product shot problem

[griffithimage]

Hi, I've been hired to do a number of product shots of coffee beans bags (shiny material) and have been running into problems. In addition to a tricky reflection, the bags are easily wrinkled and don't hold their shape very help. Its very difficult to remove one wrinkle and not create another. Thse are desktop shots against a seemless background. I'm not the most experienced product guy, does anyone have any tricks/suggestions to have the bags appear at their best?
Thanks

[Schewe]

Yeah either get comp quality product packaging or plan on a shyte load of post processing retouching...that's the reality. Most clients are too cheap to have comp packaging made (it's costly but saves a ton of retouching) so hopefully you can get compensated for the required retouching...if not, you're screwed. And not for nothing, "experienced product guys" would know this...

[Jim Pascoe]

I think this is where one realises what is involved in shooting something as simple as a bag of coffee!

Jim

[MrSmith]

cut the back of the bag and fill with something suitable to give you the shape you want (block of wood and a big wodge of blu-tack) use a polariser and/or polarised light source. use a smaller/harder light source use a softer diffuse light source and up the contrast in post.

use all or some of the above until it looks right.

[Ellis Vener]

1) Don't despair!
2) Talk to your client. Can they supplu you with dummy product bags that you can prepare (Mr. Smith and good ideas in this regard)
3) Get a copy of "Light Science and Magic" as a basic guide to understanding and resolving lighting problems.
4) Basically you want to light indirectly and with this kind of product a softbox or other large diffuse source is likely not  your best tool for the job
5) Learn how to make and use "gobos" made from Cinefoil.
6) Don't shoot on a color base unless you don't mind that color reflected back into the highly reflective product.

[Bart_van_der_Wolf]

3) Get a copy of "Light Science and Magic" as a basic guide to understanding and resolving lighting problems.

I absolutely agree with Ellis on this one (not that I disagree on the other points but they follow from this one).

That book is essential reading, and it is presented in a way that is very easy to understand.

Cheers,
Bart

[PierreVandevenne]

Indeed. Probably the simple best photography book I ever purchased. Composition books never helped me (my fault I guess), exposure books were mostly rehashing obvious things, but this gem improved my lighting skills by an order of magnitude overnight!

[marcmccalmont]

Since coffee bags have a one way valve in them can't you plow into it to
"dewrinkle" the bag?
Marc

[kaelaria]

It's one way - out - not in.

[marcmccalmont]

It's one way - out - not in.

Yes I realize that, it is so the coffee can "out gas" but you might be able to overpower the valve if you blow hard enough adding a little pressure in the bag to "de wrinkle it" just a friendly suggestion, trying to help the original poster.
Marc

[kaelaria]

They don't work like that.

An easy trick with coffee bags is to dump the beans, fill with water.  Roll the top to flatten some of the wrinkles (you will never get all out on a real package).  The weep valve will leak very easily so don't expect it to get REAL smooth.

But like was mentioned, if you don't use a prop bag you'll never get the results you see in ads.

[Fine_Art]

An alternative to trying to get rid of the wrinkles could be to stuff it with beans. Make the curves over the beans attractive. The main point of mouldings in a house is the play of light and shadow over the curves. Use it!

[mitchino]

I shoot this kind of thing all the time, all tips mentioned so far are excellent. I get the pack as smooth as possible, and then take 3 or 4 shots with my lighting moved slightly to minimise wrinkles in different areas. I then overlay these in Photoshop and create the best shot I can from the multiple exposures. Saying that, for the last two years I'm doing more and more of this work in cgi.

[FredBGG]

IF this is bean coffee rather than ground.. remove the beans and fill the bag with small steel shot.
It's heavier and will support the bag better.

Also put a neutral color under the bag. A wedge that come forward so as to avoid reflection and color cast on the bag. Then replace the background color
in post.

Also a warmer background color would have more of a rich coffee feel.

[new_haven]

I haven't read through all of the responses, but you can try the photoshop inverted high pass technique that is often used to get rid of wrinkles in fabric. Duplicate the image and run the high pass filter to target a specific area of the bag. Use gaussian blur at 1/3 the radius used for the inverted high pass filter. Invert the high pass layer and apply a black mask. Then use a white brush. Try a different radius for different areas of the bag. I worked on a few of the white areas in my attachment. Use the linear light blend mode.

Got to start reading original post dates.