BIG dolls fitting in a pic frame.

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...-(Severin-DOT-Collection-Black-Ducan)-img-hvy
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...ouk-at-the-Candy-Store-(-SD13-Cyndy-in-BSSB-)
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...Theo-Volks-SD10-SchoolheadB-Volks-SD17-Alain)

Not sure what you are looking for exactly, but here are some photo streams that involve sd sized dolls using props and backgrounds.
Keep in mind that when setting up photos, minis and pukis are a LOT easier to pose than are 1/3 scale dolls... it is fairly easy to pose a puki and balance it in all sorts of cute situations. The difficulty in posing even a 1/4 scale vs. 1/3 scale doll is exponential... there is just that much more weight and physics involved.

I think taking good pictures of larger dolls has less to do with the kind of camera you have and more to do with how much time, space, and patience you have. If you search back through Aznbutterfly's gallery, his earlier photos were taken with a Minolta Dimage, which is a tiny pocket camera (no better that a cellphone camera nowadays) and he took some incredible photos.

 

absolutely gorgeous photos strangeangels! Thanks for the tips.

 

VEry interesting topic! I love your SD pictures! It is realy hard for me to do picts of my big dolls!

 

I've had this problem myself
With smaller dolls, it's easier to turn my kitchen table into a scene, but SDs demand so much more space.

You probably noticed, but all the photos you linked above were all taken outside - so maybe that's your answer.

find a scenery outside that you like, set your doll down, and don't be afraid to step back (just trust that it's going to stand on its own [or use a doll stand])

This is a really old photo of mine, and not one of my best, but I miss that location so bad It was my universities research farm. This was just on one of the trails in the forest.



again, same equally old and crappy photo, but same general location
\\



With the addition of some type of plot/story and potentially the inclusion of props, The locations would have probably offered me much more than what I initially used them for.
The above shoots were an alice in wonderland themed shoot and a stereotypical engagement shoot.
With the AiW shoot, I could have probably gotten a lot more detailed and interesting with it, but I was rather new my camera and doll photos and still in the "plop down, snap away" phase.
The second shoot really looks bland unless you followed to story of my characters, and then could enjoy the "engagement" theme of it - otherwise it looks like two dolls awkwardly sitting on a log :B


Storytelling is a big thing for me nowadays. If a photo doesn't tell some type of story, or capture a moment, then it's a boring.
I have handfuls of props that I don't often use, and probably couldn't offer much advice on prop usage, but from the photos that you shared above, it doesn't seem like you have your heart set on them

 

I'm afraid I've never had a problem fitting an SD in a frame...? Bigger things take up more space, yes, but that's why you back up, then shoot.



It helps if you keep in mind that for a doll about two feet tall you'll need three foot high sets if you want to make sets. Big doll, Big Sets, Big Props.
There's nothing wrong with collecting only smaller dolls if those are easier for you. You have to choose the size you like best.

 

This has been an interesting thread. Like Latefa, I struggle with getting my bigger guys to fit within the frame while still looking really good. Especially my 70cm guy. Maybe I just need to get familiar with the size. Taking them outside is easier, as the lighting is always better. I guess patience truly is the biggest part of it - something I don't always have.

 

As has been said, photographing larger dolls does mean scaling up your background, if you are photographing inside, but that is doable. A problem I have with the large dolls in particular is getting something interesting going. It is easy to photograph them standing around (if your doll is one that is happy standing) but that can be a bit boring. However, it is generally more difficult to get a larger doll to pose in an interesting and natural way, particularly if you are trying for a full body shot (which you seem to be).

I see you have chosen some Ips, so I will use mine as examples.

Standing around.



I tried to do something with the lighting, making the composition off-centre and tilting the body slightly, to add some interest, but it really isn't a very inspiring photo. It is a long shape (the doll body) set in another long shape (the picture frame). Meh.

Another try.



Better, perhaps. By turning the figure sideways and putting the arm and leg out, it has made that long, thin shape a bit less long and thin. It fills out the picture frame a bit better. Still not terribly satisfying, though.

