Behind the scenes of Five Little Doves photography
As a family, photography plays a huge part of our lives. There isn’t a day goes by when I don’t take a photo of the children, be that a quick snap shot on my iPhone or a more professional shot on the “big camera”, but each and every photo captures a moment in time that one day we will look back on and treasure.
Over the last twelve months, as both Gaz and I discovered a new found love of photography, we realised that there is so much more to photography than simply capturing a moment in time. Because when the girls told us that they wanted to be Anna and Elsa, or Harry was desperate to walk with dinosaurs, when Megan wished to become Thor, and Eva yearned to ride a unicorn, we realised that actually photography can create a moment in time, a wonderful, fairy tale, magical moment, that turns dreams into a reality. And I guess that’s where we came up with the idea of Five Little Doves Photography.
Together, with a mixture of carefully stylised photography and Gaz’s genius like photo shop skills, we have been working on producing unique, custom designed creative photographs where both adults and children can become anything at all they wish to be.
There is so much more to our photography than simply super-imposing a figure, or face, onto a pre-designed background. Every design is completely bespoke and unique, every background is built from scratch starting with nothing more than a basic concept or idea, every element is carefully thought out and crafted in the finest detail, and the actual process, although time consuming, is worth it for the end result.
To give you a better idea of how the process goes, we thought we would take you behind the scenes and show you exactly how much goes into each and every photo. With Harry being obsessed with dinosaurs, and Gaz being a huge fan of Jurassic Park, it was the perfect starting point for our latest photo.
For those who are familiar with Jurassic Park, you will remember the infamous scene where the T-Rex bursts through the enclosure and terrorises the passengers of the automated convoy. As no such background exists, this had to be recreated from scratch. This required a combination of various images to build up the scene, starting with this dirt track.
To create the metal fencing we literally had to build it from scratch, one piece at a time, with scraps of metal, fencing and lights as seen in the following images.
Next up was the job of creating a tropical landscape with just a few images of palm plants and trees, combining and replicating them until the whole area was covered.
Creating the car was a little more difficult as although we had the image of an upturned car, it was not painted in the same colours as the iconic car from the movie. Using the Jurassic Park car as a reference, Gaz had to spray the upturned car in the same design, complete with dinosaur claw marks!
We then added in the dinosaurs – a diplodocus, a couple of escaped velociraptors appearing from the bushes and the star of the photo, a roaring T-Rex!
We then added in a few more elements such as the track for the car and the Jurassic Park sign, another nod to the film.
And then came the hardest part, how to photograph Harry! With him being just three it would be impossible to get him to pose in the right position for this scene in one shot, so this was done in three stages. The first was of him running, the second of him screaming and the third was holding up the signal flare….or in this case a rolling pin!!
We then combined the three shots to create the final pose.
Once that was done he then needed to be dressed in the right way for the scene – his shirt changed to blue, a neckerchief, hat and sturdy boots – to recreate the look of Sam Neill’s character from the movie.
Once the scene is created, it all comes down to using a variety of techniques to colour match and blend everything together. Additionally the photo needs the correct lighting, in this case moonlight, and the signal flare with the smoke billowing out. And after all of that hard work, the finished result was pretty spectacular, even if I do say so myself!!
Wow, just wow! I am loving your photos, they are so unique. I would absolutely love one of Pickle! Well done to you both. Kaz x
Thank you so much! xx
Omg these are awesome you guys are amazing
Ahh thank you Lisa! xx
These photos are incredible! I don’t even take quick snaps every day, let alone shots like this!
Ahh thank you. I love taking photographs and Gaz is very talented at creating these scenes with them! xx
These are absolutely fantastic! I’m sure it will be a great success! xxx
Thank you Nadia, I hope so! xx
Wow, that’s really impressive, Laura! You and Gas have done an amazing job and I’m amazed you created it all from scratch. xxx
Thanks Mel, I just hope that others think so too! xx
That’s freaking awesome!! I had no idea so much work went into it!!!
