The Writer’s Room on the 7th floor of Alkek Library hosts semi-annual exhibits from the Wittliff Collections that are documented by Digital and Web Services. With five glassed-in wall cases and multiple light sources, the room is challenging to photograph! We photograph each case multiple times with a tripod-mounted camera while a sheet of black foam core is moved throughout the frame to flag, or block, the many reflections in the glass. These shots are digitally combined into a single image without distracting reflections.

Using Adobe Photoshop, the many images of a single case are carefully masked off in separate layers to produce an idealized picture without reflections. This combined, final image keeps the focus on the objects displayed and results in a better overall photograph.

Case showing a reflection in the center-right

Case with reflection blocked out in the center-right

After we finish documenting an exhibit we often share a chuckle viewing the 20+ images of a single case in rapid succession as whomever is holding the foam core appears to dance in front of the case (as in the animated GIF below).

Digital Technician Yosdy Valdivia holding black foam core while Digital Media Assistant Erin Mazzei photographs a Wittliff Collections’ exhibit.

Many thanks to our digital imaging techs for assistance and especially Yosdy Valdivia for the fancy footwork!

Erin Mazzei

emazzei@txstate.edu