So, you can try sitting the doll down, to get a fatter and more interesting shape. Also helps if your doll doesn't like standing.



Or, my favourite trick, is to abandon the idea of full body completely and do a three quarter portrait.



I think that is much more satisfying.

So I also struggle to get an interesting picture out of a full body shot and would really like to hear of any new ways to do it. I know it is just a matter of composition, but it is one of those things that eludes me.

 

+1 for going outside.

I got a little chuckle at the idea of 1/3 scale dolls being too big, because I see exactly the opposite as the problem: I love that I can work much closer to the dolls than to real people with the same equipment, but my challenge is that I am always looking around for little environments to put them in that don't immediately give away their scale. 1/3 scale dolls are large enough though, that so long as your doll is not in close contact with his/her surroundings, you can often use perspective to make the doll look full scale, simply by having the doll much closer to the camera than you would have a real person stand in the same surroundings. This is the "trick" employed in most of those shots you linked to above.

 

Take lots of steps back and use portrait instead of landscape (the old fashioned angle, not the pre-programmed modes). It works for me and my 70cm and I have a 50mm lens that makes everything look ridiculously close up.

 

I'm the one who took the picture of the Black/White couple dancing on the bridge, and it was a hassle.
They are both rather heavy and have their very own standing issues, not to mention the people passing by and watching me crawling on the ground to take the perfect picture.
I took these pictures with a 100mm lens on a full-frame body, so I needed a lot of space between me and them too.
This picture was taken the same way.

So, to take pictures of SD sized dolls or bigger without cropping them you need a lot of space or a fitting lens.
In case of a fitting lens you need to watch out to not overdo it, stepping down too much in focal length can lead to distortion.
That's why working outside with them is usually easier, since most of us most likely don't have a huge house with a lot of free space to work with
At least I don't.

I'm seconding MadameMauMau's and adam's posts though.
It's hard to let look bigger dolls more interesting, because it's harder to do funny stuff or interesting poses with them including their whole body, and in many cases they are bad at posing too due their weight.
However, they have the advantage of looking more realistic in outside surroundings due their size.

I must admit though that I usually prefer the three quarter portrait look anyway, but I'm a huge sucker for heavily cropped pictures to show little details instead of a whole doll.
Not to mention that without a fitting background or at least an on purpose distorted reality (like when you take picture of tinies being tiny in a huge world) the whole "full doll visible" thing is rather boring to look at anyway, especially if you want to hide that they are actually small dolls.

 

I only take photos indoors as I have to do it in the evenings when my small people have gone to bed. Living in a tiny flat as I do, I had to invest in a wide angle lens to get the whole bodies in. But, agreeing with what you said, Ara, this can lead to HORRIBLE barrel distortion. Not much I can do about that but jam myself up against the sofa, as far away as possible from the doll, and try not to get too many dolly body parts at the outer edges of the picture. Or 'Shop the hell out of it afterwards.

I like the idea of close crops as a topic in itself. Shall we have another thread for that? It is something I very rarely use but could really do with exploring.

 

I know how you feel, I moved from a tiny village with lots of nature around to a big city with...well, mostly lots of people and barely any free space around. Oh, and I also moved from a big house to a small flat :I
If I want to take pictures of my dolls outside nowadays I'm always at the risk of being disturbed by people or I have to bring someone with me.
Not to mention that the lack of a car doesn't make it easier to find a nice place nearby, so I envy everyone who manages to take decent pictures of their dolls inside.
It's still something I haven't get used too.

While you mention it, Photoshop is of course also an option.
If you can't move far away enough from the object or if your lens ain't suitable for such a situation, it's possible to take several pictures and morph them to one. For example a photo of the upper part and a photo of the lower part of the doll.
That needs a lot of effort though and at least a basic understanding of Photoshop, not to mention that taking two pictures that fit perfectly together is rather complicated sometimes.

I wouldn't mind that all

 

Super super observations, everyone!

MadamMauMau: WHO is that hunky barbarian? Yum! He solves the problem by being, ahem, broad.

ara: beautiful shots. Do you have the rest of the "Violet Hill" shoot posted somewhere?

