Welcome to the Doll

Mom lovingly preserved her vintage dolls and was thrilled that I wanted to photograph them. Among them was a Simon & Halbig 126. This doll seemed pretty creepy from the start and was ripe for upping the creep factor, pushing the capabilities of my Sony RX100 point ‘n shoot with time exposures and the camera’s built-in flash. All photos done in-camera.

A blurred image of a person with short hair, wearing a light-colored top, sitting on a bed or a soft surface, with a neutral background.

A blurred image of a person with short hair, wearing a light-colored top, sitting on a bed or a soft surface, with a neutral background.

A doll with a distressed facial expression, wearing a white dress, lying on a bed photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

A doll with a distressed facial expression, wearing a white dress, lying on a bed photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

Close-up of a doll's face with big eyes and a creepy smile, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

Close-up of a doll's face with big eyes and a creepy smile, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

A doll with brown hair, closed eyes, a creepy facial expression, and wearing a white dress with lace, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

A doll with brown hair, closed eyes, a creepy facial expression, and wearing a white dress with lace, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

Close-up of a vintage doll's face with painted features, blonde hair, and a cracked eye, lying on a white surface with shadows, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur. .

Close-up of a vintage doll's face with painted features, blonde hair, and a cracked eye, lying on a white surface with shadows, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur. .

A vintage doll with brown hair, large eyes, and a worried look, wearing a light-colored dress, on a bed, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur. .

A vintage doll with brown hair, large eyes, and a worried look, wearing a light-colored dress, on a bed, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur. .

An antique porcelain doll with a childlike face, short brown hair, dressed in a cream lace-trimmed dress, with visible chipping on its face and hand, on a bed, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a blur.

An antique porcelain doll with a childlike face, short brown hair, dressed in a cream lace-trimmed dress, with visible chipping on its face and hand, on a bed, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a blur.

A vintage doll with a large head, wide eyes, open mouth, wearing a lace-trimmed cream-colored dress and matching shorts, lying on a dark background.

A vintage doll with a large head, wide eyes, open mouth, wearing a lace-trimmed cream-colored dress and matching shorts, lying on a dark background.

A doll with brown hair and big eyes looking up at the camera. The photo appears to be taken through a translucent surface, creating a distorted effect, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a blur.

A doll with brown hair and big eyes looking up at the camera. The photo appears to be taken through a translucent surface, creating a distorted effect, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a blur.

Blurred image of a doll's face with distorted effect, creating a creepy image, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure with zoom blur.

Blurred image of a doll's face with distorted effect, creating a creepy image, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure with zoom blur.

A vintage baby doll with realistic features and brown hair, dressed in a light pink lace-trimmed gown, lying on its back on a bed, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a blur.

A vintage baby doll with realistic features and brown hair, dressed in a light pink lace-trimmed gown, lying on its back on a bed, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a blur.

A vintage doll with short hair and a creepy smile, wearing a light-colored dress, her hands as if flailing, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

A vintage doll with short hair and a creepy smile, wearing a light-colored dress, her hands as if flailing, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

A doll with brown hair, large eyes, and open mouth, wearing a white lace dress, lying on its side with hands raised, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

A doll with brown hair, large eyes, and open mouth, wearing a white lace dress, lying on its side with hands raised, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

Close-up of a vintage porcelain doll's face with short light brown hair and closed eyes, lying on a shadowy bed surface, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.

Close-up of a vintage porcelain doll's face with short light brown hair and closed eyes, lying on a shadowy bed surface, photographed with a combination of flash and time exposure to create a zoom blur.