Meet Stefan

After last week #FeatureFriday around ginger tea, this week we’re back to coffee with our good friend and returner Stefan from Malmö.

About Stefan

My name is Stefan (@fubiken on Instagram ) and I am from Malmö, Sweden. I am a 47-year-old man, I don’t have photography as a job but as a hobby. What I mostly photograph is nature, macro, and toys of course. I have been taking photos for a long time, but it is in the last six or seven years that I have been taking it more seriously than before.

I have a Canon 6D Mark II, Canon 100mm macro L-series and a 24-15mm L-series with a closeup lens. And I also shoot with my iPhone 8+. For lighting, I use the Amaran AL-M9 portable LED-panel.

About six years ago, my oldest sister gave me a LEGO set with clone troopers as a birthday gift. (Mostly for fun, since I am a big Star Wars fan!) At that time I was mostly into macro photography. One day I took those troopers with me and had some fun photographing them. And so it started. Some time later, I attended the Stuck in Plastic toy safari in Vaxholm, Sweden. For the first time, I met other toy photographers. Now that was inspiration!

One reason why I love toy photography so much, is that minifigs stand still (most of the time) and I can control the light. I am not good at directing people so minifigs have become my way of photographing emotions as well as stories. You can do something happy and corny but also something dark like emptiness. One big plus is that you can always have some minifigs in your jacket ready to become your models.

Stefan and SiPgoes52

I got attracted to take part in SiPgoes52 because I had never done anything like this before. I thought it could be a good challenge and fun.

The best word for me was “Humanity”. I had an idea for the word but did not know how to take it. It became my first image where I used the computer screen as a backdrop. I have to say I am proud of the outcome. It was a step outside my comfort zone.

At the moment, I am really looking forward to the word “Responsibility”. I have an idea in mind of how I want the image to be. (And I have finally found a place to shoot it.)

I really aim to complete the challenge. So far, it has been fun and I’ve been testing what I can do. I’ve come to realize that sometimes, I rush the image instead of taking the time to step away a moment. I also learned a little how to use a screen as a backdrop.

But to tell you the truth: it has been sometimes hard, really hard.

That said I would recommend it to anyone because it gives you a challenge and something to do. Now that it is getting darker and darker outside it is good to have something to do to keep the spirit up.

Let’s thank Stefan for spending time with us! You can find him on Instagram at @fubiken.

stuckinplastic

Stuck In Plastic.

The creative collective of toy photographers.