Using Photoshop to Make Props for Period Films (and Field Trip)

Richard Adkins will show you how Photoshop is used to make or modify props for the entertainment industry. The evening includes a tour of the premises.

Location and Parking

History For Hire, Inc. is a property house for the entertainment industry, manufacturing and renting props since 1985. Initially established as a military costume company, History For Hire made its mark costuming “Platoon” in 1986. Soon after, the firm expanded to other kinds of hand props. The company purchased the hand prop collection of Paramount Pictures, necessitating the move to its current location in North Hollywood. The company specializes in the fields of music, military, moviemaking equipment, and broadcasting equipment. The company’s props have been seen in That Thing You Do, The Four Seasons, Ray, Hail Caesar, American Horror Story, Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull and many others. The company provided period props for the television series Madmen, American Dreams, Carnivale and Masters of Sex.

Parking is free in History for Hire's own big lot.

Meeting Notes

By Alvin Takamori

Before all the holiday madness, the Los Angeles InDesign User Group went on a field trip to North Hollywood to visit the facilities of History For Hire. They are a family business that started out as a military costume company and grew into a warehouse filled with props for rent. Their props have been used extensively in the movie and television industry. However, if you can afford it, they also rent to the public for parties, or events or whatever your need is for a prop from the past.

At the meeting, Richard Adkins the art director at History For Hire did a demonstration of how he uses Photoshop to recreate historic printed materials like magazines and packages. In the space where the presentation took place there were some shelves filled with food packaging from cereal to soup cans that recall the 20th century. Some of it sparked memories of childhood.

It is remarkable, the attention to detail that goes into recreating period props. Not only to recreate the graphics, but to accurately capture the colors and materials of the time period. Extensive research is done to determine the exact time that products were in use. The employees have areas of expertise on the history of certain props. Having a product in the background of a period movie that doesn't belong there can draw the ire of a viewer who is a history buff.

The unique joy of having a meeting at History For Hire was the ability to tour the warehouse and take a walk through memory lane. One of the first things I noticed was a collection of rotary telephones. There are probably a lot of young people who've never seen one before. Interestingly, something as simple as the trays from frozen dinners have become a valuable prop, because everyone threw them away.

Among the earliest sets of props the company gathered was electric guitars and amplifiers. It began like most collections, as something the owner Jim Elyea was interested in. Now there is an entire aisle of musical instruments.

One of the earliest successes for the business was the rental of military gear for the movie"Platoon." So you can find lots of military uniforms and weapons, including lots of swords. But, one of the most impressive parts of History For Hire's collection of props is the accumulation of movie-making and broadcasting equipment. Video cameras from every era going back to silent movies can be found here. Also, they have an impressive array of microphones from the type Elvis used to the ones in front of Martin Luther King Jr. during his speeches. There are also cases filled with cameras of every brand spanning a century of technology development. They have the huge old wooden box cameras that you slid light sensitive plates in and out of. Do you remember film? They have the film boxes too.

They don't just accumulate props. There is also an area used as a workshop to build and repair props. Of more relevance to our group, we saw the graphics room where a variety of printed props from old periodicals to packaging for cigarette boxes and fast food are recreated. There is a library that includes old department store catalogs, where designers can do research to check the accuracy of the props they make.

At History For Hire, the process of using software like Photoshop to generate graphics is not unique. What is unique is the need to be part historian to go along with the graphic skills.

Farthest Attendee

The bona fide LAIDUG member who travels the farthest specifically to attend the meeting will receive her or his choice of any one deal at MightyDeals up to $50.00. Mighty Deals offers fonts, templates, apps, e-books, etc. You need to prove to us that you traveled farthest to attend this meeting. Having recently moved to the area from somewhere else won't cut it. Be prepared to show us indication of your current residence—perhaps a driver's license or a utility bill. Decision of the administrators of the Los Angeles InDesign User Group is final. Winner — Devin Davidson

Raffles

LAIDUG is supported by raffles of donated prizes. No one is required to participate in the raffles. Raffle tickets are: 1 for $3, 2 for $5, 5 for $10, 11 for $20, 24 for $40, 32 for $50 and 65 for $100. All major credit cards are accepted.

Special Raffle Prize

KC 32" LED TV, model KC32V1, 16:9 aspect ratio, 3D comb filter, 1 USB and 3 HDMI inputs. Value $228.86 Winner — Daniel Carmin-Romack

Raffle Prizes and Winners

Stock Layouts. Full access to Stock Layout template library. 3 month subscription. Value $299.00 Winner — Bing Wong

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Expo Creative Asset Manager for Mac from Insider Software. Value $149.00 Winner — Rick Torres

Font Agent Pro 7 from Insider Software. Value $99.95 Winner — Rick Torres

InMotion Hosting. Web hosting and free domain. Value $90.00 Winner — Antonio Vargas

DTP Tools Cloud for InDesign. 6 month subscription. $77.40 Winner — Cathy Romero

InDesign Type: Professional Typography with Adobe InDesign by Nigel French. Value $54.99 Winner — Xandra Zamora

TypeDNA. Font management software. Value $49.00 Winner — Norine Lukaczyk

Adobe Stock. 15 image licenses. $44.00 Winner — Alan Gilbertson

InDesign Magazine. 6 month subscription. Value $30.00 Winner — Bing Wong

Pluralsight. 1 month subscription. Value $29.00 (two raffles) Winners — Norine Lukaczyk, Dallas Mathers

LA Web Professionals Group meeting tickets. Value $7.99 (four raffles) Winners — Gabriela Rothbaum, Alvin Takamori, Antonio Vargas, Bing Wong