TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography

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Toy Stories – The Wombles

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Tobermory, a Womble making good use of the things that he finds on Wimbledon Common.

Icons of British children’s TV, The Wombles.

Pentax K3 in the studio – Sarah

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Pentax K3 Shoot Model Sarah Watkins, MUA Summer Johnson

Sarah was the second model for the shoot with the new Pentax K3. Although it was a cold wintry day, she brought a warm summer glow to the image, and a simple desk fan was all we needed to get her hair in flight.

Pentax K3 in the Studio – Brylee

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Pentax K3 Shoot Model Brylee Williamson, MUA Summer Johnson

The new K3 digital SLR camera just arrived from Pentax, and I’ve been asked to shoot some images for an exhibition next year. Thought I’d start with some shots in the studio, so invited over makeup artist Summer Johnson along with Brylee, Sarah, Tomoko and Yuki to see what we could create.

Camera: Pentax K3
Lens: Pentax smc DA* 55mm 1:1.4 SDM

Lighting – White background. Octabox as main light, medium size softbox low as fill both powered by Profoto Pro-7a. Two profoto compacts aimed at backgound . Strobes triggered with PocketWizards.

If you’d like to see a full resolution file of this image then I’ve put one up on Flickr. As you can see, you don’t have to have a full frame sensor to produce images with great detail and natural gradations in tone.

Toy Stories – Matchbox Cars

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Matchbox Die-cast Toy Cars

Matchbox die-cast cars made by Lesney Products were produced from 1953 in the United Kingdom. The earliest models were distributed by Moko (as shown on the center box), and they usually lacked windows and interiors. By the end of the 1960s Matchbox would be the most popular brand of toy cars in the world.

Matchbox Die-cast Toy Cars – #5 Routemaster Red Double Decker Bus

Matchbox Die-cast Toy Cars – #44 Silver Cloud Rolls Royce

Matchbox Die-cast Toy Cars – #12 Land Rover Safari

Toy Stories with Alexis

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Alexis

I met Alexis a few weeks ago when her mother, Molly, participated in a couple of my photography workshops. Along with the product shots of classic toys, I thought it would be fantastic to get some images of the toys being played with, and I knew exactly who to ask.

Raggedy Ann

Pop up Pirate

Etch a Sketch

Glo Worm

Beanie Baby

View Master

Care Bear

Furby

Coca-Cola Serving Sizes (and an unusual pricing system)

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Coca-Cola Can Sizes in Japan: 160ml 250ml 350ml 500ml

There are four can sizes for Coca-Cola in Japan. The standard can is 350ml and usually sells for around 120 yen (US$1.20). Interestingly, the 500ml can has 150ml free so is the same price, but they are often sold side by side. On the platforms for bullet trains, coke is sold in the slimline 250ml cans at, you’ve guessed it, 120 yen. The 160ml mini cans are available in some supermarkets for around 60 yen. Mini cans are clearly an excellent choice allowing you to save money, reduce calories, and pretend you’re Andre the Giant.

Hot Wheels – faster, brighter and made in the USA

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Ford J-Car and Hot Heap, Hot Wheels die-cast toy cars by Mattel 1968

While working on this project to photograph classic toys it’s been interesting learning about how something as simple as the die-cast car evolved. The market was first dominated by British brands like Dinky, Matchbox, and Corgi. Then in 1968 Mattel introduced Hot Wheels, which made the cars from the other side of the pond look literally dull.

Spectraflame paintwork was created by applying transparent lacquer to a polished zinc plated casting. The eye-catching result was unlike anything done previously. Beauty, however, was fleeting. In 1973, due to issues with lead paint, the lacquer based Spectraflame was replaced by enamel.

COWABUNGA dude!

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Leonardo

Another toy icon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figure Leonardo (1988) by Playmates.

Christmas Deadline for Prints – December 15th

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Snow Monkey Hug

If you’d like to give one of my prints as a Christmas gift, then the deadline for ordering is December 15th. Worldwide express shipping with tracking is fast, reliable, and included in the price, but I like to have 10 days as the postal services around the world can get a little busy during the holiday season. Check out all the prints available on the TRAVEL67 website.

Rising Sun

There are three new prints also available: Shuri Castle, Torii & Lantern, Cape Manza. They are not up on the website yet, but if you’d like to order one of these just send me a message and I’ll be in touch.