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Photographing mosaics
in a museum
This article looks at photographing mosaics in a museum setting.
This is not about camera settings, lighting etc but more the basic
considerations.
How are mosaics usually displayed? The most common option,
due to the space involved, is to find them stuck up on the walls.
No, it's not ideal but sometimes this is the only way to get them on
display, especially if the museum does not have mosaics as its
main focus.
The disadvantages of this is that you do not get to see them as they
were meant to be seen in the room they were placed in originally.
The advantage is if they are mounted on a wall then you can get
really close, close enough to see the individual tesserae. Well, the
bits you can reach without having to bring your own stepladder!
Left, a photo of part of the Lod
mosaic showing how the angle
distorts the image.
There are three types of images that I try to get;
1. A clear photo of the whole floor is one I will take for reference,
I don't spend too much time over that. The best option is to see
if you can find a guide book or postcard with a photo of the whole
floor taken by a professional company.
2. Photos of the individual elements, a single figure, a motif, a
section of border pattern.
3. Photos of specific elements in a pattern or figure. This might be
the way an eye has been done, how tesserae are cut on a curve,
sections to show spacing. You want the good and the not so good.