Photographing Quilts

I know I said the next blog post would be about Iceland and Greenland but I am still putting together different color palettes and quilt ideas so I decided instead that this month I would write about something else that has been on my mind a lot- photographing quilts. How many people have a hard time taking good pictures of their quilts? I am definitely one of you. I find it isn’t an easy task but one I always want to do, and not just to share the quilts with all of you but so that I have a record of the quilt. I don’t feel as much of a push when I know the quilt is just for me, no one else is going to be seeing it, and it isn’t going to be gifted, but when a quilt is going to be gifted (and I may never see it again), or is something I want to share, having a good photograph is very important. 

So what are some of the challenges we all face and how can we try and overcome them? For me the biggest challenge is having nowhere in my house that I can really use to take good photos. Like so many people my home is practical; it is meant for living in not taking photos in. Sure I have a few spots that work for mini quilts or individual quilt blocks but throws and larger quilts are more of a challenge. (Have you seen the latest instagram post with the MSQC Color Storm Quilt?). How do I work around this? My biggest solution is to go outdoors. 

Taking photos of quilts outdoors is great on one hand, because it means you have natural light, larger spaces to work with, and can choose a background that matches the style of the quilt. Of course there are also some drawbacks, the biggest in my opinion being the weather. As I write this it is pouring rain outside, not weather that would work for photographing quilts. Because of the weather you have to keep your plans flexible. You also never know when you are going to find the perfect location, with great weather to capture those pictures (anybody else sometimes drive around with quilts in their car, just in case, or is that just me?). With the outdoors you also have to worry if the quilts will get dirty; mine are made to be used so they can be washed and used again and again, but the idea of taking a white quilt out after it has been raining still bothers me. 

The other big challenge is having a quilt holder(s). When working with smaller quilts it can be a great time to borrow a young member of the family, but when it comes time to capture those queen and king size quilts, I don’t know about you but I find 6 foot is the minimum height to be really effective. Most often though I end up having to work with laying the quilt out over fences, benches, bushes or whatever else is handy. This can actually work well until you get a sudden burst of wind, then you have to be prepared to chase (and who said you don’t get exercise as a quilter?) 

I guess what it boils down to is there really is no fool proof system, you just have to keep trying and work to see what works for you. How do you photograph your quilts? I would love to hear! Drop me a line at createdesignmake365@gmail.com and until next time, happy sewing! 

-Siobhan