wizartar

Recently picked up a Nikon D7000, so far very nice and a big step up from the old D60 I was shooting with. Haven't played around with the video much. These are two long night exposures from a couple of nights ago.

It's taken using a Nikon D60 with a Nikkon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S VR DX. ISO-100 using a tripod and Infrared remote to take the picture, so no camera shake.

It's been a while, here's two of the model kits I've finished recently. top by Wizartar, on Flickr Real Grade RX-78-2 by Wizartar, on Flickr RG RX-78-2 Finished by Wizartar, on Flickr

Use some clear coat, depending on the finish you want, Gloss, Semi-Gloss or Matt. I like Matt.

This is cool enough to be in every section!

OMG! That's incredible! Best paint job I've ever seen.

So this is the reason why HLJ are just about out of FlexiDisplay stands!

Tried this dark shot and it came out better then I'd hoped.

4. More Tampo printing (obviously, this one could not be released as an add-on accessory) 12. Fix the the seam lines on the cockpit nose section. Now this is a very minor complaint, but if you look at the nose section there are obvious seam lines, fix them! Sad part is the VF-1 is great already and there isn't much you can do to make it better. From reading HLJ production list there's a VF-1 v2 glue kit.... well make a 1/24 to go next to the Patlabor! OK 1/24 might be a bit big, but 1/32 should be do able, something on par with an Ultra Grade Gundam but Perfect Transformation.

DOH! My Macross collection has moved into negative equity! There could be lots more sales next year.... depending... HLJ's free EMS shipping got me to spend, had been looking at some stuff without pulling the trigger. IMO HLJ will reduce the amount of initial stock they get in so they won't have to do sales under the "stock clearance" banner. Stock management will ensure they can keep the prices high. Then it will backup in Yamato's warehouse, so they'll be forced to do discounts to retail and then in turn HLJ can pass it on if they like. The downside will be less risk taking with release choices. But they might have to build some new Valks, as people won't be going for the 11th repaint of a VF-1. Lucky for me I've got all the stuff I really want now and can bide my time again, waiting for the good sales to come along. I just hope the Yamato doesn't get sunk!

Is it fixable? Meaning is there just too much plastic somewhere that needs to be trimmed? What's causing it not to close. I'd a problem with Bandai's VF-25G Michael, the pin in the hip wasn't pushed in like it should have been causing the hip / crotch to be slightly off. It would have been more hassle to send it back, so I just repaired it. A lot of simple stuff can be fixed, of course we shouldn't have to but sometime QC happens.

IMO these images are a little too dark and detail is being lost in the shadow. But it looks like that's because the highlights are blowing out the color histogram so it's under exposing most of the image. Are you using the Active D-Lighting? If not turn it on, as it will help with this type of picture. Also you should look at HDR imaging, here's a link... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_dynamic_range_imaging You'd take one picture for just the highlights then another for the main dark sections. Then in something like Photoshop composite the two images together. But HDR needs a tripod and a remote control helps. Or you can turn down your spot lighting and turn up the ambient light this will stop the over exposure of highlights and allow a longer exposure so you get more detail, but might add a little grain. Also side reflectors can help, cheap & cheerful way, get some tinfoil using the dull side pat it down on a bed to ripple it up a little then fold it over some cardboard (again dull side out). Great way to get more light into a scene without adding more lamps.

$2,000 is a bit extreme for anybody’s wallet, likewise $500 seemed too cheap for something this scale if you look at what’s on offer at the $120 mark. I though it would go for about $1,000, but at $2,000 there must be very high labor costs. At some point Yamato must have realized they bit off more then they could chew! And that’s why it cost so much, the fact they’ve gone with a completely new material to build it out of looks to me like desperation, and plan B. It doesn’t make any sense for a company to put a lot of effort into a model then price it out of just about everybody’s league unless a mistake was made somewhere and now they’re trying to make the best of a bad situation (i.e. selling a prototype as a finished product). Seriously though, Bandai have the tech to do this right as a PG / Jumbo Grade if they wanted to, just look at the PG 00 that’s a ton of plastic. I don’t like saying it, but there mustn’t be much money in old school Macross.

