More Figure Picture Wallpaper and Site Redesign

written on August 25, 2009 by Tier

I got a new computer monitor a few days ago (a Dell 2408WFP, if anybody is curious) to replace my old, tired, dimming 4:3 display (a Dell 2001FP, if anyone is also curious about that). I need new widescreen wallpaper for my monitor and the easiest source to acquire them from is my own pictures, so I made some more wallpapers.

Senhime

Sengoku Rance Senhime Wallpaper
1600×1200
1920×1200

Dark Elf

Lineage Dark Elf Wallpaper
1600×1200
1920×1200

Marie

Starless Marie Mamiya Wallpaper
1600×1200
1920×1200

Human Mage

Lineage Human Mage Wallpaper
1600×1200
1920×1200

Nadie

El Cazador Nadie Wallpaper
1600×1200
1920×1200

I also changed the site layout a bit. When I started this blog, I figured that I’d get bored and quit after a couple months and so I didn’t spend much time on the theme. Later, when I figured that I ought to establish a more pleasing appearance for my site, I looked for an existing, turnkey solution that I could easily customize to my taste. To my disappointment I couldn’t find one that I liked more than the one I already had, so I just modified the hell out of my old theme. I hope I didn’t break anything in the process, as I’m not a particularly good web designer.

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Human Mage Photo Reshoot

written on August 23, 2009 by Tier

Continuing through the figure photo re-shooting project, I took some new pictures of Good Smile Company’s Lineage II mage.




This was one of the more difficult photo sets I’ve taken. I originally used red cloth for the ground surface and it looked conspicuously incongruous with the foliage and flowers and such. I decided to reshoot the photos (making the final set a re-reshoot) using dirt for the ground, except since I didn’t like the idea of strewing actual dirt on my computer desk, I used instant coffee. Of course, I forgot that I hugely dislike the smell of coffee, which tends to make me feel nauseous. The process of taking these pictures was thus particularly arduous, and I’ve still got three fans blowing air in here to try to ventilate this space.

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Nadie from El Cazador de la Bruja

written on August 20, 2009 by Tier


Alter Nadie from El Cazador de la Bruja Review

With no figures in the mail, I turn to my existing collection for photography practice. Let’s take a look at Nadie, one of the heroines of El Cazador de la Bruja. Nadie is a fairly old figure and she’s been on my shelf for a while; I had to clean some spiderwebs off of her before I took pictures. Yucko.
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Senhime and Mishiro Re-shoots

written on August 16, 2009 by Tier

I said something a week or two ago about having a bunch of preorders due this month. Ha! I’ve watched with helpless dismay as figure after figure is pushed back to September and October. It’s almost enough to drive a man to tears. To assuage my lachrymose despondency I went ahead and re-photographed Senhime and Mishiro Akatsuki, the girl with the helicopter hair.

Does anyone think that anything is actually getting released this month? Should figure manufacturers just preemptively bump back all of their releases by a month? Was Michael Vick’s signing by the Eagles a good move? Maybe it’s time to work through the figure review backlog; Alter’s Nadie might be next up, then.

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Subaru Photo Reshoot (or Angry Girl in the Snow)

written on August 13, 2009 by Tier

Back when I really did not know what I was doing, I took this picture of Subaru, the cutest amputee ninja around:


Man that looks bad. The background is bad. The figure looks bad. Everything is bad. The rest of the review’s pictures were just as bad. Now that I’m a bit more experienced with taking pictures, I decided to re-do Subaru’s photos:




Lately I’ve been making an effort at providing an interesting backdrop for my figure pictures. I think it makes for a much more appealing photo, and the backgrounds are a lot of fun (albeit rather time-consuming) to create. I’m also trying a few different things with respect to photographic technique. I’ve switched to the cheap 50mm f/1.8 lens for all my figure pictures, and I’m spending more time performing post-processing. My figure reviews take a lot longer to complete, but I think the time spent is worthwhile.

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Dark Elf Female from Lineage II

written on August 11, 2009 by Tier


Good Smile Company Dark Elf Female from Lineage II Review

Now this is a figure that I never thought I would own. The dark elf female was originally produced back in 2007 and sold in limited quantities in Japan. Those on this side of the pond had to contrive alternate means to acquire her, which usually entails exorbitant expenses. As my means were quite limited back then, I had to pass on her, much to my chagrin. My regret was compounded by the reality that in this hobby, if you miss out, you seldom get a second chance.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that she would be sold this summer not by Japanese retailers like Hobby Search or HLJ, but by Entertainment Earth and Big Bad Toy Store, each an American toy retailer that principally offers American products. I got my preorder in with the quickness and the dark elf arrived last week. There are lots of reviews of her already – this figure being two years old – but here are my thoughts.
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Marie Mamiya from Starless (NSFW)

written on August 7, 2009 by Tier


Volks Marie Mamiya from Starless Review

It’s yet another figure from an H-game. Looking at my traffic statistics, my ero-figure reviews are by far the most popular pages on this site. Here’s hoping that this review continues that fine tradition!
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Meiya Photo Reshoot

written on August 6, 2009 by Tier

After a protracted period of figure repair and familiarization with the new camera lens, I’ve finally finished reshooting Meiya. In retrospect, even though her armpit is looking rather ragged, the arm repositioning turned out better than I could have initially hoped for, given my cluelessness with respect to modeling techniques and the limited hobby resources available to me.

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Random Thoughts VI – Fixed-up Meiya and Cheap Lens Impressions

written on August 5, 2009 by Tier


I got Meiya put back together and as one can see, she’s actually holding her sword now. Am I making a note here, huge success? Hardly; I did an awful job of reattaching her arm, but fortunately the paint is dark and her armpit isn’t visible from the front. Given a choice between ugly arm joint and a straight sword versus a clean arm joint with her sword passing over her right hand, I prefer the former.


I’ve been playing with the new cheap lens; it’s tempting to abuse its capabilities by jacking aperture width as wide as it’ll go. It’s noticeably sharper than the kit lens I’ve been using for all my earlier shots, but it seems more difficult to focus where I want it to. It’s also unusual in that I have to position my camera farther away from the subject than I’m used to; with the kit lens, I’m usually no more than a foot away from the figure, but with the f/1.8 lens I usually need to move back a meter or more to get it in the frame. It’s fun to experiment with, but it does provide a humbling indication of how little I really know about photography.

In miscellaneous news I looked at my preorders and I have something like ten figures scheduled for release this month. It’s gonna be spensive.

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Kotone Ousaka from the Art of Tony Taka (NSFW)

written on August 1, 2009 by Tier


Native Kotone Ousaka from Taka Tony Review

Those in this hobby know that if you sleep on a figure, you can miss out. I had already preordered Kotone Ousaka from a domestic retailer, but with no assurance that they’d be able to fulfill my purchase and encouraged by the spate of reviews popping up on Japanese websites, I went ahead and picked her up off of eBay. Reactionary? Certainly. Worth it? Oh hell yeah.
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