A force to be
reckoned with
Gary Rivers reveals the techniques behind his action
figure recreations of Star Wars and other movies7 | TOY PHOTOGRAPHYf/4 1/4
secISO
100ary Rivers came to photography
through a lifelong interest in
action figures. His Instagram
feed is a feast of meticulously
staged cinematic shots – some recreating
film scenes, some wholly new.What led you to become
a toy photographer?
I had a very active imagination as a child,
which still continues today. Some of my
earliest memories were receiving Star Wars
figures for Christmas. From a very young
age, I’ve always loved action figures, and
I’ve never really stopped collecting them.
Then Instagram came along; it was
easy to find groups of like-minded people.
I initially used the platform to show off my
toy collection. I eventually started to see
more and more people photographing their
figures outside, or posed in a diorama to
look like a real scene. When I started, many
people were just using their phone cameras
and lots of different editing apps to make the
toys come alive. And I think that’s the whole
point of toy photography: to breath life into
our toys and to tell a story with them.
Many toy photographers began upgrading
to DSLR cameras and I soon craved one
myself, as the phone camera was really
showing its limitations. After doing a little
research, I purchased a Canon 700D
with a kit lens, and it took my hobby
to the next level.How do you go about designing and
building your sets?
My sets/dioramas are used for the sole
purpose of photographing the figures, so I
try to think about how I can get the most use
out of them, but also keep them practical
for shooting. I’ve mostly created dioramas
based on the locations in the Star Wars
films. My most effective ones are made
from simple materials like foam board,
filler and paint.What do you use for your special
effects, like lasers and lighting?
I use a mixture of special effects depending
on the result I want. If I’m shooting indoors,
good lighting is essential, but it doesn’t have
to be fancy. With a lot of the more sci-fi type
shots I do, and since I only use my iPhone for
editing my photos, I like to use a variety of
apps that can add lens flares or laser beams.
I have used practical effects in the past.
Simply throwing dirt with a high shutter
speed or burst mode can yield great results.Do aspiring toy photographers need
specialised lenses like macro to begin?
I would say you don’t actually need any
specialised lenses to begin with. Like I said,
I started by using my phone camera. Apart
from the kit lens, I did purchase a relatively
cheap Canon 50mm f/1.4 lens. The shallow
depth of field it provides is fantastic for
focusing on the smaller figures.What inspires you to carry on creating?
Collecting figures is a never-ending hobby.
New ones are being released all of the time,
and there’s such a diverse range to choose
from nowadays. They are starting to look
very realistic, too.
The toy photography community has
grown so much over the past few years,
and everyone is so supportive of each other.
I’ve made some lifelong friends through
toy photography, and it drives me to
continue to be creative every day.What were the early challenges you
faced, and how did you combat them?
When I first started out, I didn’t have any
lighting, dioramas or photography gear. I
was very limited with what I could do – but
I still had a big imagination. I used to take30 DIGITAL CAMERA^ APRIL 2020 http://www.digitalcameraworld.com
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