PTFCo welcomes Aya

[Alliecat]

Aya joined the crew in June, at PUDDLE. She waited 3 months at Greys' house to meet us, so I guess she's used to waiting... Finallyfinally, she got her introductory photoshoot. I've got at least 5 batches of photos to sort for as many projects, but made a little progress tonight.
The first few pix are from PUDDLE & are part of the reason I wish it was longer. It would be lovely to have time for a little field trip/photoshoot. I managed about 15 minutes in the courtyard before supper.


Eloring the garden.



Wardrobe by Offgenemi.



"Oooh, pretty!"



Looking relaxed during a crazy-rushed shoot. She's a natural

This week we went out to check out my garden.





Pretending to be shy.



"Hmmm, what's this...?"



"Yummm! ...No, you can't have any; it's mine!"

It has become a PrettyTiny Film Company tradition that when you join, your first photoshoot is on the beach, you faceplant at least once in the gravel, and mum 'almost-loses' a prop.








I 'almost-lost' her blanket... I draped it over a rock, got distracted with the next photo, then was sure it was afloat somewhere when the tide came in. Spent too much time looking back at photos trying to figure out where I'd left it, so, where it might be in the water, couldn't find it... finally discovered it in the bottom of the bag; I put it there in a moment of absence...!!!



She was going to be standing up here. I caught her just at the beginning of a slow-motion lean that would have become the biggest stunt fall in PTFCo history (the rock is about 3 1/2 feet high and all gravel around it ).
Whew. Scarlett still holds this record.



She wanted to touch the tide... tricky for someone so small to stay dry
It had been thundering distantly for a while, and the light was going, here.



I think she liked the big outdoors

Thanks for looking.

[davidd]

Oh, she is so pretty!
I think it's the way you photograph your Pullips that makes them seem so pretty. Even when I purchase the same ones you have... which I may have been known to do... they just don't look the same. There's something about your photographic technique that brings them to a particularly lovely type of dolly life.

The first few photos are from a "rushed" photo-shoot? I am impressed. In fifteen minutes, I wouldn't even be able to get their hair looking halfway decent.

[fishy]

Wow, wonderful! congratulations. Great photographs.

[dargosmydaddy]

She's lovely! The beach pictures are especially awesome. I agree with davidd-- your dolls always look wonderful!

[neon_jellyfish]

Always happy to see more of your dolls and photos!

[Cornflower Blue]

Welcome, Aya!

It has become a PrettyTiny Film Company tradition that when you join, your first photoshoot is on the beach, you faceplant at least once in the gravel, and mum 'almost-loses' a prop.

I love your beach photos, but I can appreciate the difficulties.

[Alliecat]

Thanks, everyone

I think it's the way you photograph your Pullips that makes them seem so pretty. Even when I purchase the same ones you have... which I may have been known to do... they just don't look the same. There's something about your photographic technique that brings them to a particularly lovely type of dolly life.

Aw you are too kind. Everyone has a different style, and you've got some great outdoor and indoor-set shots of your Pinkys and your other dolls. I think we always look at others' photos & think they did some effect better.
I don't know if it helps, but the challenge for me, which I enjoy, is to make them seem alive, & not like awkwardly posed toys. I'll shoot a lot of pictures when little details aren't right -- like the position of hands or feet, do they look like the way real people pose? Or are they really looking right at the camera when they're supposed to be? Stuff like that is really different from the nature & landscape photography I grew up doing, so it's been a whole new world, & a lot of fun

[Miss Edith]

it's been a long time since I have seen an Aya. She is a natural born model, excellent addition to the family. The clothes are gorgeous, as always by Offgenemi I think my favourites are the close up of her face and the pretty flower & the one 2 shots after where she is in beautiful blue with a gorgeous headband -leaning on a pullip sized wall.

100% agree with everyone, you already know how much I enjoy & admire your photography

[Lejays17]

Love her pirate outfit. And the last shot of her embracing the big world out there.

[Kanrabat]

She's super cute and I just LOVE that setting. You live in a pretty nice place! One thing I'd love to do is maybe recreate the entire Alice in Wonderland story. With my Classical Alice and my Transformers. It would be "Alice in Transformland"

One thing though. What witchcraft do you use to make her pose and stand WITHOUT a stand?

