40412 Hagrid and Buckbeak Brickheadz Review

There are over 100 different Brickheadz characters from Lego now, and two of the newest came in a gift with purchase offer: Hagrid and Buckbeak from the Harry Potter line. Not knowing the source material very well, I fully expect to offend people with wildly inaccurate interpretations of character and plot in this review! Here…

#inthestyleof Brick Sailboat: Almost There

Brick Sailboat’s style is more than just low angle composition techniques, but it is a dominant feature, so that’s where I am going to start for my first entry. Setup and Environment I had planned an outdoor shoot on the top of the brownstone building so I could get some blue sky in my scene…

Beginner Tips: Learning Camera Controls with LEGO

Shooting minifigs with a phone is fun and easy but at some point, you may want more creative control than what a fixed lens and small sensor can offer you. If you’re ready to start shooting with a mirrorless or DSLR camera but have no idea where to start, then I’ve got just the thing…

Behind the Scenes: Maiko in the Rain

There are many techniques minifig photographers can use to separate the subject from the background. The most common techniques are using a shallow depth of field, where just the minifig is in focus but the foreground and background are completely out of focus; and color, where the minifig stands out because of a dominant color….

Pumpkin Spice Latte: Modified Bean There, Donut That 40358

When news first hit Reddit about a new LEGO set that was exclusive to US megastore Target, I scratched my head and wondered why anyone would drop $20 for “Bean There, Donut That”, a simple build with rather dull minifigures and unremarkable accessories. I also wondered why the set had a barista since clearly, it’s…

Behind the Scenes: Stroboscopic Dancer

Ever since I saw Joe McNally capture the sequence of a dance in a single long exposure several months ago, I have been aching to try the technique myself. The advanced technique Joe used is called stroboscopic flash, or repeating flash in some other camera systems, and involves using an off-camera flash to light the…

#inthestyleof Konstantin: The Wizard

I love shooting in the dark. It’s probably my favorite time to take photos since I am undisturbed by kids, dogs, phones and life in general. Ok, it’s my favorite time for everything since I am quite the introvert and really prefer focusing my energy on just one thing. Konstantin’s challenge was all about light…

Behind the Scenes: Konstantin

One of the most playful and creative photography techniques I have ever experimented with is light painting. The idea is pretty simple: hold a light source in your hand and guide it through the frame while the camera’s shutter is left open for a long time to capture the trails of light. I taught this…

#inthestyleof Foolish Bricks: The Grave Robber

I have to admit that I really look forward to the editing part of my photography workflow. Because I shoot in RAW, it’s also a necessary part. In general, I like knowing how things work and tweaking them so being able to edit what the camera sensor really captures versus what the camera processes as…