Let there be Light

One step in my goal toward publishing my patterns, is to take better photos of my quilts.  I've taken many snapshots over the years, but have never been very excited about the end result.  So I decided to do some research on the internet on photographing quilts.

One of the best articles I found on the subject was by Holly Knott and Andy Baird called Shoot that Quilt.

In their article they recommend using a few high-powered daylight balanced compact fluorescent bulbs. These are the bulbs that are recommended for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). You can you tell they're daylight-balanced by the "color temperature" rating, expressed in degrees Kelvin. You need to find a bulb that says "5000 K".

I couldn't find any of these bulbs at the local home stores, so went online to 1000Bulbs.com and purchased four 30W bulbs.  Below are two pictures of a quilt.  The first used the regular light bulbs from my house. 

The next is the same picture taken with the new light bulbs.

The first definitely has a more "yellow" cast.  White that second is very "white".  Now to figure out which one I like best for my new pattern cover It's A Mystery.


However I want to tell you the real find in all of this.  I had a couple of extra bulbs, so I put them in ceiling light in my sewing room.  The difference there was absolutely phenomenal.  The fabrics on my shelves and worktable are so much clearer to see.  I'm now going back and purchasing more of these light bulbs and plan to use them in other areas of the house as well.

Happy Quilting.