# Nikon D5300 Upgrade HELP PLEASE



## Mr_Chris (Jun 10, 2020)

Hi guys, have been using a Nikon D5300 for work Product Photography for a couple of years now and time has come to possibly upgrade the camera so we can give this one to another factory for them to take their own photos.
I have been fairly happy with the camera using the kit lens and after some research I cant really find anything else out there that is an obvious upgrade for a similar price (£500 GBP range).
Should I move to something else or just buy the same camera again but this time with some decent glass? If so which lens to go with? I have read 90mm and 50mm are both good options for Products and most of our items are never bigger than a sheet of A3 for example so no need for massive wide-angle or anything....


----------



## tirediron (Jun 10, 2020)

Sounds to me like you've answered your own question!


----------



## Mr_Chris (Jun 10, 2020)

tirediron said:


> Sounds to me like you've answered your own question!


Thanks - can you suggest a good lens then please?


----------



## tirediron (Jun 10, 2020)

If you're happy with the kit lens, why change?  If everything is meeting your requirements, just go 'same again'.  There are dozens of lenses that would do the job; the 50mm 1.8 is a great piece of glass (and dirt cheap when bought second-hand).  You could look at the 60 & 105mm macro lenses which would give you a shorter focusing distance for greater detail in close-ups.  My experience is that people doing 'do it yourself' product photography are usually fine for camera & glass, but often fall down in lighting.  Would some inexpensive strobes be an appropriate purchase?


----------



## Mr_Chris (Jun 10, 2020)

tirediron said:


> If you're happy with the kit lens, why change?  If everything is meeting your requirements, just go 'same again'.  There are dozens of lenses that would do the job; the 50mm 1.8 is a great piece of glass (and dirt cheap when bought second-hand).  You could look at the 60 & 105mm macro lenses which would give you a shorter focusing distance for greater detail in close-ups.  My experience is that people doing 'do it yourself' product photography are usually fine for camera & glass, but often fall down in lighting.  Would some inexpensive strobes be an appropriate purchase?


We use a lightcube with LED panels around it which seems to do a sufficient job so I'm thinking glass is the way to go as an 'upgrade' - currently my photos come out ok but when you zoom in there is a fair amount of fuzziness in places. I have experimented with settings on the camera and reduced it as much as I can but when I compare them to the photos taken by an agency before me theirs look pin-sharp...and they were using a lightcube too. I'm dealing with mainly white/chrome plumbing parts so I've got my work cut out for me(!) but I wish I could get the products to come out of the camera as they looked in the viewfinder so then I can just make minor adjustments and add paths in Photoshop and move on to the next one....


----------



## Derrel (Jun 10, 2020)

Fuzziness in places...sounds like insufficient depth of field....perhaps you need to do some focus stacking, or might benefit from a tilt/shift lens.


----------



## Designer (Jun 10, 2020)

Mr_Chris said:


> We use a lightcube with LED panels around it which seems to do a sufficient job so I'm thinking glass is the way to go as an 'upgrade' - currently my photos come out ok but when you zoom in there is a fair amount of fuzziness in places. I have experimented with settings on the camera and reduced it as much as I can but when I compare them to the photos taken by an agency before me theirs look pin-sharp...and they were using a lightcube too. I'm dealing with mainly white/chrome plumbing parts so I've got my work cut out for me(!) but I wish I could get the products to come out of the camera as they looked in the viewfinder so then I can just make minor adjustments and add paths in Photoshop and move on to the next one....


You haven't said which specific lens you're using, so I will guess the 35-55mm.  The lens is probably adequate for product photography, but the "fuzzyness" may be either insufficient depth of field (DOF) or camera movement, or both.  You can improve your results by using strobe lighting, as it will enable you to use a smaller aperture to make a deeper DOF.  

Since you haven't told us what your usual aperture setting is, I will guess that it is too large.

A strobe will also "freeze" motion, thereby minimizing the effects of camera movement.  I presume you are mounting your camera on a tripod, as you should regardless of what lighting, but if you begin using a strobe light such as a speedlight or studio-style monolights, your photography will improve.

Yes, there are better lenses, and better camera bodies, but until you surpass the capabilities of your current kit, there's little to be gained by spending money on either.  Get better lighting first.


----------



## Derrel (Jun 10, 2020)

Lighting
Lens
Processing
Body.


----------



## Designer (Jun 10, 2020)

Mr_Chris said:


> ..most of our items are never bigger than a sheet of A3 for example so no need for massive wide-angle or anything....


Unless you are extremely cramped for space, such as literally being backed up to a wall, you should not use a wide angle lens for this type of photography.  

