This is a gorgeous photograph taken by Howard Currier to illustrate an online auction.
The glass is in full sun (almost overhead) and the background is clear blue sky. The camera is shooting upwards.
Reflections:
This photo was taken in Howard's back yard near Denver, CO
on a cloudless day. There is nothing close enough to
cause a strong reflection. Light intensity falls off very
quickly with distance, which why a camera flash is only good to
a distance of a few feet. Hence standing outside well
away from bright objects is a useful way of keeping reflections
to a minimum. Howard is additionally shooting at an
angle that is unlikely to pick up any reflections from the glass -
they're being bounced over his head.
Background:
The clarity of the air and the depth
of color in the sky creates a wonderful background against which
to photograph. We don't see many climatological opportunities like this
on the east coast, the intensity of color saturation
probably has much to do with the altitude. Had Howard chosen to put a
polarizing filter in front of the camera lens, the sky would
have been rendered an even deeper blue and the small amount of glare that we see
reflected from the glass would have essentially disappeared.
Contrast: The combination of the blue
background and full sunlight on the label makes it stand out
nicely. While one might criticize the
intruding digits and the lack of steady support for either glass or camera,
this is a great way to get the best out of
glasses, especially those with a gold rim. The one
additional advantage to taking photos outside is that light
levels are much higher than one typically can achieve indoors
without using a flash. More light means shorter exposure
time and hence loss of sharpness (i.e. blurring) caused by
holding the glass and/or camera is reduced to a minimum.