EXCLU DESIGN COLLECTIVE
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ISSUE #5 EXCLU DESIGN COLLECTIVE
THE EXCLU CONTENT TEAM
EDITOR
Jack Sturman
JASON YANG @workmoreorless
TREVOR WILLIAMS @onesix_shooter
SPENCER WITT @swittpics
DALE SCHENCK @darth_shank
SHAHZAD BHIWANDIWALA
@sbphotographs1
PATRICK PCHALEK @wonderbunk
ISAIAH TAKAHASHI @blksrs
THAM YING KEET @yingkeet0675
MATT HEYWOOD @heywoodpop
STAN RUSSELL @vimlossus
MARK WALKER @markwalkerphoto
The material seen here-in may not be replicated or reproduced without the express permission of Exclu Media Ltd. Any instances of the above will be treated seriously. Exclu Media Ltd is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or retailers seen here-in.
EXCLU STUDIO - jack@exclucollective.com
INSTAGRAM - @Exclucollective
SITE - Exclucollective.com
SPENCER WITT
501ST CLONE TROOPER EGGATTACK
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HOTKENOBI @ H OT. K E N O B I
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“...IMPORTANCE IS ATTACHED TO IDEAS OVER USING CG EDITING AND OTHER TECHNIQUES...” -HOT.KENOBI 7
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I go by the name HotKenobi and I’m active as a photographer within Osaka, Japan.
It was a such a pleasure to see Stan lee and Robert Downey Jr. on Facebook noticing it.
I started taking pictures around two and a half years ago using single lens reflex and macro lens - Mainly I shoot 1/12, 1/6 action figure of Marvel and DC characters which I am shooting in a motif.
In Japan, I believe it is easier to shoot figures than in other countries. When I look at the work over on Instagram its clear that many photographers are working from abroad. You can find some, but there are few Japanese toy photographers about. I try to take as many pictures as possible and upload them and get that seen.
Importance is attached to ideas over using CG processing and other techniques as you can enjoy it without knowing the figures and characters. I am always aiming to make such images. I recently shared an image where Spider-Man and Hulk crushed empty cans and it was shared all over the world, and the pictures I took were touched by many people .
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From now on my biggest goal is learning from the photos of other toy photographers in the community while also experimenting by taking pictures of other various things outside of toys. Thank you for your support.
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ISAAC RENTERIA @ISAAC.RENTERIA
We’re gifted with another comprehensive shoot from our very first cover photographer Isaac Renteria. His work seemingly knows no creative bounds as he is able to further the artistic definition of toy photography with every subsequent shoot. In his latest shoot, he tackles a varied range of figures and miniatures from across the spectrum to explore a surreal theme that runs throughout this intriguing series.
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I started doing photography with a semi professional camera; the Nikon D5100. My brother sold it to me 2 or 3 days after he bought it because he wanted a “better” camera (even he didn’t know anything about photography). I was very satisfied with the purchase and my start was trying to photograph each thing I found interesting, you know; the typical subjects we found in our house ; leaves, flowers, sunsets, pets, and toys of course! Then, the need of learning more about photography made me look for information on the internet and guess what; I found that kind of dis-information that in my opinion, every amateur photographer should avoid.
I remember I found a video where a guy ridiculed the quality of the lenses that came with the cameras as a “present”, he said he had a lot and used them only as a paperweight. As soon as I heard him, I was considering the idea of selling it... and I did. My knowledge of photography was almost none, didn’t know anything about the shutter speed, aperture or ISO and a lot less; about composition, the only thing that I was sure about was that my photography equipment wasn’t good enough. I sold my Nikkor 18-55mm and bought the 35mm and then the 40mm micro ; I even got these better quality lenses; my photos were as bad as the ones I did with the 18-55.
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And every time I was on the internet I found new gear, flashes, umbrellas, strobist, diffusers, and new cameras... “better” than mine of course.Camera brands don’t help a lot as well, always selling you the newest cameras, showing advertisements full of photos in which the implicit promise of becoming a great photographer only by the act buying it. I could gradually buy new gear but the feeling of not having the best was always there, a few people told me the advice of “having expensive gear does not make you a good photographer” but I always thought they said that because they didn’t care about photography or maybe because they were stingy, so I always underestimated that advice. For two years (or maybe a bit more), I kept buying all the gear I could, also I learned about photography basics but I’m sure I could have learned much more if I would stop worrying about equipment. Usually, in friend talks, I’ve realized that that lesson is one of the hardest to learn and one in which you have to get by yourself. As Cartier-Bresson said; photos are made with the eyes, heart, and head. Have you thought about the equipment the old masters had? like Bresson, Avedon, Man Ray. Even our smartphones have better technology then why can’t we create images as original as theirs? do we need more or more expensive gear? or do we need a more trained eye and to put our hearts and head in each photo?
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The lack of equipment is not always an unfortunate situation, we could turn that “problem” to an opportunity to challenge our creativeness and as I have experienced, that creativeness could lead your work to a new direction or add a peculiar feature to your photography style, let me tell you a short anecdote. I had had in mind the concept of a new underwater photo series, among other things I needed 2 strip softboxes in order to get the correct lighting, the problem was that I didn’t have strip lights and I wasn’t prepared to buy them so I thought i could build mine. I took two old wood cases, white fabric, pipes, nuts and built them. ( All process is in my FB if you want to check it out) I did the photo session and the result wasn’t what I expected, it was way better! Why? I’m not a good designer, the stripboxes could be more sophisticated and better built so what made the result attractive? It was attractive because it was an unusual and very different lighting, it couldn’t be created by a normal stripbox so it added a peculiar trait to the photos.
“IT IS AN ILLUSION THAT PHOTOS ARE MADE WITH THE CAMERA...THEY ARE MADE WITH THE EYE, HEART AND HEAD.” -HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON Also I could tell you about a friend in Instagram; His name is Aaron Kuan Leng (@aaronkuanleng), He has a series where he uses light bulbs, not softboxes no fancy light or gear...just his Playmobil figures and bulbs and the result is absolutely brilliant. He could use a softbox, strobist etc but the result wouldn’t be as impressive and beautiful as it is using the less equipment. I hope you don’t misunderstand me, good and expensive gear sometimes is important but it will never replace a good eye, heart, and head. For this series of photos, I wanted to challenge myself and return to my more basic equipment, I took out my old Nikon d5100, the 40mm Nikkor, 3 pieces of dirty pane glasses, 2 led lights, very cheap toys, candles, incense, and water spray gun. Once again I would like to thank Exclu for the invite to participate in Issue 5, I’m so honored to be part of it! I hope you all enjoy this surreal and dreamlike series!
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HIROMICHI KATO @K10HMY
Stumbling blindly onto the work of Hiromichi Kato proved to be a real visual feast as theres seemingly nothing holding him back currently with his photography. He works across a whole range of licenses and figure line’s from Hasbro’s Marvel Legends to the Diamond Select Toy’s offerings which he combines with his mastery of lighting, to really show off the detail in his subjects.
