Showing posts with label Lisa Irinyi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lisa Irinyi. Show all posts

7/31/2010

Picture of the Week ~ Lisa Irinyi aka Alex's Doll

I will write very little in this post as I want to not only feature Lisa's photograph but also her own responses to the questions I asked her earlier.
This is the new Mini Avantguard doll, Aphrodisiac:

"I had an absolutely giddy time shooting Aphro. She seems so runway/clownish – but in a cool way. So, as soon as I took her out of the box, I teased up her wig to ridiculous proportions (kinda reminds me of the villain in the movie Zoolander, Mugatu – Will Ferrell’s character). And then the rest of the outfit just came together. It’s fun, silly and cheeky. Then I remembered the carnival cage – perfect. I swear I could hear a souped –up version of calliope music running through my head during the shoot. You know, kinda scary, kinda exciting and a bit strange, but intriguing. The bright red and brilliant sunshine really made the images pop. The angle of the evening light was almost straight on, eliminating shadows and showing every tiny detail. I love that. It’s like magic."

"Sometimes I feel like the “Weird Al” of doll photos. I see a doll and start thinking about the clothes, the scene and before you know it, some strange image is produced with influences from over-the-top couture fashion or with heavy fairytale or pop culture influences. Obviously I want to take beautiful photos, but I also like to add a wildness, a quirky flair or a humorous strangeness – kind of a reimagining. I like cuteness, to be silly and the unexpected." 

"I started my blog as a New Year’s resolution to have more fun playing with my dolls and become a better photographer. I post a new photo every day (hence the name – Every Day A Dollie) and the constant picture taking has definitely helped me learn more about photography. I try a lot of different things. Weird angles (wide and tight), different lighting situations (sun, overcast, shade, flash), I experiment with exposure, flash strength and white balance – I’ve had some neat results and some that go straight to 'delete'." 

"My advice to all the photographers out there – Have fun. Take lots of photos. Try some in early morning or late day when thee sun is at a low angle – there’s magic in that lighting. Let your personality shine through your photos. And don’t be afraid to experiment."



3/28/2010

Picture of the Week Award ~ March 29, 2010

Lisa Irinyi

When I found out that Lisa did not use any special effects or pixel manipulation I was amazed. This photograph of A Brighter Side Kyori just blows me away.

Here is Lisa's description in her own words:A Brighter Side Kyori is one of those dolls that’s simply perfect “as-is”. Most of my dolls get redressed eventually, but I’ve not felt any changes could make her better. I wanted to do her ethereal beauty justice with a “heavenly” photo shoot. I saw the morning sun arching through the trees, sending light and shadow across the snow piled on the side of my driveway. The quality of the light almost mimicked the pure white and deep blues of a cloud studded summer sky. I didn’t want to expose Kyori to reclining directly in the snow, so I searched for a throne befitting her regal bearing. I found a small, gilded wall shelf (a Tuesday Morning find) – and turned it upside-down in the snow…it added height, texture and visual interest to the scene without breaking the harmony or stealing the spotlight. I can’t remember exactly how cold it was outside, but I know it was below freezing – one must suffer for one’s art – LOL "
"A healthy piece of advice for shooting snow photos – dress warm, take breaks inside out of the cold if shooting for long stretches of time, power up those batteries because the cold temps drain them faster, position your doll indoors beforehand if possible because colder temps also make the plastic more brittle and susceptible to breakage, use your exposure compensation (I shoot auto, plus 1/3, 2/3 and a full stop just to cover my bases) because snow usually comes out too dark. And have fun. Try things you’re not sure of, take chances. Even if the photos don’t turn out as intended, you learned something. If you don’t even try, you never know what might have been."
I would like to explain why snow usually comes out too dark. When one is using a camera on full auto setting, the camera reads the amount of light coming in through the lens and adjusts the opening of the aperture accordingly. Since snow reflects light more than most objects, the camera shuts the opening down so less light comes in. You may have a snow setting on your camera or be able to set the picture to be brighter. Lisa's camera can be adjusted manually.
See more of Lisa's beautiful doll photography at this link.
Congratulations, Lisa, on the Picture of the Week Award!

2/13/2010

Picture of the Week Award ~ February 14, 2010

The award this week goes to Lisa Irinyi also known as Alex's Doll.Lisa has shot a redressed Eden doll against a background of a stream. The sharp focus of the doll creates depth and separates her from the background effectively. The composition takes the viewer directly to the doll's face. Notice the diagonal line of the path or road in the lower right hand corner of the shot. Whether it was intentional or not, that technique is a well known one used to draw the viewer into the frame. The diagonal line of the tree branch in the upper right serves the same purpose. I might have cropped out the bench which would have strengthened the diagonals. The bench is interesting and I'd like to see more of it or none at all. It also helps that the doll is not dead center.
It's a great picture of a very popular doll.

Lisa's advice to doll photographers: "Take a doll and a camera with you (in the car, out for a walk) whenever you can. You never know where the next photo opportunity is going to be. Also, take lots of pictures. The more photos you take, the better you get."

See more of Lisa's work at these links:
Flickr
Blog: Every Day A Dollie

Congratulations, Lisa, on the Picture of the Week Award!