Open Theme nominee

Miniature figures were what I turned to when embarking on a project to explore my child-like mind. When I say small mini figures, we are talking roughly a half-inch tall. I first produced a version of this portfolio in 2015 under the idea of lightening my load. It is about being playful, and happy, and not being so serious all the time. It is based on the silly thought of; What if bugs were the size of livestock and we road them around for transportation? Over the last 4 years, I have toyed with the idea of turning the images into a children’s picture book. Recently an idea sparked my minds and I dove fully into recreating the story with these mini-figures to turn into a book for kids.
In the portfolio Bug Transport, A small boy wakes up and overhears his parents speaking of Bugs and driving them to some friends. What the boy does not know are the bugs his parents spoke of were the names of cars from long ago. When the boy falls back to sleep he dreams of people driving bugs for transportation.

Todd Bradley
Todd Bradley (1970, Detroit, USA) is a contemporary photographer currently residing in San Diego, and Palm Springs California. His work concentrates on nature, and urban decay. Often showing quirkiness, Todd’s aesthetic focuses on detailed features, demonstrating new perspectives to ordinary objects in still time. Classic photographers Karl Blossfeldt, Edward Weston, and Robert Mapplethorpe undoubtedly have influenced Todd’s work with their clean lines, geometry in nature, and use of negative space. Todd brings freshness in his whimsical compositions and subject matter.
For personal projects Todd turns to diorama toy photography. It’s about keeping his child-like mind active and creative. It’s about lightening his load. It’s about being playful, and happy. And not being so serious all the time. David Levinthal, Lori Nix, And Mathew Albanese are all inspirations when it come to this close macro work.
Todd has exhibited in numerous group shows world-wide including the See/Me Awards the Louvre, Paris; the Fort Wayne Museum of Contemporary Art; Camera USA, Florida; The Center for Fine Art Photography, Colorado; He’s been awarded the Bronze Award by FAPA, London for his work on the Salton Sea. He’s received two honorable mentions from the Monochrome Photography Awards and IPA awards.
www.toddbradleyphotography.com