Showing posts with label Cheryl Wood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cheryl Wood. Show all posts

2/08/2016

Kingdom Doll Star and Turn on Your Lights

The third in a series of three Kingdom Doll "Angel" dolls, Star, arrived last week and I am very happy with her.

She is super photogenic. Here's a shot taken with my iPhone.


She is wearing her own lingerie and wig. Her necklace had opened which escaped my eye during the picture taking.

Her beautiful silver shoes zip up the back. I have a vague memory of being told these are her 'signature' shoes. They are the same style that Liberty came with and the pink suit from the Liberty event also used this style.



 I never leave my gals dressed in lingerie and Star's first redress was into this beautiful, slinky dress from one of Sandra's conventions. It's a favorite of mine and looks great on many of my girls.
The wonderful, curly wig is a Cheryl Wood creation. You may recognize Tonner's Snow Leopard from his Golden Compass line.


 The whole scene is very jungle-tropical. I really didn't plan it this way. These days most of my studio photos use very simple backdrops and props. I'm too lazy to do elaborate dioramas.  But I do have a bunch of different artificial greens and in this case, I just pinned a few to the huge bulletin board I have in back of my shooting table. There were some empty spaces and I Photoshopped that away. I also used PS to darken the background because I thought it competed too much with the foreground. I kept the focus on the doll's face to draw the viewer's eye there.

I see loads of indoor photos in which there is barely any light on the dolls' faces. So many people with beautiful dolls don't know how to light their photos. I just want to scream, "Turn on the damn lights!" You don't need professional equipment.

There is a false belief that using a flash is anathema. Seriously? Have you ever been to a professional studio? We're not aiming for Annie Leibovitz here; we just want to see your dolls!

As I stated, the top photo on this page (and the shoe shot) were made with my iPhone - using it's built in flash. In many cases, the phone's flash doesn't do what I want it to, but there's a way to make it work. Admittedly, it was daylight in room - actually it's in the bedroom. I opened the shades and the room was pretty bright but I knew I'd need some highlights and the only way to do that was with some direct light. I didn't hold the camera directly aiming at the doll, instead I angled it a little off to one side.

Here's a shot that did not work:


 The angle is all wrong. Her hair is too bright. It's a discard.

The beauty of digital photography is that you can keep going until you are satisfied. You get instant feedback. In my studio, I constantly move the lights and change their power and/or the settings on the camera until I'm happy (or until I'm so tired I can't go on.) You can take multiple shots with your phone as well. But do us all a favor, don't post all of them. Pick out the three best,  then toss two of those.  I look back at the last 15 years of my own doll photography and really should toss 80% of the images but I'm keeping them as a record of what I've had in my collection. Of course there are days when I can't take a decent picture no matter what.

EDIT, EDIT, EDIT.


There are websites, books, ezines and loads of information out there. The problem is, you may not even know you need one.

A great all around source of tips and tricks:  http://www.digital-photography-tips.net/


1/21/2016

Brunel: A Most Versatile Kingdom Doll

Brunel is the most photographed Kingdom Doll in my collection. The first photo presents her as she was originally dressed.
Photos show her dressed in fashions by Ficon, Integrity Toys, Tonner, Superdoll and, of course, Kingdom Doll. There is one dress in there by a collector. Wigs by Cheryl Wood and Ilaria.

You can click on individual photos to enlarge them. 
 














3/20/2015

Ficon Girls Get Camera Time

First day of Spring? Not here. It's snowing. Again. We're nice and warm inside.

Here is Ficon's Ms. G Black wearing the fashion from Ficon Fierce and a wig by Cheryl Wood. Her bracelet is Franklin Mint.


This edgy fashion is a two-piece suit with rhinestone buckled belt. The shoulders are embellished with silvery metal cones and chains. In contrast, the armholes are finished with multi-layered tulle providing a bit of softening contrasting with the angular cut of the top.
Her clutch bag has a textured almost glittered feel; it is not glitter, however.


The shoes are black strappy faux leather heels with a zipper up the back. Sadly, the zipper won't go all the way up. I tried.
This photo showed me how bad her pedicure is. I can fix that easily.


_______________________________________________________

Ficon "Bonita" is modeling Ficon's fashion "Wrinkle" dress and vest. The fabric is a faux snake and a stretch fabric which is ruched. The metal cones appear on the shoulders again. The belt has a large silver buckle.
Stunning wig is also by Cheryl Wood. Clutch is Superdoll.



12/04/2014

Rejected! Or What To Do With A Fist Hand

Finally, it makes sense.

He's proposing to Brunel.



She has rejected him and he's pissed.


Now he can keep the fist for a while.



Angelo's tuxedo and wig by Chewin. Brunel's wig by Cheryl Wood. Fashion from Superdoll.


6/15/2014

"J'Adore" Gene Marshall

She's nabbed Violet's lavender ensemble, added some jewels by Facets and a hard cap wig by Cheryl Wood. There is something so innocent about this doll. I like her a lot.


A closeup of her sweet face:


And just because I like them...her hands.



