Behind the Scenes - 3
Around the House
Thought I should share some photos inside my house. This is where all the magic happens. There's just a small table beside my comfortable arm chair in our living room, with my sewing machine on the desk behind it in the corner. The rest of the room is just your standard living room. This is what it looks like when something is under construction...
I have labeled boxes of fabrics everywhere. These are in the half the front door coat closet. The most used ones are on the main floor, and there's just as many behind one of the dining room doors, then a whole room full in the basement.
I have floor to ceiling display cases in what used to be our living room. Most of the dolls in them are ones I made myself, and over the years the BJDs have slowly moved in, especially into the left side....
The cabinet on the right has just one shelf with Kaye Wiggs dolls, and all the rest are ones I made myself....
The opposite wall used to have a sofa. The room was our fancy living room, and was never used as such.
So we replaced the sofa with a desk for my computer work. All the dolls are ones I made over the years....
So we replaced the sofa with a desk for my computer work. All the dolls are ones I made over the years....
Adding a Christmas Tree
Resin Cafe was having a photo contest with the theme of 'Christmas all Year', and I wanted to do a scene at the beach. But it seemed too much work to lug everything to the beach, so I opted to do it in my son's backyard while they were away on holidays.
I brought along all the dolls, and props, and even a Christmas tree, set everything up, and took a photo....
I brought along all the dolls, and props, and even a Christmas tree, set everything up, and took a photo....
It was convenient that there were red and white flowers on the far side of the pool, but I didn't like the big steel fireplace back there.
I thought I would replace it with another Christmas tree later in photoshop - after all Santa would likely go overboard decorating for the holidays - so I planned ahead. I got Jan to pick up the tree, turn it so it wouldn't have all the decorations in the exact same place as the one in the photo, and then got him to hold it up so it was right over the fireplace, and I took some photos of him holding it. I needed the tree to be out of focus, like the far side of the pool in the photos, so I focussed on the umbrella on the pavement.
I thought I would replace it with another Christmas tree later in photoshop - after all Santa would likely go overboard decorating for the holidays - so I planned ahead. I got Jan to pick up the tree, turn it so it wouldn't have all the decorations in the exact same place as the one in the photo, and then got him to hold it up so it was right over the fireplace, and I took some photos of him holding it. I needed the tree to be out of focus, like the far side of the pool in the photos, so I focussed on the umbrella on the pavement.
Back at home I had to blur the tree even more, depending on the photo it needed to get cropped into...
Then I cloned the tree into the background....
Parts of the fuzzier tree were cloned into any other photos that needed it in the background as well...
Asa in the Garden
I had taken photos of Carins, set up on the patio table, but wanted a different angle for Asa. So we moved the picnic table off the patio and onto the lawn, where I set her up....
The sun was low behind the fence above the garden to the left, so I needed a white card to bounce light onto her face....
The photos were taken seated on the bench, so the camera would be at her eye level...
Olivia and Cookie's Birthday
Another set up on the patio table with the garden in behind. Since I take the photos in late afternoon when the patio is in the shade, I need a white card to help bounce light onto everyone on the left side....
I sit down on the bench to take the photos, so the camera is at the doll's eye level.
It had just rained, so I covered the bench with a towel
It had just rained, so I covered the bench with a towel
the Fairy Court
I had taken some fairy photos with them set up on the patio table, and wanted a different setting this time, so set everyone up on one of the patio steps. I was seated on a bench across the yard, using my telephoto lens so I wouldn't have to get down on the ground, which had recently been reseeded. I had to ask Jan to make any final adjustments in the doll's poses....
The photo....
Then I remembered I'd left something inside the house, and asked Jan to 'guard' the scene in case any nosey squirrels or birds happened to come by...
A Fairy Banquet
I wanted to do a fairy banquet scene, and felt the patio had been over-used as photo backgrounds lately, so had the table and benches moved onto the lawn, protected with sheets of wood, as it had been reseeded recently....
I always start with the actual setting, which included the pillar with railing, and several baskets of tiny flowers. There was a pail full of tiny leaves under the table. I had swept them up off the neighbour's driveway.
Jan was up in his office on the second floor, and took some photos of me setting up....
I had piled the dolls and props onto trays so there wouldn't be quite so many trips back and forth into the house. That's what all the extra benches are for. After setting everyone up, I sprinkled the tiny leaves all over the 'ground'....
One of the final group photos....taken seated on the bench with the camera st the doll's eye level...
Pumpkins in Fall
I took Benny's family out for some fall photos with some miniature pumpkins....
When it was time to clean up, Jan decided to pose the dolls in the back of the car, with Rex and Bianca's horses, who had also come along and had been photographed elsewhere....
Then Jan suggested we might try take a photo with the barn in the background. But there was nothing 'flat' we could use as a setting, and it would be too low to pose them on the ground, since the barn was on higher ground. So we tried doing it on the hood of the car. Jan would gather leaves, but the wind was blowing them away as fast as he was dumping them....
I did manage to get one or two half decent shots....
Kaye Wiggs Christmas
The dining room table set up for scenes with the Kaye Wiggs Minis....
...and one of the scenes shot there....
Baking Cookies
Scenes in my kitchen are set up on a box on the counter, so the doll's eyes are at the level they would be if they were real children....
Then the photo is taken with the camera on a tripod, using the timer.....
Just Standing Around
A group of dolls that don't exactly go together.....
Copyright © 2019 Martha Boers
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All Rights Reserved