Requesting photography sets, please?

I don't have a pic but I use 3 pieces of posterboard taped together to make a corner, and before I had photography lights I just used some clamp lamps. Or you can even just take your 'set' outside and use natural light.

Don't forget the tripod though, that makes my life easier ^.^;

I can still take a pic if you'd like though?

~Dottie

 

^.^ Weird is right! I'm flattered

I got my tripod for like $30 but I got it for photography purposes so it's a bit tall for dolls. You can probably just go to target and get one. I think I got mine off of Amazon.com

My lights were $189 for a set of three 500watt lights, so pretty expensive if you're just going to use them for doll photos ^.^; I also got them off of Amazon.com

The thing you have to be careful about is certian bulbs, if you're going to use desk lamps, I've had a lot of trouble with regular light bulbs because they like to show up yellow on camera. Flourescent like to show up blue, and in my experience energy saving bulbs show up green >.< To me the yellow is easier to fix, so I used to use regular indoor lights with clamp lamps. It doens't always show up those colors, and natural light doesn't usually have that problem ^.^

~Dottie

 

You can also spend about $5 and get those "natural light" light bulbs at the grocery--they usually look powder blue on the outside--and use them with your desk or clamp lamp. They do a great job of correcting the uggy yellow of regular indoor light; I get pretty good color when I use them.

 

I really, really am impressed by the creativity of these sets! I hope more members post their photos.

I'm going to move this to the Photography SubForum because it's really a perfect thread for that Workshop!

 

My set is in the corner of the picture that doesn't have the TV(sorry, it's the best photo I have of it right now). The set is made of thick foam core and covered with some spare wallpaper I had laying around... I actually have a whole bunch of interchangeable walls I made up (you can see some of them behind the giraffe in this photo, the splattery one is usually just used to keep the other ones safe), so if I want to go simple with white I can or I can go insane with some fancy toile print background. The foamcore connects using velcro to a hinged wooden frame for stability.

I don't use lamps anymore because the sunlight in that room is usually just perfect for photo taking.... So yep, that's my photo set.

 

I really prefer to use natural light. I use a reflector and a tripod EVERY time. This is on my deck, with the sun setting at the back of the final photo. That is a white curtain/panel and you can also see the reflector, which is actually an automotive sun screen.



The image -

 

I picked up some new lighting equipment today

2 x Aurora G-400, Uni-Lever 400 w/s Aurora Flash with Standard Reflector
2 x Studio Titan 11.5' Air Cushioned Turbo Lock Stand
1 x Aurora 42" White Umbrella
1 x Aurora 24" x 32" SLS LBDR68S Soft Box
1 x Aurora Uni-Lever Mounting Ring
1 x Cameron Proline Bag
1 x Cameron 49" Light Stand Bag

 

oOh my goodness! How much did that set you back? o.O

 

Well, Lizzegirle. If you gotta know, almost 1700 canadian plus taxes.

 

well sometimes i used a Soft box light tent like this one with some lights
or sometimes ill go lazy and go with the posterboards

i love taking photos outdoors but im rarely home in the daylight hours and i do have a tripod (that i use indoors and outdoors) and a reflector as well

 

Hey MysteryAya, how do you find the light tent? I've been very tempted to get one...

 

i like it a lot it when i use it i dont get as many pictures with the faces whited out. i usually use it when i list things on ebay but when im not lazy i break it out and take pictures of my dolls in it. here's some pics i took this week with it-

http://denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70179
http://denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69188

I also use clamp lights on the outside of the photo tent for lighting. Mine came with a white, black and blue backdrop but i want to get some more someday

 

Here are some very old pics I took of my set up when I use my light tent:

The light tent is 30x30x30. I wanted to be sure I could fit a doll couch inside when doing pics. I purchased my light tent back in 2003 when it was still pretty expensive on ebay.

Other setups I've done are like these:

I love using window light, especially with the sheer curtains as it diffuses the light very nicely. I always set my DSLR up on a tripod and use my remote cable release to get the most steady shots.

 

I'm still working on my setup but right now I have one of those three sided fold out project board... things (like for science projects) with a piece of poster board for the "floor". I have a drop lamp (that's what my boyfriend says it's called, it's metal and cheap) too but I'm still working on figuring out how to use it without making the picture weird.