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I originally liked taking pictures of landscapes with a single-lens reflex camera as a hobby. However, I quit somewhere along the line. One day last year, I saw pictures of figures that looked just like the real thing, so I was very much inspired. I strongly felt that I also wanted to take such pictures. I was satisfied that I could buy some figures and take the pictures, at that time I was not aiming for disclosure. I found many toy photos and toy photographers on Instagram, so I decided to publish my photos there. After that, I was influenced by the wonderful photographs of the many different photographers in various countries and it really influenced my style.
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I was almost ignorant about the figures and characters that I bought for Toy Photography. I started by re-watching the movies again and I quickly became a fan of Marvel and DC. I mainly buy 1/12 scale figures of Marvel and DC characters recently. Although 1/12 scale figures are inferior to the realism of detail compared to
1/6 scale I think that it can made more realistic by good use of lighting, composition and retouching. It depends on the quality of the figure, but I will challenge how far it can be realistic even with bad quality figures and I enjoy that challenge.
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I shoot almost always indoors because indoor shooting allows freedom without being affected by the weather and to adjust the lighting as you want. However, there are many toy photographers who are good at lighting, and every time I look at their work, I am keenly aware of my inexperience. Also, for the composition, I will explore the composition that is most relevant for that figure. I like shooting from low angles because even if it is an unclear figure, it is reflected smartly. However, since the same composition is not interesting, I would like to challenge photographing them from various angles in the future. There are many things to learn from other toy photographers such as lighting and composition, backgrounds, accessories and effects. I think that it is important to see more photos from other photographers - and I will learn from it. Challenging outdoor shooting, taking advantage of shutter speed, enriching backgrounds and accessories will increase the variations of my pictures as well. I am happy to interact with Japanese toy photographers as well as toys photographers from various countries and I am grateful to all of you. 24
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“...I STRONGLY FELT THAT I ALSO WANTED TO TAKE SUCH PICTURES...”
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MY SHOOTING EQUIPMENT I am using a Canon EOS 5D Mark 2. The lens mainly uses Tamron SP AF 90 mm F / 2.8 MACRO. My Lighting equipment use’s 3 LED lights. I enclose the top & both sides of the figure with tracing paper instead of a diffuser. Then, light one LED lighting from the upper rear toward the back of the figure. Also arrange one light on each side. In addition, white reflector board or black reflector board may be placed on the front and on both sides of the figure.
Because figures are not large in size, I think that inexpensive ones and substitutes are enough for lighting equipment other than the camera and lenses, diffusers and reflector board. As the camera uses a tripod, ISO sensitivity is always 100. The F value is based on 8.0, although it depends on the case. Depending on circumstances, in some cases, I change the F value and test the results. The shutter speed is changed each time in order to adjust the exposure.
After taking a picture, I proceed to adjust the brightness, contrast, colour temperature etc. using Adobe Photoshop. Depending on circumstances, I may apply smoke, dust etc. with Photoshop brushes or Ill add in some background images. I often use the dark contrast filter in Color Efex Pro of the Google Nik Collection of Photoshop plugins however, caution is needed to use the filter too much. (The Google Nik Collection is distributed free on the Internet.)
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ATMOSPHERE AEROSOL EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH JOE ATKINS AND A BEHIND THE SCENES WITH JASON YANG
@ATMOSPHEREAEROSOL IMAGES BY @WORKMOREORLESS
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BEHIND THE SCENES JA S O N YANG ’S ATMOSPH ERE AEROS OL S HOOT
Recently I’ve come across a handful of photographers who have been using Atmosphere Aerosol in their shoots - and the results they’ve achieved are spectacular. Atmosphere Aerosol, which is in essence “fog-in-a-can”, creates a lingering atmospheric haze that enhances the available light within a space. Thanks to Exclu and our friends at Atmosphere Aerosol, I was able to give it a try for myself. As much as I love shooting outside, most of the toy photography I do is indoor and before I used Atmosphere Aerosol, I assumed I would be able to get similar results that many others have achieved outdoors. Although I was pleased with my final shots, things didn’t go exactly as planned. One of the first large format collectible toys I purchased was Mondo’s Deluxe Iron Giant. Measuring in at an incredible 16” tall with over 30 points of articulation, it certainly is an impressive figure and one that I am proud to own. Iron Giant was the perfect subject for this shoot!
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PRE-SHOOT TABLE TOP SET-UP
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To start, I invested a bit more time than I typically do by building a traditional, physical diorama. To extend the physical diorama, I also utilized my digirama technique by projecting a digital image that acted as my background. Using this wide format ensured I could fit the figure in the scene while also allowing the Atmosphere Aerosol plenty of space to work its magic.
“THE AA ADDED MORE OF A SUBTLE DEPTH AND DENSITY THROUGHOUT THE SCENE.”
After I was happy with the composition, posing, and lighting, I sprayed the scene and gave it a minute to settle. I assumed I would immediately see sharp rays of light spill through my frame, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, the Atmosphere Aerosol added more of a subtle depth and density throughout the scene. Admittedly, I was a bit disappointed at first. However, after a bit of trial and error, I began to appreciate the subtlety that the spray created. During my experimentation, I took a handful of photos to see the general affect that Atmosphere Aerosol had in the shots. As you can see from the results, I used the same framing and relative lighting. The first shot contains no spray, while the following shots show varying degrees of spray density. I was pleased to see how the fog enhanced the overall glow from Iron Giant’s eyes while giving the scene a rather eerie look. With the single source backlight, you can even make out those light rays I was so anxious to see! 33
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THE VERDICT At the end of the day, I am extremely happy with how this toy photo series turned out. In fact I’d say this was probably one of my favorites to date; Atmosphere Aerosol provided that extra element that really transformed the entire photo series. I highly recommend trying it out for yourself! I am definitely a fan and am anxious to experiment with it in my future shoots. 34
FINAL SHOOT OUTCOME 35
E We check in with Atmosphere Aerosol’s JOE ATKINS to hear his story on how the Toy Community changed his brand’s direction. Images by Isaiah Takahashi / @blksrs
Hey! Firstly, a huge thank you for chatting with us! Did you have any inclination that your product would be so well received by the Toy Community and thus making this conversation possible? I most certainly did not. To be honest I was unaware of the toy photography market and how thriving it is. My photography life has been spent working in television as a director of Photography and moonlighting as a wedding photographer. We’ d love to know a little more of the background of AA and how you got it off the ground in the first place? Atmosphere Aerosol was born from solving a problem. We needed a portable fog machine to take to weddings that we could setup quickly. I went so far as to take a battery pack and carry a fog machine with me to some shoots. 36
Unfortunately, it took the fog machine too long to heat up and it was very heavy. We were at another shoot and saw a man mowing the lawn, except there was no grass. He was mowing the dirt and creating a huge dust storm. It was making the most awesome light rays through the trees. I said, “We have to bottle this up and bring it with us everywhere!” I started looking at aerosols and the rest was history. Atmosphere is the hollywood name for fog. “Add a little Atmosphere”, I thought that was the perfect name. Has the interest from the Toy Community altered your brand direction at all – and if so has it surprised you as you’ve really embraced the interest that has been shown? Yes it has. The toy community is a perfect fit for our product. A little Atmosphere goes along way with small sets. We had no intention in the beginning to market to toy photographers, however now, we wouldn’t do anything without considering how it might impact the toy guys/gals.
