Post your best toy photos

It was a rainy afternoon and I got this VW Beetle 1/24-scale die-cast and took some (about less than a hundred) and picked only four of the best. They are in here. I'll only post one and it will be my favorite shot, of course, but not necessarily the best. :)


I did a quick search if a thread of the same theme exist and I found none.. :) Hope you can send in your toy photos as well.


Here's my share:


Hood Up


https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-s...0/IMG_0250.JPG


Canon 1000D + 18-55mm kit lens @ 18mm, f/18, 0.8 sec, ISO 100 -- 24W CFL bulb in DIY softbox for lighting


Thanks for viewing.


Cheers!

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Camera Maker: Canon
Camera Model: Canon EOS-1D Mark II N
Lens: EF100mm f/2 USM
Image Date: 2011-03-25 08:08:02 +0000
Focal Length: 100mm
Aperture: f/6.3
Exposure Time: 0.0080 s (1/125)
ISO equiv: 100
Exposure Bias: none
Metering Mode: Spot
Exposure: aperture priority (semi-auto)
White Balance: Auto

My RC 4x4 Short course truck , 5D2, 70-200mm, bottom photo 100mm IS macro


View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/...b56ece18_z.jpg
Traxxas
Slash 4X4 Product Image by
freelanceshots,
on Flickr:550:0]My RC 4x4 Truck





[View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5059/...1df3b8e5_z.jpg Slash 4x4 Short Course Truck by freelanceshots, on Flickr:550:0]

AnGelo Chiu,


Those are pretty good toy shots. Clean work and nice lighting.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by freelanceshots

AnGelo Chiu,


Those are pretty good toy shots. Clean work and nice lighting.

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Thanks Bryan! It's a work in progress.. :D I love your 4x4 with the brick wall behind it!


@ Mark : I kinda missed my tricycle when I saw your pic. :)

I shot 2 images of the RC truck both at 2.8 and focused one on the front portion and one more towards the rear. I then went in with layers and stacked the images where I then pulled out or pushed back the areas of the image that I wanted to control focus. Used this trick that I came up with one night to give me more control over the trucks in and out of focus appearance and produce nicer bluring. Hard to see the true effect on the low res, downscaled image that I uploaded but it gives it that real selective focus look which I feel adds to the toyish appearance. Subtle effect that kind of tricks my eyes personally because some things look slightly off compared to a normally shot image.

That

I guess you could call it that. I've never seen this or had it explained to me before but I'm probably not the first to do it. Wouldn't that be cool to name something new and have it labeled like the "ken burns effect".


Using the multiple images with different focus points could allow you to give the truck more overall focus over the entire length but then it can allow you to direct viewers attention by directing the focus. can't wait to see what you can do with it.





The VW bug would really look real if you could photoshop under the hood and hide the toyish hinge and then create new ones off to the sides. I bet I could pull it off if you didn't know how to do it.

I like the sound of that! Well done! I gotta try it for myself when I get a chance to shoot again.


Cheers!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by freelanceshots

My RC 4x4 Short course truck , 5D2, 70-200mm, bottom photo 100mm IS macro
<p sizset="39" sizcache="13"]View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/freelanceshots/5064956815/]http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/...b56ece18_z.jpg[/url] [url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/freelanceshots/5064956815/]Traxxas Slash 4X4 Product Image[/url] by [url="http://www.flickr.com/people/freelanceshots/]freelanceshots[/url], on Flickr:550:0]My RC 4x4 Truck



<p sizset="42" sizcache="13"][View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/freelanceshots/5536334175/][/url] [url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/freelanceshots/5536334175/]Slash 4x4 Short Course Truck[/url] by [url="http://www.flickr.com/people/freelanceshots/]freelanceshots[/url], on Flickr:550:0]
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I've got the same wheels on my truck... they're 33" high though and Idare say the truck is a little larger too [:D]


That's a great shot, really enjoyed the beetle too Angelo.

On a similar note - this (unfortunately) isn't my toy but one of the guysI work with. It's a purpose built race truck with a Toyota Tundra shell with a 6.7L Twin turbocharged Chevy V8 punching out around 750kW at the rear wheels. And it's only two wheel drive!


