Shooting Your Stuff at Stitches

     Going to Stitches Midwest every summer is probably the most completely self-indulgent thing I do on an annual basis, and it is always a real treat to spend several days completely surrounded by knitters, knitting and things for and about the craft.  This year, in addition to classes on working with hand-dyed yarns and
 designing knitwear, I signed up for two days of hands-on knitwear photography training with Alexis Xenakis.  Alexi , as he is called, is the genius photographer for Knitters magazine, and one of the most respected textile photographers in the country.  How could I pass up this opportunity?

    On Day 1 we met -- ten students plus Alexi and his assistant, Lisa -- and spent an hour or so talking about light.  Just light -- what it can do, why we need to pay attention to it, and how to make it work the way you want it to work.  Everyone had brought knitted objects to be photographed, and soon Alexi -- hauling his "big boy" camera and tripod -- led us out into the hotel's hallway for some practice.  Somebody brought this knitted owl, and Alexi first set him next to one of the big marble sculptures in the hallway -- not a very cozy spot for an owl..

The carpet was a little better -- at least the texture was softer, which seemed much more appropriate.  But still, not quite right...
     Maybe the tree in the corner???   After all, owls DO perch in trees.
   

 Still not very "right" -- although owls ARE known to prefer the dark.  Still, THIS owl wasn't QUITE with it.  What's needed?

Wow!  All that was needed was LIGHT to make the owl look right at home!  Okay, first lesson learned.....make sure you get the light right.

Next, we all moved outside the hotel.  Think the driveway has limited possibilities for good photos?  Think again.  We modeled our own and each other's knits.  This beautiful entrelac shawl was worn by its maker, leaning against a trash can.  Doesn't she look glam??

One of the people I met in this class was the author/.artist who created my favorite cartoon book, "It Itches."  Franklin Habit is a talented photographer, cartoonist, knitter and blogger, and it was fun to spend some time with him.  He also made a great model.  Even though it was a sunny day in August, he cheerfully put on this red-and-grey wool cap and scarf, climbed onto the huge industrial-looking sculpture in the middle of the driveway and stood there for what must have seemed like hours while Alexi and the rest of us clicked away.

And then he held up one end of the "scrim" that diffused the sunlight while Lisa (in pink) got a light reading.  Setting up an outdoor shot took a long time -- shooting it was just the end result.

Alexi's version of this photo did NOT include the stuff in the background.  Now I know why I need a better camera!

Working with this highly skilled pro was a real treat.  I learned a lot, not the least of which was that the great detail and depth of field needed for good knitwear pictures can be achieved only with a MUCH better camera than my little compact Canon.  I was amazed, however, at what I DID manage to produce.  Not magazine quality, to be sure, but much better than what I was shooting before. Just watching Alexi work made me pay much more attention to the little details -- was the sun glaring off the water in the background?  Was there a shadow on the shoulder of that sweater??

     On day 2 we stayed indoors and watched Alexi and Lisa set up indoor shots on a mannequin and "table top".  We didn't even use our cameras that day -- just listened and took notes as he described how to set up a makeshift light box and how to utilize different backgrounds to compliment the piece being photographed.

As we got to the end of the shooting session, David -- the 4-year-old son of one of the class participants --arrived with his dad.  Alexi scooped him up and stood him in the curved railing in the hotel entryway and clicked off a series of shots.  This little guy was so great about letting us take his photo that nobody got a bad picture of him -- or of his pretty blue sweater.