So far I've exclusively purchased from HLJ and found every straightforward, as for their customer service??? I've only ever sent them two emails to find out about future items, meaning their normal service has always been enough and never needed to contact them. Which is a plus in my book. It normally takes about 8 days total from ordering to it showing up at my door EMS. SAL used to be 16 days like clockwork, then a couple of packages went though France for some reason; those took over 5 weeks and haven't used SAL since then. That's a postal system problem not HLJ's. Since HLJ's Free Postage + Japanese Holiday a couple of items have been slow to ship, which is understandable as I expect a lot of people took advantage of the offer and they're just been very busy. But up till then an order took about 1 or 2 days, mostly 2 day, to ship if in-stock.

That's a sweet camera!

The obligitory... If you built it they will come... the fanboy will at least... I'm so banned!

That's about 3 Valkyrie Fighters (VF-22, 2xVF-19), but when said as $550 it seems like a lot more. I think we've found your real reason for not wanting a 1/2000 scale. Where's the wiped emote? To be honest I never thought they would procedure this, companies just aren’t that crazy anymore. Or maybe the Management lacks the vision to see why it can work.

IMO every line of toys needs that uber OMG wish I could get one of those toys. G1 FortMax is there for the Transformers fan, there’s a 1/35 Jumbo Grade RX-78-2 for the Gundam people, a 1/2000 SDF-1 could be the Macross Holy Grail. A fan that gets one requires a certain level of both dedication & stupidity for buying something so impractical. If they made it a limited run also with numbering it would be an epic win.

LoL

But were would I put my real doll Minmay then???

I don't care what scale this badboy is so long as it's bigger then a Transformers G1 Fortress Maximus!

All these photos got me to do a small update of the collection... Easiest thing is just to point you at Flickr slideshow... http://www.flickr.com/photos/28507814@N06/...704233992/show/ Here's small res: Just check Flickr for larger images (but not that large)

This version number scheme is getting complex... But I'm going to hold out for the v2.1.2 or maybe even the v2.2

I was very disappointed with my one venture into the VF100 line and am boycotting the rest of them; well the VF-1 & VF-25 for sure. I'm will to re-evaluate their future releases, after reading about other peoples' experiences here first. IMO it's unfair to blame "Chinese QC" on this. Bandai has made a call to get their toys made somewhere, it doesn't matter were. If there's a QC problem it's Bandai's fault. They sell the toy, they chose to get it made there; IMO Bandai are solely responsible for all QC so if I have an issue it's with Bandai, we shouldn't be making excuses for them. If they don't take care of their reputation then it will suffer long term and with the recession hitting I'm having to choose to skip some Macross stuff. Things like this from Bandai only make it easier to choose what to skip. Thanks Bandai! You're helping me save money! People need to keep their money in their pockets when toy lines have problems; it's the only way Bandai will take note. Like people here have said already (it's probably a difference part of the business) but injection kits from Bandai are awesome! I love their VF-25 kits and recently become a big Gundam kit fan. We know Bandai can produce the good stuff, but they just need to get their act together on this VF100 stuff.

The different between a good picture and a great picture isn't the camera but the photographer. Expensive equipment won't make you better at this. Have you done anything like this before, if the answer is no. Then you should do a night course or join a photography society learn about the profession before jumping head first in with your cash. I'd be surprised if people would hire you without seeing any of your work. "Do you have a photo-portfolio of other events you've worked?" I'm sure would be a standard question if people are dropping serious cash. Do you know how to do day shoot Vs night? How to use camera filters to add mood to a photo? What the different lens type are used for? I'm not trying to talk you out of it, just there is a lot to taking good photos that people don't realize. Yeah anybody can pick up a camera and take a picture. But there is a skill involved in seeing what pictures to take. Also about hassle, said Photo guy has to have perfect pictures from the night and all the key events. Blurry or camera shake picture won't cut it, there's no re shot and there better be no red eye. If this is a great rich quick idea, you're in for a hell of a fright!