Miniature Mentor releases The Complete Guide to Photographing Miniatures with Felix Wedgwood

[bagelman1952]

Ok, well as they say in Dragon's Den I'll tell you where I am. I will not be purchasing your video because I am not sure I appreciate the way you have responded to comments on here. None of the members here who have made comment today have actually slated either your video or the photographer or any part of your enterprise. In fact some have been very complimentary and wished you luck. Others have simply made observations on the subject matter and the level of the subject matter and what is available elsewhere. You have repeated the lighting issue in every one of your responses and stated that we are all uninformed experts. I am certainly not an expert or uninformed and I am out

 

[housecarl]

I'll ask the all important question.
What's the video going to cost, if I missed that, I apologise?
Carl.

 

[Meehan34]

I'm going to get it. Miniature mentor has some great tutorials that are very well made and loaded with tons of tips.

 

[BigDaddy]

Cost of the camera is really insignificant. You can buy several DSLR's or point and shoots with the capability to adjust the shutter speed or aperture for a few hundred bucks. They will do fantastic work. If all you do is post photos megapixels don't really matter. For print, you may need some more horsepower- I did a photo that was on the front cover (8x11") of a magazine with a 3.2 mp camera. Used dslr's are cheap. You can get a digital rebel for under $300. Its the application of the tools- lighting and settings that make a difference.

 

[brian]

HOW MUCH???
Brian

 

[FigureLover]

Dont get all caught upon brands and price of cameras, just get what you can afford. All my photos are taken on a (over) 10 year old 4 mega pixel point and shoot camera, phones these days have over double this as basic. Photography is all in the way that you utilise the camera functions and setup of lighting. Its no different than paint brushes and paints, you can pay as much or as little as you want, but if you cant use them to their fullest then there is no use.
I think that this DVD will be very helpfull to those wanting to push their photography to the fullest and get some great tips on the way. I take pride in the photos that I take of my kits, not as much as the kits themselves, but almost.
This DVD will have more than most will ever use or need, but then again I also buy painting DVD's and magazines that do exactly the same thing, no difference really!!!!!
Ben

 

[Bailey]

Looks like downloading the course is $25. According to the website they plan to also offer it on DVD but that option isn't available yet so I can't see what the cost would be.

Alternatively you can buy a membership to their website for $70 plus $8 each month after the first. This will give you free access to all of their courses.

 

[housecarl]

Looks like downloading the course is $25. According to the website they plan to also offer it on DVD but that option isn't available yet so I can't see what the cost would be.

Alternatively you can buy a membership to their website for $70 plus $8 each month after the first. This will give you free access to all of their courses.

I'll stick with my crap photos.
It's all about priorities, and that's a hell of lot of resin.
Good luck with it all the same,
Carl.

 

[stu]

I would have thought for $25 that the info contained would help anybody who is serious about showing their work to others improve. Most people always say "excuse the crap photos" so why not do something about it. Most of the time its not the camera its the lighting and the angle etc.

I really dont get it, i would have thought this was the answer to a lot of peoples problems rather than trawling the net. unless you got a shed load of time to do so.

From a manufacturers point of view, if you take bad photos , no matter how good you are your not gonna get many calls as its the photos we need.

Maybe the producers should upload a small clip here and then we can see whats on offer

Stuart

 

[jcichon]

Well I have a painting tutorial from Minature mentor and I really enjoyed it. I know their quality is great and it covered everything on the figure. I am hesitant to buy this particular tutorial because I have a simple point and shoot Canon A2200. If that would work then I would probably buy it

 

[DEL]

I would have thought for $25 that the info contained would help anybody who is serious about showing their work to others improve. Most people always say "excuse the crap photos" so why not do something about it. Most of the time its not the camera its the lighting and the angle etc.

I really dont get it, i would have thought this was the answer to a lot of peoples problems rather than trawling the net. unless you got a shed load of time to do so.

From a manufacturers point of view, if you take bad photos , no matter how good you are your not gonna get many calls as its the photos we need.

