A first try at photographing a cutting board

I finished making this cutting board last week and figured I'd try shooting it before I started using it. This was done with three speed lights directed at different parts of the ceiling above the board creating very soft, diffuse light. (I don't have any soft boxes or similar.)

Photo from CallumRD1's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (986679)

That's a beautiful board. What timbers are used?
I've made boards and they become ornaments. Others get used and resurfaced and used and....

This one is in that too nice to desecrate mode.
You've crafted a beautiful piece there.

Sorry, you probably want the photo critiqued. I'm not into such, but I do like the photo, but the board - Wow!

Photographically you nailed the lighting. No hotspots, nice even diffuse light. The only negative would be the bunching of the cloth in the front-right of the image.

avondale87 wrote in post #18889298
That's a beautiful board. What timbers are used?
I've made boards and they become ornaments. Others get used and resurfaced and used and....

This one is in that too nice to desecrate mode.
You've crafted a beautiful piece there.

Sorry, you probably want the photo critiqued. I'm not into such, but I do like the photo, but the board - Wow!

This was made from maple (light colored wood), walnut (dark wood), and cherry (edges). It does feel a little too nice to use, but I’m sure that will pass quickly. I can always make a new one if I want another pristine one.

Dan Marchant wrote in post #18889304
Photographically you nailed the lighting. No hotspots, nice even diffuse light. The only negative would be the bunching of the cloth in the front-right of the image.

Thanks. The bunched cloth is actually a crease/wrinkle in the flat sheet I was using as a background. It was a ton worse, so I took a shot with the lens defocused and used that image as the background, and then added a 40px Gaussian blur to further smooth the wrinkles. It’s not an ideal solution, but that’s what I get for not ironing my sheets!

Dan Marchant wrote in post #18889304
Photographically you nailed the lighting. No hotspots, nice even diffuse light. The only negative would be the bunching of the cloth in the front-right of the image.

Actually, I like the soft folds in the cloth bottom right. It breaks up the background and gives the board context, depth, instead of it kind of floating against a uniform background.

EDIT: forgot to say: beautiful board!

That's a beautiful cutting board AND a great shot. Looks like you excel in both photography AND woodworking.

Levina de Ruijter wrote in post #18889465
Actually, I like the soft folds in the cloth bottom right. It breaks up the background and gives the board context, depth, instead of it kind of floating against a uniform background.

EDIT: forgot to say: beautiful board!

^^^
Perfection would have had a progressive slight darkening of the shadow from front to back.

CallumRD1 wrote in post #18889461
This was made from maple (light colored wood), walnut (dark wood), and cherry (edges). It does feel a little too nice to use, but I’m sure that will pass quickly. I can always make a new one if I want another pristine one.

Bah, I would use it even though it's beautiful. Nice things should be used; you always have the picture.

I say that, but admittedly my board is all maple.

LOVE the board! Well done, but then you already know that from all the other posts.

As others have said, the light is nice and soft and you did well bouncing it off the ceiling. Can it use a little gradient front to back? Eh, six of one, half dozen of another. At this point that would all be subjective.

I do find the wrinkle to be distracting. Stretching the fabric and clamping it to the table would have resolved that issue. No ironing needed. I do have a concern with the drop shadow and how it 'reads'. It makes the board look like it's floating. Does the board have feet/legs as part of the design? If yes, they should have been shown in some way, even if it's a slight peek. If not and you just placed the board on some object, it doesn't read well and you'd be better served having the board sit directly on the table. It looks more natural that way.

I have quite a collection of cutting boards in my prop room but none match the level of beauty this one does. Maybe someday I'll own something like this.

I look forward to seeing some "in use" photos with some nice props and styling to match the board's beauty.

I love the board!
The cloth is slightly wrinkled in my view and the board appears floating, though. Not that it takes away from its beauty.
Would you sell the board? I'd be a customer . Thanks

itsallart wrote in post #18907891
the board appears floating, though.

You probably were going for this look - but it is bugging me. A cutting board supposed to be a something solid that provides a base - not something etherical that floats ... But other then that: Well lit and nice board .