I used that for these pictures and the only light I used was the overhead light in the room. It was at night and I think I was using the tungsten setting on my camera.
http://waiting-is-hell.livejournal.com/46212.html

I'd link the actual pictures but I can't view Photobucket images right now so I don't know which are the best. That's the entry with the pictures though.

 

I'll have to take pictures, but mine is thin (1/4") MDF board, painted white. Two boards, hinged on the outside to make a corner wall (they meet so there's no gap). Then I took some wood trim, stained and waxed it, and nailed it to the bottom to give the look of baseboard moulding like a real house.

It looks very to scale that way, and I can place it on my wood table for a "wood floor", or the carpet etc. It folds flat when I'm done and slides behind my armoire. I have clamp lights that clamp nicely to the MDF so I can get low, closeup lighting since I don't have any windows that get suitable sunlight.

The boards are tall/wide enough that even Maiko (Obitsu) can stand and have a white backdrop.

 

I heard every woman looks good in heels...but even the doll? O.o

 

Here is what I am using right now: (tri-fold project board around $3)

...and this is a pic from that photo session:

I already had the lights ( because I love photography), but really, clip-on lamps & those multi-head floor lamps with decent light bulbs will work fine. It's best not to shine the light directly on your doll (can cause glares), but you can make your own reflectors out of car window shades, or cardboard wrapped in foil (although this can give your pic a cooler tone)...or even just a nice bright-white piece of thick poster-board...put them angled up and towards your doll, and some on the sides...then shine the lights directly onto the reflector's and it will bounce the light where you want it.... (my lights in the pics above are aimed directly at my doll because they have diffusers).

Hope it helps :-)....mostly, just have fun trying different things...you can always use an editing program to change the color, texture, or lighting of your background...as well as being able to blur out all of the details and just leave soft color...

 

Just wondering, what exactly is a "reveal" lamp?
I'm trying to get some clamp lights, and is very confused ^-^;;
Are these natural sort of light bulbs?

What kind of light bulbs work best? (fluorecent is not the thing &#12640;&#12636; obviously; )

 

The reveal bulbs are a certain type of bulb that should be found in any grocery store. http://www.gelighting.com/na/home_lighting/products/reveal_main.htm

They produce a white light instead of a blue or yellow tint that most light bulbs produce. So you will obtain more natural colors.

 

Well, I was getting irritated finding the right spots to take pictures of Alice in the house that didn't make the scale look off. So I decided to make my own photo-backdrop as oppossed to buying one of the outragiously expensive ones.

What I did was cut down a box into three sides and cut and "puzzle piece" together a level, flat floor space. I'm going to go pick out some scrapbook paper to use as "wall paper" and some matte paper for the flooring.

I've also cut another third section without a floor for an alternate back drop to set into the set. And when I get another box of the same size, I'll make more 'rooms' and back drops.

Its really cheap and simple to do. All thats needed for the actual set up is a box cutter and tape. And then either paint, paper and glue stick or textiles for decorating the "room".

 

This looks like a really clever idea. As I understand it you've glued it all together, making it impossible to fold together for easy storage? I'm looking for an easy, cheap solution that I will be able to hide away easily when I'm not using it, but this is inspiring.

Annefia!

 

I had the same idea as you, but wasn't sure how to do the walls. Thanks for the photo, it's definitely helpful ^_^

I already got some scrapbook paper, and I'm going to try that. I also saw on a victorian doll site a guy used ribbon for wall trim and pieced from a picture frame for those chair buffer things that are halfway up walls.... if I can ever find the link again I'll post it, you may find it useful for additional ideas.

edit: found the site! http://victorianwoodshop.com/box.html

It is more complex and detailed than anything I am interested in making, but I found it to be pretty inspirational and a good general guide for helping me put together ideas, although I like the shape of your cardboard design better.

 

The floor is taped together and portions of it are fully attached to the wall unit. It holds it flat better than glue and has less chance of seperating. So yes, this one can't fold up. But I'm going to use it for display as well. So for me thats good.

If you want one that can fold up. Piece together the floor seperately and have the walls seperate. That way you can just fold them and tuck them behind a desk or in a closet.

Then when you want to set up, lay out the floor, unfold the wall unit and tuck them together with a support (a book for example) behind the wall unit.

Edit: Or you can have the floor attach to the wall only on one side so that it folds up against the attached wall and then you can fold it into the other two sections for a single section to store.

 

Yep.
Also, Home depot has very small Victorian design wooden trim thats really cheap.

And Wall mart has small wooden poles that can be cut down to scale, painted and used as curtain rods so that fabric curtains can be added.

