First, I want to applaud your close-up photos of Anneka and her grandmother in the Love Has Fangs chapter, "4.8: "Gaudeamus Igitur". The clarity of the close-ups enhanced the story and drew this reader briefly into the intimate world of Anneka and her grandmother. The magnifying glass "trick" transcends trick status when it renders such detailed photos. I ought to send the author, k6yar, a second thank you message about how great his tip was. I added him as a link on StumbleIt instead.
An aside here, but your aged your grandmother figure is admirable. I would guess you used wax and paint to convey her chapped lips and weathered skin? Excellent job. Gives a genuine, aged look without making old, caricature.
But regarding the use of a magnifying glass and the macro setting on my digital camera, the Kodak EasyShare CX7300: I encountered the light/glare problem you mention in your comment. I used a dollar store magnifying glass with no specified enlargement size noted. Moved around and shifted the camera angle to find a "clear" shot without glare spots. After a few glaringly bad even to me ha, ha - ouch the pun - shots, I managed to get a few decent shots that I am including in this post.
I couldn't resist the clear plastic of the platform heels worn by Jakks Pacific's Valerie of Jose and the Pussycats.
This close-up photo of Valerie shows some of the glare problem on the left side, but I include it because the bulk of the photo shows clear.
Since I was taking Power Team photos as well, I included this one showing the incredible detail of one of the Power Team figures. I love the texture variation among the Power Team figures. Another photo I tried was to show the freckles of another Power Team figure. Only that one, I need to improve so that the freckles can be seen.
Final aside, the main site k6yard.com is down now, but the author's blog is active at Life is an Experience.
Thank you very much for your compliments about LHF. [Any ep where the characters are brooding about death seems particularly popular. :p ]
ReplyDeleteI've received a few comments about the aged characters of Mamie [Anneka's living sort-of grandmother] and Minerva [Anneka's dead grandmother, who appears in 4.8] Maybe I should discuss my technique in another entry.
I see you've been trying the magnifying glass experiment. It's very hard to take pictures through plastic windows anyway, so I admire your perseverance. The photo of Valerie seems to be the best. I don't know what you did, but it has an all-around sharper focus than previous pictures of yours. I can even see her beauty mark. The bright background helps the details to pop out.
When I have some more energy, I'll have to try with the magnifying glass some more.
All comments about LHF are more than deserved. Usually, I prefer funny or lighter episodes - like Will's fantasy tv show - but the photos and story drew me in this Anneka story.
ReplyDeleteAn entry about aging characters would be fascinating. I think the technique could also be used for stressed or ailing characters. (I'm thinking particularly about the chapped lips.) On your schedule, of course, and as/if it please you ;-D
For Valerie's photo, I used the highest magnification on my camera (3) as well as the magnifying glass. And it helps that she has such strong, high contrast coloring.
I'll check your blog for future stories and other entries. Thanks for your comments and compliments.
You're right...Valerie's strong coloring really makes her a good subject for the magnifying glass trick. I just tried using the lazy lens with Absinthe, who has white hair, white skin and a very delicate, lightly done color scheme. She is VERY HARD to photograph well, but the lazy lens results were pretty good. I think strong light also helps.
ReplyDeletehttp://blogofstench.livejournal.com/391842.html
Yes, dolls with fair or dark skintones are harder to photograph clearly without adjusting the lighting and/or enhancing the finished photo. My Cool Girl Motoko was difficult to photograph: her photos would come out as if they had been washed clear. She almost became "the ghost in the photograph."
ReplyDeleteYour Absinthe looks lovely. Such delicate coloring and such a demure look. Your photo captures her vivid translucence.
I read somewhere that we should use blue-tinted daylight bulbs when photographing dolls rather than the warm daylight bulbs. I have to look into that. Need to find that link, too.
D7ana, you were kind enough to ask if you could link to the review of DOLLED UP FOR MURDER by Deb Baker on my Meritorious Mysteries review blog. The answer is a resounding YES! I'm delighted.
ReplyDeleteCorrection to the comment about "blue-tinted light bulbs." I should have written "cool tone light bulbs." BIG difference ;-D
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