Apologies for the short post, but with summer coming to a close, it won't be long before access to the outdoor studios will be limited.
With that in mind, work has begun on some new indoor studio space. New backdrops are under construction, lighting rigs are getting hauled in and some promising new clients have signed on for shoots.
Halo Reach's Emile is just a teaser of bigger and better things.
Please pardon our dust.
Be good,
-Dave
I'll take my chances on the land
I'm not doin' time
|
Every summer, when it gets so hot that you just can't stand it, these guys show up. Not only do you have to contend with the heat and humidity, you have to constantly check for laser sights, wrist blades and throwing discs.
And man are they jerks.
Their English is really bad, so they tend to work with an interpreter. This poor guy tried holding the door open for the Predator, only to be picked up and shoved through the studio entrance. I guess it was afraid of booby traps or something.
"Mister, ah, Dave? My client is interested in having some shots taken. You know, to sign at conventions."
To sign at conventions, the Predator clicked. It sounded like it was mocking him.
As I gathered up my gear, I asked if Reflector if he was ready. "NOPE." He hasn't been the same since the Bionic Commando shoot went south...
We started off slow, with just a couple quick snaps to get him used to the camera.
Apparently, that was the wrong thing to do, because those arm swords started swinging a little close to my face.
"Hey, that's a cool mask" I said and moved in for a close-up. "Uhhhh, Dave? I, um, I don't think you should be doing th-" Click.
And then it started yelling.
"The, ah, Predator would like to negotiate on your price."
Did I mention that Predators are jerks?
Be good,
-Dave
(Today's post inspired by Edward Lee's excellent Predator pic)
your heart is in my pocket
and there's a lie inside my hand
|
No one can hear you... well, you know.
Picked this one up in the 4 loose figures for $10 bins at Quake Collectibles. I've had my eye out for him in the, what, 7 years since he was first released and was very excited when April held it up and asked if I wanted it.
As you can see, Alien Spawn is slightly transparent and that face is just so gruesome! I could definitely handle having more figures like this in my collection.
Alien Spawn (I guess mine was a green variant) was produced by McFarlane Toys and released in February 2002.
Be good,
-Dave
Don't forget to remember
The devil's got pills in his eyes
|
And now the STORM-BLAST came, and he
Was tyrannous and strong :
He struck with his o'ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.
With sloping masts and dipping prow,
As who pursued with yell and blow
Still treads the shadow of his foe,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roared the blast,
The southward aye we fled.
-Excerpt from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
The figure is the Jackal King, made by McFarlane Toys. I picked him up at KB Toys, but you may have a little trouble doing the same. I'm sure you can find him on Amazon or eBay?
All I did for this was set the figure down into the sands of Lake Michigan and snap shot after shot as the waves rolled over and around. Processing in Photoshop involved a quick contrast tweak to make all the cool details stand out. I think that's all I've got today. I just really, really like how this turned out. Oh hey, if you were so inclined, you can order prints of this photo HERE.