He took me for a spin last month and it was possibly the best time I've had in a long time. Each year he enters it in the Finke Desert Race, which is a 280km race through the Simpson Desert, his navigator moved out of town this year so I'm 'in negotiations' at the moment to be his new navi. Fingers crossed BIG TIME. I'm looking forward to going to one of his races and getting some good shots for him (this one was taken on my phone)


[img]/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Discussions-Components-Files/15/3056.Finke-2009-008.jpg[/img]

That paint job is amazing and the truck is mind blowing. I'd let someone chop off one of my fingers or a toe so that I could ride in one of those let alone a whole race. Do take some pictures if you get the opportunity as that would be awesome. I would enjoy them for sure. Need a 10-22 lens for the crop cam or a 16-35, 14mm or 15mm fisheye for that ride. Thanks for sharing! Maybe some 1080p vid with the 14mm or 15mm attached. Riding in this truck would be comparable to riding in a F-16 in my book.

Haha, indeed it's an amazing machine. This is a scan of a centrefold spread that Trevor had in Ralph magazine. This was shot from a chopperat the finke desert face from a couple of years ago, hitting the final tabletop at 190km/h! That is just rediculous.


I'll make sure I purchase the 15mm, 16-35mm, 14mm and 10-22mm before I go for another ride eh, just for you [:P]


[img]/resized-image.ashx/__size/550x0/__key/CommunityServer-Discussions-Components-Files/15/7215.Finke_5F00_Ralph.bmp[/img]

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Originally Posted by btaylor

That's a great shot, really enjoyed the beetle too Angelo.

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Thanks Ben!
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Quote:

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Originally Posted by btaylor

On a similar note - this (unfortunately) isn't my toy but one of the guysI work with. It's a purpose built race truck with a Toyota Tundra shell with a 6.7L Twin turbocharged Chevy V8 punching out around 750kW at the rear wheels. And it's only two wheel drive!


He took me for a spin last month and it was possibly the best time I've had in a long time. Each year he enters it in the Finke Desert Race, which is a 280km race through the Simpson Desert, his navigator moved out of town this year so I'm 'in negotiations' at the moment to be his new navi. Fingers crossed BIG TIME. I'm looking forward to going to one of his races and getting some good shots for him (this one was taken on my phone)


[img]/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Discussions-Components-Files/15/3056.Finke-2009-008.jpg[/img]

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All I can say is WOW! I'd love to try and ride one of those! :) And yes, I do love the paint job too!


I guess that's what I can call a mean freakin' truck! Anyone got a monster truck? I wonder what lens is used to used those monstrous beasts?

Another RC toy photo. I have so much fun doing them that I forgot about
the heat and humidity of the summer where when I was done my clothes
were soaked and I was covered in mosquito bits. Tried to get an
additional photo with the 4 wheels kicking up sand in that few
milliseconds of my 580ex's light but every time I thought I nailed it my STUPID radio popper flash trigger setup would not fire. I wanted to smash them by the time I finally gave up and my memory card was full. It was comical
to watch as every time I was ready to go with the timing of the flash
and pulling the throttle and then no flash. climbing through the sand to reset when your soaked to the bone in sweat and then trying to handle your camera gear is tough. Used my 5D2, 100 IS macro lens, 580ex on a light stand with a small white umbrella.


[View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3087/...2ce66a5d_z.jpg RC short course truck by freelanceshots, on Flickr:640:0]

Quote:

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Originally Posted by freelanceshots

Another RC toy photo. I have so much fun doing them that I forgot about
the heat and humidity of the summer where when I was done my clothes
were soaked and I was covered in mosquito bits. Tried to get an
additional photo with the 4 wheels kicking up sand in that few
milliseconds of my 580ex's light but every time I thought I nailed it my STUPID radio popper flash trigger setup would not fire. I wanted to smash the radio popper's units by the time I finally gave up and my memory card was full. It was comical
to watch as every time I was ready to go with the timing of the flash
and throttle pull my flash setup would not fire. climbing through the sand when your soaked to the bone in sweat and then trying to handle your camera gear is tough. Used my 5D2, 100 IS macro lens, 580ex on a light stand with a small white umbrella.


[View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3087/...2ce66a5d_z.jpg RC short course truck by freelanceshots, on Flickr:640:0]

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Very well done Bryan!!! You really got some awesome toys for the big boys! Work has been eating me up and all I can do is read posts. I'm really looking forward for creative photography time. :)


I really like the way used the environment here but I found the surrounding sand too smooth. Nonetheless, I still love the shot! I can just imagine you working on this and the frustration you were having on the tire sand-kicking thing.


Cheers!

Interesting thought with the focus on the sand. I appreciate the feedback and ideas on how to improve. I did some creative softening in the foreground so that if I went back I could always leave the foreground unaltered.

