Mitchel Wu Toy Photography Behind the Scenes: Flintmobile Pursuit

Here's quick BTS on my Flintmobile being pursued by a huge, monstrous hand. I photographed it in my backyard, where I actually create a lot of my images, and it's fast become one of my most popular images ever.  I think it's because of a few factors - first, the Flintmobile is simply a really cool toy (from Hot Wheels).  Second, there's a really fun story behind it.  And third, the practical effects of the water splashing just adds a big wow factor to the image.  This video and the following still photos will give you a good glimpse into how I created this image.

This is the final setup before I added the water splashes. A lot of time went into this setup to determine how I wanted the image composed, and how I wanted the action to unfold. Direction of light and how the water sat on the patio were also considerations.

I use compressed air to create water splashes. Or you can just blow into a straw for a similar effect.

And the final image! As always, posing is critical. Finding the most effective position and posing of the monster's hand (AKA the Rancor) took a considerable amount of time and effort. How should it be positioned to tell the story? How can I position the hand to achieve the strongest composition, one that gives the image a compelling flow? How will it read best as a hand? How much focus should be on the hand? These were all considerations when posing and positioning the hand.

I created this image using the Canon 5D Mark III paired with the Canon 135mm f/2L - ISO 800, f/2 at 1/2000 sec. You need to shoot at a higher speed like this if you want to capture and freeze the fine details of the splash. The camera was mounted on my Manfrotto 055 Carbon Fiber tripod. Thank you to my sponsors at Manfrotto, Spider Holster and Lowepro camera bags.