Documenting your artwork by photography is extremely important so you can show people!

With the age of the Internet the majority of people who will see your artwork, will see it online by photo.

Good, clear and properly sized images to use on your website or in marketing & promotional material is paramount.

Do-It-Yourself Photography
Photographing your own work is a skill that any artist can learn and master with the right setting and the right photography equipment. The most important thing to remember when documenting an artists portfolio is 'consistency'. Here are some tips:

• Consistent Setting - Set up a clear area infront of a neutral background, preferably an area that you can use again in the future with out any difference. A plain white background in an uncluttered room is best. Always use the same wall or display easel for paintings, or the same plinth for sculpture. Consistency is key to good presentation.
   
• Consistent Lighting - It's preferable not to rely on natural light that can change from time of day, or day to day. Use natural colored lighting equipment. Their settings and position can be same each time to give all your photos consistent lighting. Mark light locations with tape on the floor if it's likely you will remove them overtime.
   
• A Production Line - When shooting, be organized. Have a production-line set up so that your artworks can be moved in and out of place easily and in a set order, with each artwork measure it, take it's photo/s and each time document this information all in order.
   
• Photography Equipment - Use a tripod. Basic tripods don't cost much and make things a lot easier. Especially when shooting digitally you can set the camera to photograph at a slow speed to capture a better quality image. It also helps to keep photos consistent and can help in achieving a straight-on focal plane rather than looking down or up at a painting.
   
• Image Resolution. A high resolution will mean images can be used for printing (now of in the future) then reduced for website as well. If you shoot only in low resolution though you will find you don't have the quality to print the photos very large for print applications. Using the right resolution first time is very important if you ever later need the images to print!

If you have the interest in improving your photography skills, you can always do a short course in photography. Look in the ART-SEARCH directories for Photography Classes or check out local Community Colleges and some Art Education Centres often have affordable weekend workshops or evening courses than run during school terms.

Some other things to consider when documenting your artwork by photo:

Commercial photographers
The best option if you have limited photography skills. If you require your artwork photographed to show prospective Art Galleries, Buyers or for Promotional Materials it may be worth the investment to have your artwork professionally photographed. See ART-SEARCH for a list of Commercial Photographers. When hiring a commercial photographer it's best to ask how & where they can work first. Transporting Artwork can be costly and risks damage. Also be sure that they will provide all your images on CD.

Record & document artwork information
It makes sense that at the time of photographing your artwork you should document the artwork itself. It's easiest to use a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel to do this, or buy a columned note book. you should document the following: Title, Medium, Date Created, Series, Dimensions and perhaps a description or location if you like.

Using photo editing software
Popular photo editing software such as Adobe Photoshop have functions that enable to you brighten, lighten, saturate, or change the color balance of a photo. You can also remove backgrounds, crop and rotate images etc. Sometimes simple 'tweaking' makes a world of difference in presentation. If you are not familiar with Photoshop you can learn more about it by taking online Photoshop tutorials, or ask your local community college if they hold any Photoshop training workshops.

The correct resolution for print or web
Shooting at a high resolution, generally 3mb and up, but preferably 8mb will enable you to easily reproduce the photo at a large size for a physical portfolio or poster. It will also enable you to print the photo in printed promotional material too. Printed material generally requires that images are at least 300dpi at presentation size.

Using photos on the Internet
A photo online needs only be 72dpi at presentation size, this is the most a computer screen can display. So if you have your artwork photographed for print, you'll always be able to scale them down for the Internet no problem, but not in reverse. If you are using your photos on your website see: Online Image Tips.