Ah thanks Louise, he is AMAZING at what he does, I’m just the wingman! xx
Coming back to this post again, I have a feeling you could create some awesome shots of my son doing amazing things in his wheelchair! I wish I had your talent! #KCACOLS
Thank you, I’m sure we could! xx
This is so impressive Laura, I’m sure you will both be very successful at it. You are amazing at what you do x
Thanks lovely, I do hope so. x
This is amazing Laura! You are both talented people and I wish you all the luck in the world on your new venture. xx
Thank you Laura, I really hope it takes off! xx
Stunning, absolutly stunning!
The photos look amazing and I didn’t realise the amount of time and effort it took to create such a photo either!
Ahh thank you Jaymee, it’s very time consuming! xx
Absolutely amazing . Al the pictures are stunning , both of you are talemted and have a brilliant idea . Wish you all the best and successful
Thank you so much! xx
This is awesome! Especially for the kids to be whom they ever want to be! I want to be a mermaid!!
It is amazing what we can do to manipulate a picture nowdays! Ad many others, I an to into photlgraphy but I have not quite yet taken it the next level.
Keep up with cool pictures and have fun!
http://www.familyearthtrek.com
Thank you so much! Yes my girls want to be mermaids too! Working on that one! xx
This is so amazing!!! #bigpinklink
Thank you! xx
I’m back again with #GlobalBlogging and I admit I went through all the photos again as I marveled at the skill level!
Ahh thank you Heather! xx
Absolutely live these (Especially as a HUGE fan of Jurassic Park!) – They are so different to the usual ‘photo of the child on the floor looking away from the camera’ type photos that a lot of places offer these days!
Thank you! I totally agree, my children want to be super heroes or riding unicorns, they don’t want to be sat against a white background looking fed up! I really hope that it takes off! xx
Omg these are stunning, what a great idea!!
Thank you Clare! xx
That is awesome and just made my rainy Monday morning! What a fantastic end result and so interesting to see what goes into it #bigpinklink
Thank you Alice, it was lovely to share what goes into it. xx
What a great way to inspire your children’s creativity and imagination!
Thanks Jess, I love making their dreams come true! xx
Oh those final images are so cool! I am sure is time consuming but so worth it in the end.
Thank you Rox, definitely worth it when it pays off! xx
Oh wow Laura, that’s so cool. I’ve seen your photos flashing up but hadn’t realised that you had done them yourself. Love the horse one! #Bigpinklink xx
Thanks lovely, I can’t take the credit really. Gaz is the main talent when it comes to this but it’s a joint thing we do and are wanting to make into a real business. Fingers crossed. xx
This is awesome and a lot of effort. #GlobalBlogging
Thank you! xx
These pictures are so fun! What a brilliant idea. #bigpinklink
Thank you! xx
Gaz is amazing at this! It must be so time consuming to make these – a lot of work clearly goes into them. I just wish we lived closer so we could have you make one for us (on a unicorn 😉 )
He really is amazing, I’m just his side kick googling photos of palm plants and dinosaurs!! Haha! Ahh if only…..maybe we will take Five Little Doves on tour! xx
I can imagine how much work and hour you put to create these photos. I have played with creating fantasy photos a few years ago and I know what it involves. Great work!
Thank you Joanna! xx
Wow these are fab, Gaz is clearly very talented and these are cool as they’re different to your usual family photos! 🙂
Great blog! x
Thank you Olivia, we love doing them and the kids do too! xx
What a fun project! Including your children must have been the best part. I’ve worked on professional photoshoots for my site and for other companies. And everyone thinks its just fun, but the truth is the end result is fun right? You have to enjoy the work otherwise it’s just another horrible chore.
Yes definitely! There’s a lot of hard work goes into that end result, I don’t think people see that part! xx
Oh wow. These photos are brilliant. You are very talented. It must have taken you forever but the end results are definitely worth it. Beautiful! X
My husband is the real whizz, I’m just his side kick. So much fun though! xx
Wow, I have hopeless with photoshop but this photo is amazing. Sebby is dino mad so would love this
Ahh if only you were closer Kara! xx
This is just AWESOME! I wish you were MY parents as I would have loved this! Actually, what kid wouldn’t love this! Im so going to show this to my sister as her youngest loves unicorns (they are sooo fluffy!) What a great idea for a gift too. Thank you for sharing how to make them. #BigPinkLink
Ahh thank you so much. We can’t wait to launch the business so we can do this for other people too. Just hope it pays off! xx
Oh wow that is absolutely amazing, how talented you are – I wish I could think up and create such amazing things.
