Photography tips wanted!

A quick tip - for I am no expert. Try not to get up-nose shots of your doll. They don't do anything for dolls or people!

 

First of all; ADORABLE OUTFIT.

Secondly, when taking pics of dolls, never from below unless they're positioned JUST right.

I've also found out that even the simplest of poses can be made really interesting by putting the camera at a 45 angle 'n at.

 

Hope you don't mind me stepping in here (we have mutual friends I believe), just saw this and thought I might throw my tuppence worth in

Firstly, I like the first shot, the pose is natural and the angle suits your girl, but I think it would have been better to have cropped it slightly differently, perhaps with her back against the edge of frame, or maybe her feet in one corner of the frame and her head in the diagonally opposite one. At the moment, it looks a little cramped, so perhaps give her a bit of space around her in the frame generally also.

As a general rule, as others have said, up the nose shots just aren't gonna work! It's the same with pictures of people, no one needs to see nose hair Also, flash is a nono on the basis that it tends to make even the most beautiful resins look plasticy and rob the shot of any light balance. It's worth experimenting with daylight to get a natural shot, but you can get good pictures in artificial light too, provided the camera you're using is capable of dealing with the colour balance and low light issues.

Another personal rule of mine is to not show neckjoint or the nape at all. I think it makes them look like dolls, which is fine if that's what you want, but less so if you were aiming for a more natural look.

Perhaps you could try playing about a bit with a sheet or a curtain behind her for a backdrop, sometimes something as simple as a plain colour behind a close up of the face can make a beautiful picture. I try to keep everything that isn't in scale with them out of shot, and to keep clutter in pictures to a minimum to assist in the illusion, if you see what I mean.

Anyway, hope that helped and good luck

 

'Lo Ali, I'm a close friend of Jet's, you and I may have even met before, I can't remember! I'm basically going to second everything that m'beloved Lulu has said. You're already doing well in putting her into natural poses - remember, if a human can't do it, a doll shouldn't. Getting her eyes looking down the lens can enhance that natural look at times, and using a backdrop of some kind is definitely a winner, it covers a multitude of sins.
Once you've got the basics, your imagination will do the rest!

 

Hi! Really cute outfit.

I'm no expert and in fact am always on this forum looking for photo tips myself ^^ But may I suggest, when you can't use natural light, put one lamp over your doll's head, and have another lamp pointed directly at your doll at her level. As long as the lamps are the same wattage it should make a pretty flattering light!

Cute wig, too.

 

Sorry if I start sounding like an echo,

Flash is generally bad because it'll bleach everything out and make the backgrounds way too dark unless you have experience with it.
Natural light is really great, but as Shoujo Onigiri said, artificial lighting can look equally as good if done right and depending on the feel you're going for. Try using lamps and experiment; I personally use a simple desk lamp for most of my indoor shoots (not that I'm super great, but you know).
Play with your camera settings, it's the best way to become acquainted with it and your photos will most definitely start to look better as you get used to it.
Sheets or paper/posters/I'm not sure what to call them will help keep the focus on the doll so the viewer's eyes won't go to whatever's hanging out in the background. Put some thought into the 'set' and pay attention to how your photos are turning out, it really sucks when you take a lot of good photos and end up having flyaways, pets, or other little things show up when you put them on your computer.

 

the last images on the page are pretty good. Images taken at night are a personal no no for me. I like natural lighting, not a fan of using flash or lightbulbs) What kind of camera are you using? Perhaps get a tripod to steady the camera to make your photos come out clearer.

 

You really don't need a DSLR to get a good photo, it's just about playing with the dolls and their poses till you find what works with them tbh Often, the best photo's are the ones that happen naturally and with them, it makes no difference what camera you use.

If you've got the manual for the camera you've got, have a dig through it and see what the settings are capable of, you'd be surprised what features point and shoots have hidden away that no one ever uses!

 

Watch your focus, too. The first of the new photos you posted, the doll's face is completely out of focus and the best focus is on her chest. Ideally you should be taking loads of photos for every few you post (I average 30 or so photos to get five I think are postable and I'm WAY too lenient about what I keep) and not posting the ones where the doll is completely out of focus at all, because honestly, nobody wants to look at a super-blurry photo.

I'll second the advice to check out your camera's manual. You may have an option that allows you to focus on a center point -- that makes it easier to force focus on the doll's eyes, which is where you want it 90% of the time. Center the frame on the eyes, push the shutter down halfway so it'll autofocus, and then reframe the shot so it's composed like you want it and take the photo.