Ficon Miss G and Sybarite Luggage

Before I even received my gold luggage set, I received an email explaining that the factory had made flawed pieces and that I could have a refund or a replacement. Bummer.  I got the luggage the next day and the gold material on the surfaces of the pieces was, indeed, flawed in several places.
Sad because this item is just adorable. The insides are lined in fabric and have pockets, mirrors, straps and fittings you'd find inside human luggage. The straps and hinges and other metal components on the exterior are perfect. There's an embroidered tag for each piece as well.
I'll be able to use them as a prop even though they are flawed. I wonder what color I'll get for my replacement. I'm hoping it's not green. I would like the black but it's not up to me.


Here is Miss G wearing a wig by Cheryl Wood. Her outfit is a Ficon fashion called "Tree of Joy."
It is still available on the Ficon website.


2/10/2014

Nelson Goes Brunette

I've been trying out wigs on Nelson. She looks great in every color but I have such a mish mosh of sizes, not all of them fit properly. Here is a Cheryl Wood wig. I was a bit small so I think it was made for Avantguard Dolls. I put it in my heating pad for a few minutes to soften the glue and it went on beautifully. It's a good technique to reshape your hard cap wigs. Just don't leave it in the pad for too long.


I am having difficulty with her lower leg stability. She's giving me the same instability problem as my Ficons. The knees keep getting into an awkward position. They need an improved design.



12/31/2013

Collection: 2013 in Retrospect

I usually do a "Best-Worst" themed post at year end. This year I'm going to do more of a "Best of My 2013 Collection" post. Going through my 2013 purchase database, I made a list of my favorites. The list revealed that I concentrated, number-wise, on wigs and fashions more than anything else. And, for the first time in a few years, Integrity Toys' dolls scored multiple bests.

Below, left: Lukas Maverick as "Beauty." He was paired with a female doll entitled "Beast," not shown. Right: "Interlude," the last Monogram doll in the line, (supposedly) was a welcome bag doll at the 2013 convention. She is dressed in a fashion called "Completist" which was also a gift to attendees.

The two Integrity dolls below from their last convention are both Elise Jolie. On the left is the convention souvenir, Midnight  Star, and on the right is a workshop doll dressed in the Beast's outfit. These dolls are gorgeous and I love the Elise sculpt as much as I loved the original Vanessa sculpt!

A fashion designed by Chris Stoeckel for the W Club Luncheon for Victoire Roux made my favorites. Chris had previously done this dress for a 15.5" Gene doll (right) in a different colorway. It translates very well to the 12" "Out Sass."
IMO Chris is the most talented designer IT has (if Jason isn't around.)

Mel Odom's beloved Gene Marshall doll made a surprise comeback in 2013 as a resin BJD produced by JamieShow Dolls. It's great fun to have new Gene dolls and it has brought renewed life to so many long-time Gene collections. On the left is J'Adore Gene wearing  a Sybarite fashion and a Cheryl Wood wig. On the right is Phoenix Gene wearing her own gown and a wig by Cheryl Wood.

Speaking of wigs, I added at least one dozen to my collection this past year. My favorites are those made by Ilaria, Patta, Cheryl and Chewin. My dolls have varying sized heads so they need lots of wigs. Below are two from Ilaria aka "Time of Doll."
On the left is Miss G White, a Ficon doll I traded for. Although she debuted in 2012, she is new to my collection. On the right is Inro. She is the first in the Inamorata line produced as a limited edition as opposed to a OOAK by Emilia Nieminen. 

For the first time in ages, I'm paying attention to male dolls again. While the Jamieshow Alejandro below, left and the Tonner Neo Tokyo are not from 2013, their fashions are. These fabulous garments are by the uber-talented Chewin. I also commissioned him to do Alejandro's wig.

 Another Chewin outfit modeled by Tonner's Yoshio, a 2013 16" favorite.

Yian (modsdoll) repainted this Dionysis Sybarite. She's wearing a 2012 Cheryl Wood wig, a gorgeous dress from the 2013 Metrodoll's luncheon entitled "Eventail," and a stunning neckpiece by Asher of New England. I'm sure you can see why she made my favorites list.

Of course I have too many dolls so I buy outfits for them. Early fashions that I couldn't get previously and newly released ones arrived regularly.
Many of the amazing fashions from Sandra Stillwell's Kansas City Every Day's A Holiday event can be seen elsewhere on this blog. Here is one called "Delicate Bloom." The floral motifs are all ribbon embroidery!

V John offers a monthly fashion for either 12" or 16" dolls.

There are always Tonner dressed dolls or fashions that need to come to mama.  Some fashions are offered separately and some are from dressed dolls. Tiny Kitty is older (2005) doll called "Flirtation."  Sometimes it's good to wait because many collectors sell Tonner products for much less than they paid.

Antoinette is wearing a 2012 gown from "Sweeping Antoinette."

This Antoinette fashion is called "Fanciful." It's so Barbie-ish and reminds me of Silkstone Provencale.  "Hypnotic" Antoinette, whom I chose to model the Tonner gown, has the same hairstyle the Silkie (on the right.) Provencale is not a new acquisition.

I was more careful with my purchases but I definitely made a few mistakes. I am happy with my dolls. When I'm not, they go. Some stick around until I'm sure.

My doll collecting resolution is to continue to be careful and focused with what I purchase.  I resolve to re-photograph many of my dolls and photograph all new dolls as they join the tribe.

Do you have any doll-related resolutions for 2013?