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the Wedding Day

3/3/2023

12 Comments

 
​We had determined that I'd need a stage 5' x 8', and it would need to be moveable so I could rotate it to take photos from all sides without having to move the dolls. So our son prepared the stage at his studio, by screwing sheets of plywood onto one of his 4' x 8' risers supported on two of his moveable panel containers...to create a 5' x 8' stage....
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So on the wedding day, I packed up all the dolls...thirty six in all....as well as the last few props.
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At the studio, I spread the fabric flooring over the stage, and set up all the furniture and props. It was a lot of work, and the concrete floor was hard on my feet and back, so I'd have to take frequent little breaks...
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I added the dolls, posing them as if they were just arriving at the cathedral. It would be our 'test' scene to adjust the background and lighting. ​​I found it a lot harder to reach into the middle and pose the dolls than I had expected...
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The Gothic Cathedral background was actually supposed to be a ruin, with broken windows, crumpled carpets, and dust everywhere. Jesse, their 3-D artist, had gone to the trouble to fix several of the broken windows. Then, after we set up, she removed all the elements out of the scene that I didn't want, like the pews, and the huge candle stands. Then, after everything was ready, it was time to do some testing...
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I took some photos to see if I could take the photos hand held in the low light. I could!! As long as I didn't use too big a depth of field.  Which meant it was going to be so much easier than using a tripod. So, taking the photos in the movie studio was basically shooting forced perspective against a digital background. 
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Then it was finally time for the wedding to begin. We could rotate the stage and the background so I could take photos from the different angles, with the other walls of the cathedral in the background.  

​When the procession began, we didn't like the big black door in the background...
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...so they added some doors and lighted the space beyond the doors. That looked much better!
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After positioning the dolls for a scene, we'd light the candles....
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There were six candle stands, each with four candles to light...
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I'd take photos of the scene from the various angles, and each time I wanted to take photos from a different angle...
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....the background scene would have to rotate to match, and they would have to adjust the lighting.
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The screen turned off between takes...
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The LED panel wall...
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Each time I was finished with a particular scene, we'd blow out all the candles so they wouldn't burn down too quickly. I had brought a box of extra candles, but I didn't want to run out. Plus it was better for continuity if the candles didn't suddenly get taller during the ceremony. Not that anyone else would likely notice. But I would.
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I was constantly adjusting all the guest's heads so they'd be looking at the couple at the front...
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Six hours and 150 photos later, and I shot the final scene. It was beyond impressive!  ​
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12 Comments
Clara
3/3/2023 09:18:09 am

It’s marvelous how much effort, work, time and love you‘re putting in these wonderful scenes and stories. Thank you for sharing this beautiful art. It never cease to make me smile and relax. I‘m coming every day for news, it’s rather addictive, in a good way😊. Thank you very much and greetings from Germany
Clara

Reply
Martha
3/4/2023 03:06:14 pm

I'm glad you are enjoying it.

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Nancy
3/3/2023 04:48:28 pm

Wow! This is so cool. Thank you for sharing all of these shots and the set up.

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Martha
3/4/2023 03:06:46 pm

You're welcome!

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Dorothy
3/3/2023 07:25:29 pm

Beyond impressive! I would say so too.

I am always amazed at how you conceptualize and then execute your scenes.

I love seeing you and Jan in the photos. Seeing you with your camera always makes me smile because I know that you are making the magic happen.

I have to go back now and "attend" the wedding. I am looking forward to that.

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Martha
3/4/2023 03:08:08 pm

Thanks! Enjoy the wedding! I think it's one of the most spectacular things I've ever done.

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Morgana
3/3/2023 08:28:24 pm

This is so impressive!!! Such an amazing set up, and I am in awe at the amount of trouble you went to in order to do the whole story! Such an amazing result though - it's all so beautiful!!!

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Martha
3/4/2023 03:09:15 pm

Thank you so much! It's going to be hard to live up to this caliber of work in the future.

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Donna
3/4/2023 09:59:09 am

The set-up is amazing! Everything is so lifelike and in scale, you would never know how small the dolls really are without you and Jan in the photos. The results truly are beyond impressive! Magnificent!!

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Martha
3/4/2023 03:10:45 pm

Thank you!

Our son did make the background quarter scale so it would be the right size for my dolls.

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designdreamer
3/8/2023 07:09:03 am

Beyond impressive indeed! Also an impressive amount of time, patience, effort and WORK! Not to mention all the same that went into the preparations! OMG, I sew, (but not as well, nor to the extent that you do - I doubt many people do) so I have an appreciation for what you've accomplished (and if I'm not mistaken, you've mentioned that you also have arthritis, which I do as well, so that just tells me how much this means to you) I have very little photography knowledge, so when you showed the photo without the digital cathedral background, it really put things into prospective! Amazing what you (and your son) accomplished with photos!

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Martha
3/8/2023 07:38:49 am

Thank you! it was a lot of work, but yielded impressive results.

Yes, I have major arthritis. There's the Neck Spondylosis, which causes constant pain in the neck and shoulders. There's also osteoarthritis almost everywhere else, including my feet. But the worst arthritis is the Spinal Stenosis which causes constant pain in the lower back and down my legs. And then there's fibromyalgia on top of all that.

Pain is no fun, but even worse is that I'm slowly going blind. I have macular degeneration and cataracts. So I'm driven to make as many of the doll costumes that I've always wanted to, before I no longer can.

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    Author

    Martha Boers is an award-winning Canadian doll maker and costumer specializing in fantasy and historical-style costumes.
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