[Buddy Thomason]

Thanks, Barbara. I did use the tilt/shift lens to help with end to end focus. F stop was 8 at 1/10th sec. I placed a lift under the handle and a small spacer between the blade and the scabbard, which lay flat on the table. Because the blade and scabbard are not highly embellished I felt I could use a figured and textured background (fabric) to provide visual contrast and help the blade/scabbard to stand out. I also chose a background that has in it both red and yellow as secondary colors. Hopefully this creates some subtle unity between the subject and the background. The camera was above and in front. The size of the blade and its propensity to pick up reflections from almost everywhere in the room meant that once I got the lighting angles (4 lights in this case) set so the blade looked good I literally had one single camera position that would work. If I moved the tripod/camera a single inch in any direction, reflections, shadows and all manner of gremlins came into play. Also, my T/S lens is 90mm so I had the tripod at max height and I stood on a small ladder to see through the viewfinder. It was a bit of a flail. This is not my blade so I had limited time to shoot it before it goes on to the new owner. It's this kind of challenge that makes me wish I had more lighting, lens and diffusion options as well as a much larger room to shoot in. I'm glad you like it. If the overall response is positive I think I'll call it good and not try to shoot it over again.