toy photography - THE OTHER SIDE / Discuss

south of the metro says:

Had to prepare this earlier as i might be busy this weekend.


Not all of us ventured early in this lighting stuffs and those "mature" (from this guys term, hehehe) toy shots. most of us started with the usual snapshots as we play with toys, without any consideration for the exposure, lighting, etc. as long as we want to play, have fun and take snaps.

And yes... id have to agree that making "serious" shots may take away the "fun" in toy photography (then again..it depends on how a person categorize "fun"). Im assuming that this is the mindset of this guy considering his early lego stuffs.

So I was having second thoughts on having him as a member, but i believed that hed try to be better. and being exposed in the group probably made him realize that the only way to get in the pool is to prepare better images.

People take different routes when faced with challenges.. some turn their back, and then there are some who deal with it. This guy is the latter and thats what made me chose him for the interview.




Here's one of the most improved member of our group, Mr. Kevin Thai ,












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A couple of Q & A's with the man from THE OTHER SIDE.


1) Can you tell us some background info bout yourself.. name/age/profession/country?

I'm Kevin Thai, 24 years old working as an ESL teacher in Seoul, South Korea. I got started with photography June 2008, just about a year ago from looking at a co-worker's pictures, Joon Young Kim (jykthemuse) and her friend Mark Harvey (mister bokeh). I've tried out different styles and recently found my place a few months ago with toys.


2) What got you started into toy photography? How long have you been doing this?

I only began this December '08 when I was bored one cold night and took pictures of Teal'c and Yoda. Then about three months ago I started looking at toy photography streams and was blown away by the creativity. I brought three LEGO Clone Troopers to Japan and had a blast. After I got back I was inspired by Gareth (-Gareth-) and his 365 "Year of the Fett." So I started a 365, too.


3) What equipment do you normally use for taking snaps? any other special equipment?

My full gear is in my Flickr profile. I mainly use a Nikon D90 and a 50mm 1.8 prime. Also a single SB 600, and sometimes (for my LEGOs) a Raynox 250 macro adapter. This is pretty basic stuff.


4) How many toys do you have right now? Any particular character or set you like most?

After this group, it just keeps getting bigger. LEGOs, action figures, Transformers, and some stuffed animals.


5) Where do you normally get your stuff (I mean toys)?

Korea doesn't have a lot of toy stores. But a few months ago Toys R' Us opened a few minutes from my door.....


6) Which do you prefer, tabletop photography or outdoor? why?

No preference yet, other than I'm too lazy to go outside :P Though tabletop does allow me more control of the light and I think it's safer than carrying my gear around the city. Soon I hope to venture outside and take advantage of the weather before Winter.


7) Which do you prefer, digital background or props/dio ? why?

No preference yet since I haven't experimented long enough yet. Now it's just plain construction paper and whatever is around the house.


8) Do you make prints of your toy shots? or just stored them digitally.

They're just digital for now.


9) Any particular light setup you prefer using?

I'm still learning the ins and outs. Natural lighting is the best but more difficult. Last week I learned light painting and is more fun 'cuz I have more interaction with my toys.


10) Any preferred lens for toy photography? Can you advise which lens is ok to use?

I've been using a 50mm 1.8. That way i can really control the DOF, get really close to my figures, and is wicked sharp.


11) When taking shots, which element of photography you normally try to achieve? ie., sharp image, great lighting, etc.

I love dof when something is going on in the background and there's lots of chaos. Recently with THEOTHERSIDE, I've been forced teaching myself special lighting and posing to give a more mature look beyond a simple snapshot.


12) Have you entered any contest using your works with toys? Did you win any awards?

Other than stuff on Flickr, I haven't competed with anyone. Though, I think it would be wicked cool to do that.


13) Aside from taking photo's of toys, any other hobby you have?

I love my TV and SCI FI. I watch the SciFi Channel religiously, along with reality TV shows on Bravo.

I also love learning, which is a reason why I love teaching because more than learning I love sharing what I learned and I get to also create that excitement in them.


14) What would you like to show or say with your photography?

err... I don't really know. Check me out I'm superfly! err.... jk

I like to take pictures. I hope you enjoy them.


15) Any tips you can impart for those newbie in this type of photography?

You know what, I think I'm still a newbie 'cuz I only started doing this three months ago!

Invest a lot of time because it's not easy. Be patient. For one good photo, you may take over three hours to set up, shoot, experiment, and tear down. Then you gotta post process and that will take some more time.

Get inspired. Learn. Get frustrated. Experiment. Make lots of mistakes. Get frustrated. Try again. Learn some more. Keep getting inspired. You get the idea.


16) How long do you see yourself doing this?

When I find another different expensive hobby?

Actually, I really want to get into people photography, engagements, weddings, etc. There's another group I really love called "Inspiration - Fine Art Portrait Photos" and they post the MOST AMAZING work!


17) Any other things you'd like to add or say to all toy/photo enthusiast?

I'm only doing this to spite my mother for always telling me toys are for babies :P So what's your reason for doing this?






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MEMBER's fave/memorable shot



1) First photo "set up" that I've ever done with posing an action figure. It actually was so difficult to get a shot like this that I nearly gave up until recently:









2) This photo represents the kinds of shots I like to set up if I had the time and creativity. There's lots of chaos going on the comedy of it is a bonus:








3) This was inspired in part by that "Die Another Day" when Bond drives his car through on the ice. I just really like the gritty reflection. This was the second time I attempted this type of reflection technique and light painting, and it worked out really well.








4) I guess here's one more. This is my second time light painting and I learned a lot from my first attempt. This time, I learned to apply distance and strobe power to the toy. All of this stuff I usually find out by accident, after which I learned to control it a little more.














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ADMIN's Choice from members stream


BIRTH OF PHAEDRUS



This is the first shot which gave me the impression that he's beginning to understand that lighting plays a major factor in photography




UNTITLED



I really like that other ken shot, but this will have to do., if you are going to base this from kthai's early images on his stream., youd really appreciate the hard work hes done to get something like this...im not really sure if its for the interview only, as he stated that the kind of shot he like more are the chaotic ones., hehehe.


Appreciate the time and support you've given to the group man..and congratulations on learning a few tricks of the trade. keep up the experiments and hope to see more of your great works. try to learn more from your older brothers here.

Maybe later you'd realize that the lighting tricks you've learned with toys can be applied to people as well.




ADMIN's note: and thats it! thanks for all your cooperation and looking forward to the next one
Originally posted at 9:37AM, 24 July 2009 PDT (permalink)
south of the metro edited this topic 35 months ago.