Who's photographing what?

[Gregorius]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the kind comments. With the Papal Italian Ps I wanted to evoke the vine clad hills of Italy.

Cheers,

[Gregorius]

Hi All,

I have just finished reading a piece about who to phtograph your models. It was aimed at 1/72 scale modelers but the advice seemed sound. So I trie to follow the tips regarding using the super macro setting. Here are some images I took this morning. 2 of a Hurricane ( I know way off topic) and 2 Gen elements. Have I got it right? Please let me know.









Cheers,

[Martyn]

Greg,

The basic technique looks good, the depth of field is such that the whole of the subject stays sharp and in focus. The one improvement needed is in the lighting. A single source gives heavy shading which looses the detail on part of the subject.

When I take photos I often put the figures on top of the cooker (making sure it is not still hot) the extract hood has four spot lights, one in each corner, which are each aimed to the centre of the hob so give multiple angles of top lighting. This seems to work quite well allowing for the cheap camera I use, it has a macro setting but not a super Macro.

Any additional hints worth sharing?

[Martyn]

I have in the past come across the following guide from Tim Porter http://www.madaxeman.com/main/photog...me_figures.php (aka Madaxeman) who runs an interesting wargames site with lots of useful info (photos, army lists and battle reports) nothing specifically DBA but lots for DBM and FOG and therefore ancients generally.

[ferrency]

If I took those pictures, next time I'd try to adjust 2 things:

- As was mentioned before: the lighting. I usually use one light directly at the front, and one above the subject, but this based on experimentation and not having a clue.

- Your white balance (or the color of your lighting). Most modern cameras have a White Balance adjustment, which allows you to tune the color perception of the camera so that white looks white instead of off-white. Photo editing software can often also adjust white balance somewhat after you've taken a photo. Adjusting white balance properly can reduce any colored tinge in the photo that is caused by the lights not producing a perfectly white light.

Alan

[jcpotn]

Originally Posted by Gregorius

Hi All,

I have just finished reading a piece about who to phtograph your models. It was aimed at 1/72 scale modelers but the advice seemed sound. So I trie to follow the tips regarding using the super macro setting. Here are some images I took this morning. 2 of a Hurricane ( I know way off topic) and 2 Gen elements. Have I got it right? Please let me know...

Cheers,

I'd say you nailed it. The hardest part is gettin the depth of field correct so all the models are in focus.. For lighting try the FREE edition of Adobe Photoshop. It corrects lighting and allows you to crop photos as well.

Jeff

[Gregorius]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the feedback. I wasn't concerned regarding the lighting for this experiment. I just wanted to make sure that I hit the nail on the head reagrding depth of field and focussing when using super macro. The lighting I used was from a large window and overhead ceiling lights. So the next experiment will be setting up the lighting and getting the white balance right.

Cheres,

[ferrency]

Originally Posted by Gregorius

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the feedback. I wasn't concerned regarding the lighting for this experiment. I just wanted to make sure that I hit the nail on the head reagrding depth of field and focussing when using super macro. The lighting I used was from a large window and overhead ceiling lights. So the next experiment will be setting up the lighting and getting the white balance right.

Cheres,

Regarding depth of field: I've found a few things that help.

I have a Canon point and shoot camera that has more programmable settings than average. I use Aperture Priority with maximum F stop, for starters. I also use Macro focussing.

The most important thing I find for making sure my depth of field is adequate on a shoot-by-shoot basis after starting with those basic settings, is to set things up so that my lens is zoomed out halfway to all the way, so the focal length is longer. This helps a lot with getting a depth of field big enough to shoot a whole army in focus.

The F stop requires a longer exposure time, so I use a tripod. I also set it to use a 2-second shutter delay timer when taking a shot, because I don't have a remote trigger. It lets the camera stop wiggling before the photo is taken.

Alan

[Gregorius]

Hi All,

Here are some images of the camp I developed for my Uighur army. As Uighur territory was traversed by the silk road, I wanted to represent one of the minor staging posts that were scattered along its route. The moulding is by JR Miniatures, the guards are by Essex and painted by Paul Potter, and the road itself is from Faller.







As ever, comments and questions are always welcome.

Cheers,

[Gregorius]

Hi All,

I have been busy over the last couple of weeks basing a Uighur army I commissioned Paul Potter to paint and have finally photographed them this morning. This army will be used at MOAB next month for the Kublai Khan campaign. All the figures are by Outpost Wargames Service from their Central Asiatic Turk (CAT) and Crusade Islamic (CI) ranges. I'll identify the figure codes I used for each troop type.



Here the Uighur army sets out from Turfan led by their Idiqut.



The Uighur Idiqut, a descedant of Barchukh. These figures are from the CAT8 code.



The noble cavalry ride a mix of armoured and unarmoured horses. These figures are from the CAT6 and CAT7 packs.



The ubiquitous steppe horse archer. CAT3 was used for these elements.

Part 2 will follow with the infantry.

Cheers,