Yo ho ho and a bottle of EXIF:
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.003 sec (1/320) |
| Aperture: | f/5.0 |
| Focal Length: | 37 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 100 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0 EV |
| Flash: | Off, Did not fire |
| File Size: | 6.6 MB |
| File Type: | JPEG |
| MIME Type: | image/jpeg |
| Image Width: | 3888 |
| Image Height: | 2592 |
| Encoding Process: | Baseline DCT, Huffman coding |
| Bits Per Sample: | 8 |
| Color Components: | 3 |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Date and Time (Modified): | 2009:06:06 22:16:24 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture-priority AE |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2009:06:05 18:23:55-05:00 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2009:06:05 18:23:55 |
| Metering Mode: | Multi-segment |
| Color Space: | sRGB |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.29532497149 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.60824742268 dpi |
| Custom Rendered: | Normal |
| Exposure Mode: | Auto |
| White Balance: | Manual |
| Scene Capture Type: | Standard |
| Compression: | JPEG (old-style) |
| Global Angle: | 30 |
| Global Altitude: | 30 |
| Copyright Flag: | False |
| Photoshop Quality: | 12 |
| Photoshop Format: | Standard |
| Progressive Scans: | 3 Scans |
| XMPToolkit: | Adobe XMP Core 4.1-c036 46.276720, Mon Feb 19 2007 22:40:08 |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Metadata Date: | 2009:06:06 22:16:24-05:00 |
| Creator Tool: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Format: | image/jpeg |
| Color Mode: | 3 |
| ICCProfile Name: | sRGB IEC61966-2.1 |
| Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type: | D50 |
| Measurement Observer: | CIE 1931 |
| Measurement Flare: | 0.999% |
| Measurement Illuminant: | D65 |
| Color Transform: | YCbCr |
| Flash Return: | No return detection |
| Flash Mode: | Off |
| Flash Function: | False |
| Flash Red Eye Mode: | False |
Be good,
-Dave
|
I love army building figures, especially the bad guys. They usually have cool costumes and gear. Guys like Stormtroopers, aliens, etc, and this Soldier of Ra is no exception. With a guy like this, his overly huge weapons don't seem so ridiculous. He really looks like he could whack somebody with them!
From Spawn.com:
These emissaries are created from the tears and sweat of the Sun God, serving as deadly reminders of Ra's fury and might.
Soldier of Ra is produced, of course, by McFarlane Toys, as part of Spawn Series 33: Age of Pharohs.
Ok Dave, stop looking through McFarlane's website and wishing you could buy more Halo figures. There is blogging to be done!
This is actually the final shot I have from the Arid Room in the Garfield Park Conservatory. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I love the unique shape and textures of desert plants, because they really give a completely different life to a shot. For example, if I were to take a picture of this guy standing in the grass, he would just look like a toy standing in the grass. With these unfamiliar plants, it takes away your frame of reference and you look at the whole shot differently.
In Photoshop, I've been playing with the Nik Software plugins, and the Tonal Contrast filter caught my eye. What it does is create huge contrasts that really bring out little details. While I think I overdid it and he is too contrasted, I'm pretty happy with him overall and will definitely be playing with it in the future.
Here I am, EXIF you like a hurricane:
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.167 sec (1/6) |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Focal Length: | 33 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 100 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0 EV |
| Flash: | Off |
| File Size: | 5.4 MB |
| File Type: | JPEG |
| MIME Type: | image/jpeg |
| Image Width: | 2592 |
| Image Height: | 3888 |
| Encoding Process: | Baseline DCT, Huffman coding |
| Bits Per Sample: | 8 |
| Color Components: | 3 |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Date and Time (Modified): | 2008:12:29 09:11:26 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture-priority AE |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:12:28 16:09:29-06:00 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:12:28 16:09:29 |
| Metering Mode: | Multi-segment |
| Color Space: | sRGB |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.29532497149 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.60824742268 dpi |
| Custom Rendered: | Normal |
| Exposure Mode: | Auto |
| White Balance: | Auto |
| Scene Capture Type: | Standard |
| Compression: | JPEG (old-style) |
| Global Angle: | 30 |
| Global Altitude: | 30 |
| Copyright Flag: | False |
| Photoshop Quality: | 12 |
| Photoshop Format: | Optimised |
| Progressive Scans: | 3 Scans |
| XMPToolkit: | Adobe XMP Core 4.1-c036 46.276720, Mon Feb 19 2007 22:40:08 |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Metadata Date: | 2008:12:29 09:11:26-06:00 |
| Creator Tool: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Format: | image/jpeg |
| Color Mode: | 3 |
| ICCProfile Name: | sRGB IEC61966-2.1 |
| Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type: | D50 |
| Measurement Observer: | CIE 1931 |
| Measurement Flare: | 0.999% |
| Measurement Illuminant: | D65 |
| Color Transform: | YCbCr |
| Flash Return: | No return detection |
| Flash Mode: | Off |
| Flash Function: | False |
| Flash Red Eye Mode: | False |
Be good,
-Dave
|
I love these McFarlane Dragons! If I could, I'd buy all of them.