Ahh thank you, that’s part of the fun coming up with the ideas! xx
Amazing
#bigpinklink
Thank you! xxx
Wow, what amazing photos you are obviously very creative and clever. My favourite is Megan becoming Thor #bigpinklink
Ahh I love that too Chloe! Thank you. xx
I like how your photography is not static. You’ve actually captured mood. You’ve created a wonderland. It is indeed a talent
Thank you so much Ingrid. xx
That is amazing, what a skill and talent! And what fab photos for your children.
Thank you Tori, hoping to have the business up and running soon! xx
Wow! Your photos are always gorgeous but these pictures are just amazing! I can’t even begin to imagine how much work has gone into them but it’s definitely paid off! #bigpinklink
Thank you! It takes a lot of time and effort but so worth it for the end result! xx
I’ve been following your photography venture on Facebook and the images are just amazing. Quite a talent Mr. Five Little Doves has there!
Thank you Emma, he’s AMAZING at what he does, he’s totally wasted in his day job! xx
Oh wow what an absolutely amazing idea!! #bigpinklink
Thank you! xx
Wow these look incredible – clearly requiring very technical skills. It’s very interesting seeing how an image is produced too 🙂
Thank you Helen, we really enjoy it! xx
Ahh this is such a fun idea!
My nephew would love to be photoshopped into a Jurassic Park scene 🙂
Dani x
Harry was over the moon with it! xx
WOW! These are amazing! You guys just took dressing up to a whole new level! #bigpinklink
Haha thanks Lucy! xx
That’s a lot of effort! They turned out amazing! It’s surprising to see how one photo was made by using a lot of different pictures and elements. Very cool. I’m just starting my journey into photography.
Thank you, we plan to do it as a business so it’s important to make sure every photo is perfect. xx
Wow! That is just amazing! I absolutely love the final photo its crazy how much work goes into it! Would love something like this for my boys bedroom! #Bigpinklink
Thank you Jade, it is time consuming but so much fun hunting out all of the bits and pieces! xx
Holy shit. Consider my mind blown.
#bigpinklink
Hahaha thanks Kristin! xx
These are fantastic. So much fun! I am just waiting for the Jurassic Park scene of the dude on the toilet…. #bigpinklink
Hahah I’ll get on it!! xx
Jurassic Park is one of my favourite movies and wow…you got the scene spot on! It’s perfect!
Thank you lovely! xx
These photos are amazing. I don’t think I could make anything close and my 2 year old has ants in his pants so never keeps still.
Ahh there’s no worries about keeping the kids still, we just take a series of photos and blend them together! Easy! xx
Damn you need to teach me how to use photoshop because I find it really hard! I love that you gave us a behind the scenes look at your photography and you are right it really does create a magical moment in time!
Thank you Ana, I learned all I know from Gaz, he is an absolute WHIZZ!! I’m just his side kick! xx
This is fantastic! I would love to have a photo of my grandson made this way! I had no idea that creating a photo like this is so labor intensive. Well, it came out perfect and would be a really good keepsake. Job well done!
Thank you! We are hoping to have the business up and running in the next few weeks! xx
Wow! That is something, so much of hard work is put in this whole process and the end result is mind-blowing! <3
Thank you so much Aditi! xx
Wish we can just learn the art so easily …. Even i have 3 year old kid and he love to be part of posters and imaginative situations .. Hats off to effort you put in to keep your kids happy .
Thank you! It’s lovely to see their faces when they see themselves in their dream scene! xx
Wow these are fantastic, do you do requests?! #bigpinklink
Yes we do! xx
Creative genius and I am awe as I am not great with photography of the most basic kind
Thank you Kate! xxx
WOOOOOOW this is sick, the final results are amazing!
Thank you Kristina! xx
Wow that’s a lot of stages for one photograph but it’s come out so well x
Thanks Rhian. We are hoping to go into business so it’s important we get it right! xx
Crikey, this is amazing! You have so much patience and creativity to create these scenes from scratch. Fantastic ideas too.