You definitely don't need a DSLR to take good pictures. In fact IMO if you're not already taking pretty good pictures with an automatic camera a DSLR isn't going to help you -- if you shoot in automatic it'll be exactly the same as before and the manual features are a lot more complicated than learning how to make a compact camera work for you. ^^;

If you're getting blur because you're taking photos at night and don't have enough light there are two fixes: Bring in more light, or use a tripod. Fortunately a "tripod" doesn't have to be an actual tripod. I've used stacks of books, or a box, or anything stable and tall enough, and set my camera on that. Sometimes I anchor it with some of the sticky-tack I use for eye putty. When you've got the camera resting on something like that you don't want your hands on it when you release the shutter. Your camera probably has a self-timer -- if you can set the self-timer for two seconds or so that's long enough to get your hands away so they won't shake the camera more.

 

it looks quite good ,and very cute, maybe you can have a try to change the shoes from gym shoes to shoe leather, she will looks more cute ,haha ,this is only chinese thinking for your reference

 

Hmm.. okay. xD
The last two pictures are really good, on your second post. On the first one, watch your focus ^^;;
And yeah, I agree with the whole "up-the-nose shots aren't doing us any good", thing. xD
Ummm, go for natural poses. And black and white photos really work wonders. Finally, try to focus on the eyes for some close-up shots. I've found that it works really well.

 

I am not going to repeat what other said, but I want to give my two pence: somewhere on your camera there is a little flower symbol, which marks the "Macro" or "Close up" setting on your camera, try using that, it works wonders.

Avoid flash. You can shut the flash off completely on any camera! Get a few, cheap desklamps and experiment with those. Steady your camera either on a tripod or just on a stack of books.

On the focusing issue: you can focus your shot by pressing the shutterbutton just half way, then recompose the shot.

Other than that: you've got a good eye for natural poses and you'll do beautifull pictures with just a bit of practise and a few tricks

 

Just searching for a few photo tips myself and came across this thread. Thought I'd share a few tips of my own while I was visiting:

Flash - sometimes you can't help it the darned thing goes off if you like it or not. My camera is very flash sensitive, loves to pop up the flash at any moment. A photographer friend of mine gave me a wonderful tip - use a small piece of greaseproof paper over the flash! It diffuses the light so you don't get a concentrated white zone in the centre of your picture. Doing this helps to enhance the little details in your pictures too. A small square just big enought to cover the flash, held on with masking tape does wonders.

Fuzzy/ Out of focus - something else I can identify with. My camera is a Kodak Z612 which on "auto" likes to focus anywhere it feels like. I keep it on a wide landscape shot, stand away and zoom in. That does the trick for me. While it's a great camera the "macro" section is pants so I don't use it, I do all my close ups this way instead.

Each camera is different, even cameras of the same model, they all have their quirks. It's best to play with your camera and find out what it likes and doesn't like so you can work around it. With regard to dolls, as it's been said before, treat them like humans. Imagine the best angles for lighting and facial features, as if it were a human model and you're taking pictures for Vogue magazine or something. Find out what you like and dislike too. Maybe you prefer day shots, maybe you prefer night. Perhaps you like outside or inside, props or no props, scenery or neutral background. Your pictures are your art and a matter of personal taste so don't do what others do just because you think it's the right way. We're all different.

 

Flash can be a killer for a photo no matter how perfect it could have been, ambient light is the best way to go as long as when you are shooting you are not shooting toward the light source.

 

I believe I must raise my voice in opposition a bit ... if anything (assuming we're not talking about pure landscape photogaphy), I'd say that no matter how good ambient light conditions are, there is always the potential of improving it by some judicious application of flash.

The operative term here is of course the "judicious". Good flash will almost always mean off-camera flash. The built-in pop-up flashes are notoriously difficult to get good help from.

For anyone interested in how to do interesting things with flash (even when there is ample ambient light), I can recommend the book Hot Shoe Diaries: Big Light from Small Flashes by Joe McNally.

 

Yes try not to use flash. Also, if you want a reeeally dramatic look, try going for a small depth of field (blurry background)
You'll get loads of tips on flickr.com
Just type in doll photography tips, it should come up with a little bit of info!!

 

Photography Tip 101: NEVER USE A FLASH!!!
The flash is the devil !!! LOL.

No, but seriously, try to use natural light at all times. Take your mode OFF of Auto. Be creative and use modes M or P. Use the M mode more often which is the Manual mode. It will let you be more creative in your shots. This is trial and error. Don't be afraid of using different settings. Learn aperture, ISO, etc. But also realize it might take you 50 shots to get just one that is awesome and worth printing! LOL.

Hope this was helpful....now stop using that flash!

 

YES! Flash is probably - in my opinion - the worst thing a camera has. I know, I know, you can use a diffuser and flash to get better outside portrait-like shots, but I've never had to do that - ever. It washes everything out, and it can totally ruin the mood of a pic.

Good flash, or good light can make a picture look great. Professional photographers use them a lot. But not everyone has the room, and ability for that (I know I don't), and most people end up using the regular camera flash. And it's too bright.