If anything, you would want to use a longer lens and back away from your subject.


----------



## weepete (Jun 10, 2020)

How much of your money would you like us to spend! 

On a serious note, if realism is your goal I've been very happy with my full frame upgrade I made last year, and a super sharp lens. It's really reduced the amount I have to do in post and while not an end in itself I've been much happier with the output.

(Please bear in mind that I'm a Canon shooter, so I'm not super familiar with Nikon termonology)

So I'd say a Nikon D850 and a pro level Nikon 50mm (maybe someone else could advise what lens that may be)


----------



## Mr_Chris (Jun 11, 2020)

I have attached two photos to show our setup and my camera settings - to be honest I cant see my boss changing the lights as the photography gets a fair amount of traffic (unfortunately) so things get knocked occasionally and a couple of other members of staff use the setup from time to time for quick shots of things so it needs to be simple as possible for all to use.


----------



## Designer (Jun 11, 2020)

So with the aperture at f/18, that is not too large, but you're still a bit under-exposed according to the meter.  Since you've got a good tripod, you can probably increase the shutter opening, but you might need to use a cable release (or the self-timer).  Cable releases are quite reasonably priced.  One of mine cost less than $4. USD

Try opening the aperture to say around f/8 or so, and increasing the shutter time a bit. If your'e still getting OOF areas, perhaps a different lens would help.  I don't have any specific recommendations at this time.


----------



## zulu42 (Jun 11, 2020)

Good info and your settings look fairly appropriate for the situation. If you can post an example of a photo you'd like to improve I bet somebody will nail the answer.


----------



## Mr_Chris (Jun 11, 2020)

Designer said:


> So with the aperture at f/18, that is not too large, but you're still a bit under-exposed according to the meter.  Since you've got a good tripod, you can probably increase the shutter opening, but you might need to use a cable release (or the self-timer).  Cable releases are quite reasonably priced.  One of mine cost less than $4. USD
> 
> Try opening the aperture to say around f/8 or so, and increasing the shutter time a bit. If your'e still getting OOF areas, perhaps a different lens would help.  I don't have any specific recommendations at this time.


Thankyou ill try adjusting the settings as you say


----------



## Mr_Chris (Jun 11, 2020)

zulu42 said:


> Good info and your settings look fairly appropriate for the situation. If you can post an example of a photo you'd like to improve I bet somebody will nail the answer.


Thanks - here is an example - note the fuzziness and loss of detail around the edges for example....


----------



## zulu42 (Jun 11, 2020)

Good example. One question: did you raise the exposure or brightness of the image in post-processing - in photoshop or anything?


----------



## Mr_Chris (Jun 11, 2020)

zulu42 said:


> Good example. One question: did you raise the exposure or brightness of the image in post-processing - in photoshop or anything?


No that's how it came out of the camera.....


----------



## Designer (Jun 12, 2020)

Mr_Chris said:


> .. - here is an example - note the fuzziness and loss of detail around the edges for example....


Yes, a bit, but I see that this is not underexposed, but rather overexposed.

I still believe the answer lies in better lighting, not another lens.  In the shot you have posted, the light seems to be more than adequate, but instead of simply blasting your subject with tons of light, learn to modify and regulate the light.  Until you get the lighting under control, a different camera body and lens will not help you.


----------



## weepete (Jun 12, 2020)

F22, diffraction comes into play after f16 which could also be a factor. Looks kinda pinky to me too. I'd try getting some paper in to sort out the background, get a white and grey card for the WB and exposure.


----------



## JBPhotog (Jun 12, 2020)

Is your product actually magenta colour or is it supposed to be white? If the latter, you have some white balance issues that need sorting out before you tackle any of the other problems. Make sure your lights are actually colour balanced, hopefully all are the same make and model and use a WB target to set a custom white balance.

You are inducing diffraction at f18 so that could be part of the fuzziness issue. Additionally, placing the focus point at the correct subject point is critical in close up work. Keep in mind DoF is 1/3 in front and 2/3 behind the focus point.

Exposure looks just fine but the WB contamination may result in exposure tweaks.

FWIW, using a light tent to blast illumination on all sides can make your edge detail look fuzzy. Placing black cards in strategic places can reflect a dark edge to the subject which really helps when you want to cut it out and also provides a contrasting edge with the perception of sharpness. These are old techniques used by product photographers for decades.


----------



## Derrel (Jun 12, 2020)

I would suggest getting a book that deals with table-top work or product photography. A few simple tricks might elevate your results by a fair margin. The idea of using black cards and reflectors is the most obvious technique change.


----------