Posted at flicker is an additional image. One fact that I see with my 5D2 and the 100mm IS lens is that there is not a lot of room to play with f-stop. Its always shallow. With this image I didn't want to go over f/11 where I was 3 or 4 feet away from Rc vehicle which gave me more distance then the typical close up macro photo. The sand in the foreground starts to get soft where I did not focus on different parts of the image to combine later like i did in one of the others. Which one do you like better AnGelo?


here is one of the images where I tried to capture the truck with its wheels spinning. Its was almost totally dark outside by this time so to see anything on my live view to focus I had to adjust exposure to -30 to even see a partial outline to try an attempt any focus. I would always seem to forget to reset my exposure back to between 1/160 or 1/200 and capture no motion blur but this would turn live view black. This one was a 1/10 sec hence the blur. Like I said I had to give up before I could nail the shot I wanted.


[View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5239/...47b73630_z.jpg remote control vehicle by freelanceshots, on Flickr:550:0]

I really like this shot Bryan. Good skills - it

Hey Bryan,


Great concept taking the toy truck to the next level by putting it in motion.


I like the "concept" of the 2nd image better, but I like the "execution" of the first image better.


I like the 1st photo better, because it is so much sharper with better lighting and contrast. The truck pops more and the sky looks more golden. I also like the reflections on the front window and the reflections on the rear bed of the truck.


Unfortunately, in the 2nd image, you're also losing the front grill, drivers side tire and the rear bed/tailgate portion of the truck , in the shadows and/or background.


This definitely looks like a 2 person job.


Regardless, I love the 1st image and if you can figure out some way to retain the qualities of the 1st image and capture the motion of the 2nd image then I think you'll have another contest winning photo on your hands!


Rich

Thanks guys, by the time I started doing the wheel spin capture is was already getting to dark and the sun was dropping below the horizon. Maybe I

Wow, that

Bryan,


Please tell me that you touched up or replaced the action photo, because I can now see the grill, tailgate and drivers side netting. The contrast, highlights, and saturation look better now too! I hope I'm not losing my mind!! [^o)]


If you do ever try this again, I was thinking that you may want to try to tie the truck down from the rear to a fixed point (with string) to prevent it from lurching forward as you try to capture the shot. It also may reduce the motion blur of the truck, while still blurring the wheels.





Rich

Yes I'm sure you could do it with the items you mentioned. Ultimately I'd like to use my alienbee strobes but since I don't have a power source yet for remote locations I was stuck with my one 580EX. I seem to always catch myself thinking about the possibilities of the future and the generator would be a nice one because of the additional uses that it can do beside just powering strobes. The honda generators are by far the best and are very reliable, quiet and can last a lifetime. The alienbee battery unit is a good option but I'm just thinking if I spent 200 to 300 on it I could apply that money to the generator and then power my small fridge with drinks in it at the photoshoot. I found a Opteka RC-4 wireless remote just now that works with the 5D2 and it is 13 bucks. I don't usually buy anything beside Canon equipment but this is a nobrainer where it could end up breaking down the road and I would not be at a big loss for 13 dollars. The remote control to fire the camera in the situations that I like to do would be a big help. At this point in my life I don't have anybody who is interested in doing the kind of things that I like to do so anything I can do to make my job easier is good. In the end the bugs in the evening time are so bad that I had to ask myself what I was doing out there let along asking someone else to do it.

Richard the smaller photo that I had uploaded just did not look right so I uploaded one of the additional photos that I had to flickr and linked to it. The previous image was one of the very dark ones. Sorry for confusing you. Still shows the blur from the front of the truck like I was going in reverse which really bugs me and was the reason why I was trying to use a faster shutter above 1/100.


Anchoring it down would be such a helpful option as it was a huge pain to have to climb around the camera gear through the sand with it sticking to every part of my body and then reposition the truck and then refocusing. I most likely won't be trying this again as my projects always turn out to be much more work then I imagine while I'm falling asleep.

The reason why you're out their being bitten by bugs and wondering 'what the heck am I doing this for', is because you are a true photographer. Photographers will do all sorts of crazy stuff for the shot. You don't get photos like these just by sitting the truck on the kitchen bench.

Some suggestions (and I'm mindful that I'm an amateur talking to a pro):

The 2nd curtain issue. Annoying, that's what it is, but I've found a work around. I soldered an infrared transistor to a mini-phone jack. I then tape this to my pop-up flash and connect it to my remote trigger. The only problem for you is that you would need a camera body with pop-up flash. But it works and it works well.


Timing. You could try a micro switch under the tire. This would fire the camera at just the right time upon launch. Allowing you to get predictable and repeatable results.


Alternately you could create motion by composing the truck more or less front on and zoom the lens as you fire. Do this in conjunction with the previous suggestion to anchor the vehicle and you've got spinning wheels, flicking sand, motion and sharp focus. (sharpness depends on zoom technique).