“I SAID - WE HAVE TO BOTTLE THIS UP AND BRING IT WITH US EVERYWHERE! I STARTED LOOKING AT AEROSOLS AND THE REST WAS HISTORY!” - JOE ATKINS
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We see on your feeds that Wedding photography is a large area where your product sees a lot of use but would you say that the Toy Community is at all rivalling this in terms of how much attention you receive on your social media feeds? I would say the toy community is more than rivaling it. It could take over if we let it, haha. We have to mix in a few photos of real people along with all the action figures. What was your first experience where you saw someone in the toy space perhaps tag you in a shot
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where AA had been used – did this open your eyes to a new creative space or was it something you already knew existed? I know exactly where it was. It was on Instagram @blksrs (our very own Isaiah Takahashi!) had posted a shot of Kylo Ren and tagged us. It looked so real, I thought it was from the movie! What tips would you give to anyone reading this who may be interested in picking up a can and giving it a whirl with their figures? Try to control your environment. Especially the wind. Find a location that is not too windy.
Shoot indoors if you need to, turn off the AC, close the windows, etc. To get the smoke to show up the best light it from behind. To create light rays, add obstacles between the haze to cut the light into streaks. Our man Jason shows off an impressive looking indoor shoot utilizing a subtle but assured dose of AA – has it surprised you to see all these behind the scenes images that show just how much work goes into often a handful of Toy shots? Some of the sets are impressive. The use of light is what really impresses me.
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I consider myself a light connoisseur and the toy community does not disappoint. Light rays and explosions with smoke and dirt flying. What big kid doesn’t love that! What does the future hold for AA for the rest of the year and beyond? We have quite a few “how to” videos in the cue to release. We are also looking at a new can that will be easier to use with only one person. We are excited about that. We are continuing to look for partners and retailers in new countries. The Philippines being at the top of the list. We’d like to end by asking, if there’s one thing that the Toy Community has taught you about your product that you hadn’t considered before what would that be? I think it would be passion. There is such a passion for not only the photography but the figures themselves. How well they are made, the size, shape, and how accurate they are.
NOW FOR THE TRULY IMPORTANT QUESTIONS! Harley Quin or Wonder Woman?
Wonder Woman. Black Panther or Iron Man?
Iron Man Thundercats or He-Man?
Thundercats. Raphael of Donatello?
Raphael is my fave TMNT. I had many action figures growing up, He-Man, TMNT, Thundercats, Transformers, Wheeled Warriors but my all time fav is sitting here beside me at my desk. Voltron. If anyone wants featured on our social media, create a Voltron image with Atmosphere Aerosol and I guarantee it gets shared, haha. A huge thank you for taking the time to share your story and thoughts with us! Cheers guys!
The Community keeps us reminded, “Wow, they really love some Atmosphere Aerosol” and that keeps me fired up!
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ERIC HILL @HEATFOUR
Eric Hill is one of these photographers who just has such a distinct tone to his work. In his case it’s the maturity and confidence of each of his shots that allows him to hold onto this identiy. Whether it be The Amazing Spiderman or ThreeA, Eric is able to put his own spin on his subjects both great and small without so much as breaking a sweat. A constantly evolving artist through and through, his feed never disappoints for variety.
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Hey everyone its Eric here, otherwise known as your friendly neighborhood Heatfour. I wasn’t always a toy photographer, I did however love toys from my first TMNT, to my current hot-toys and have always been a collector. I have always had quite a hyper mind and high imagination so I think that helps in the fictional world of toy photography where we are trying to make the figures come to life, or give a realistic presence in the photos. My Instagram account actually started off with pictures of my best adventure buddy Artex a black lab mix,she stole the spotlight until I eventually stumbled across @sgt.bananas and @az_x_famouz, and the photos blew me away. AZ had these crazy gollum shots and Bananas had this death to
supermario featuring the ninja turtles, and I knew I had to get in with this amazing community. The over-all whole of toy photographers in general is amazing. Everyone is super cool and respectful and makes it a-lot easier when your starting out, especially when the super talents will give you some advice. I have definitely met some super cool people on here. I found it awesome that I talk to them through private message and on Facebook. One dude I do a-lot of talking with is someone most of you are familiar with- @shakem78 -that man is super funny and his great personality and live feeds make him someone to keep an eye out for. Its dudes like him that keep the community interesting.
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“MY CREWS MOTO WAS KNOWLEDGE THROUGH ART AND UNTIL THIS DAY IM STILL LEARNING ON VARIOUS ART PLATFORMS”.
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E In the toy world there are lots of people that can capture the magic with pretty raw photos and low effects, thats something that slips away from my talents. I always try and position the photo and edit the image to bring the picture to life as much as possible. To be honest I probably enjoy the editing part more. Playing with tones and filters and light effects its always something that I have enjoyed a lot. As a prior graffiti artist I think thats where the editing part of me comes from, just trying to make things look as cool as I can.
My crews moto was “Knowledge Through Art” and until this day Im still learning on various art platforms. When I first started toy photography it was mostly TMNT and super heroes figures but I slowly started changing over to more Acid rain figures shots and ThreeA shots. Currently I am back to Marvel and super-hero themed shots especially my favorite web-head Spiderman. 48
I used to do shots based on what I thought the community would like to see me do, but I’ve learned that you can pretty much shoot whatever figure you want as long as its done well and is pleasing to the eye. I am very honored to be part of such a cool and friendly community and I really couldn’t imagine not being a part of it. On the daily the amazing amount of toy photos posted blows me away, and the work
that Exclu puts in for us is something we should all be great-full for. Its always been a dream of mine to see my photos in magazine so I just wanted to give a huge shout out to The Exclu Collective for letting me be a part of this and fulfilling a dream. To the whole toy family out there, thanks and the support is always appreciated. Sincerely, Eric aka Heatfour
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CHRIS LYNCH @CHEZPICS66
A popular photographer that we’ve wanted to work with at Exclu for a while now after seeing a steady flow of amazing content on his Instagram feed. It is, of-course, Chris Lynch who also had the backing of several of our team members eager to see more of his work. Chris has a great knack for capturing and utilising locational lighting as his feature here proves beyond any doubt.
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Hi, I’m Chris “Checkers” Lynch, AKA “Chez”, AKA “chezpics66”. 66 was my rider number at one of the bike messenger companies I worked at in Boston back in its heydey, it just happens to coincide nicely with “Order 66”! I live in Boston MA with my wife and daughter. We are lucky enough to spend a lot of time on Cape Cod where I feel I do my best photography work. All my shots featured here have been taken over the Summer at various spots around The Cape. Its a truly inspiring place to do photography, of any kind! A few years back at the large kettle pond where we spend most of our time while on The Cape, the animals, insects and plants really sparked me into taking pictures of them all and cataloguing them. At first daily, then yearly. (Its very interesting coming there every year and seeing what creatures are booming each year.) I got really into doing macro photography of the insects that live around the pond, damselflies and dragonflies especially. So that’s a bit about how I started getting into photography and outdoor photography in particular, now onto the toy thing... When my daughter got to be about one I started “setting up” some of her toys each night so she’d wake up to some sort of set up in the living room each morning. At first it was stuffed animals and whatnot, then it became Playmobil and Star Wars action figures.
