CSMacLaren
Sr Member
Yeah, my cold finally calmed only to come back with a vengeance too. Hadn't had that happen before....
Quasimodo Darth Vader helmet - Version II
- Thread starter bookface
- Start date
CSMacLaren
Sr Member
Back to the flange length. I managed to dig up a side shot and was able to do a comp with the screen-used:
Of course, bookface's Quasi shot is 6 feet while the screenused is 25'+.
The comp below is again of two different photography distances:
Based on the above, I don't believe I'm that far off, even though this is a fan sculpt.
Of course, bookface's Quasi shot is 6 feet while the screenused is 25'+.
The comp below is again of two different photography distances:
Based on the above, I don't believe I'm that far off, even though this is a fan sculpt.
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CSMacLaren
Sr Member
Thank you all for your words of encouragement. It's always a great feeling when people say nice things about one's artwork. I have a little one for whom I cook, and I'm always eager to see if there's a little smile and enthusiastic nod that the food I made was yummy.
For all interested, RPFers, please contact Bookface directly, as I'm only the sculptor and not part of the transaction picture. Like the Darth Ugly helmets, I imagine here on the RPF the minimum post count of 40 will still be a requirement. This is in hopes that people who have participated understand that this a fan sculpt that needs protection from recasting. 501st members should contact Bookface on 501stSithLords.com
Now, because we have prop collectors and costumers here on RPF, I think I should mention how Quasimodo V2 works with armor. In this hobby, sometimes a helmet comes from one source, and the armor from another, even if it's from the same vendor. This creates a very frustrating situation trying to not only get things to fit (because a few degrees off here and there, and you have a variety of alignment and positioning issues). Add on top of that the fact that few of us have Prowse's dimensions, I felt the need to arm Bookface with armor that worked in conjunction with my helmet sculpts in a way that took the guesswork out and that the pairing would be an artistic whole and have not only a reasonable appearance of structural and visual (paint color and finish) continuity, but that it's optimized functionally so that when worn, it does not exhibit a majority of the ill-fitting issues I've observed with various armor makes.
Now please hear me out in that I'm not trying to make an armor sale (regardless, my work is donated, and Bookface helps me help a fan with disabilities as I can't afford to give money myself). But the amount of thought, planning, attention to detail and sculpting requires some degree of explanation, as this was a massive labor of love as well.
(Above: Bookface armor painted specifically to be paired with Quasimodo V2 ANH.)
The Bookface armor supports ANH, ESB and ROTJ configurations and work extremely well with Quasimodo V2. When I say "configurations", the paint scheme varied among the Original Trilogy movies. Moreover, the shoulder guards / "bells" (who came up with that term anyway?!) in ANH and ESB have generally been worn under the edge of the chestplate, so the front profile shows a ledge where the chestplate ends and shoulder guards begin.
My goal isn't just to realistically recreate the helmet but the whole bust in a way that can be worn by the average person. Over the years, as I've seen misshapen armor paired with helmets (and sometimes the domes are not properly positioned over their masks to cover the rear of the costumer's head), I've seen many "Hunchback of Notre Dame" type looks.
As you can see above, if vendor armor is misshapen to begin with, no amount of well-intentioned advice would create a realistic posture and side profile. This was my chance to finally address this.
There is sufficient material in the rear of the armor to make an average build (42-44" plus or minus) individual wear this without the armor shifting, provided sufficient padding within the leather suit helps bulk the wearer out realistically. This hopefully reduces how much the cape will pull the armor front upwards, and - as I'm proud to say - has decent front-to-back balance to allow it to be worn with more comfort. Oh yes, and if worn ROTJ style, the bells park against the edges very neatly, front to back.
I feel it important, based on the above two illustrations, to realistically create the side profile, posture and setup of Vader without the wearer looking like he's hunchbacked, shrugging, or perpetually looking up at the convention hall ceiling, so hopefully all this work pays off in the following image:
In closing, I'm very happy with how the armor works with Darth Ugly, and as good as it is, the setup with Quasimodo V2 looks even better. The advantage of my working with someone like bookface is that he cares for my vision for Quasimodo and applies his skill to recreate the movie finish the best we have studied and understand it. He has time and again floored me with his talent.
Quasimodo V2 + Bookface armor is envisioned as an artistic whole, and when approached as one, I hope it recreates the presence of the character we love moreso than just mimicking or approximating the look.
Hope you enjoy! Peace out. :thumbsup
(When replying, please don't do a Quote Reply, as this is a particularly long post. I don't want readers to become annoyed with seeing a repeat of images.)