Oh wow, this is amazing! You definitely have a talent for this kind of photography and editing x
Thanks Stephanie! xx
This is fantastic and it’s amazing to see the amount of effort that is put into a single image! I don’t think people appreciate the workmanship that goes into it so it’s awesome to see it behind the scenes
Thank you Charlotte, it’s a lot of hard work but we are really enjoying it! xx
These photos are so fun and lovely to look back on. I love the horse one!
Thanks Ashleigh, it’s a unicorn! xx
I love your photography!! The ones you’ve superimposed on to movie scenes are so cute and fun and the one of the field after the storm is so atmospheric!
Thank you Ellie! xx
This is just brilliant. The end result is amazing but what I love about it is how much of a family effort it was. Your kids’ friends must be queueing up to get in on the act. #Bigpinklink
Thank you, we are hoping to have the business ready to go in the next couple of weeks so Im hoping there’s a queue at the door! xx
This is so cool & I feel it really helps to open the little ones creative minds! As I child my mind would run crazy just from movies! This is just AHMAZINGGGG!
http://www.nmdiaries.com
Thank you Nazrin! xx
This is way too cute not to admire. Indeed you are very talented. I am sure this really takes a lot of practice. Awesome work!
Thank you Anosa. xx
These shots are absolutely amazing. What a clever family you have it’s lovely seeing the idea and the finished result, well done x
Ahh thank you Lynne! xx
This is incredible! I had no idea the work that goes into creating a shot like that – I have to admit I thought Harry was just a super compliant child! You and Gaz are so great at this – you have just the right creative minds to dream up something that kids will absolutely love.
Hahah no way, he won’t stay still for two minutes!! I really hope that we can make a go of it! xx
I ruddy love photoshop and what it can do and you really have taken it to a whole new level. Simply stunning 🙂
Ahh thank you so much! xx
Incredible pictures you have a great talent it’s making me want to invest in a good camera and try my hand
Those are amazing, I hate doing my pictures. People think I just place my product down then take the picture but there is more to it like picking the right fabric or paper the product sits on then the lighting and weather I want extra elements in it like flowers
Definitely! I think it’s important to show the work that goes into it, especially when it’s a business and your prices have to reflect the work done! xx
Wow, these are amazing. The unicorn photograph is absolutely stunning. And it’s so interesting to hear how they were designed. I’m sure Little Miss H would adore one of these. Hugs Lucy xxxx
Ahh thank you Lucy! xx
You have really cottoned onto something here darling,
These images are absolutely fantastic & can really let children feel like they have experienced their wildest dreams.
I absolutely love checking out your images & these new ones are just brilliant x
Thank you so much! I really hope that others feel the same as we would love to make a real go of this. xx
That’s amazing! You are both very talented, if you need a local model, Lucas is here 😉
Thank you Jenni! Ooh Ill take you up on that! xx
These are fab! You’re so talented!
Thanks Sarah! xx
What talent, these piccys are very impressive and you both clearly put in a lot of handwork and effort and the proof is deffo in he end results 🙂 x
Thank you so much! xx
Oh wow! These are all so amazing. It sounds such a complicated and time consuming process but the end result is so worth it. I love the Jurassic Park and unicorn photos.
Thank you Helen, it’s so complicated, I leave most of it to Gaz! xx
My mummy is a graphic designer and does this kind of work full time. Its very time consuming but worth it 🙂 How do you get around the copyright issues? Good luck with the business and hope to see more of Gaz’s fine photoshop skills in the future 🙂
Other than the Jurassic Park sign (which we wouldn’t be able to use when we are charging as a business), all images aren’t copyrighted and are labelled for re-use. Because we hand draw a large part of each photo, there’s no copyrighting in place. xx
Oh wow!! This is incredible!! I have to learn atleast a bit of Photoshop soon!
Thank you! x
You had me at the white unicorns! Brilliant! I am so happy for you and the hubster, off on this new journey together! You will be so successful and make magical moments. Oh, and btw, welcome the #BIGPINKLINK <3 xoxo
Ahh thanks Lisa! Who doesn’t love unicorns?! Loving the pink link! xx
Popping by from #KCACOLS Lovely! xoxo
Thanks Lisa! xx
You photography is amazing, and I’d been wondering how you compose each shot! Thanks for showing us!
Thanks Gareth! xx
I really had no idea how you did it! So complicated but definitely worth the effort!
Thank you! xx
popping back from #bigpinklink , congrats on hosting!
