January 2018 Featured Photographer

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Our Monthly Featured Photographer for January 2018 is Sofos

 

Burgundy velvet

The model

To my great joy Emma once again made a perfect model. Patient, beautiful and full of enthusiasm.

Emma moved in some 10 months ago and she has really made herself comfortable in that time. I swear that she has more clothes and shoes than I have and her stuff is now to be found everywhere surprise

Although, even with the piles of clothes she insisted on something special for the occasion so we ordered a beautiful burgundy velvet dress from Asos petite that fit her beautifully! Her wig is a human hair wig and she has lipstick and rouge applied. She also wears most of the stuff in her jewelry box. She might be a high maintenance girl but she’s totally worth it wink

Emma is 156 cm tall and originally came from Sanhui where she was known as Adeline.

The Equipment

I use a Nikon D3300 camera and most of the photos were taken with a fixed focal lens. The AF-S NIKKOR 50mm 1:1.8 G lens. I’m very happy with that lens and particular the bokeh created with f/1.8. Although some shots were made with a smaller aperture and also the kit zoom lens was used when she was on the floor as I couldn’t get enough distance between me and Emma.

In addition I also have a Manfrotto tripod and a flash system consisting of two YONGNUO YN-III wireless flashes mounted on stands and with white shoot through umbrellas. They are controlled from the camera using the YN-560 TX controller unit. I’m very happy with the flash system, especially this time of year when natural light is really scarce where I live!

The technique

I shoot all my photos using the manual mode in the camera. I find this is the only way to capture the image as I want it. I also use a seperate button on the camera for focusing and use the single point focus 99% of the time. This allows me to set the focus exactly where I want it. Then carefully adjust the camera to get the framing I want and then take the picture. This process is more fragile the wider aperture (smaller f-number) that you are using due to the limited depth of field.

To determine the exposure I always use the histogram feature in the preview mode to help me gauge if the exposure is correct. Usually I shoot in ISO100 or ISO200 to keep the noise to a minimum and instead add exposure time if needed. This only works well when mounted on a tripod as motion blur sets in instead.

Post-Processing

I exclusively shoot in raw format nowadays and then use Nikon's free view-NX tool to do some basic post processing on all photos. Like adjusting exposure, white balance/tint and adding some sharpness. Selected photos then goes into GIMP for more post processing. For this shoot I focused on playing with colored areas in an otherwise black and white photo. I find the result quite intriguing.

Sofos

 

 

 

Note from the Editor: Each month we will feature a different photographer's work. We invite doll owners and manufacturers alike to participate in this new monthly feature. Photo shoots must meet a minimum quality level. If you do not meet that level we are happy to work with you, critique your photos and help you to raise the bar on your photography. Good photo shoots can be had with low cost digital cameras. It is all in the technique.

Submit your inquiries and sample entry photos to featuredphotographer@coverdoll.com

Comments

yes Sofos! I can relate to the piles of clothes. I love Emma and her photos here look top notch! 

 

Wonderful photography Mr. Sofos. I knew you could rock this ... and you did!

Thanks again 

Much appreciated :D

 

Thanks for pushing me over the edge yes

I was a bit reluctant at first but really happy with the outcome :D

What a lovely serie this is, Sofos. There is so much love and tenderness to be seen in Emma and the dress is absolutely awesome! You bpth must have had a great time making these photos! 

Well done! laughyes

 

Stellai

Sofos, your photos are great!

Ahh, Emma represents the gentleman's dream; so completely, enchantingly feminine.

Sanhui's "Adeline" head goes a long way in that, with such a lovely, subtle expression sculpted right in. Sofos, I don't recall if Emma's eyes are movable, but if they are (or could be) it would surely add a great new detail to explore in the future.