Maybe the producers should upload a small clip here and then we can see whats on offer

Stuart

Fair do's Stu and points well made.
Looked on their site and there is a small preview (not great) of one of the painting tutorials.
I have to say that there are one or two on their list that Iwould be interested in but only as a DVD and these are not available yet.
As to photography for me its when softwear is used to significantly enhance painting that I have a problem. I don't have an issue with the hardwear.
Cheers
Derek

 

[miniaturementor]

thanks for the kind words stu!

Jason - when we decided make this tutorial we had a few goals in mind.

1. That it would be for everyone with little or no budget and that it would not require a huge investment in equipment. However, we did not simply want to omit these things - that would be too easy. We wanted people to be able to really understand why those things are important and what they actually do to the quality of the final photograph. So in the end we created a tutorial that covers almost everything you could want to know and is presented a la carte style - you take what you like and leave out what you don't. Numerous times Felix says "this is just one way of doing things and I encourage you to experiment". In the end we show you how to use your existing equipment to take great photos.

With your existing equipment and a small investment of around $50 you will get 90% of the way to incredible photos. But, photography is a lot like miniature painting - it's relatively quick for a painter to get to a good result but it takes two,three, maybe four times as much time and effort to go the final 10% and make something truely incredible. Felix goes all the way to 100% but we don't enforce it on people who are okay with 80% or 90%.

2. That it had to be taught by a highly regarded professional who did similar work for major clients. Since the world is short on professional miniature photographers we went to the next best thing - small product photography. Felix was very reluctant at first to do this project but we convinced him that it was a worthy cause.

3. That the setup was a one time, one stop, workhorse setup that didn't need to be retweeked for every miniature. Essentially, once it's up you never had to bother with it again.

4. That the photographs had to look great out of the can (all in-camera enhancements off). And most importantly that the colors were as pure and true to the original as possible and that the "drama" of the lighting was kept to a minimum.

So Jason, you can see the video is made with you and your camera in mind.

Cheers!

 

[jcichon]

Well I am sure I will get it then. I got Laurents video and it was really well done and I still fb him with questions from time to time and he is kind enough to help. So for anyone out there considering the tutorials, I would recommend them as the quality is top notch and very in depth.

 

[Einion]

However, if you insist on speaking as an authority on something you haven't seen, then that is your own perogative.

Exactly like you did dismissing what's available online. Look we get it that you have a vested interest here, but sheesh.

Einion

 

[fmargem]

I´ve taken a look at the website and could´t find the download link. . .

 

[miniaturementor]

fmargem - try deleting your cache and reloading the page.

 

[Mirofsoft]

Hello Friends
Yes I took picture of my figures in the past ( 30 years ago ) with a complex analogic camera with lenses and macro rings and filters and.... .... ( costing at that time 500€ that would make today 4 to 5000€ ) end add to that the cost of each picture, good or bad, you had to wait days to see that what you got was.. a disaster .
Today you have digital cam, cheap, including close caption ( macro is for taking pictures of flies' sized objects ) check the advert : close caption < 8cm with optical zoom possibilities , a stand, a colored sheet for background, close to your window for natural light and it's OK, you have good enough quality to parttake your work with friends on the net . 250€ invetment is enough today . AND don't hesitate to take 10 or 20 pictures of the same spot point with a light on the backroung or with ... or with... each picture cost is 0€, it's digital remember no developing , no.. no... no... and the result is immediate .
But now, it's always a plus to learn tricks from experienced peoples .

 

[billyturnip]

I would suggest a copy of the tutorial was given to a member of the forum to do a review in the same way a manufacturer would give a model kit.

Roger.

 

[Jim Patrick]

Geeeez, this seems to be a lot being made over nothing. You want the course? Great, buy it. You don't? Great, don't buy it. It really is that simple guys.....

On another note, I did jus purchase the photography course (as well as the painting course) but seem to be having trouble with the down loading. Can someone help me please?

Jim Patrick