I'm looking for a doll house window to put into the wall as well.
And they make doll house light fixtures that you can put into the wall that actually light up.

 

wow. you are soooo much more creative than me ^_^

I don't have much space, so right now I just want something simple to put my girls in front of as opposed to a white sheet or other light colored fabric, like I am now. I'm really looking forward to seeing your finished product

 

I also have a backdrop made out of a box, but mine is like a "corner", keeping just the floor and two adjacent sides of the cube - If that makes sense!

Because I like to use lots of different backgrounds, I have just covered the whole thing in white paper for a "photo studio" look, and then if I want patterned walls, I just pick out a sheet of paper (from my Paperchase stash!), and blu-tack it to the walls for the duration of the photoshoot. It's a cheap an effective way of making a nice backdrop.

 

Ooh, that's awesome! I might have to do something like that for my incoming doll ^^

I just remembered something.. Science fair display boards could work for this and stores like Longs tend to have them in stock. Sometimes you'll be able to find them in other colors than white and they fold away very easily. If it's too big or tall, you always could trim/cut it to exactly what you want. For the floor.. Just buy a posterboard while you're at Longs and put it under the display board. Could get wallpaper/flooring from scrapbooking places, they have pretty paper with loads of different prints. I think you'd be able to find some prints that could work as wallpaper/flooring.

 

This was an amazing idea! I was getting annoyed at how everything looked ((rightfully)) huge in comparison to Octavius, but sucked it up because I didnt think I could do anything about it. But now....hahaha my mum's not gonna like it, but Im SOOOO gonna create a whole house for my boy out of cardboard....buwahahaha

 

not sure what i'll be saying will make sense

will you be cutting a hole for a window or a fake window?

if cutting a hole, i was thinking, might it be better to get those white styrofoam(not sure whether this word is universal) as there is thickness and it might help in giving the window/wall a bricked effect.

am i making sense

 

You're making perfect sense.

Yes, I will be cutting a hole to add the window. But I will be re-enforcing the cardboard with thin plastic siding to ensure it wont tear out as easily and can stay in place.

 

Isn't making a room fun?! I use the Elmer's foamcore display boards - the tri-fold kind. http://www.elmers.com/products/product/product_page.asp?pCode=730202

I spray them with the "stone" finish spray you can buy in craft stores. The stone spray comes in different colors and gives an interesting textured effect. I get the clear-cote finishing spray that sets the stone, so it doesn't constantly crumble off after it's dried. It's very durable!

I sometimes use two or three boards together, to create walls in various directions. They're easy to cut windows holes in, and I buy dollhouse windows, or doors that become windows. The boards are very lightweight, and fold flat. For floor surfaces, I use our big pine table, or two masonite boards that I've covered with a light beige-gold linen.

Here's a pic...



The beige strip running up the corner is a piece of dollhouse molding that I got at a woodworkers store. It comes in handy for joining two boards temporarily. I put a regular strip of board glued down the center of the back of the front piece, creating a T, and then slip the back piece between the two boards, pushing the walls against and behind the front piece. The molding strips also work nicely along the edge of the floor, and also as wainscoting, if you want to do a wallpaper effect above or below. The possibilities are endless!

A couple more pics, showing different lightings...





As a backyard garden wall...

 

What size box is that you used?

I did a area in my room with command strip pinch hangers to hold up a white sheet and then I use certain colored poster board as well to change it up as either floor or walls. I am looking for ideas on how to take better outdoor pics would you show any backdrops you make for those too please. MK

 

stephg> wow, the last one's great!
if u left the room dark and just leave the small light at the stairs on, it'd be so romantic

 

Wow, what a great idea! I never would have thought of this! Congratulations, you've just given me some serious inspiration, here. Thank you, teehee!

 

Oh this is amazing! Such an awesome idea! Now all I need is to know how to make a cardboard box look the the inside of a Captains Cabin aboard a ship of the line ^^

 

Buy small flat and round wall trim from Home Depot, cut to scale, tarnish and line the cardboard with it so that it looks like log and wood walls and floors.

You can use a photo scene for the window or attampt to find a Dollhouse breakfast nook window.

The hardest part for that sort of scene, I would think, would be the furniture and accessory decor, depending on what scale you're working with.