Dragons? What are dragons?
Dragons are legendary creatures in folklore and mythology among the overlapping cultures of Europe. The word for dragon in Germanic mythology and its descendants is worm (Old English: wyrm, Old High German: wurm, Old Norse: ormr), meaning snake or serpent. In Old English wyrm means "serpent", draca means "dragon". Finnish lohikäärme means directly "salmon-snake", but the word lohi- was originally louhi- meaning crags or rocks, a "mountain snake".
Though a winged creature, the dragon is generally to be found in its underground lair, a cave that identifies it as an ancient creature of earth. Likely, the dragons of European and Mid Eastern mythology stem from the cult of snakes found in religions throughout the world.
This water dragon is from Series 1 of McFarlane's Dragons.
Because I wanted to capture the dragon's "underground lair", I had to stand in front of a waterfall, getting soaked in the process. I set the dragon on the rocks where he could A) Stand without getting washed away B) Still have plenty of water. The secret here is the use of a Polarizing Filter, which made the water all silky and saturated the colors.
Since the polarizing filter did most of the work, all I had to do in Photoshop was tweak the Lab Colors and save as.
Fee, Fi, Fo, EXIF:
| File Size: | 3.7 MB |
| File Type: | JPEG |
| MIME Type: | image/jpeg |
| Image Width: | 3888 |
| Image Height: | 2592 |
| Encoding Process: | Baseline DCT, Huffman coding |
| Bits Per Sample: | 8 |
| Color Components: | 3 |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Date and Time (Modified): | 2008:12:29 09:01:37 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-sited |
| Exposure Program: | Shutter speed priority AE |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:12:28 15:37:30-06:00 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:12:28 15:37:30 |
| Metering Mode: | Multi-segment |
| Color Space: | sRGB |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.29532497149 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.60824742268 dpi |
| Custom Rendered: | Normal |
| Exposure Mode: | Auto |
| White Balance: | Auto |
| Scene Capture Type: | Standard |
| Compression: | JPEG (old-style) |
| Global Angle: | 30 |
| Global Altitude: | 30 |
| Copyright Flag: | False |
| Photoshop Quality: | 12 |
| Photoshop Format: | Optimised |
| Progressive Scans: | 3 Scans |
| XMPToolkit: | Adobe XMP Core 4.1-c036 46.276720, Mon Feb 19 2007 22:40:08 |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Metadata Date: | 2008:12:29 09:01:37-06:00 |
| Creator Tool: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Format: | image/jpeg |
| Color Mode: | 3 |
| ICCProfile Name: | sRGB IEC61966-2.1 |
| Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type: | D50 |
| Measurement Observer: | CIE 1931 |
| Measurement Flare: | 0.999% |
| Measurement Illuminant: | D65 |
| Color Transform: | YCbCr |
| Flash Return: | No return detection |
| Flash Mode: | Off |
| Flash Function: | False |
| Flash Red Eye Mode: | False |
Be good,
-Dave
|
When SoulCalibur 2 first hit, it was like a revelation to me. At work, all I could think about was my lunch break where I would drive to the nearby mall and pump tokens into the arcade's machine. They had created something called Conquest Mode where you created a profile and a pin number, then chose one of four different kingdoms to fight for. There wasn't any difference in the kingdoms, so you were essentially picking your favorite color out of Red, Blue, Yellow, and I think Green. The more you played, the more skilled your fighter became (My choice was Kilik, naturally), and the system was smart enough to "grade" you after each battle, adjusting your fighter's skills and preferred moves and combos. The reason it did this was, while you were away and other people attacked your kingdom, there was a good chance that one of the defenders would be you. If you win a lot and are very aggressive, your fighter will behave similarly when someone challenged them. Also, the more you won (and played), the higher your rank, up until you were the Defender of the Realm (or something similar) and your fighter showed up, with your name, all the time. It was awesome.