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“WHAT I FOUND AT FIRST WAS REALLY COOL AND A LOT OF FUN, THEN I FOUND THINGS THAT BLEW MY MIND!” I’d set up elaborate scenes using the Playmobil playsets as “Dagobah” and setting the action figures up staged within. Or I’d set up giant battle scenes between the Jedi and the Sith, again using Playmobil sets as a backdrop.
I started searching hashtags more, seeing what else was out there. What I found at first was really cool and a lot of fun, then I found things that blew my mind. I could not believe what some people were doing with their shots of action figures. The action. The realism. It really Sometimes I’d do something more silly and have spurred me on. (@sgtbananas @mr_gizmo , Star Wars heroes and villains sitting and playing @swittpics and @x_captain_kaos_x - I’m at a playground together. Needless to say she looking at you dudes!) Up until that point I’d loved it. (And she’s also always been very into mostly taken pictures just in our home. setting up her toys herself and making scenes/ dioramas from them. She comes up with quite a But now I was all about throwing a bunch in a few ideas for shots I’ve taken.) bag and heading to the beach, or the woods. Or worst case our yard. Sometimes I venture out Somewhere along the line I started taking with set ideas in my mind and sometimes I just pictures of the set ups I was doing at night or go on a hike and start setting up and shooting. of the set ups we’d do together while playing I’d say my work is about 50/50 shots of things during the day.I started to post them on my I had planned and just ones that happened personal Instagram page and then also on the through osmosis out in the field. All this was chezpics66 page I created. (If you go way back in going on around the launch of The Force my feed and look you can see a lot of examples Awakens toy line and the build up to the from this time.) Eventually I started to do set ups release of that movie. just for me and taking pics of them and posting them as well.
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I found it very exciting getting all the new figures and imagining what scenes we might see play out in the forthcoming movie. I loved seeing everyone else’s work along this same line. (The #Hasbrotoypic competition was another great happening.) And we went through it again with Rogue One last year and we are about to do it again with The Last Jedi. It really seems to spark the community as a whole when these new movies come out, be it Star Wars or a Super Hero movie. We all get the new toys and just start going to town! Its a great thing to see for sure! I would like to take a second to explain why I only, for the most part, take pictures of Star Wars toys. I kind of missed the boat during “The Golden Age” of Star Wars collecting about ten years ago, and I’m making up for lost time. There’s just so many figures/ playsets/vehicles out there to try to collect and track down. And there’s so many backstories that were created for these characters wether its from the old EU or the new canon.
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I just feel like I have so many ideas in my head for shots I want to do that I don’t have time to shoot anything else. I’m still carrying around ideas from over a year ago that I haven’t done yet. Hell I even have ideas for shots with figures I don’t even own! (Yet.) And now with a new SW movie every year and the toys that go with it...well, you get the idea. I recently got a chance to meet up in person with fellow toy photographers @shakem78 and @mandalorian40 and have our first #ToyPhotography_NewEngland meet up shoot. It was amazing getting to spend a day with other people who are so into this hobby. We totally fed off each other and had tips/tricks to offer each other. Looking forward to more meetings in the future! I still have more pics to post from that day! If you ever have a chance to meet up with fellow toy photographers in person, DO IT! Thank you to everyone at Exclu Design Collective for the opportunity to be a part of this issue. I think its an amazing thing they’ve created and I hope it continues to grow!
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TREVOR WILLIAMS @ONESIX_SHOOTER
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EXCLU DESIGN COLLECTIVE - ISSUE 5
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Well, I can’t believe it’s approaching a year since I was featured in Issue #2 of Exclu! Very exciting to see how its grown and a big congratulations to Jack and the team for putting together a beautiful looking vehicle for showcasing this growing art of toy/action figure photography. Speaking of which, I am happy to now be a part of that team! Working on the Exclu review team and collaborating with a the great group of people - all of whom I have known and respected almost since I started this fringe hobby of mine has been an absolute joy. As for my photography, I’ve begun to venture beyond my beloved namesake one-sixth figures and started doing more with Lego, Tamashii Nations Samurai, and my much-neglected 1/12th collection. Lego, especially, has become a bit of an obsession. It’s a lighting challenge and well as a challenge of one’s patience - those little pieces in a tight set could make the Dalai Lama curse and flip the table.
Meanwhile, the 1/6th collection continues to grow and space for them - and their boxes continues to shrink. 2017 has also been my year of Star Wars so far. After having attended Celebration (Highlights; meeting Mark Hamill, seeing John Williams perform live, and meeting some of my IG photography friends), this years May the 4th saw my work featured on CNN’s website which may likely not be topped by any May 4th to come. As for what’s ahead, I’m looking forward to collaborating/working for some toy companies (more to come on that - stay tuned!). I’m also working on a gallery show featuring my own work and the work of other local toy photographers in the Long Island, NY area. Beyond that, I’m always looking to upgrade equipment, learn more lighting techniques, push my photographic boundaries, and take this hobby as far as I can take it.
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ANTHONY GOSSETT @FUNKOFUNK
A few months back we linked up with Anthony Gossett for a behind the scenes article on our site where he shared a look into his creative process with a TMNT themed shoot. In short, we were really impressed with the cohesiveness of his work - everything just seems to fall into place as he matches his characters so well to his locale. His understanding of situational and tonal lighting is just one of the ways that he achieves this so here he is, back with Exclu, in Issue 5.
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E Hello everyone! I’m Anthony from Northern California and new to the Toy Photography Community. I would describe this new hobby as a journey or adventure. I’m always venturing outside, chasing for that photo I want to accomplish. I try to exploit the environment and bring my ideas to life. I’m still experimenting to find my own style. At the moment, I’m fascinated with lighting over the other aspects of photography. I enjoy developing the light and exposing the textures and shadows. The pictures in this article have light as the foundation or the motive for inspiration. I stumble and fall in my attempts but I try to learn and improve. As a kid, I never had the income to own very many toys and escaped reality through movies or Television. Fast forward 20+ years and I now have the means to buy my kids and myself some toys! I typically collect and shoot Funko PoP’s. I’ve been collecting Funko’s for about 3 years and recently diversified my collection with other figures. I guess you can grow old but should never grow up. Enough about me! I feel the art is more important and the story behind it. Again, I focused on light and tone to re-create a movie scene or tell a story with emotion. I wanted to pack the pixels with as much drama as I could.
THE LEADER When camping in the Mountains, I discovered some abandon shacks. I noticed a room with highlights coming through the door and window. I could visualize Leonardo standing at the doorway looking out and watching his brothers sparring. To add to the drama, I sprayed Atmosphereaerosol in the background to bring out the light rays. 64
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THE SHOOT MY TURN Around sunset, I hiked around until I found a meadow that matched the Farmhouse Scene. I observed an enormous glow coming through the meadow. I placed the sun to Leonardo’s back and thus creating a silhouette. Pointing the lens toward the glow, I got lucky and captured a haze without overexposing Leonardo. I feel the face sells this picture and you can Image Leo saying “my turn”, with a little smirk on his face.