For all interested, RPFers, please contact Bookface directly, as I'm only the sculptor and not part of the transaction picture. Like the Darth Ugly helmets, I imagine here on the RPF the minimum post count of 40 will still be a requirement. This is in hopes that people who have participated understand that this a fan sculpt that needs protection from recasting. 501st members should contact Bookface on 501stSithLords.com
Now, because we have prop collectors and costumers here on RPF, I think I should mention how Quasimodo V2 works with armor. In this hobby, sometimes a helmet comes from one source, and the armor from another, even if it's from the same vendor. This creates a very frustrating situation trying to not only get things to fit (because a few degrees off here and there, and you have a variety of alignment and positioning issues). Add on top of that the fact that few of us have Prowse's dimensions, I felt the need to arm Bookface with armor that worked in conjunction with my helmet sculpts in a way that took the guesswork out and that the pairing would be an artistic whole and have not only a reasonable appearance of structural and visual (paint color and finish) continuity, but that it's optimized functionally so that when worn, it does not exhibit a majority of the ill-fitting issues I've observed with various armor makes.
Now please hear me out in that I'm not trying to make an armor sale (regardless, my work is donated, and Bookface helps me help a fan with disabilities as I can't afford to give money myself). But the amount of thought, planning, attention to detail and sculpting requires some degree of explanation, as this was a massive labor of love as well.
(Above: Bookface armor painted specifically to be paired with Quasimodo V2 ANH.)
The Bookface armor supports ANH, ESB and ROTJ configurations and work extremely well with Quasimodo V2. When I say "configurations", the paint scheme varied among the Original Trilogy movies. Moreover, the shoulder guards / "bells" (who came up with that term anyway?!) in ANH and ESB have generally been worn under the edge of the chestplate, so the front profile shows a ledge where the chestplate ends and shoulder guards begin.
My goal isn't just to realistically recreate the helmet but the whole bust in a way that can be worn by the average person. Over the years, as I've seen misshapen armor paired with helmets (and sometimes the domes are not properly positioned over their masks to cover the rear of the costumer's head), I've seen many "Hunchback of Notre Dame" type looks.
As you can see above, if vendor armor is misshapen to begin with, no amount of well-intentioned advice would create a realistic posture and side profile. This was my chance to finally address this.
There is sufficient material in the rear of the armor to make an average build (42-44" plus or minus) individual wear this without the armor shifting, provided sufficient padding within the leather suit helps bulk the wearer out realistically. This hopefully reduces how much the cape will pull the armor front upwards, and - as I'm proud to say - has decent front-to-back balance to allow it to be worn with more comfort. Oh yes, and if worn ROTJ style, the bells park against the edges very neatly, front to back.
I feel it important, based on the above two illustrations, to realistically create the side profile, posture and setup of Vader without the wearer looking like he's hunchbacked, shrugging, or perpetually looking up at the convention hall ceiling, so hopefully all this work pays off in the following image:
In closing, I'm very happy with how the armor works with Darth Ugly, and as good as it is, the setup with Quasimodo V2 looks even better. The advantage of my working with someone like bookface is that he cares for my vision for Quasimodo and applies his skill to recreate the movie finish the best we have studied and understand it. He has time and again floored me with his talent.
Quasimodo V2 + Bookface armor is envisioned as an artistic whole, and when approached as one, I hope it recreates the presence of the character we love moreso than just mimicking or approximating the look.
Hope you enjoy! Peace out. :thumbsup
(When replying, please don't do a Quote Reply, as this is a particularly long post. I don't want readers to become annoyed with seeing a repeat of images.)
Last edited:
banthapoodoo
Active Member
Thanks Mac for responding with such detail about the V2 dome. Incidentally, I should have mentioned that my DPDLX #525 is original except that earlier this year I sanded down the mounting tube and ring to better match the ESB mask-to-dome height separation and tilt angle. The dome can look so much different if the camera is moved even a few inches or if the front/back tilt of the dome is changed by even a degree. I took another shot of the DPDLX from 6' with the camera a bit lower such that it matched the tusk angles of the V2, and the results are much more comparable in terms of dome length top-to-bottom:
And true about the early fanmades extending the dome too much. It's probably because they sculpted it from 2 ft away to match the dome as it appeared using reference pictures taken from much further away. At increasing distances the features in the back will appear larger than those in the front (i.e. the dome will look larger). This animation pulling back the camera in 1 ft increments from 2ft - 10 ft shows this phenomenon:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B13...m94Mm9TSzRUTXMyVUt1bktr/edit?usp=docslist_api
I won't hijack your V2 thread any further! I do like the dome changes you've incorporated from V1 to V2. Bringing in the sides a bit, smoothing out the brow curve, and softening the widows peak improve the look IMO. Bookface does a nice job on the transitions / blending of the paint between black and gunmetal which looks good on the helmet alone and also on the helmet and armor paired together.