Of course, when your kingdom had completed purging the world of the other three kingdoms, the map, and your saved character, reset and you had to do it all over again. Well played, Namco.
Before I get into the details, here is a little info on Voldo:
Voldo is easily recognizable by his strange and unique style of play. His moveset is based on attacks that bend and twist his body in unnatural ways, making him an extremely unpredictable fighter. He also has many stances that compliment his odd style, like his Mantis Crawl in which he stands on his four limbs face-first. Even his neutral stance has him moonwalking.
Another recognizable feature of Voldo is that he has no spoken dialogues, just grunts and hisses. This is explained in the game's universe because of his isolation in his dead master's tomb, which has led him to lose his sight and become insane, often hearing his master speaking to him in his mind. Later games have hinted that Vercci's voice could be produced by Soul Edge itself, but no official confirmation has been made. Voldo's face is obscured by either tightly bound strips of cloth or a full mask in every game he has appeared in.
Fun fact: I am not allowed to play Voldo, because he creeps my friend Laura out. I am also not allowed to play Maxi, because I beat her by just pounding the Y button.
This photo was taken in the Garfield Park Conservatory's Arid Room. Because desert plants have such unique shapes, I like using them as a backdrop and the sandy soil allows the figure to sink in a little, creating the illusion of weight. It was lit by natural light, and while we were there, a very nice couple stopped and talked to April and I about photography. The wife, trying to stay polite but obviously a little disturbed at a grown man playing with toys, complimented me on photographing my "little creatures".
In Photoshop, I lowered the saturation and then used the lab color tweak to even everything out. I used a gaussian blur to give it that video game bloom effect, and finally, I painted the gem on his Katar. Oh, wait, I lied. Before I did any of that, I had to clone out the HUGE gap between his torso and his waist. I should probably fill that one day...
A tale of swords and EXIF, eternally retold:
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.2 sec (1/5) |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Focal Length: | 55 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 100 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0 EV |
| Flash: | Off |
| File Size: | 3.2 MB |
| File Type: | JPEG |
| MIME Type: | image/jpeg |
| Image Width: | 2592 |
| Image Height: | 3888 |
| Encoding Process: | Baseline DCT, Huffman coding |
| Bits Per Sample: | 8 |
| Color Components: | 3 |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Date and Time (Modified): | 2008:12:29 08:58:34 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture-priority AE |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:12:28 15:59:10-06:00 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:12:28 15:59:10 |
| Metering Mode: | Multi-segment |
| Color Space: | sRGB |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.29532497149 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.60824742268 dpi |
| Custom Rendered: | Normal |
| Exposure Mode: | Auto |
| White Balance: | Auto |
| Scene Capture Type: | Standard |
| Compression: | JPEG (old-style) |
| Global Angle: | 30 |
| Global Altitude: | 30 |
| Copyright Flag: | False |
| Photoshop Quality: | 12 |
| Photoshop Format: | Optimised |
| Progressive Scans: | 3 Scans |
| XMPToolkit: | Adobe XMP Core 4.1-c036 46.276720, Mon Feb 19 2007 22:40:08 |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Metadata Date: | 2008:12:29 08:58:34-06:00 |
| Creator Tool: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Format: | image/jpeg |
| Color Mode: | 3 |
| ICCProfile Name: | sRGB IEC61966-2.1 |
| Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type: | D50 |
| Measurement Observer: | CIE 1931 |
| Measurement Flare: | 0.999% |
| Measurement Illuminant: | D65 |
| Color Transform: | YCbCr |
| Flash Return: | No return detection |
| Flash Mode: | Off |
| Flash Function: | False |
| Flash Red Eye Mode: | False |
Be good,
-Dave
|
According to Wikipedia, the Arbiter is:
The position of Arbiter is a fictional ceremonial and political rank bestowed upon special Covenant Elites in the Halo video game universe. In Halo 2, the rank is bestowed upon a disgraced Elite commander, as a way to atone for his failures. Although the Arbiter is intended to die serving the High Prophets, he survives both his missions and subsequent betrayal by the Covenant leadership. Learning the Prophets' plans would doom all life in the galaxy to extinction, the Arbiter allies with the Covenant's enemies—humanity—and stops the ringworld Halo from being activated. The character is one of the main protagonists of the Halo universe and a playable character in Halo 2 and its 2007 sequel Halo 3.
