does this technique retain "more" image info?

tonylong wrote in post #16812230
If you're shooting with a tripod and are concerned about camera "shake" (due to slower shutter speeds than you wish for) then I'd suggest you use either the Mirror LockUp function or the camera Self Timer function (or both).

Yep, I knew but time constraints and knowing none of these really used "slow" speeds I guess made me "believe" it was ok to use a sniper finger and be done with it, but I would definitely use my timer, I think I have a 3 second one, which is even better. Honestly, I was getting a bit frustrated in getting settings right because my results were not great, and I guess I didnt want to deal with any more "settings" even if it were a timer, LMAO. I know, totally irrational and unprofessional but hey, just telling u the truth.

tonylong wrote in post #16812230
Well, that's a tricky one...unless you are shooting a "stable" object but need to be prepared for it to move during your shot, AI Focus won't do you much good and, in fact, it can throw you off. For subjects that are not moving, I'd stick with One Shot AF so that your focus will "lock" onto the target. For moving subjects, AI Servo AF can be pretty dependable, but you don't have focus "lock".

I guess I was thinking, the boat is moving slightly because it is on the water and the wind was gusting up to 10-15mph consistently. But I understand even that notion was misguided on my part, so in the future I'll just set it to One Shot and see how that goes... one less thing right?

Again, cant say how much I appreciate the time guys... now back to the tutorial videos...... and will post run #2 whenever it comes, and hopefully you see an improvement if thats ok with you guys.

JMASTERJ wrote in post #16812993
I will definitely show details... The reason you dont see a lot of detail shots here is because of time constraints and I just took some full boat photos from different angles but at full resolution RAW, so almost any detail shot on each of these can still be used fine for the web after proper cropping... or is this not what u meant?

There is a difference between cropping a larger image to show some detail in some part vs. a composition in which the detail is the focus of the image. For instance there might be a much better angle. If you are detailing luxury yachts then there are surely elements of fine craftsmanship. Lacking that it's just a big boat (for those with money and no taste). Isn't the point of your work to show those to their best? Can you document that? Isn't that the point of your photographs, rather than just showing you've cleaned some big boats? One example would be a cleat with a perfect cleat hitch secured with a perfectly clean line. The cleat would be flawless, no wax residue, etc.

I know you're in a hurry to finish so it's unlikely you would be able to do many of these compositions which are in effect still lifes, but if you managed one or two per boat you would have the makings of very nice website in short order. Also, look at additional niches for your business. One reason for detailing a yacht is to prep it for sale. Perhaps some of your customers would pay for a detailing + photography package.

In my opinion, there are two things you need to master for this sort of work.

First, you need to have a "vision" for what you want to present. As I mentioned in my last post, most of your posted images didn't seem to convey (to me, at least) anything about "shiny and luxurious details of the ship" that the owner wanted to convey to potential customers. You'll need to envision an image that would portray what your customer wants to get across to his potential customers.

Once you've developed a vision for what the image should look like, then you need to have the skills and equipment to create that image.

You probably have an acceptable camera and lenses for the task, but you might need to acquire some lighting equipment unless you can find the right time of day and the right type of weather to light the scenes appropriately. I'm definitely NOT thinking of on-camera flash, either.

Of course, you will need to learn more about the metering of light in the scene and how to use the various exposure control tools (aperture, shutter speed, and ISO setting) to get the best combination of exposure, depth of field, motion stopping (or deliberate blurring), and so forth. You will also need to learn how to control perspective in your images. Once you have acquired all of these skills, then you'll be able to create the image that's in your head. Obviously, you'll probably be working on learning all these things at the same time so expect to take some time before you're producing the ideal product. There is definitely a lot to learn. Even though I've been making photographs for a long time, I still find that I learn something new on just about every project I get into.

You'll definitely want to work on getting the composition as close to "right" as you can in the viewfinder for each shot. Don't depend on cropping out a tiny portion of an image to use for the final product. You want as much resolution as possible so that your images can look good anywhere. You may be planning on making a square image (or any other aspect ratio), though, so you will need to envision the final image's format in your viewfinder to allow enough room to crop off the extra.

By the way, most monitors that I see on the market today have roughly 96 pixels per inch, not the ancient "standard" of 72.

One thing that could help you: check the Transportation section of our Photo Sharing sub-forum! I suggest this not just because "Boats" are one of the subjects being shared, but also because it sounds like you needs have a lot in common with people who are shooting, for example, high-quality Automotive shots, shots that not only show the cars but that can if desired show up the finer details!

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/forumdis​play.php?f=37