How to photograph cutlery

Day 2 in the kitchen and we are going to shoot cutlery. We hope you get some interesting still-life images yesterday. Today’s project is best done when it is dark, which gives you time to sort out a suitable torch.
Gear needs
Your DSLR and a tripod are essential but in terms of lighting, you can be inventive or just rely on that free stuff coming in through the window.

For this series of shots, we used a Nikon D300 and a Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR DII VC lens fitted on a compact Velbon GEO E540 carbon fibre tripod. This let the camera on top of the work surface as that was usable as a background.

The light source used here was a £10 72 LED multi-function lamp from Maplin Electronics. It takes four AAs and is really handy for lighting still-lifes, finding your keys in the dark and much more.
Techniques to try
The Maplin torch was on its side giving a very oblique, contrasty light.

Subjects were simply arranged on the worktop with the camera and lens aimed downwards. The camera was left in autoexposure mode using the exposure compensation control to correct exposures. Focusing was done manually on this occasion and the VC feature turned off – obviously it was not needed with the camera on a tripod. The shutter was fired using the self-timer. Exposures were in the order of 1/8sec at f/8 with the camera set to ISO 200.
In auto white-balance, the torch gives a cool light and this can be warmed up during Raw processing. If you prefer, or if you are shooting JPEG, a custom white-balance setting is suggested or try the shade or cloudy preset.

Silver foil, again, was used as a reflector.

If you missed part one you can see it here: Photographing kitchen utensils part one.
You've read the article, now go take some fantastic images. You can then upload the pictures, plus any advice and suggestions you have into the dedicated Photo Month forum for everyone at ePHOTOzine to enjoy.