Until today I honestly believed that the Arbiter was cursed. I have taken so many pictures of him and every time I get one that I like, something horrible happens. The first was a photo taken at the Chicago Botanic Garden where the Arbiter was wading through a stream, and I loved it. His reflection in the water, the motion of the stream, the way I got him to hold onto a rock, it was perfect. Naturally, the memory card pooped out and I lost it.
This shot is the only other Arbiter photo that I'm happy with and it was one of the pictures I thought were lost when my hard drive failed. Somehow I found a copy on April's computer and the curse was listed!
Unfortunately, due to this photo having been taken and processed over a month ago, I don't remember the details about how I did it. Oh well. I got the shot and that's the most important thing!
Don the ancient armour, and assume the role of EXIF:
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.1 sec (1/10) |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Focal Length: | 45 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 100 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0 EV |
| Flash: | Off |
| File Size: | 3.2 MB |
| File Type: | JPEG |
| MIME Type: | image/jpeg |
| Image Width: | 3888 |
| Image Height: | 2592 |
| Encoding Process: | Baseline DCT, Huffman coding |
| Bits Per Sample: | 8 |
| Color Components: | 3 |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Date and Time (Modified): | 2008:12:29 08:59:12 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture-priority AE |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:12:28 16:00:51-06:00 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:12:28 16:00:51 |
| Metering Mode: | Multi-segment |
| Color Space: | sRGB |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.29532497149 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.60824742268 dpi |
| Custom Rendered: | Normal |
| Exposure Mode: | Auto |
| White Balance: | Auto |
| Scene Capture Type: | Standard |
| Compression: | JPEG (old-style) |
| Global Angle: | 30 |
| Global Altitude: | 30 |
| Copyright Flag: | False |
| Photoshop Quality: | 12 |
| Photoshop Format: | Optimised |
| Progressive Scans: | 3 Scans |
| XMPToolkit: | Adobe XMP Core 4.1-c036 46.276720, Mon Feb 19 2007 22:40:08 |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| Metadata Date: | 2008:12:29 08:59:12-06:00 |
| Creator Tool: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Format: | image/jpeg |
| Color Mode: | 3 |
| ICCProfile Name: | sRGB IEC61966-2.1 |
| Document ID: | uuid:0BB6072EB9D5DD1182C1A442B2A7B235 |
| Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type: | D50 |
| Measurement Observer: | CIE 1931 |
| Measurement Flare: | 0.999% |
| Measurement Illuminant: | D65 |
| Color Transform: | YCbCr |
| Flash Return: | No return detection |
| Flash Mode: | Off |
| Flash Function: | False |
| Flash Red Eye Mode: | False |
Be good,
-Dave
|
Today's update is going to be a bit different today, because I have two, count them two big announcements!
Announcement the First: I am going to be taking a short break over the holidays, from Christmas until after my birthday (Jan. 5th). Wednesday's Plastic 52 will be the last update this year and the Plastic 52 on January 7th will be my triumphant return to the blogospheres.
Announcement the Second: During my break, I will be hard at work getting my first book published! I received a great Foreword by a good friend of mine and will be publishing through Lulu.com. Expect a formal announcement once everything is all put together and I hear back from the publisher.
