Good bike stand?

zerodeluxe

zerodeluxe

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Ben
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Hi

Can anyone recommend a good bike stand, or a good way to hold up a bike in a studio that's pretty easy to edit out?

I'm doing a few bikes here at work with our equipment - they don't need to be "amazing" hence why I'm doing them myself (not for catalogues or adverts, just for web, eBay etc), but for speed I need to be able to edit out the stand easily to save me having to clip the whole bike out.

I've been using jars and white boxes to prop a pedal against, but it's not ideal. Can you get actual clear perspex stands at all?! Thinking of checking around for a company that could make me a clear perspex tube/box, but wanted to ask if such a thing existed already! (Google not finding anything so far....)

Any suggestions or tips would be appreciated!
 
My own method is crude but it works...

Get an assistant to hold it in position, and then let it go. Take the shot once the assistant has stepped back and before it has started to fall over. Then get a clipping paths specialist to cut it out for you, better, easier and cheaper than doing it yourself.
 
Thank for the replies!

Yeah, I'd heard of the fishing line techniques before, but it's never seemed very practical or easy to use!

I have thought of clipping services, but for eBay bikes etc it doesn't really warrant the cost - certainly for our main bikes - but are photographed for catalogues overseas and clipped for us anyway. I would indeed do that for main shots if I didn't have the time to do it myself! Clipping bikes is the stuff of hell! :)

I think we may see about getting a custom stand made from an acrylic manufacturer based on a stand that slots in where the crank is. AS long as it's not £100s that is!....
 
Can't you use a generic bike stand like this, take the photo, then swop it to the other wheel and take the photo then clone non stand wheel over the stand wheel?
 
Clipping bikes is the stuff of hell!
Click to expand...
Agreed, that's why it makes sense to give the work to someone who does it all day every day, and who lives in a 3rd world country.

Acrylic is the worst possible material for a stand if it appears in front of the subject, it causes diffraction.
 
It would sit in behind - the one we'll (try and) model it on has a base, and two prongs which point upward - you then slot the bike over with the prongs sitting between the crank arm and the bottom bracket.

I'll make sure it's as small as it possibly can be...

I'll let you know if it's successful!

Calzor - we've got stands like that, but I really want to make it simple - ie just to paint/clone out the stand. Having to mix two images might be a faff - especially if you accidentally change the angle.... but thank you for the suggestion anyway!
 
Pint glass (or other similar sized glass object) upturned and have the pedal resting on it I have heard being done before.
 
Wouldnt be too hard to make a stand out of acrylic TBH, it will be costly tho.

I work with all types of plastics for a plastics fabrication company so if you have any questions please feel free to PM me.
 
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