My Toy Photography Set Up
Labels: toy photography 16 commentsI told Joshua that I'd post some information and pix about my toy photography set up by the weekend, and I'm ahead of schedule.
The above is my current set up. Many months back, IIRC Nov - Dec last year, I was previously using a light tent...
...which 'softened' the light from the lamp. However, I found it rather restrictive for 1/6 figures.
For example, a close up shot like this with a slightly low angle...
...was quite a challenge to snap, and would result in the ceiling of the light tent appearing in the shot.
Even with the light tent, I still needed to adjust the whites, lighting and sharpness in iPhoto, which was quite tedious.
I only use the light tent now when I want black backgrounds, like in this shot (which is too noisy, btw)...
...otherwise, I just shoot it with this set up.
The best thing about this set up is that the only photo editing that I do is cropping the pictures. I don't adjust the levels at all.
The breakdown of the items I use is as follows:
Camera
I'm using a pretty outdated camera model, the Olympus IR300, and take my photos at auto mode, with macro turned on. The good thing going for it that it's image stabiliser is rather good, which takes away the need for a mini-tripod. You might want to use a mini tripod for really sharp images, but I find it cumbersome at times.
I purchased the lamps and bulbs based on Pro Bro's advice. Do check out his excellent tutorial.
Lamp
I got this lamp from Ikea. It's plastic base is pretty flimsy, and it comes with a clamp to attach to the edge of the table. If you prefer, you can buy separate cast iron bases, also available at Ikea, for the lamps to improve the stability, but these add considerably to the cost as they come to as much as the lamp itself.
Bulb
I'm using Philips Cool Daylight Bulbs, which gives out white light. These should be available at your usual hardware stores. Please note the Cool Daylight bit, and avoid picked up some warm light which cast yellow light on your figures. EDIT: As requested by TED, the actual discription of the lightbulb I'm using is: 23W 220 - 240V-50-60hz I=165mA Cool Daylight 1450lm 66Lm/W
I don't claim to be a good photographer, the experts are people like Ken Moo, Hock, KG and of course, Pro Bro, but I'm sharing the above in the hope that some of you will find it useful.
How do you take photos of your toys? What's your set up like? Do share tips or pix via a comment section of this post.
tags:
toy blog | 
toy collector | 
toy collecting | singapore
Posts
10:19 AM
Thanks Shaun! I think your tips for photo taking is very very useful to me..Will link your post to my blog for future reference..
10:21 AM
glad to know it helps, Des. :)
1:26 PM
nice post bro, you've inspired me to added my setup in my blog...Cheers~!!
3:05 PM
excellent tips shaun! i do believe its time for me to invest in a proper setup for pictures too...
thanks for the link too!
4:03 PM
ken, look forward to your post, drop a comment here when you post please.
joshua, you're welcome.
4:11 PM
ah ken, saw your post, very cool.
9:54 PM
Shaun, thanks for sharing. I normally do my photoshoot in the morning or late afternooon when the sun shine's into my house. I dun have much place for set up. Just somewhite paper and plenty of sunlight..thus some of my pics got lots of shadows. :P
Will invest more in my next photo shooting session..
10:11 PM
you're welcome, hope the information helps you in your next shoot.
10:58 PM
12bro, can you check your light bulb, is it 11W or 25W ? Cos your light looks quite bright...
11:04 PM
exact description on bulb.
23W 220 - 240V-50-60hz I=165mA
Cool Daylight 1450lm 66Lm/W
12:35 AM
ok, now i have to look for another light bulb...no wonder mine looks quite dim...
8:44 PM
very detail explanation of your setup, and very friendly for toy collectors. good one shuan!
9:41 AM
good to know you find it useful Simon, hope it comes in handy.
11:14 PM
Hey Shaun thanks for the invite! You have a very cool blogspot... =D I hope to be able to do something like this someday =D
God bless! =D
7:48 PM
hi shaun! you're a contact of mine in flickr, and i've always wondered what your set-up looks like. save for the camera, i'm surprised to learn that we both have the same set-up--i also use just plain paper and those exact ikea lamps. i do agree that the bases are indeed flimsy; i aready broke one of them, which i temporarily remedied with lots clear tape. XDD
i also use some styrofoam boards to bounce light. i'm no expert myself, but@ 12inchtoys, these would help in eliminating the shadows that harsh light, like a strong lightbulb or midday to afternoon sunlight casts; it also works well if you only have a singular light source. =)
9:20 AM
Hi Ryan, thanks for dropping by, appreciate the tips. :) Would be cool to see pix of how you use the styrofoam boards.