I hope everyone enjoys their holidays and I will see you...in the future!
For auld EXIF syne:
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.003 sec (1/320) |
| Aperture: | f/9 |
| Focal Length: | 30 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 400 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0/3 EV |
| Flash: | Flash did not fire |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop 7.0 |
| Date and Time: | 2008:12:06 13:20:36 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-Sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture priority |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:12:03 12:48:49 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:12:03 12:48:49 |
| Shutter Speed: | 545386/65536 |
| Metering Mode: | Pattern |
| Color Space: | Uncalibrated |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.295 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.608 dpi |
| Compression: | JPEG |
| Image Width: | 2592 pixels |
| Image Height: | 3888 pixels |
Be good,
-Dave
|
Today we have the follow up to the previous Master Chief shot. Again taken in the wonderful forest preserve, this time Master Chief found himself surrounded by fall vegetation. I like this one a little more because it seems to be telling more of a story than the previous shot. The colors are a little more vibrant, the figure seems to be in motion, and I always love catching the sun rays like that.
Cleanup in Photoshop consisted of the Lab Color adjustment, tweak the levels a bit to brighten the whole thing up, and adding a gaussian blur for that in-game bloom effect.
Since this is just a follow up to the previous post, I think I'm all done with this one! Woo hoo!
I love the smell of EXIF in the morning:
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.004 sec (1/250) |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Focal Length: | 39 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 400 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0/3 EV |
| Flash: | Flash did not fire |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop 7.0 |
| Date and Time: | 2008:12:01 12:54:00 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-Sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture priority |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:11:28 13:24:13 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:11:28 13:24:13 |
| Shutter Speed: | 522046/65536 |
| Metering Mode: | Pattern |
| Color Space: | Uncalibrated |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.295 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.608 dpi |
| Compression: | JPEG |
| Image Width: | 2592 pixels |
| Image Height: | 3888 pixels |
Be good,
-Dave
|
Astaroth is one of those characters that, if you can win with him, you can win with anyone. He's just this big, slow tank with a huge axe. Quick characters will walk circles around him, duck under his wide swings, and pretty much devastate him. Heck, in the demo video for Soulcalibur 2, Maxi runs up the axe handle and kicks Astaroth in his face! But once you learn his moves, you become unstoppable. You discover his quick strikes that keep your opponent off-balance, and you start swinging for the fences while they stagger back. Before long, your friends won't play you any more.
Sorry friends that won't play me any more. It's not my fault you don't know when to block!
This particular Astaroth figure was produced by McFarlane Toys. The deal seemed to be, in exchange for putting Spawn and the McFarlane-designed Necrid in SoulCalibur, McFarlane Toys would release a line of figures based on the game characters. Unfortunately they only released the first set of toys, which included, strangely enough, with both Spawn and Necrid in the lineup. Would have liked a Kilik and Mitsurugi instead, but I'll take what I can get.
Astaroth's Bio, courtesy of Wikipedia:
Introduced in Soulcalibur, Astaroth was created by a cult of Ares led by the priest Kunpaetku to retrieve the cursed sword Soul Edge by their god's command. Upon finding the blade Astaroth realized it was incomplete, and allied himself with its host Nightmare and his minions to harvest living souls necessary to restore the blade. Planning to steal the blade once it was restored, Astaroth was instead confronted by a survivor of one of his attacks and slain. Ares later revived Astaroth, who now had fragments of Soul Edge inside him, to continue after the Soul Edge. Kunpaetku realized his golem was not behaving as instructed, and placed a controlling curse on him. Astaroth resisted and attacked the cult, but in the chaos Kunpaetku escaped and Astaroth learned he was modeled after a human being, the "White Giant". Finding and nearly killing the man, Astaroth broke free of Ares's control and his body cracked and physcially transformed. Merged with the fragments of Soul Edge within him, he now hungered for souls himself and went on a rampage. He was eventually found by Tira, who offered him more power in return for his servitude to Nightmare. Astaroth accepted, with plans to eventually consume their souls and Soul Edge itself when the time was right.