MEDITATION Again, while hiking, I noticed a tree and a log that scaled well with Leonardo. Similar to the movie, I visualized Leo sitting and meditating in a meadow against a tree. It took a few shots to get the angle and pose the way I wanted. I staged Leonardo as if he was breathing in with his eyes closed and head tilted back.
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FORGIVENESS This was a shot I’ve been wanting to do for a while. Anyone familiar with the TMNT movie, know the rift between Leo and Raphael. I wanted to try something different and show them coming together as brothers. I tried to pose them in a specific way, to appear as if Leonardo is asking for forgiveness and Raphael is accepting it. I wanted the body language to feel sincere and brotherly. Each time I see this picture, it takes me back to the Bathroom Scene from the movie.
X Toward the end of the evening, I noticed a strange glow coming through the trees. The sun already dipped behind the mountain but still casted a strange glow through the trees. The glow was too soft to bring out any colors, so I figured this would make a good Black and White photo. With a long exposure time, the light softens around the edges. The added highlights did a great job exposing the textures in Leonardo’s shell and bandanna. 67
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DESPAIR There are many words to describe the look on Smeagol’s face and “despair” would be at the top. Using a dark blue tone, I was able to mirror that emotion. I exaggerate the shadows to bring as much realism to the picture as I could.
REDEMPTION I would say this picture is an alternate ending for Smaegol. Instead of falling in fire and dying with his obsession. I wanted to create the opposite using water and dark aqua tones. I sought to show him embracing the rain and breaking down from its release. Believe it or not, the inspiration for this shot came from the Tears in Rain scene from Bladerunner.
HURT Kicking around the garden, I noticed a bush I’ve been overlooking all day. I noticed a sliver of light revealing these warped branches spiraling up. Instantly, I imagined Smeagol looking over the branches and staring out into the sunset. I tried to pose Smaegol in a way to show anguish and looking to the sunset for relief.
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WE WANTS IT Of course there is a duality to Smaegol and he comes out as Gollum. I attempted to create the creepy, lurking shot and have him bursting out the page. I try not to have the figures look at the camera, but I needed the viewer to feel uncomfortable.
Well, that is all about me and my photos for this article. Thank you for reading and viewing my work. I would like to thank the Toy Community for being incredibly accepting. I’m new to the community but never felt unwelcomed.
JUICY SWEET I would say this shot differs from the others and tells a story instead of emotion. I wanted to recreate Gollum trying to catch a juicy sweet fish from the pond. This was the hardest shot to achieve for the article. The light was difficult to manage, I struggled with the framing and he fell in the water a few times. I persisted through and captured what I visualized in my mind.
Last but not least, thank you Jack for the opportunity to share my work and for being part of Issue 5. This has been a humbling experience.
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SIDESHOW COLLECTIBLES
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH CASSIE FUERTEZ AND JEANNETTE VILLARREAL OF THE SIDESHOW CREATIVE TEAM
@SIDESHOWCOLLECTIBLES
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Hi Jeannette! Hi Cassie! A huge thank you for taking the time to talk to us today! JEANNETTE - Hi! CASSIE - Thanks for inviting us! Let’s dive right in as we’d love to hear your stories about how you found yourself working at Sideshow Collectibles. JEANNETTE - It was back in 2009. I was in my last year of college and photo-freelancing like a mad-woman in order to support myself. One of those freelance gigs was as an assistant to a wedding photographer, and it just so happened to be the wedding of an old friend who worked at Sideshow. Back then, the Sideshow photo department only consisted of one photographer, but business was booming and they needed further support. That friend ended up calling me shortly 72
“I DROPPED EVERYTHING I WAS DOING ... PUT TOGETHER MY BEST POSSIBLE PORTFOLIO, AND WENT IN FOR AN INTERVIEW ... LUCKILY I LANDED THE JOB!” - JEANNETTE
thereafter and asked if I’d like to interview for a Photo Assistant position. I dropped everything I was doing, put off some homework, put together my best possible portfolio, and went in for an interview. Serendipity was on my side, because luckily I landed the job! CASSIE - As far as my story goes…It was all about timing and networking. My background is in product photography and retouching (mainly for apparel and sunglasses). I met Sideshow’s Art Director David Igo at Comic Con almost 10 years ago. I would see Dave every year at the Satellite Soda booth. We became friends over the years and Dave asked if I’d be up for some freelance work. I met with Jeannette and I began helping out with photo-retouching and photo support behind the scenes. After that, Sideshow offered me a full-time position and I was eventually promoted to Staff Photographer!
BEHIND THE SCENES
Diorama builders out there rejoice! The Sideshow creative team spend a lot of time and effort to create their own scenes for their product shots as we see the boiler room scene recreated from “The Nightmare on Elm Street�. Sideshow really set their product photography apart from the others and this is just one of the ways that they go about it.
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As in-house photographers could you give us a bit of insight into the roles you carry out and the process from start to finish. JEANNETTE - I am the senior photographer at Sideshow, and I manage the department. I won’t go in depth with the management side of things, as it’s mostly scheduling, answering questions, trouble-shooting, and tons of emails! We photograph all sorts of things here in the studios, from statues, sixth-scale posable
elaborate, with custom made sets, and lighting effects and other fun stuff! It’s definitely something that changes on a project by project basis. No two shoots are ever really the same. CASSIE - My day is always different and I love it! I am usually shooting prototypes or production updates of some awesome characters, or shooting BTS (behind-thescenes) photography of the artists working. It blows my mind every day to see these talented people work. They
Now we have to ask – what has been your favorite Sideshow project to be involved with and why? JEANNETTE - That’s always changing, but recently I’d have to say our sixth-scale Freddy Krueger figure. I got to build a boiler room!! That was a challenge, as well as an absolute blast. I also built another set where I had him lurking in a creepy alleyway. Lighting smaller figures with strobes is especially a challenge, because you really need to
“I LIKE TO HAVE BACKGROUND NOISE, AND RE-WATCHING THE BATMAN ANIMATED SERIES HELPS ME FOCUS AND GET IN THE ZONE!” - CASSIE
figures, art prints, apparel… to taking pictures of our artists at work, guests in our studios, VIP events… there’s never a dull moment! Photography here often consists of several types of photoshoot that can change up depending on tone, as well as intended use. Sometimes it’s very clean and simple, just showing the product in very natural conditions, other times its way more
make it look so easy! Taking pics of the work behind the scenes is actually my favorite part of the day. I’m a big fan of journalistic photography. Then, after the photos are taken and uploaded to the computer. I turn off the lights and settle down for any retouching or FX that might be required. I like to have background noise, and re-watching the Batman Animated Series helps me focus and get in the zone!
have control of the lighting in order for it to not overpower the figure. Gotham Nightmare Batman was also a favorite. Not only because it is a killer looking piece, but because I had to go through about four rounds of theatrical lighting before finally being satisfied with the result. I like a challenge. Anything that kicks my butt at first (but I end up happy with) instantly becomes a favorite.
