Lego Photography

Lego photography or ‘Legotography’ is the process of creating and photographing Lego objects such as people, vehicles, action figures, structures, buildings, etc and turning these creations into fun photo stories.

There are different types of Lego photography such as Minifigure (minifigs), mini natural worlds, travelling mini-figs, natural bokeh etc.

Minifigure photography is the process of capturing one or more Lego figures and is normally snapped with a mobile or DSLR with a macro lens which is the most well-known form of Lego photography.

Mini natural worlds are the more common way to photograph Lego people in which the photographer takes advantage of natural light and locations to create a mini world for their subjects.

Travelling mini-fig photography is shot outdoors during the day or night but not always in a natural environment. Travel is a popular theme where custom minifigs are typically used as stand-ins for the photographer. Most of the time, you’ll end up with an out-of-focus skyline or monument if you have the minifig close to your lens, but it’s still a fun and easy way to document your travels and tie everything together thematically.

Natural bokeh is the process of using a minifigure isolated against an out-of-focus natural background instead of including details of the environment. These dreamy and whimsical photos are often taken with a macro lens or even a standard lens with close-up filters or extension tubes attached to increase magnification.

Lego photography has many photography learning advantages such as:

• Leads to a greater appreciation of the small things around us.
• You understand more about minimum focal distances and how to predict good background bokeh.
• Helps you to explore your surroundings beyond what you already know.
• Giving yourself little challenges to find cool shots will help your overall creative thinking process.

Lego photography also has many essential therapeutic advantages for children and adults who suffer from ADHD, ADD etc such as:

• Playing with Lego promotes social interaction, turn-taking skills, sharing, collaborative problem-solving and the learning of concepts.
• By using a commonly adored tool like LEGO it capitalises on its existing motivation and supports self-esteem by allowing the participants to demonstrate their skills in a social situation.
• Photographing Lego increases creative thinking, decreases stress, and depression and promotes well-being.
• Looking at our peers’ Lego photography can also help you learn more about yourself.

As mentioned, Lego photography is fun but also a trending photography genre that anyone can do with a DSLR or smartphone.

Before contemplating a Lego photography project it’s worth investing in a camera setup, that said, a smartphone or cheap DSLR is sufficient.

In addition, a lightbox, lighting, a macro lens, and a tripod are also beneficial but not a requirement if for example, you’re just looking at shooting Lego with a smartphone.

Camera settings.

Every camera is different, but the following tips may help you get better photos. If you usually shoot photos in “Auto” mode, you may need to consult your camera manual to take advantage of these tips.

1. Use a Tripod and remote shutter. Without a tripod, your camera is forced to make trade-offs to keep the picture from being blurry. A remote shutter is important too – just the small wiggle from pressing the shutter button will prevent a perfectly sharp photo from being possible.
2. Use the lowest ISO. Modern cameras can take a bright photo in a dark room. It does this by rounding up a small amount of data coming from the camera sensor, and this results in a lot of “noise” in the image which is especially visible if you zoom in. You want to use the lowest ISO setting, usually “100” to eliminate this noise.
3. Use a high Aperture. A low aperture value (ex: f2.8) will have a narrow range of distances from the camera lens “in focus” at the same time. (This is called the focal plane.) A higher aperture (ex: f10) will have a “deeper” section of the photo sharp and “in focus”. You will need to find the right value to put as much of your model in crisp focus as you need. You may be tempted to crank the aperture to the highest number (ex: f25), but most camera lenses lose quality at both extremes of their capability so you should find the lowest value where everything is in crisp focus.
4. Use Manual focus. Manual focus is essential for the crisp focusing of smaller, still-life objects. This is still relevant with a very high aperture if you want to get the best possible photo.
5. Use a Macro Lens or a telephoto. If your camera is an SLR, you can swap the lenses. A Macro lens is best for most small LEGO projects, although a telephoto lens used from partway across the room can be effective too. A longer lens (100mm or higher) will reduce the foreshortening effect which causes far-away objects to appear smaller than nearby ones. You want some perspective in your photo, but too much can be distracting.

Conclusion

Lego photography is fun, creative and unique and applies to all ages young and old.

Lego photography leads to a greater appreciation of the small things around us and helps us to understand more about minimum focal distances and how to predict good background bokeh.

It’s also worth noting that Lego photography is stimulating and rewarding for children and adults who suffer from ADHD, ADD and Avoidant Personality Disorder.

Furthermore, you don’t need to be a pro or social media guru to shoot Lego photography. All you need is a creative mind, a mobile phone, some homemade backgrounds, Lego, and natural light are all that’s required to shoot cool Lego figure shots for social media or printing.

So, what are you waiting for?