Wolfgang,
Your pictures are superb! Very nice, and quite a bit of labor.
In video, we use a false color (green or blue) background for automating the cutout of foreground images and insertion of backgrounds.
This technique would work well in photoshop, and could eliminate quite a bit of the labor you must invest to rotoscope out the image. The key is to not allow the background color to reflect on the firearm's highlights. That is done through lighting. Tools that select by color can even do the cutout with the transparent shadow intact.
I also use a black background cloth called Duvtyne. It absorbs light. This allows me to set the exposure of the firearm itself more accurately.
Your need to stop down automatic exposure is because of the reflectance of the white background. It all works out in the end. Exposure meters are calibrated to an 18% reflective grey card.
Marc
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 Igitur si vis pacem, para bellum -
- Therefore if you want peace, prepare for war.
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