LEGO Noir Photography

[Shtick]

Greetings all! I bought the Modular Detective Agency over New Year's, and decided it needed to be photographed. So I've created some film noir style scenes for you. Click the images for links to my flickr page, where you can view them larger. Hope you enjoy!

Ace Brickman, Private Detective

The Troubled Client

The Maltese Parrot

Searching the Alley

Damsel in distress, or femme fatale?

[Steckley]

Fantastic photos! Great lighting and composition. You've really captured the essence of the era and theme.

[Graham Gidman]

These are great!

[Cloveapple]

Wonderful. I especially love the way the sign on the window has a shadowy twin on the floor, and the exppression of the "troubled client."

Edited February 1, 2015 by Cloveapple

[lightningtiger]

One word.......AWESOME !

Simply the best B&W Lego photograph I've seen in a long time.........Brick On 'Shtick' !

[ER0L]

Very stylish, especially the shadow of the lettering on the floor is amazing, but my favourite is the Maltese, er, Parrot. A nice contrast to the rather colourful DO. Hopefully there'll be more stuff like this.

[Bookworm]

Great idea! The Detective's Office makes a really good background for Film Noir scenes.

[Shtick]

Thanks for all your comments and encouragement! It's inspired me to take some more shots. Here's round 2!

Al the Barber

Roughing up a witness

Johnny Blades

Eavesdropping on the plans

[King Andy]

Interesting and great pictures.

[gazumpty]

Really nice work and photography compositions! I will be following you on Flickr

[Steckley]

The second batch of pics is just as great as the first. I especially love Roughing Up a Witness. The look on his face says it all, and the iconic robber's silhouette is fantastic.

Are you using a macro lens for these shots? If so, what focal length? Are you using flash or continuous lighting or a mixture of the two? I'd love to see a behind the scenes pic of your setup.

[SalvoBrick]

Great work!

[Lady K]

These are very well done! You have really captured the feeling in each one!

[notaromantic]

Roughing up a witness

I like this, but it also kinda' disturbs me... It's my new desktop.

[Khaled Yousef]

Those photos are very artistic and creative. My favorite one is Searching the Alley. Great job.

[Shtick]

Thank you all so much! I am studying the building for more angles and scenes to create. I hope to have more soon.

...Are you using a macro lens for these shots? If so, what focal length? Are you using flash or continuous lighting or a mixture of the two? I'd love to see a behind the scenes pic of your setup.

The only shot I took with a macro lens was the Johnny Blades pic. And for that shot, I used my 50mm prime mounted backwards with a reversing ring, so it's not quite a true macro setup. The rest were shot with my standard 18-55 lens, with the focal length set close to the high end. No flash was used. I have a single key light (or "desk lamp", as it's commonly known), and occasionally some fill lights from around the room. For the alley pic, I used a commom food photography steam trick. Dip a cotton ball in in boiling water. Place the cotton ball behind your subject, and capture the rising steam.

Next time I take shots, I will grab a set shot showing the process. Glad you all like!

p.s. In case anyone asks about the Maltese Parrot, yes, it is one of the more rare black birds (only sold in one castle set in 1990), and yes, the tail has been shortened. But I bought it that way off Bricklink specifically for this purpose. And I did have to Kragle it to the 1x1 plates in order for it to stay properly.

[Steckley]

Thanks for answering my questions. Photography is a relatively new hobby of mine so seeing how others create their pictures is always a learning experience for me. That cotton ball trick is one I had never heard about.

I look forward to seeing more of your work