Well, here we are, folks! The final podcast episode of 2018. It’s a big one too, because I interviewed a truly influential toy photographer and a personal hero of mine: Vesa Lehtimäki , aka @Avanaut.

Vesa was one of the first toy photographers I ever discovered. Once I looked at what he was able to do with LEGO Star Wars minifigures, I was hooked. One thing I’ve learned while interviewing toy photographers from around the world is that I’m not alone: Vesa’s work has inspired and influenced many of the guests and listeners of this podcast.

You Should Meet Your Heroes

I admit that I was nervous about interviewing him, but that went away once we started up the Skype video chat. Not only did I get to actually see this photographer I’ve followed and looked up to for nearly 10 years, but he kept leaving his desk and coming back with things to show me. A storybook he made with Star Wars minifigures that led to his actual book, Small Scenes from a Big Galaxy. A model he’s working on, and the gigantic, beautiful, incredibly detailed Y-Wing model he’s built but is having trouble photographing.

Vesa and I had a great time talking about his history and process, what he loves about Hoth and Star Wars, and how he’s always looking for new ways to push his limits and discover new work.

You can find Vesa on Flickr, Instagram, and Facebook, and I highly recommend his book, Small Scenes from a Big Galaxy. He’s also written for the blog, you can find his articles here.

“Under the Bridge” by Vesa Lehtimäki

See You in 2019!

I want to thank each and every one of you for listening to this show. This is our last episode of 2018, and I can’t help but feel nostalgic about what a year it’s been. When I started this show, I had no idea how it would turn out or be received. Now, I couldn’t be more proud of these 42 episodes and the amazing listeners like you.

Thank you for supporting this show, and thank you to all of the guests from around the world who took the time to sit down with me over Skype and talk about toys, open up about their process and tell their stories. I truly think of this opportunity as a gift. I appreciate you all, and am so excited for the year to come.

I’ll be taking a couple of weeks off, but will return with a fresh batch of episodes in January. Until then, happy holidays, Happy New Year, and thank you for listening! See you in 2019.

-James

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“Brook Driver” by Vesa Lehtimäki