HelP! polished granite is my new enemy

[funkychunkymonkey]

My grandpas name is on this statue and I would like to get a close up of his name area for my grandmother. The statue is polished granite. Every shot I took had a reflection and was blury. How can I take a good shot? (oh and the part with his name is Of couse, ABOVE my head)

 

[Gianna'sPapa]

Try from an angle, the same as glass, with a manual focus.

 

[ukcatfan]

You could try a polarizing filter, and a ladder!

 

[ssanders79]

I see that there is a light. What does this look like lit up at night?

 

[photo_chick]

Polarizing filter, manual focus.

And I know it's counter intuitive but you might try when there is more light as well. Like when the sun is more directly overhead.

 

[zackiedawg]

You've also got some blur there, likely from movement - F10 and 1/80 is a slow shutter and small aperture - looks like you could have opened the aperture a bit more for a faster shutter speed - that would have made the image sharper.

As others mentioned, polarizers might help, as well as shooting from an angle. I also agree that I think light is your biggest factor. You snapped this photo at 6:30pm and the sun is setting just off to the right and back of the structure. That means you're shooting partially INTO the sun from the side, and shooting a shadowed-side of the structure. If you were to take the photo at the complete opposite time of day - in the early morning - you'd have the sun coming in from behind you and from the left, which would be shining onto the face of the structure that you're trying to show. Because the light is coming in from the left angle, you should be able to shoot straight ahead just like your shot above - the angled light should avoid reflections.

 

[funkychunkymonkey]

never seen it at night yet. The part I need a photo of is on the side colum (this pic is the front but the only decent shot). What time of day would be eaisest to take the photo?