Here's a zooming shot I did while running backwards down a hill: www.flickr.com/photos/williamsphotoze/5844548191/


I'm sure you could get better results in a controlled environment with a tripod.

Thanks William. You sound more knowledgeable then me when it comes to finding alternative ways to do things. I would have no idea how, what, when and where to do the transistor thing you mention. I bet you like the Mythbusters tv show as those two main guys can come up with many ways to accomplish specific tasks almost like MacGyver. Trying to hook/come up some kind of switch that would synchronize the flash to the throttle is also probably beyond my ability. I just have to rely on the old adage keep doing it until you get it right. That's what I did with this shot which was no easy task to synchronize but I had a helper to push the shutter at least to activate the self timer. It took 50 rounds to nail the shot I wanted.


The three things I will invest in next: a shutter release (one that you can use on bulb setting as well), 14mm L ultra wide lens, and most likely the AlienBees Vagabond mini battery.


http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/...621fcdbb_z.jpg
Self Portrait by freelanceshots, on Flickr

Now that is very, VERY, cool!


Muzzle flash, spent cartridge, and a "don

Actually... come to think of it? You don't do portraits do you. Maybe you could have a few of these business cards ready!


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I may have to have you do my new business cards as I had to get a new cell phone and number.[;)] That would be a great card if somehow you could incorporate commercial photography or architectural photography into it. Kind of reminds me of the movie "I Love You, Man" with actor Paul Rudd. Remember the crazy assortment of pics that are taken of him where they are turned into billboards without his knowledge?

Glad to.

Here is one that I finished tonight. Looks amazing at full res on my Mac 27" screen. Trying to look for more product photography work so this is good practice.


5D2, 100mm IS macro, 2 Alienbee 800's, ISO 100, f/8, shutter 1/20


http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5148/...f7345839_z.jpg
RC truck by freelanceshots, on Flickr

Dont know if I should admit to this but here are some of my toys, when I say my, I obviously mean my nephews.....;


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/IMG_6987.jpg][/IMG]


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/IMG_6984.jpg][/IMG]


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/IMG_69982.jpg][/IMG]


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/IMG_7001.jpg][/IMG]


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/Rock_Monster.jpg][/IMG]


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/StormTrooper.jpg][/IMG]


[IMG][View:http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg12/pinkeye69/Urukhai.jpg][/IMG]

Awesome Ade! Do you photograph the images for fun or do you sell them? Are you a collector?

Thanks,


Just playing, not a collector or seller, just a few bits and bobs we had kicking around, thought i

Here is my toy Camaro that came out better then I expected. I love my macro lens.


[View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6130/...0fa2c154_b.jpg toy camaro by freelanceshots, on Flickr:550:0]

Now that

Dog's toy after 5 minutes


[img]/resized-image.ashx/__size/700x0/__key/CommunityServer-Discussions-Components-Files/15/4747.the-toy-2.jpg[/img]

I was excited with this shoot as It came out better then I expected. One thing that I've noticed while using the 5D2 with the 100mm IS macro is that it always seems like I can't get enough DOF. On the car shot I was at f/16 where just a hint of the car was in focus. I did not want to go higher on the f-stop this time (last few insect macros where f/18 - f/20) because of the IQ loss caused by lens diffraction. When I mention the word hint I mean the front bumper portion closest to the camera was sharp where the opposite side of the bumper was getting OF. To get a somewhat in focus image I had to shoot 3 images with the camera focused on the front, middle, and rear of the car and there was still out of focus portions. Easier said then done because when the 100mm IS lens changes focus the car's size would change in the frame so they no longer simply fit together. Solution re-scale the 3 images in Photoshop so that they fit on top of each other. Once I got them rescaled close enough I blended the three layers together erasing the portions that I did not want. The end result was a more in focus car. I've had this toy for about 10 years so I had to also do a lot of small touch ups as there were many small wear marks from having to put it in packing boxes from moving 5 or 6 times to different apartments and homes. Overall the yellow paint was good but anything chrome needed major work. I had fun with this project where it was a learning experience and good practice.


[img]/resized-image.ashx/__size/550x0/__key/CommunityServer-Discussions-Components-Files/15/1055.toy_5F00_camaro_5F00_product_5F00_photography .jpg[/img]

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Originally Posted by freelanceshots

To get a somewhat in focus image I had to shoot 3 images with the camera focused on the front, middle, and rear of the car. Easier said then done because when the 100mm IS lens changes focus the car's size would change in the frame so they no longer simply fit together. Solution re-scale the 3 images in Photoshop so that they on top of each other.

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Check out Helicon Focus (one feature is the automatic resizing of images during the focus stacking process).