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CASSIE - Oh man, that’s probably your hardest question to answer! I have one recent project that stands out for me, Thor: Jane Foster (not Lady Thor). She is just such a badass in person and in the comic! I’ll be honest; I’m more of a DC fan and I didn’t have much knowledge about Thor, especially Jane Foster to begin with, but that changed... I got some behind the scenes shots, and I had been photographing the guys working on her for a while. The details were insane, and I knew I really needed to prepare to do her justice! I started reading her storyline and I became a fan, but when I actually started photographing her, she completely won me over! I fell in love with this woman! She’s so strong! She’s so powerful, holding that hammer and ready to take on her role as Thor! I just really enjoyed this project.
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Outside of work are you Toy collectors yourselves? And if so what are your favorite pieces from your own personal collections? JEANNETTE - Salacious Crumb is my spirit animal! I’m trying to build a nice little collection of anything Salacious. I also collect Star Wars figures and statues. We have a pretty decent sized Black Series collection at home. Simpsons toys are also a favorite... I love those 90s interactive figures/sets! I’m a huge Harry Potter fan so I have a ton of random merch and stuff (I’ve also been stocking up on those awesome Star Ace sixth-scale figures). CASSIE - Just recently I started collecting. I have mostly DC pieces so far, but my collection is growing fast. I also have a couple Court of the Dead pieces as well. I love those designs.
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Back to your roles as photographers now and how long have you been in these roles? Was it something that you had a passion or interest in as a hobby before working at Sideshow? JEANNETTE - I’ve been at Sideshow for a little over 8 yrs. I had developed a strong interest in photography about 5-6 yrs prior to that, when I discovered the magic of the darkroom. I loved shooting portraits, concert photography, events and sometimes just experimenting with light. I had a couple of photography jobs prior to Sideshow; one was shooting photos for a guitar company and the other at a local newspaper. I’d say it’s still very much a hobby outside my regular job. CASSIE- I’ve been at Sideshow for over a year and half. I’m a self-taught photographer; I have always been interested in photography. As a kid I would always ask to hold the Camcorder while my Dad would be filming family memories. I didn’t start using an SLR till 2008. Now, I take my camera everywhere with me!
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“CHALLENGE YOURSELF TO USING A FIXED LENS, IT’LL HELP YOU LEARN A LOT ABOUT HOW YOU APPROACH YOUR SUBJECTS.” - CASSIE
JEANNETTE - Photograph everything and anything! Familiarize yourself with whatever you’re shooting with; no matter if it’s a fancy DSLR or a point’n’ shoot. Master what you know and then try something new. Learn to analyze light. I’m a big fan of theory and the science of lighting. I believe that if you learn how light works and have a decent eye for composition, you can create stunning photographs with anything (even your camera phone!) CASSIE - Take pictures of everything! I used to go to the dog park to practice shooting movement. Also don’t feel like you need to buy the newest piece of equipment. I had the Canon 7D for 8 years before I upgraded to a 5D Mark III. Challenge yourself to using a fixed lens, it’ll help you learn a lot about how you approach your subjects.
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Now we know that the popular culture community, particularly our photography one, is dominated by the large licenses like Star Wars and Marvel but you guys get to work alongside a whole wealth of different characters and that must be pretty refreshing wouldn’t you say? JEANNETTE - We’re so lucky to have such a wealth of licenses and characters to work with. Each photoshoot feels like a breath of fresh air. I love diving into the character’s personality and the worlds each character originates from. Especially with movie characters, it almost feels like you’re going behind-the scenes of these films... trying to figure out how everything was lit and what the DP was trying to convey from their point of view. CASSIE - Oh yeah! My previous work as a product photographer was just the same things on flat backgrounds or white boards. I can’t tell you how awesome it is to work on something different every day. It’s so much fun!
Of the fantastic plethora of licenses that you are able to work alongside which, would you pick to work with going forward if you could only choose one and why? JEANNETTE - I’d say Marvel simply due to its expansive universe. There are so many variations in style, colors, landscapes, planets, heroes, villains, mutants, etc. There’s enough variety in its aesthetic to keep a photographer experimenting with styles forever! CASSIE - I love DC. I grew up watching the Batman Animated series, Justice League and all the animated movies. I feel like I really know these characters. I just have flashbacks of childhood memories whenever I see them. I’ll never grow tired of photographing them!
A HUGE THANK YOU TO CASSIE AND JEANNETTE FOR SHARING INSIGHT INTO THE SIDESHOW CREATIVE PROCESS AND THEIR OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCES WORKING WITHIN ONE OF THE INDUSTRY’S MOST WELL RESPECTED PLATFORMS. KEEP UP-TO-DATE WITH SIDESHOW COLLECTIBLES AT SIDESHOWTOY.COM
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EVA
@GREATERBEAST There’s something about Eva’s work that just makes you stop and look. In a community that is packed to the rafters with amazing photography this is no small feat. Its even more impressive when you consider that we’re not drawn in by sensational action effects or anything overly technical, but rather theres a real intricate heart and soul to her work that, as you get to know her, just rises to the surface of her portfolio. Theres a narrative to every one of her shots ,each captured with a soft hand behind the lens to create one of our favourite bodies of work.
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E I think I’ve always liked toys. My first collection were five small, varying dinosaurs no bigger than a thumb. I grew up in a poor practical family that didn’t really believe in spending money on fun but dental hygiene was absolute paramount. After every visit the kind dentist would offer a tin of miscellaneous toys and out of it I would always go home with a dinosaur of some sort. Some of them were rubber erasers of some solid disagreeable color. Others light plastic with splotchy paint jobs. I still remember the jagged seams in my hand. I was an ill-equipped child and I hated school. I hated being there. Every day I would carefully pack my dinos in my backpack. Even if I could never take them out, just knowing they were there with me made the days that much more bearable. But one day, like most things, I discovered some dickwad had stolen them out of my bag. Six year old me was shattered. Devastated. I loved the shit out of those crappy little dinosaurs. 86
I never told any one what had happened.These days instead of a school bag I have a house. Shelves and display cases of various figures line the walls like concrete. And in many ways, I’m still hiding out from the world. But the compulsion to create is distressing, isn’t it? Not doing so is like denying one’s being. I think that’s why some people create drama out of nothing, cook, make children, whistle, lie. Letting off steam like a ready kettle. It bubbles out, overflows in unexpected ways. We’re all just answering the call of our nature.Toy photography and collecting was a thin bubble of relief in the face of a relentless reality. After my second open heart surgery, everything was so hyper real. Disturbingly hyper real.
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When my mind was wrapped up in nothing but unadorned pain, it felt like my vision was augmented by it. Like binoculars. I could see the crisp sharp edges of everything. And ever since, I feel like those are the things I’ve been fixated on most. Minor details. Fleeting moments. The beauty in small things. My biggest influences are fashion, street, and film photography and slice of life manga and anime. I think these stories are framed in every day objects. There is power in things. When we are gone, it is within these inanimate items that memories we were even ever here linger. Remind. Vignettes of a life. Sometimes I wonder what you would have done with all my toys if I had gone. Would you have thrown them away? Would you have loved them like I did because you loved me?