Processing in Photoshop was surprisingly simple. Boost the saturation with Lab Color and add the eye glow on a new layer. Then use a gaussian blur set to Soft Light for the shadow and "bloom", and, as a final touch to bring it all together, create a purple/orange Gradient Map set to Soft Light to bring it all together.
Round 1, EXIF!
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi |
| Exposure: | 0.008 sec (1/125) |
| Aperture: | f/9 |
| Focal Length: | 24 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 400 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0/3 EV |
| Flash: | Flash did not fire |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop 7.0 |
| Date and Time: | 2008:12:03 17:41:56 |
| YCbCr Positioning: | Co-Sited |
| Exposure Program: | Aperture priority |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2008:12:03 12:49:30 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2008:12:03 12:49:30 |
| Shutter Speed: | 456510/65536 |
| Metering Mode: | Pattern |
| Color Space: | Uncalibrated |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 4433.295 dpi |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 4453.608 dpi |
| Compression: | JPEG |
| Image Width: | 2592 pixels |
| Image Height: | 3888 pixels |
Be good,
-Dave
|
There's one in every party. The one guy who thinks his spellbook is all-powerful and, if he can just make his rolls right, he should be allowed to cast a Summoning spell on an Ancient Dragon. Note to non-roleplayers; this always ends in death. If you somehow find yourself playing Dungeons & Dragons, GURPS, Rifts, or any of a whole host of games and someone attempts to summon something that has a strong chance of getting loose and killing the party, kill that person's character. Don't feel bad, it's just an imaginary character on a piece of paper. They have hit dice, not feelings.
Ok, nerd moment over, and now on to business. While looking through my toy bins for something to shoot, I happened upon this McFarlane Toys set that April's mom had asked for us to hold (she had no room at home), and thought now would be a great time to reshoot it. I've shot it before, but it was early on in my photography education, so today's the day for the power-mad wizard to shine!
The best part of the photoshoot was how easy it was. Setup took a whole 5 minutes, due mainly to the smoke machine having to warm up. Processing in Photoshop was a little more intensive, as this was only my second attempt at the "Orton Effect". After the Superman shoot, I've really fallen for the painted look, with softened edges and subtle lighting, and wanted to do that here. After getting Orton to cooperate, I just slapped a border around the whole thing, Save As..., and uploaded to Flickr.
EXIF Data, make ya JUMP JUMP:
| Camera: | Fujifilm FinePixS2Pro |
| Exposure: | 0.167 sec (1/6) |
| Aperture: | f/1.8 |
| Focal Length: | 50 mm |
| ISO Speed: | 100 |
| Exposure Bias: | 0/100 EV |
| Orientation: | Horizontal (normal) |
| X-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Y-Resolution: | 72 dpi |
| Software: | Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows |
| Date and Time: | 2007:12:28 14:59:22 |
| Tag::TIFF::0x882A: | -6, -6 |
| Exposure Program: | Normal |
| Date and Time (Original): | 2007:12:28 14:58:39 |
| Date and Time (Digitized): | 2007:12:28 14:58:39 |
| Shutter Speed: | 2584963/1000000 |
| Brightness: | -50/100 |
| Metering Mode: | Center Weighted Average |
| Light Source: | Tungsten (incandescent light) |
| Color Space: | Uncalibrated |
| Focal Plane X-Resolution: | 630 dpc |
| Focal Plane Y-Resolution: | 630 dpc |
| Sensing Method: | One-chip colour area sensor |
| Exposure Mode: | Auto bracket |
| White Balance: | Manual |
| Focal Length In 35mm Film: | 75 |
| Saturation: | High saturation |
| Compression: | JPEG |
| Image Width: | 2024 pixels |
| Image Height: | 3024 pixels |
Be good,
-Dave
|
