Whillock: January 2010

Well I think I can conclude I got a bit carried away with this mini project, but feel I learned a lot from the few different techniques I used, so it's all been good! Anyway here's the finished model (apologies for the crappy photo quality, was in a bit of a rush):

And here's a few of his different face I made that are swappable:

I'll get some better photos up soon.

As my monkey was a bit of an experimental piece i thought I'd had a go at adding a bit of fuzz to him too and see how it easy it was to do:

Still the legs left to do, but you get the idea - it was a sort of success but lessons learned!

I guess I must just have a strange affinity for primates.

Wall-e is a stunning piece as an exercise of realism, for the most part anyway. The scenes of Earth as a decayed, desolate landfill site are not only beautifully constructed and realised but also stunningly realistic. Perhaps the later parts on the Axiom don't seem quite so realistic as we have no prior experience of them?

So how did they get such beautiful realism on Earth?

The audience sees through a 'camera' - that is to say, the more a shot looks like it is being filmed by a physical camera, the more realism it adds. From camera shakes and motion blur as objects rocket past close to the viewer, to lens effects such as lens flare and focus shifting.

Perhaps one of the most effective of these, and always seems to persuade my brain that what I'm looking at is real is the use of shallow depth-of-field shots, and the shifting of focus. This is often used to draw your eye from one subject to another without physically moving the camera or figures. Yet it is also used to great effect to give a sense of scale to the audience. Incredibly shallow depth of field is often felt in close up shots, with much wider in mid-range shots.

The design of the characters and settings of the shots also plays a vital role in realism, as when a character looks too 'perfect' it is much less realistic. Take the difference between Wall-e and Eve, crumpled, dented and asymmetrical against pristine and polished. It's the scratches and dents that add to the physical presence of Wall-e and makes him feel much more solid, in much the same way the fingerprints on Wallace and Gromit add to their presence and character.

The entire film can be seen as a clash between the 'perfect' and, for want of a better word, gritty, world of the Axiom in space, and ruined Earth.

Mr Plasticine is the actor with all the talent and versatility of any of Hollywood's finest.

Admire his toned and sensual physique;

But he's more than just a pretty face; he has a burning passion for music and can turn his hand to any instrument that may be needed for a role.

His burning desire to roll off some kick-ass tunes can always be seen in his mighty performances;

But admist the good looks and beating heart of a rock star lies the deep a soulful soul of a true actor, capable of portraying even the most heart-wrenching roles

Seen here, a still from the making of "The Passion of the Plasticine";

For your consideration.

A new technique I've been trying when photographing is 'painting with light', and this mini project was perfect for it. It involves a long exposure shot (4 seconds plus really) in the dark, and within the time of the exposure 'painting' the subject with a torch or other light source. It gives some really nice effects and gives you almost complete control over the lighting in the image.

Here are a few practice shots I took using this technique:

Creating atmosphere whilst 'painting'

By only highlighting certain areas and leaving others in shadow:

Quick sketch to base the proportions on as I go along

Wire and aluminum foil form the base of the structure

Masking tape applied to wire parts to help the plasticine hold onto it

Plasticine is applied over the top

Final more intricate parts are added and smoothed out

He is such a poser

The set up:

An old fish tank turned on its side made a great little light-box for photographing the plasticine heads. A curved sheet of black paper made a nice inside background for the piece, and some kitchen greaseproof paper covering the sides and top served to help diffuse the light nice and softly within the box.

I was able to experiment with light with the use of the camera flash, the angle poise lamp and the natural light behind the black-out curtains, which could be adjusted as needed.

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