WIP masterpiece slipstream

[Jinto]

I'd suggest cutting off the upper arm completely and replacing everything from the shoulder to the elbow with a thinner, more cylindrical upper arm. you'll want something with stronger ball joints though... perhaps something from a revoltech figure. You may have to then alter the forearm a bit to be consistent. depends how much remodeling you're willing to do.
I think that would give a more feminine look.

Making the sides of the 'rib' area a bit more concave would really help too, if that's possible.

[Ae-Evolution]

I reckon if you add the little block detail on the upper arm and mould shoulder pads it will blend in and the wouldn't really be that noticeable.

[AJ_Prime]

Bit more progress on the head sculpt:

[lancalot]

OOoooo nice

[AJ_Prime]

I've made some more progress on the head sculpt, there's still quite a bit of cleanup to do and I haven't completely closed the model in yet. The other thing I need to work out is measurements, especially with regards to how it will fit on the transformer. Also looking at it now, I think I need to bring the section of the face with the nose out a bit more. I was also thinking of putting some vents or something in the sides of the helmet, looks too plain with those big holes there.

Hmmm, looking at it now the chin looks a bit pointy too. Might bring it up a bit and round it off more.

Let me know if you have any suggestions for refinement or in regards to my other problem about how you would like it molded to fit on the transformer.

Here's a test render so far:



And I thought I'd play with the colouring, so here is a colour test of the render:

[UltraMarginal]

I'd suggest cutting off the upper arm completely and replacing everything from the shoulder to the elbow with a thinner, more cylindrical upper arm. you'll want something with stronger ball joints though... perhaps something from a revoltech figure. You may have to then alter the forearm a bit to be consistent. depends how much remodeling you're willing to do.
I think that would give a more feminine look.

Making the sides of the 'rib' area a bit more concave would really help too, if that's possible.

That's a good idea, though I'd suggest some sort of panelling on the back of the arms, or perhaps the side of the torso that will replace the blockiness of the arms in vehicle mode as the arms make up a large portion of the side of the jet fuselage.

I've made some more progress on the head sculpt, there's still quite a bit of cleanup to do and I haven't completely closed the model in yet. The other thing I need to work out is measurements, especially with regards to how it will fit on the transformer. Also looking at it now, I think I need to bring the section of the face with the nose out a bit more. I was also thinking of putting some vents or something in the sides of the helmet, looks too plain with those big holes there.

Hmmm, looking at it now the chin looks a bit pointy too. Might bring it up a bit and round it off more.

Let me know if you have any suggestions for refinement or in regards to my other problem about how you would like it molded to fit on the transformer.

Here's a test render so far:



And I thought I'd play with the colouring, so here is a colour test of the render:

That's really coming along, looking at the face, is seems a little too smooth overall, and maybe a bit pointy in the chin. there is something about the cheeks that feels wierd. It looks a little like "the silence" from Dr Who at the moment. scary.
I think you're idea of vents along sides of the head will work really well.

[Iriorne]

Looking good. If I might make a few suggestions:

The shape of the eyes seems a bit funny, most depictions seem to show more triangular eyes, rather than rounded at the bottom?

The mouth looks too narrow, should perhaps be 30-40% wider, and a bit higher, closer to the nose.

Nose is a too small and pointy. I suggest making it taller, longer, wider, with a flatter tip - more faceted, rather than smooth.

Vents in the side of the head sounds like a good idea, and will tie in well with the standard seeker heads.

there is something about the cheeks that feels wierd.

The pictures I've been able to find seem to cheat a bit here. The face appears smooth, while the helmet extends over the face, giving the illusion of cheeks. They also help define the shape of the face while keeping a relatively wide base, which is going to help give it the strength to accept a ball socket. I had a look at my MP transformers and most seem to either do the same, or just omit cheek bones altogether. Check out the Animated or Legends art to see what I mean.

Faces are tough, keep it up!

[lancalot]

It getting there ....i think the whole front face abit flat ....here a link to other female faces ...they have a 3d view to help you abit
http://www.shapeways.com/model/75863...ductBox-search

But it come out great so far.... faces is one of the hardest to do... do you have a MP seeker to get the measurement of the head?

[lancalot]

the arcee head nice ...see how it look like she in the helmet ...
http://www.shapeways.com/model/76256...hop&material=6

[AJ_Prime]

Cool thanks for the tips guys and the reference pics. I'll take a bit more artistic license with it while trying to keep to the look and feel of Slipstream.

Lancalot - Do you prefer a smooth face or something harder, linear like G1? Also I'm happy to change the eyes, I just went with what the original pic you had on first page of this thread. Perhaps eyes that are flatter and more "digital clock" might look better here though.

Yep I'm still not happy with it either, that face just looks really freaky, definitely too flat. The small nose and mouth are my feeble attempt at being too anime in line with the first reference pic.

I'll keep plugging away and will post another progress pic hopefully in next week or so depending on how much time I get.

Thanks again for the feedback everyone, it's very helpful. Lancalot, hopefully I'll have something ready for you to print soon.

I do have a Masterpiece Thundercracker I can use as a reference and I'll do some research too on how to get the right fit to the model. I guess if it's a ball joint (I haven't checked yet) then it's better to make it slightly too big than too small, at least that way you can sand it down. Having said that if it's only a fraction of a millimeter too small then you could always apply a coating of clear nail polish to the ball joint to fill in the buffer. I'll do my best to get it as close as possible to exact measurements though.