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A
Azraphe
Participant
November 9, 2020
Question

How to remove reflections of a pice of glass used to hold down a photo?

  • November 9, 2020
  • 4 replies
  • 4729 views

I have using my didgital camera to record photos but they are often old and curled. I have been using a piece of heavy optically clear glass but I cannot find a solution to take the picture without reflection.

Would someone know if I can take a photo with a solid white exactly where I would if I was recording the photo and then use this as a reverse mask to remove the reflection?
or
How would you create a reverse mask to subtract the reflection from the photo?

 

 

Thanks in advace 

This topic has been closed for replies.

4 replies

Chuck Uebele
Community Expert
Chuck UebeleCommunity Expert
Community Expert
November 9, 2020

If you use a vacuum back, no glass, and cross polarizing filters, you will not have any reflections. I've been shooting that way for decades. 

    D Fosse
    Community Expert
    D FosseCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    November 9, 2020

    That's right, that's the way to do it, and the only way.

     

    BTW, cross-polarizing isn't a filter, it's two - one on the camera and one on the light source. The two are rotated exactly 90 degrees relative to each other. This will kill almost any surface reflection, if the lights are posisitioned correctly.

     

    You lose about 5 stops of exposure, so it's mostly practical with flash as the light source.

    A
    AzrapheAuthor
    Participant
    November 17, 2020

    While you have provided a possible solution I was looking to find if anyone had come up with a way to create a reverse mask which would remove a reflection using photoshop? 

     

    In a static shot where the reflection always the same you should be able to capture the reflection on a white piece of paper and then process the image so it could be added as a reverse of the reflecttion so that when it is added as a layer to an image of a photograph the reflections would be removed. It could also be useful to remove variations in lighting?

    Does anyone have any ideas how I could achieve this in photoshop?

    Chuck Uebele
    Community Expert
    Chuck UebeleCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    November 9, 2020

    Best to shoot so you don't have a reflection. Using cross polarizing filters is ideal, and really should be used even if you don't use glass. The other options are a magnetic copy board where you can put magnets around the print to hold it flat. Another, better option is to make a vacuum board out of pegboard, with a box hooked up to a vacuum.

      A
      AzrapheAuthor
      Participant
      November 9, 2020

      I do like your vaccum board suggestion. I am thinking a plate with many small preforations would work well. As it would save having to put something on the surface which could damage the photo. I could also see myself gently brushing the photo to remove any dust which would be vacuumed away.

      I will also use the cross polarising filter as it will make some difference. Defeinitely worth the experiment.

      Still looking for a post production advise should there be some further reflections that remain.

      Nancy OShea
      Community Expert
      Nancy OSheaCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      November 9, 2020

      For best results, place photos on a clean flatbed scanner covered with black fabric and books.

       

      Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert
      A
      AzrapheAuthor
      Participant
      November 9, 2020

      I am not looking on how to scan a photo using a scanner.

      I am looking how to do it with a Fujifilm X-T4 so I can get the adavantage of the colour tech and zoom in using a large macro lens.

      C
      CGdesigner72
      Inspiring
      November 9, 2020

      Photoshop has no function to remove reflections. Use the soft box for product photography.

      I think it would be a good idea to use CPL filters.

      A
      AzrapheAuthor
      Participant
      November 9, 2020

      You are missing the point. This is not a light source problem. A shiney surface in front of the photo will always produce a reflection. Given the distance the camera is from the photograph the camera is always seen as a reflection.

      I am not looking for a out of the box solution but would hope that using a layered approach someome would have thought how to turn the static reflection into a negative layer which added to a photograph with the same reflection would remove what it added to the photograph effectively removing the relfection.

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