 

Thanks to StephG's suggestion, I picked up one of the Elmer's foam boards and with some scrapbook paper from JoAnns, I did this:

It's not finished yet, I used up two glue sticks to get that bit done, and admittedly the paper is a little crooked but I don't think it looks horrible lol. The butterflies I got as stickers at Dollar Tree, where you can also get some cheap scrapbooking items to use as decorations.

Got those little frames at Michael's which I will try to use to make little windows.

 

I intend to make a room of my own as well. However, it will be difficult to put it somewhere where the cat won't eat it.

 

that's a really neat idea!

 

What a great idea, I might just have to find a box

 

Awsome ideas.... now if I could just afford to move out of this house so I'll have room to do this ^^;;

 

There are options besides scrapbook paper. Buy a single roll of self-sticking wallpaper in a small design or neutral color. Check out the "shelf-liners" in the home decor stores or even in supermarkets. It's self-stick, and among the small prints are also wood design. One big layer of cardboard or foamcore board, and you've got a floor, or a wood-paneled room.

Regular foamcore board from the stationery store or Staples not big enough? Go to an art supply store. You can get white foamcore board in HUGE sheets or a multitude of sizes bigger than the regular ones.

Personally, I like to use the white, but add on wall hangings or pictures that identify the space as belonging to a particular character. And the nice thing about foamcore board is that you can fold the "rooms" away, or tuck them away when you need a different set. I've also seen someone buy two strips of thin woodwork wood, and attach them via a spacing piece of wood at each end, leaving a space between. Not only can you slip a sheet of foamcoar between them and have it supported, but it's instant woodwork! (and in my case, looks better than the real ones in my rooms!)

 

Ha, I know the feeling. I'm glad to find such a great and easy way to make a backdrop though!

 

I see so many photoshots were the back drop is completely black or white and all you can see is the doll or included props. how is that done? I don't have alot of space as i live with my sister right now and constantly take 'outdoors' shoots are getting boring.

If someone would be so kind as to point me in the direction on how to set up the above mentioned sets i'd be forever greatful.

 

I have photos like this:



I have some black velvet, and a closet. I bought some tacks and tacked the fabric up to the closet, used a desktop lamp and that's it. ...

Same with white:



edited: the white is cotton though XD

 

A high-end art store or paperie will carry a black paper (the name of which is eluding me bigtime) that absorbs light (i.e. will give you a very black background). I've seen it in different grades (different degrees of absorption), and if memory serves, it was about $6 the last time I purchased a 3'x2' piece.

For the life of me, I can't remember the paper's official name , but for certain NY Central Art Supply carries it.

ETA: The paper has a velvety pile.

 

has anyone thought of taking an old doll house and getting rid of all the small rooms and floors? It wouldn't be usable for SD's but for MSD's and smaller it could work. =\

 

I have, but I'll never do it to mine, as it's almost human lenght and made by my dad. Too much emotional attachment.

I love that backdrop, though. Even if you make a bunch, they are still easily storeable.

 

Wow! I am so impressed with the room done by StephG. It is gorgeous I love it! I am trying to get some ideas for backdrops. Thanks for the hints. I am so inspire by this wonderful thread. Well done!

 

Ahh, Yeah. Never best to ruin something sentimental.

 

I actually just have a black bedsheet that I've never used and a desk lamp I purchased for lighting photos and got this:




The photo was also taken at night so I didn't have any natural light bouncing off of the wrinkles of the fabric.

 

Backdrops can be very inexpensive and capable of being put away in a small space. The real "trick" to getting a non-distracting solid background in your photos is making sure that your dolls are about the length of their body in front of the backdrop. Foamcore, heavy card, fabric - especially velvet, gift wrapping paper, scrapbooking paper are all easily available.

 

Mostly I use a roll of inexpensive thick white drawingpaper that hangs from a sitck on the wall. That way, if I mess up the paper, I can just cut it off and roll down some more.
I have also used a roll of brown wrappingpaper, a white or black sheet, a piece of velvet and a piece of moltonfabric curtains that I got from the local theatre and that they were throwing away.

 

What great tips, thanks so much.

 

These are all really useful ideas, thanks guys.

Popo - the way you curved the card is genius! Cute photos too.

 

this makes me want to go make a backdrop. these are really helpful tips! :}

 

I use bed sheets, hah.
Plain whites, blacks, etc. Just hang them up on a wall with extra at the end (to use as at the bottom). :]

Professional photographers generally use those huge rolls of paper. Hang it up and pull down however much you need.

 

Cloth and thumbtacks in a corner for me