In photographing furniture, the position of the camera is very important. That is, in most pieces, you must show all four legs, give about a three-quarter view, show the general construction and design, such as under shelves in tables, which means that the camera must be worked fairly low. Where it is neces sary to show some distinctive design in a table top and still show all four legs, the better course is to use the camera fairly low to get the legs right, tilt the top of the table forward, and use your swingback to the limit. This is only one of many cases where an excessive swing is used to great advantage in commercial photography.
The photographing of furniture containing mirrors is also a problem that has to be met. While in the general run of factory work, the mirrors are usually blocked out when photographing furniture for exhibition and other purposes, the mirror will have to be photographed to show as a mirror, which means you will have to tilt the mirror at such an angle that it will not reflect surrounding objects, or better still, a black, white or gray screen, according to the color of the furniture, may be placed opposite the mirror to get the right result.
As to the lenses—a lens for this line does not have to be one of high class, although, of course, such a lens is preferable. Many of the commercial shops are using the old-time lenses—in fact, you would be surprised if you knew how old some of them are and how cheap they can be picked up occa sionally. I have a lens that I will wager is fifty years old, if it is a day, and it is doing very creditable work on furniture and giving excellent definition. It
is a thirty-one inch focus Somerville. I do not suppose you can buy a new one today, and while it is clumsy to carry and slow, distortion of perspective is unknown to it. The main requirement of a lens for furniture is that it be of very long focus.
Panchromatic plates are a real necessity in photographing mahogany, rose wood, cherry and all red-toned woods and, used in connection with a deep screen, the results leave nothing to be desired. The filter you will use will depend upon the kind of wood. The A and F screens for reds, the G on light• woods to bring out the grain strongly, and the K-3 on panchromatic plates to give a normal correction.
The K-2 filter is used principally in connection with Commercial Ortho film and gives wonderful results,•as does the Commercial Ortho film also without a filter when used on prepared furniture or light woods.
Illustration No. 41 is a group of chairs made on Hammer Aurora plate with no color filter. No. 42 is a chair and stool made for advertising circulars, on Commercial Ortho film with K-2 filter.
Although the manufacturers' end of furniture photography is extremely cheap, there is one line which has proven profitable in localities inhabited by the wealthy, and where, naturally, the antique shops will be found. This is the photographing of fine, old furniture, and is really quite a field and can be worked in conjunction with the photog-raphing of rare rugs, tapestries, bric-a brac and paintings. In this connection, the best of photographs have to be produced and the prices for this work are generally good.