Model Gallery - Scale Mode Photography

By Matthew Toms

Scale model photography is in many ways like model building -- lots of things can go disastrously wrong no matter how many times you try; however, if someone shows you the proper technique and you get the hang of it, everything makes sense and you get successful results in no time. All you need are the proper tools and technique, and the rest is up to your imagination.

I will not go into a myriad of technical photographic formulas or specs here -- I suffered through semesters of it, so you don't have to. You can use CA glue without understanding polymer dynamics, and we'll use the same approach.

First, the equipment. You can go to a big photo supplier and spent around $1000 US. Or you can go to a pawn shop, a local hardware store, and a department store and have a really decent setup for under $100. If you already have a camera and tripod, the filters and lights will only set you back about $40. Since photography as a hobby is secondary to modeling in this instance, we'll go the economy route. More money spent does not mean better results. You will need:

1. A camera (full manual or auto exposure): 35mm SLR (through the lens viewing, interchangeable lenses). It must be able to be taken off of program for semi-auto exposure and you must shut off the auto focus.
2. A sturdy tripod.
3. A cable release for the shutter button.
4. A set of close-up filters. These are very inexpensive magnifying filters that screw on to the front of the lens. They are usually sold in sets of three and can be combined to produce different diopters, or magnification factors.
5. An 80B filter if you are using regular color print film. This also goes on the front of the lens.
6. Four metal socket "clamp lamps" with the metal dish reflectors attached and a 200 or 300 watt clear bulb for each. Don't worry about maximum wattage rating for the sockets- they won't be on long enough to cause a problem.
7. A sheet of poster board (medium gray is best) for a backdrop. Later on, if you want to get fancy, you can use calendar pictures or projected slides behind the model.
8. A strong, stable card table or kitchen table that will allow you to get the camera down to tabletop level.

On your camera, there are two ways to control the exposure (the amount of light hitting the film)- aperture and shutter speed. Aperture controls the amount of light coming through the lens, and shutter speed controls how long the light hits the film. In close-up photography, one of the most critical factors is depth of field, or how much of the subject is in focus at once. This is determined by the aperture setting, and maximum depth of field is achieved with the smallest aperture possible. The aperture control on most cameras is that set of numbers on the lens from 1.8 to 22. These are called f-stops. The larger the number, the smaller the aperture is. If your camera allows you to pick the f-stop and it picks the shutter speed, set it for f22. If your camera allows you to pick the shutter speed and it picks the f-stop, lower the shutter speed until you force the camera to pick f22. Since you are using a tripod and cable release, low shutter speeds (long exposures) are not a factor.

If your camera has one of those annoying little built in flash units, turn it off. Make sure the exposure control is not on "program". Load your film. Any good color film will work-200 ASA is fine. Set the camera on the tripod and thread the cable release on the shutter button. Add the close-up filters and 80B filter to the front of the lens.

Tape the poster board to the table and curve the back half up to vertical to create a seamless backdrop. Tape this portion to the wall or place something behind it. (To avoid bodily harm, make sure to use tape that will not damage wife's / mom's wallpaper!) Place the model on the posterboard, away from the vertical back area.

Place the tripod / camera in front of the model. Frame your picture. For realism, get as low and as close as possible. Raise up and move back a bit for a better overview of the model. Clamp the lights to chair backs or something similar a little higher than the tabletop. Place the first light to the right of the model at a 45ø angle and turn it on. Adjust the light and move it closer / further from the model so that it illuminates as much as possible. This is called the "main light". A special consideration with armor models is sufficient illumination of the tracks and suspension. A good lighting job will save Paul hours of unpleasant work in Photoshop cleaning up pictures of shadowy bogies.

Place the second light to the left of the model at a 45ø angle and turn it on. Move the light back until it illuminates the shadows caused by the main light at about a 1-2 ratio. In other words, these areas will appear half as bright as areas that the main light is shining on. This second light is called the "fill light". It illuminates the shadows without destroying the three dimensional appearance of the model.

Place the third light at a 90ø angle from the model and turn it on. Shine it on the backdrop to eliminate the shadow cast on the backdrop by the model. This is the "back light". Turn off all three lights.

Place the fourth light low behind the model at a 30ø angle and turn it on. Looking from the front of the model, adjust the light so that it causes a soft "halo" effect but does not shine into the camera lens. Double check this by looking through the camera. This is called the "key light". It highlights surface details on the model.

Now turn on all four lights. Focus the lens manually on a detail in the middle of the model (halfway back from the camera). Adjust the exposure so that you are shooting at f22 and any shutter speed. Grab the cable release, make sure no one is shaking the floor, and press the button. The shutter may take a moment to open and close, so make sure to stay still until you hear it shut. For successive shots, rotate the model, do not move the lights and camera.

That's it. Don't expect catalog photos on your first roll, learning lighting and composition does take practice. It is, however, a lot easier than it sounds and the setup is very simple once you get everything together. A word of warning- good photos will document any flaw. Never expect a model to "look better in the pictures". Still, you will gain confidence with experience, and learn how to make your models look their best.

Any questions will be happily answered if posted in the General Newsgroup.