And true about the early fanmades extending the dome too much. It's probably because they sculpted it from 2 ft away to match the dome as it appeared using reference pictures taken from much further away. At increasing distances the features in the back will appear larger than those in the front (i.e. the dome will look larger). This animation pulling back the camera in 1 ft increments from 2ft - 10 ft shows this phenomenon:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B13...m94Mm9TSzRUTXMyVUt1bktr/edit?usp=docslist_api
I won't hijack your V2 thread any further! I do like the dome changes you've incorporated from V1 to V2. Bringing in the sides a bit, smoothing out the brow curve, and softening the widows peak improve the look IMO. Bookface does a nice job on the transitions / blending of the paint between black and gunmetal which looks good on the helmet alone and also on the helmet and armor paired together.
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allHallowsGhost
New Member
superb. sculpt and finish has a real oldschool screen look. alot of this shot too
techdisaster
New Member
Mac,
Your post concerning the shoulder armor position and padding is spot on. I'm currently trying to pad my armor (from another vendor) to get the correct fit, and it is not coming together well at all. I look okay from the front, but my profile is very hunchback. Something else you might want to illustrate is the cape hook position on ROTJ. The cape hook should be about an inch below the neck line. When the armor sits correctly, the hook should be low enough from the shoulders to give the cape chain a slight 'V' shape. If the armor sits back too far in the hunchback position, the chain sits straight across the neck ANH/ESB style. Have you had any pics done of your ROTJ Helmet/Armor combination with the cape chain attached?
Your post concerning the shoulder armor position and padding is spot on. I'm currently trying to pad my armor (from another vendor) to get the correct fit, and it is not coming together well at all. I look okay from the front, but my profile is very hunchback. Something else you might want to illustrate is the cape hook position on ROTJ. The cape hook should be about an inch below the neck line. When the armor sits correctly, the hook should be low enough from the shoulders to give the cape chain a slight 'V' shape. If the armor sits back too far in the hunchback position, the chain sits straight across the neck ANH/ESB style. Have you had any pics done of your ROTJ Helmet/Armor combination with the cape chain attached?
Not as yet. I don't have a cape to take that shot, and I'm not aware of any photos of anyone in full costume with the ROTJ parts. I'll have a look around, or ask someone if they'd mind taking some pics if possible.
CSMacLaren
Sr Member
Are you costuming? The reason I ask is that some people might wear things differently. The cape hook's position might appear to vary depending on how much overlap of the mask's neck over the armor's neck are you anticipating for your setup.
CSMacLaren
Sr Member
Thank you guys, for your support. Please contact bookface if you're interested. I'm not part of the sales/transaction picture... I'm just the sculpting guy.
But for those interested, the same policy will apply (and the text below is copied from bookface's Classifieds > Project Runs thread for Darth Ugly, so I believe this will apply to Quasimodo).
But for those interested, the same policy will apply (and the text below is copied from bookface's Classifieds > Project Runs thread for Darth Ugly, so I believe this will apply to Quasimodo).
CSMacLaren
Sr Member
Usually I recommend that people photograph from 6 foot distance at eye level, without flash photography or frontal lighting, but in this case, bookface's paint work has held up really well.
Enrico's helmet has landed in Italy and he shares his shots here:
http://www.therpf.com/f79/darth-vad...n-one-233686/?highlight=quasimodo#post3558926
Congrats! The helmet looks great, and the custom plaque from Feezle-Nuts really does add a nice touch!
Enrico's helmet has landed in Italy and he shares his shots here:
http://www.therpf.com/f79/darth-vad...n-one-233686/?highlight=quasimodo#post3558926
Congrats! The helmet looks great, and the custom plaque from Feezle-Nuts really does add a nice touch!
enrico
Well-Known Member
Thanks Mac!
Your sculpting is impressive and the bookface's paint work are perfect: thank you guys
!
This is definitive my favourite prop, really happy with him, I think I have looked at him the entire day...it has a safe home, a sort of altar in a glass cabinet:love
enrico
Your sculpting is impressive and the bookface's paint work are perfect: thank you guys
!This is definitive my favourite prop, really happy with him, I think I have looked at him the entire day...it has a safe home, a sort of altar in a glass cabinet:love
enrico
ataru72ita
Sr Member
Sweet!!!!cheers
What can I say It looks magnificent with the chest armor!!thumbsup:thumbsup
Can rival and easily exceed the beauty of EFX! Not to mention GH!:love
Regards,
Alberto
cheersWhat can I say It looks magnificent with the chest armor!!
thumbsup:thumbsupCan rival and easily exceed the beauty of EFX! Not to mention GH!:love
Regards,
Alberto