[Lejays17]

She's super cute and I just LOVE that setting. You live in a pretty nice place! One thing I'd love to do is maybe recreate the entire Alice in Wonderland story. With my Classical Alice and my Transformers. It would be "Alice in Transformland"

One thing though. What witchcraft do you use to make her pose and stand WITHOUT a stand?

That sounds like a fascinating idea!

With the standing up without stands - 2 options. 1/ a lot of patience and 2/ a knitting needle up the pant-leg or dress back and stuck into the ground. If you take it from the right angle you don't need to edit to remove it

[Kanrabat]

She's super cute and I just LOVE that setting. You live in a pretty nice place! One thing I'd love to do is maybe recreate the entire Alice in Wonderland story. With my Classical Alice and my Transformers. It would be "Alice in Transformland"

One thing though. What witchcraft do you use to make her pose and stand WITHOUT a stand?

That sounds like a fascinating idea!

With the standing up without stands - 2 options. 1/ a lot of patience and 2/ a knitting needle up the pant-leg or dress back and stuck into the ground. If you take it from the right angle you don't need to edit to remove it

Oh, the knitting needle idea is pretty brilliant! I'll be using it for sure.
As for "Alice in Transformerland", when (or if) I do it, it will be in multiple parts over multiple weeks. Like a webcomic of sort. I'll have to take pictures mostly outside and it will be a lot of work to have perfect results. So even though I bought a plush bunny to go with my Classical Alice, I'll have to order STAMPY to play the role of the "always late" bunny. It's a project that will simmer on the back burner for a while...…

[Alliecat]

it's been a long time since I have seen an Aya. She is a natural born model, ... you already know how much I enjoy & admire your photography

Aw, thank you so much She really is pretty. I almost got her new eyechips at PUDDLE but those dark eyes were quite striking, & I decided that since I hadn't even been acquainted with her longer than 24 hours, maybe I'd better shoot some photos first & see how it went. I think I made the right decision, although the pretty blue natural chips were very tempting.

Love her pirate outfit. And the last shot of her embracing the big world out there.

Thank you

She's super cute and I just LOVE that setting. You live in a pretty nice place! ... What witchcraft do you use to make her pose and stand WITHOUT a stand?

Hehe, magic... What Lejays said, a knitting needle, or sometimes a stick. I need to dig out a few longer needles. Also, they don't work well in shifting beach gravel!
I learned the knitting needle thing from Dolly Treasures; even though I'm not a Blythe fan I love her photos because I can guess how much work she must put in to pose so many dolls. Also she seems to have no fear of shooting in the middle of busy public places. I admire that.
Making up stories with dolls is fun. If you're interested in short movies, check out PrettyTiny Film Company's YouTube.

[Cornflower Blue]

You can also use a chopstick, a fork, a skewer, basically anything you can stick in the ground to help prop up the doll. I got a bag of cheap wooden skewers that I can cut to fit the size of the doll I'm trying to pose. Although a lot of times I'm too lazy to bother and just hope for no face plants on the concrete.

[*NatTheCat*]

(Oh, Cornflower, just the phrase "hope for no face plants on concrete" itself scares me! I had that happen and am permanently scarred for it - in a good way. Now I know, it's never the camera that's tilting.)

On that note, Alliecat, glad you caught her! I agree with everyone else; your shots look so lovely in nature and Aya in particular seems so eressive. I'm not even a big fan of Aya and you make her look intriguing, interacting with the world around her.

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I don't know if it helps, but the challenge for me, which I enjoy, is to make them seem alive, & not like awkwardly posed toys. I'll shoot a lot of pictures when little details aren't right -- like the position of hands or feet, do they look like the way real people pose? Or are they really looking right at the camera when they're supposed to be?

Glad I'm not the only one who nitpicks posing. X3 But it helps make the photos.

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The knitting needle/etc hidden support is an awesome tip I've never tried. I usually balance a doll standing, prop the doll up against the background, or simply hold the doll and take pics. (Obviously that wouldn't work for impressive shots like these!)

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And oh my, Dolly Treasures really goes all out. Wow. Never heard of her before!