Masters Class: LEGO

 When speaking about toy photography, one of the subjects that causes a lot of discussion in the community is how things scale. Certain lines put out certain characters, and the scale sometimes can play havoc with having characters cross the boundaries of the multiverse to square off against another. Marvel Legends scale with certain things well, where Neca and McFarlane figures generally only scale with themselves. This sort of thing can cause the artist some fits when it comes to having a fantasy face off between characters they love. After all, Hulk vs Batman should look like a mismatch with Batman being much smaller. 

In the realm of collecting and shooting photos of toys, there’s one company that stands out for putting a plethora of fictional characters in their products, and have them remain to scale with one another. Only one toy company has the licensing to such a wide variety of worlds, where you could have Darth Vader and Lord Voldemort fighting Superman and Super Mario while George Costanza and Homer Simpson watch on from Sponge Bob’s pineapple house. And that toy company, is Lego. 

This week on the Masters Class we have brought in two of the best toy photographers on IG to share their love of the plastic bricks and mini figures, and give some tips and tricks on how they shoot their incredible works of art. @CopperstateBricks and @FastEddiesNerdery. 

So get out your pens, paper, and sort your bricks, because Class is now in session. 

The world of Lego is only limited to what you can use your imagination to build. The world of Lego photography is similar in those regards. Do you ever build set ups with Legos to tailor fit the shot you have in mind? Or do you prefer to shoot your Lego people in real world settings?

FE- “I have been putting together a giant lego city for the past couple years. For most of my shots I use buildings from my city! Sometimes if the shot is nice and simple I can just make a quick backdrop/Diorama with some spare parts! I love shooting outdoors, however, I live in the heart of a big city in a giant apartment so my outdoor options are sometimes limited. Whenever I get the chance in the summer I like to go to forest preserves to shoot!”

CS- “I prefer to shoot LEGO minifigures in real world settings, as it's fun to try & scale something so small with a big world like ours. I have however built set ups like a rooftop for my smaller scaled photos.”

Toy photography often focuses on large scenes with intricate setups and details. What are some tips and tricks you can offer to incorporate these things into the miniature worlds of Legos?

FE- “Less is more!! Sometimes I think of an idea for some giant elaborate set up and then when framing it realize it would look much better if it were simpler. I've recently just been trying to focus on a single figure and getting a perfect clean and crisp shot!”

Fast Eddie’s submission to the Masters Class is an inspiring depiction of Star Wars Lego figures in a captivating scene from the movies. 

CS- “Since LEGO is smaller, you have to make the scene feel as scaled down as possible as you can. It can't be too large or too small.”

Lighting can undoubtedly make or break a shot due to the material the figure or accessories are made from, causing reflections or bright spots. Being as Legos are generally glossy plastic, what are some lighting tricks that you have learned to counteract these things?

FE- “Ahhhhhhh those pesky yellow heads!! Yes, when first shooting Lego the glare from lights or camera on their faces would get so frustrating! When shooting I tend to try and use a soft light or diffuse my light box so it's softer.”

CS- “Glare is something every you photographer come across, & more so I'd say with LEGO due to the glossiness of the minifigure. So my way to prevent glaring issues all while using natural light is shooting from an angle where it doesn't appear & won't make a photo turn out bad.”

The Lego franchise holds licensing to a literal encyclopedia of pop culture characters and icons at their disposal at any given time, along with the worlds those characters belong in. Are there any Lego characters that you have found particularly difficult to photograph? And are there any that are completely photogenic from the start?

FE- “This one made me think about question 3….. For me the yellow heads seem to create much more glare than the skin colored lego heads.”

CS- “One of the characters I've found to be difficult is surprisingly Spider-Man, as he is a very acrobatic character & LEGO minifigures are very limited in posing. Galadriel from The Lord of the Rings is by far my most photogenic minifigure, as it's very easy to capture the beauty the minifigure itself holds.”

From fight scenes and car chases to lightsaber battles and edge of your seat flight sequences, toy photography puts a lot of focus on the dynamic poses the figures can be put in. With limited articulation, Lego figures can be difficult to pose in a way that brings action to life. What are some tips and tricks you have found to work best to translate the action taking place in brick form?

FE- “One reason I love to work with Lego is I can keep it more practical when “hiding things”. Since they are so light I can use a wire to get them in the air then hide It behind them without having to photoshop anything. Many of the tricks that I have learned have come from watching other great artists. What I learned from them is that tacky putty is the greatest thing to have when shooting Lego! One of my favorite tricks to do would be to pop off one of the legs and tacky puddy it to their waste. This creates the leg up “karate kid” stance!”

CS- “As I previously said, LEGO minifigures aren't very articulated & are limited to posing unlike action figures, so it's difficult to bring that sort of action to life. So I've learned the emotion & overall setup of a photo helps substitute for that.”

Copperstatebricks submission to the Masters Class perfectly sums up his advice on letting emotion craft a perfect shot. 

What was it about Lego photography that initially drew you into the hobby?

FE- “I have been collecting and building Lego since I was about 7, but I did not start shooting until the pandemic started! A very common answer I am sure. My good friend nudged me in the direction and I figured this would be a great creative outlet to show my love for movies, toys, and comics. I think like many people shooting your toys takes you back to a more simple time of childhood forget about BS of everyday life and just have some fun again!”

CS- “At the start of the pandemic, I started doing toy photography after watching a few videos on YouTube. Then in 2021, I discovered people doing LEGO photography & found that interesting, so I brought my LEGO collection out of storage & the rest is history.”

Lastly, do you have a favorite Lego mini figure to shoot for your Lego photography?

FE- “Wow this is a tough question….. I think as of now my favorite to shoot is the Punisher from the Daily Bugle set. He has always been a favorite due to being powerless and a juggernaut of brutality. He comes with a super angry and beat up face that I just feel perfectly captures the character in Lego form. However, I can’t not give CitizenBrick a shoutout. They are a custom company in Chicago that does some of the coolest mini figures from Movies to TV. It lets me tap into some of my favorite movies and recreate scenes using characters like Jason Voorhees or Snake Plisken!”

CS- “My favorite LEGO minifigure to shoot with is an original superhero character named Paradigm.”

I want to thank @CopperstateBricks and @FastEddiesNerdery for taking part in this weeks Masters Class and sharing their knowledge of toy photography. It has been a real pleasure speaking with these amazingly talented artists and getting a look behind the bricks at how they bring their shots to life. Be sure to visit their pages on Instagram and follow them for more incredible toy photography. 

If you want to be in on a future episode of the Masters Class collab, shoot us a dm on @the_uc_collabs page on Instagram. The Masters Class is a collaboration for the community to spread the knowledge of the craft and share in the love of the hobby. But it all depends on you artists! If there’s a Masters Class theme that you’d like to see covered or if you have any questions for the Masters, dm us and let us know. 

Until next episode, Class is dismissed. 

~The Curator