Here we are again with a collaborative storytelling: we formed a team of photographers who had to shoot sets from a selection belonging to a specific theme and build a single story or two distinct stories, but in any case, there should be something in common that could connect them in some way.
The sets chosen were:
City 60460 Race car ramp and the car packs 60459 Airplane vs Hospital bed and 60458 Pizza vs Fire truck.
We invited our mod edgy_mando and startrevlegos to tell us their story.
After many ideas and considerations, they decided to go with similar phases of the race and a common funny unforeseen event. Here is the story they created!
Edgy_mando
Catch the Pirate!
Thank you Brickcentral, for sending me these amazing sets and for the opportunity to collaborate with startrevlegos! It’s been an incredible adventure creating a fun story I had in mind from the very beginning, ever since Marco (@the_aphol) proposed the collaboration. Pirates and City are two of my favorite themes, so I absolutely had to combine them into one story. I’m really glad it was Trevor I got to work with to present two different perspectives on the race – it was pure joy creating content with you for the LEGO photography community!
The Story
Preparations for the great No Limits race are underway! The racers are working up a sweat as they prep their wacky race cars. As every year, some well-known drivers have shown up – including the legendary pirate steering wheel master, who’s cooking up a special kind of fuel hidden in a barrel of rum.
The racers are ready at the starting line. They’re clenching their teeth, engines are roaring and the tension is rising faster than the air pressure in the pizzaman’s tires. Even the toilet guy looks like he can’t wait for the race to start! Ready? GO!
They’re off with screeching tires and honking horns! The number one rule of this race? No rules! The hot dog just squirted ketchup straight into a rival’s face and the crowd is howling with laughter. This is only the beginning of this ridiculous rivalry!
The road pirate took it literally – his barrel of rum-fueled power gave him such a boost that the police officer was left speechless. Concerned, the officer didn’t waste a second and joined the chase.
Fun fact: In Poland, dangerous drivers are literally called “road pirates”.
Meanwhile, the first racers reach the ramp. For some it’s a challenge, for others… a runway! The airplane pilot didn’t even slow down, majestically soaring above the competition and leaving them in his wake.
It’s not always about fierce rivalry on the track. In this race, alliances can come in handy – especially when serious obstacles appear. Just remember: don’t call the fire department if you run out of toilet paper!
The chase for the pirate continues and the crowd is going wild! This duo has won the audience’s hearts. It seems the police officer has become the new fan favorite. But does he even realize he’s now part of the race?
The pirate clearly came prepared for everything and pulls a fish out of his pocket – activating his sneaky Plan B! Drawn by the smell, a granny’s dog takes off after it, darting right in front of the police car. The officer slams the brakes, falling behind.
The final stretch! The race turns into a full-blown action movie showdown. In the very last second, the police officer overtakes his rival, leaving the pirate with a face like he just lost his treasure!
What a race! Nobody in the stands – not even the officer himself – expected such a finish. Now it’s time to celebrate this crazy day with an awards ceremony… and a speeding ticket!
startrevlegos
Occupational Hazards
Thank you so much BrickCentral and Marco (@the_aphol) for sending me these sets to photograph! I am so excited to participate in this collaboration with my pal edgy_mando.
For my LEGO City Race Car story, I thought about what style of racer each character would be. The wild patient is all banged up for a reason, and the pilot can almost fly. But of course the pizza guy still gets there the fastest!
There is a toilet car included here, so hopefully it’s no surprise there is some silliness along the way: The plumber puts his plunger to use several times. A little dog has big eyes for a bigger dog. And the unexpected entry of Han Solo may have proved dangerous to his safety…
These little racers are so fun to play with and to photograph. My kids and I loved zooming the racers down the ramp, so I tried to show some of that movement by adding spinning wheels and motion blur in photoshop.
The Story
All tuned up
Rogue racer
Racers get ready
Downhill dog
Give me that back
A little help?!
Solo spotted in the lead
Too sharp turn
Pizza delivery!
All together now
Behind The Scenes
edgy_mando
In addition to crafting an exciting story, I wanted to showcase all the sets properly. For that, I needed an interesting setting, and besides modular buildings that made up a large part of the background, I also used loose bricks – tires, barriers, wall elements, and so on. A race wouldn’t be complete without spectators either. I created a mix of many minifigures, which also worked perfectly as background characters in many shots.
Photographing larger indoor scenes with wide framing can often be a challenge. To light the streets of the entire setup properly, I decided to take some photos using daylight, supported by LED lamps – this helped me achieve a fairly natural light and shadow effect. As always, a tripod was an incredibly helpful tool, allowing me to freely experiment with shots from a variety of perspectives.
startrevlegos
It was very rainy here for the last month so my hopes of shooting these sets outdoors more were dashed, and I decided to complete this project indoors. Most of the time I like to keep my work space clean and organized. And for a while I did. But there were so many cars, characters, traffic lights, signs, and lamp posts in the sets that once I added spectators… it became a lot to move around.
I typically photograph single characters and sets, so the biggest challenge for me was trying to decide whether to fit everyone in a single shot, or to focus on a few characters. In the end, I did a bit of both.
I started out pretty organized, but this is what my work space looked like ¾ of the way through shooting… One of the most fun things about the 60304 Road Plates is how interchangeable they are. I was able to make a ton of different configurations based on where I needed stoplights, crosswalks, etc. But that also meant the constant movement of signs, trees, and lampposts and things got a little messy near the end.