Just to add some more examples/options: For composing multiple large dolls in a single setting, Carmen does a great job, too. I think it also depends a lot on what dolls you choose. This is hysterical, but makes the point:

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...lian-vs-Herculean-(Hyperon-AD-hybrid-Michael)

There was a gorgeous thread of black and white, very "artsy" but stunning photos with the big guys that I thought I'd bookmarked, but I can't find them. I thought they were Carmen's, but I'm not finding it in her list. If I locate it again, I'll post a link here.

The inability to pose is the biggest limiting factor IMO (and why, so far, I have yet to be "hooked" by a large doll.) I love spontaneous photostories and while I could see how to pose them, it would just take too much work and thought. They're by nature unnaturally long and when the only stable positions they have are fundamentally bolt upright.(I have the same issue with my CLines, if I'm taking a shot of just one of them, and they're at least a bit better about holding poses.) It's hard for the eye to appreciate a tall, thin image, without moving up and down, which means you're taking in details, not the entire image at once. Our peripheral vision is to the side, not up and down. There's not a lot you can do unless you add dolls to the composition and stretch it out sideways. Then you've still got a bunch of upright statues. Sitting and lounging against something obviously helps this verticality. I do wonder how many of the really good big doll photographers use carefully placed doll stands and anything from rubber to twist ties to hold limbs in place, then photoshop out the posing tools.

The scale issue is big with them. The little guys can just be cute interacting with the real world, and making a scale "world" for them doesn't take up, well, a third of your house! While you can certainly do the real-world thing with the big guys, you need to approach the matter with a sense of humor, which doesn't always go with the big-doll mindset. (Nothing critical meant here! The little guys are fundamentally cute and funny, so people who gravitate to them are looking for that. I see a lot more "serious" in the characters of the big dolls.) So...bottom line, it's another vote for outdoor shots where perspective does the work for you. I don't remember reading it here, but forcing the perspective with depth of field also helps a lot (wish my camera would do it. Sigh..)

Something I just thought of looking at the (beautiful) Alice shot above...there are many grades of mulch. Most places use a coarse grade, but a little bit of fine-chip mulch under the doll and filtered to the immediate surrounds would be a quick and easy "scale" maker.

 

This is not only done by big doll photographers, btw
But I do that, and a few of my friends do it too.
For the dancing couple I had a doll-stand under her dress and he was leaning at her, but for some poses wiring or even just sueding can help a lot too.

In case of "flying" dolls you either have to use thin strings or lay them on the ground and heavily edit that the picture afterwards (I guess that has been done in case of the MNF example in the beginning).

A lot of interesting photography usually needs a lot of cheating and a bit of proper post-processing.
Here are btw two photographers I really like, and while one of them takes pictures of figures, it really shows how differently you can approach trying to take interesting pictures with dolls.

Nr. 1 makes his own backgrounds and props and works with proper set-ups. It's easier for him due the way smaller scale, but it's still very interesting to read and shows how important cheating sometimes is. Always take what you see with a grain of salt, you never know how the original set-up or photo might have looked like in reality. A lot of work has to be done beforehand in many cases and you need to think out of the box.
Only setting up the doll and taking a picture usually does not work.

Nr. 2 takes amazing outdoor pictures of his Dollfie Dreams (which are also SD sized).
In his case he travels around with them, searches for lovely backgrounds and works with the world around him as good as possible. He poses them rather life-like and uses doll-stands in some cases too.
This guy is, for me, a real inspiration regarding pretty pictures of SDs outside, especially because he's always at a border of realism and some dream-like look.

 

Absolutely agree about the vertical bias of standing doll photos, Ara. The eye goes up and down and then gets bored. Very static. It needs some diagonals or horizontals to break it up, but big dolls aren't generally keen to supply those, unfortunately.

And I forgot about using stands. Yes, I have very occassionally done that to get a more dynamic pose. In this one, the Akando has a stand attached to his left thigh. hidden in the gloom and fabric. The Sard is propped up by that drum. What a lot of fiddling that took.