“IT WAS MY FALLOUT SHELTER BUT I DIDNT REALISE UNTIL MUCH LATER THAT I HAD INADVERTENTLY BUILT SUCH A CRUEL MUSEUM INSTEAD.” 89
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ILLAN
@THE_UNCANNY_PHOTOGRAPHER We’ve been working with Illan for quite some time now with various themed shoots for the site, and the developement that we have witnessed over this time needed a larger platform to really shine. His work here-in shows his ability to capture the character and narrative of faceless troopers, and also his more artistic edge that rises to the surface now and then to refresh his portfolio of toy shots.
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Toy photography is something I least expected to come this far. It started out as just a cool way to take some pictures. But look at me now, writing for a magazine. Had you told me this a year ago I wouldn’t have believed that there would even be a magazine centered around taking pictures of toys. My interest began in September 2015 during the huge Star Wars craze that came with The Force Awakens. I had always liked Star Wars but TFA just increased my enjoyment of the franchise. Once I had found out about the Black Series toy line, I did some searching on Instagram and discovered @starwarstheblackseries. From then on, I was hooked. I started following the page and kept noticing three names would keep getting featured. These three are what made me want to take my own pictures. They were; Max Sabin / @fovmodels, Johnny Wu aka @sgtbananas, and, Matt Rhodes / @x_captain_ kaos_x. They were like the juggernauts of toy photography to me. From then on all I wanted to do was take my own pictures. But I had no way of taking quality pictures and I had no toys. It wasn’t until March of 2016 that I finally got a Black Series Sand Trooper and my iPhone 6. That’s where my photography all began. 92
I had a pretty easy start into getting my name out there. If it wasn’t for Max Sabin I wouldn’t be where I’m at right now. He told @starwarstheblackseries to feature me. I was asleep when that happened so when I woke up I saw on my phone I had received about 500 notifications from Instagram. They were all likes and new followers. Ever since that moment I’ve never had trouble growing my page on Instagram. When I was first starting, I thought EVERY shot I did needed to have cool explosion effects or fire.
To me that was the only thing that made the pictures any good. Of course they were still good pictures but that mindset can hinder you from being able to experiment and do something new. Once I got my actual camera those shots became to risky to do as I didn’t want to get dust in the lens. After that my shots became more art based. I started focusing more on colors, lighting, and depth of field. While I still try to use those extravagant effects I think they come out better now then they did before. My favorite kind of shots are still the ones that have simple posing and just make the figure look badass without much effort. It makes the toys look more realistic. 93
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That’s always been my personal challenge when it comes to toys. Make them look realistic. I want someone to look at my shots and believe that there is someone in a costume posing for me to take a picture. Even if it’s a shot of a Nintendo toy. I want someone to look at it and think it’s official art. That thought process is how I try to come up with new shots. That’s also the reason I always shoot on location. I rarely set up a makeshift darkroom for a shot. Sometimes I’ll bike out to a sewer drain by my house if I really want to use a darkroom. The area I live in is mostly desert. So a lot of my locations become Tatooine or Jakku just because I don’t have any other Star Wars like location to shoot at. I have to get creative with what locations I shoot at and what they’ll look like on camera. The most difficult for me to shoot is Marvel Legends. Specifically characters like Spider-Man and Daredevil because they both live in the city. And the nearest location I have that would fit that setting is the Las Vegas Strip. Even that can be difficult to shoot at because of how many people go there. It’s very dangerous to bring an expensive camera down to the strip for obvious reasons.
I’ve only shot there once and the pictures came out great but I’ve been hesitant to go back. Especially since the last time I saw a homeless man eating nachos and have a seizure at the same time on the sidewalk. Vegas is a strange place.
“IT’S VERY DANGEROUS TO BRING AN EXPENSIVE CAMERA DOWN TO THE STRIP FOR OBVIOUS REASONS...” Toy photography is my number one creative outlet. With that I have an endless amount of possibilities as I can shoot almost whenever I choose to. Now that I have a job I only get about two days a week where I can take pictures. I used to consider this a hinderance but now I use it to my advantage. With only having two days a week to shoot, I have five whole days to come up with anything I can. Then, during those two days... it’s like an explosion of creativity and new ideas coming to fruition.
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I think everybody needs to try doing that because lately I’ve noticed that the “toy community” has been a bit overcrowded with too many pictures. A lot of them start to look the same. I think that’s what sends me into lulls of boredom when I don’t have anything new to come up with. I always try my best to have things stand out and be new, but when everything feels the same all the time it can be difficult. That’s why I think organizations like the Exclu Collective are so great.
Whether or not it’s a creative outlet, or college which I’ll be starting soon. Toy photography is helping me mature in an ironic sort of way. Being that toys are supposed to be for kids. But honestly? Who cares about that anymore. Toys are for everyone.
They get to show what’s great and everyone can earn their way to “fame” if they deserve it. I’m always going to be grateful for them as they’ve helped me grow faster as a photographer. Not my Instagram page. Once I was able to get my name out there I stopped caring about followers and number of likes and started focusing on what I want from my own work. That’s what keeps me going. My own desire to outdo myself. Working on this article helped me realize that and it’s going to help me grow. I plan to take this mindset along with any thing else I will do.
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DAVID CUBERO @SUPPADUPPA666
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Every fan of Star Wars loves the elegance of a Stormtrooper riding a Dewback in the Dunes of Tatooine. In this case I wanted to make a session of the routines of a Stormtrooper with his Dewback. They have long shifts so they become friends rapidly touring in the hard desert conditions. In this pics I tried to describe What happens in a Day with this pair When they meet each other and the trooper tries to domesticate him, sandstorms, heat, patrol routines, spare time and when they come home dirty as hell. The Beast Kingdom Stormtrooper and Dewback set is one of the funniest toys I have played with lately. I love every detail in it, especially the paint application and the look of the Dewback. The trooper has the classic Beast Kingdom deformed look, funny but serious, perfectly built and articulated. Maybe it’s a little delicate for what I like doing to toys but it bared through all my atrocities. This has been my first collaboration with Beast Kingdom and it has been a great experience, collaborating with a brand with such quality toys is a big honour for me and overall they are extremely nice people. One of these pictures became part of the exhibition at the Beast Kingdom booth at the San Diego Comic Con 2017 with other great pictures from artists around the world. I have more plans for the Dewback set in the future, I want to see them near the snow, the beach and with a urban background ... The level of articulation allows you to realize everything you can imagine.
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NOSERAIN @NOSERAIN
We first worked with Richee on a themed shoot entitled “The Survivor� in May and quite simply, we were blown away with the results. It lives on as one of our most diverse and accomplished theme challenges to date and so we had to see more of his work . The shots that Richee brings to bear on Issue 5 just raised the bar once again as he expertly captures characters from across the many genres at play within the toy community.
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I’m a visual person, so naturally, I always found photography appealing to me. Like art, one photograph could say so many things depending on who looked at it, and there are so many forms of photography that, still to this day, I’m constantly surprised by what people discover and put out in the world. For me, photography is really just a hobby. Or I guess I should say the camera is just a tool for me to create. Photography was something I dabbled in every once in a while, but eventually my path lead me down a road where I became a visual designer. That’s what I do every day for work. I design at a digital creative agency by day, and when I’m off the clock, I explore my passion for toys using a camera. It never started out that way though. I only started shooting toys recently, but I’ve always loved toys, and I never was able to grow away from them.