Thank you! xx
These are amazing, I have not seen anything like them before. These will be amazing for the children to look back on when they are older xx
Thank you, they absolutely love them! xx
My nephew would be super thrilled if I took photos like these of him, Especially the one when he is being chased by a dinosaur 🙂
Yes our youngest was ecstatic about that! He loves dinosaurs! xx
these are awesome Laura! there is so much you can do with photos these days. I was looking at an app yesterday called Superimpose that lets you do similar with back and fore ground photos. very similar to photoshop but without the photoshop license! love the explanation too. it’s so doable, just needs a bit of time, patience and the right apps ! #KCACOLS
Thank you. Yes patience is a must!! It takes a long time and is so intricate too, but it’s worth it especially as we really want to make a go of this with a business. xx
Wooah this is amazing. What skills you have, I absolutely love this!
Thanks Nichola! xx
Wow these photos are so unique and different – you can literally be anything you want to be!
Thanks Amy, that’s the best part isn’t it?xx
I’ve loved seeing behind the scenes of your work. These really are magical and i’m sure lots of people will love them x
Thank you Stephanie. xx
Wow! These are amazing, You are both very talented. Love seeing being the scenes of how photos like this are created.
Thanks Amy, it’s a lot of fun! xx
I am very impressed by the look of these photos. I do not think I would be that good at the photo editing end but that’s amazing here.
Thanks David, my husband is the photo shop whizz! x
Ahh thank you Sadie! xx
So much thought has been put into your photography and the images look great! Keep up the good work! xo
Thank you Rachel! xx
Major skills! I can’t believe the end result! While reading all the steps it took, by far I am most impressed with changing colors of the upturned car and 3 shots of Harry combined into a perfect one! Congrats!
Thank you, much appreciated! xx
This is amazing and so different. The possibilities are endless. Our kids would love mermaids and dragons x
Ooh yes mermaids is next on the list! We’ve already done dragons! xx
I am amazed at this. Photo editing isn’t for the faint of heart. I would love to get back into it though. The Jurassic Park one is such a classic. Great job.
XO Via Bella Blog
Thank you, I agree, it takes a LOT of patience! xx
I truly love this handy post, so much so I have bookmarked it for point of reference.
Thank you! xx
What a fantastic set of photographs and thank you for showing us behind the scenes. I am fascinated by behind the scenes features on films and often like to watch them after films. I can’t help thinking that you could make these into blog headers too. #bigpinklink
My husband designed my blog header so that’s definitely something we are looking into! xx
This is amazing and so so so clever!! #bigpinklink
Thank you Louise! xx
Oh my goodness Laura, this is so clever. I have no idea about creating these kind of looks but I bet you’ve found a big gap in the market, all the best, Mich x
Thank you! I really hope it takes off! xx
Oh, wow! You guys are super talented. I would most definitely pay you to have some creative pics taken of the kids like this 🙂
Louise x
Ahh thank you Louise! xx
Laura this is just amazing and what a great idea. I love following your instagram feed you really do have a good eye for photography. I wish you good luck for your venture but I honestly don’t think you need it. xxx
Ahh thank you Natalie, I really hope that it takes off! xx
Oh. My. Word. How amazing are you!! And hubby of course! I didn’t even know half of this was possible. You have totally blown me away! I saw this pic on instagram the other day and it’s so amazing to read about what went into it – I look forward to seeing a few more on there! Thanks for linking up and hopefully we’ll see you next time too! #KCACOLS
Thanks Alex! My husband is the photo shop whizz, I just take the photos and he does the magic. I’m really hoping we can make a real go of it though! xx
These are just genius!!!! I love all the effort and work you put into making just one picture, but oh boy it is SO worth it. Fantastic work and I can’t wait to see further shoots!
Thank you Tanya! Much appreciated! xx
Woah woah woah, this is UNREAL!!!!! Those are some seriously godlike editing skills!!! I’m in awe… #bigpinklink
Ahh thank you so much Aleena! xx
That’s really cool! I bet the kids love them too! A lot of potential. #bigpinklinky
Thanks Dave! xx
Popping back over to witness your awesome. Thanks for linking up to #globalblogging
Ahh thank you Kristin. xxx
Ahh thank you Kristin. xxx