Love knot

A soapstone carving from Africa.

A lovely tactile piece, which I have tried to convey to you. Hope you like it

You are a mater at macro lighting Dave. My wish is that you share some of your lighting techniques with the group. This is a lovely shot of a piece that is gracefully lit to accent the subtle curves and texture of the sculpture.

What are your feelings toward editing out small blemishes on the piece? Do you feel this is removing something that should remain?

To be honest Bob, for me, the piece stands by itself. Any blemishes that are there, are there. Probably my fault for not posing the piece properly, although I do like it the way it is. I just took the view that it is hewn out of soapstone, a soft stone and easier to mass produce. It is never the less unique, and should remain so...

Thanks for your thoughts... the lighting isn't anything special. It's a table with black cloth as the background and two flash heads with softboxes. And, a degree of luck, I have to admit

My reason for asking about editing was just curiosity on where you stand on the subject. This is a case where the photographed piece wouldn't be the same if blemishes were removed. I feel it's totally up to the photographer as to what gets edited out and what stays, as long as he/she is not creating the photograph under commission.

Yes Bob. He who pays the piper.......

Fantastic Dave, your lighting has really made this shot look so graceful.

Thanks Ken