“THE STORIES WERE COOL I GUESS, BUT FOR THE KID ME, IT WAS NEVER ABOUT THE STORY - IT WAS ABOUT THE ART.” 106
It all started when I was a kid. I was fascinated by the characters in picture books. Maybe it was because of the lack of words in them. The stories were cool I guess, but for the kid me, it was never about the story -It was about the art. So much so I started drawing to recreate them. That became a constant theme with any character I liked. In hindsight, I guess I can say I just wanted something that represented those characters. Not long after, I was exposed to the world of cartoons, comic books, and TV. With that I was introduced to characters like Batman, the Power Rangers, Megaman, Spider-man, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And even further down the timeline, Dragonball Z and other shows from Toonami and Cartoon Network (I grew up in the 90s if you couldn’t tell). Do you know what that meant? Toys. And not only that. Finally, something that could represent my characters beyond the page or the screen. A 3D representation of the characters I admired, and to this day, still do.
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There was a period I remember when I stopped getting toys because I thought it was time to “grow up” and be a “cool teenager”. I must admit, video games and sports filled up the void and made me forget about the toy life. But one day, I was in Walmart and I walked into the toy section, and there was this feeling of nostalgia. I didn’t really know why I still felt that way, but I decided to buy a toy of a character from my childhood. And since then, it’s been all downhill. Haha jk jk. (Should I not use jk in an article like this? Or even “haha”? Oh well.) Anyway, I remembered that these characters were important to me and reminded me of a simpler time. So slowly, but surely, I started collecting figures I thought had a strong likeness to the characters I grew up with. Now, let’s fast forward now to 2015. That was only two years ago. I already knew about toy photography because I’ve seen pictures on the internet, but one day, I was on Instagram looking through the hashtag #toyphotography and saw a picture from Ky aka @captaindangerous. It was her image of Nendoroid Link holding a leaf over his head. I thought it was super charming, and thought, “Hey. I have toys,
I should give this a try.” I also followed Johnny’s account aka @sgtbananas early even before I made my own toy photography account. His work was always appealing and was different than what most people were doing back then.
“...I STOPPED GETTING TOYS BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS TIME TO GROW UP...” I’m still blown away by the breadth of work he’s created and continues to create on a high level. So soon after, I took my DSLR which I already had from making videos, and started shooting. Pokemon was a common theme for me back then because, for one, I got the Nendoroid Red around that time, and two, Pokemon figures are usually pretty photogenic and charming. That was the beginning. Sadly, it didn’t last very long. I was only in 14 posts before I was inactive for about a year. Last January is when I decided I would be consistent with the toy photography, and I made it a side project I could constantly use as a creative outlet outside of work. Now I can’t stop. It’s too fun. 109
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For those of you wondering, or have ever wondered, I’m Korean-American. I was born and raised in Southwest Virginia. My favorite sport is basketball, and Kobe Bryant is my favorite player of all time. I use the name Noserain because “Nose” in Korean is pronounced “Ko”, and Rain is pronounced “Bi” like the letter B. “Kobe” when put together.
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EXCLU REVIEWS IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
CATC H U P WITH SOME OF OUR L ATEST REVIEWS
S.H FIGUARTS : CAPTAIN PHASMA F R O M : B A N DA I - REVIEWED BY STAN RUS S ELL
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WHATS IN THE BOX?
IN SHORT
• 6 “Captain Phasma action figure
As long as this figure came with Phasma herself, that is all that I would need, but since this is Bandai, the accessories are definitely there, and look fantastic as usual. She comes with a total of six hands; two fists, to open palms, and a left gun cradle hand, and a right gun holding hand. These are very nice hands, and give you a wide range of options to use for posing, which is fantastic. The only downside is that she has to hold the gun with her right hand, so sorry lefties, you are left out here. She also comes with her blaster, which is a piece of art itself. All the details are there, and the stabilizing handle articulates for even more options. Her last accessory is the left shoulder armor piece in case you want to display her without her cape, but let’s be honest with each other, who wants to do that?
• 6 total sets of hands • Left shoulder armor piece • Blaster rifle
THE 5 KEY AREAS SCULPT – 10/10 PAINT APPLICATION – 9/10 ARTICULATION – 10/10 PRICE POINT – 10/10 OVERALL DESIGN – 9/10
CATCH THE FULL REVIEW AT EXCLUCOLLECTIVE.COM
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HOT TOYS - 1:6 SCALE YODA (ESB) F R O M : B A N DA I - REVIEWED BY TREVOR WILLIAMS
WHATS IN THE BOX? • Packed with eyes open sculpt attached to body • Second, eyesclosed headsculpt • Four interchangeable hands – two left, two right • Cane • Crate containerPower Unit (battery operated) • Small lamp • Diorama base with two rocks and three clear stands to “float” them
THE 5 KEY AREAS SCULPT – 9/10 PAINT APPLICATION – 9/10 ARTICULATION – 8/10 PRICE POINT – 10/10 OVERALL DESIGN – 10/10
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IN SHORT For me, this is the definitive Yoda. Anything can be made better but as a packaged whole I think you’ll be extremely pleased with this out of the box (and with a little futzing). There have been discussions about his height but here again, comparing it to my DX 07 Luke, it seems spot-on.The stand is nicely designed for multiple poses – sitting or standing. The “floating” rocks are a cute idea but not something I’d’ necessarily use in a display. I like the addition of the LED-lit power unit – it’s a little unsersized but a great accessory to use in photos. If you’re willing to fix the neck (or don’t care about that for posing reasons) and are skilled enough to add a little more hair it could be damn near perfect. But even stock it’s a great value and a fantastic version of such an iconic character. Why waiting are you? Buy it you must!
CATCH THE FULL REVIEW AT EXCLUCOLLECTIVE.COM
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WORD OF THE MONTH MAY - JUNE - JULY
Each month we challenge the community to react to a given theme word with the chance of winning a prize from that months sponsor alongside a place in our magazines. These next 3 images have been voted by the community as their favourite reaction to the set words - MERCY - WANTED - RAGE out of 3 finalists.
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MAY MERCY
RICHEE - @NOSERAIN RUNNERS-UP ANDIKA FIKRI - @AF_TOYS TREVOR WILLIAMS - @ONESIX_SHOOTER 117
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JUNE WANTED
J A M I E C U R R A N - @ T. O.Y _ R . O. O. M RUNNERS-UP LIZZY REPP - @FORCE_OF_LIGHT PAYTON INMAN - @SW_COLLECTIBLES 118
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JULY RAGE
JESS - @ACTIONFIGUREWORKOUT RUNNERS-UP TONI WRIGHT - @315TH_SQUAD HOLLIE JEAKINS - @COSMIC TOYS 119
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SPENCER WITT
SHOCK TROOPER EGGATTACK
120
THANK YOU F ROM TH E EXCLU TEAM
FIRST PUBLISHED AUGUST 2017
EXCLU DESIGN COLLECTIVE : ISSUE #5