stars custom figures and repaints

[bmathison1972]

update:
-finished Safari ltd. Cambrian toob anomalocaris and sanctacaris
-started Safari ltd. Deep Sea toob giant isopod
-continued AAA big headed turtle juvenile

since I probably won't get any more painting done today, I'll go get pics soon

If you really want to fix the Safari TOOB giant isopod, add the pair of legs the figure is missing...uggh

[stargatedalek]

I really wish I had that kind of sculpting skill, I'd also add some detail to the underside of that tail....

[stargatedalek]

sorry I didn't get these up yesterday, I was having difficulties with camera batteries

Safari ltd Cambrian Toob Anomalocaris
I'm not super proud of how this one turned out, but I'm satisfied with it.









Safari Cambrian Toob Sanctacaris






For a comparison to the originals you can check the review and photos by Stemturtle on the Dinosaur Toy Blog: http://dinotoyblog.com/2013/02/14/cambrian-life-toob-safari-ltd/

[Patrx]

I think those both turned out quite well! I especially like the shades of orange on the Anomalocaris' limbs. How small are these figures?

[stargatedalek]

Thanks, the anomalocaris is the largest at about 3 inches long.

[Jetoar]

Lovely repaints, better than the original colors  .

[brontodocus]

Great! The Sanctacaris is my favourite.

[Hercules beetle]

sorry I didn't get these up yesterday, I was having difficulties with camera batteries

Safari ltd Cambrian Toob Anomalocaris
I'm not super proud of how this one turned out, but I'm satisfied with it.
[spoiler][IMG]
Safari Cambrian Toob Sanctacaris
[spoiler][IMG]
For a comparison to the originals you can check the review and photos by Stemturtle on the Dinosaur Toy Blog:

Thats awesome!

[stargatedalek]

I finished these two a few weeks ago, but I hadn't photographed them until just now (>.<). Safari ltd. Deep Sea Toob Hatchetfish, repainted to match Argyropelecus aculeatus, AKA "Atlantic silver hatchetfish" or "lovely hatchetfish". Third incorrect dorsal fin and fangs were removed, and the remaining fins were slightly altered, but that was the limit of my "sculpting" abilities and so a few fins are still missing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argyropelecus_aculeatus
The Lovely Hatchetfish or Atlantic Silver Hatchetfish (Argyropelecus aculeatus) is a species of fish in the Sternoptychidae family. It may exceed 70 millimetres (2.8 in) standard length (SL). It lives in the mesopelagic zone of all oceans and performs diel vertical migration.[1] A. aculeatus feeds on a large range of prey items; in the Gulf of Mexico ostracods and copepods dominated the diet of small individuals (<30 mm SL) and euphausiids, molluscs, and fish the diet of larger ones.[2] The silvery coloration and bioluminescence of the Lovely Hatchetfish allows it to hide from predators and prey in the down-welling light of the twilight zone.

At 7cm in length the piece is in 1:1 scale. I think I might touch up the photophores on the underside of the tail at some point (all of the others I counted out to get the correct numbers).

I used a cross-reference of several images to make the patterns, since they seem to vary slightly between individuals. But I mainly relied on these three below, so credit to them!










I picked up this used Safari ltd. rough green snake and it has some paint wear, so I repainted its head.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opheodrys_aestivus
Opheodrys aestivus, commonly known as the rough green snake, is a nonvenomous North American colubrid. It is sometimes called grass snake or green grass snake, but these names are more commonly applied to the smooth green snake (Opheodrys vernalis). The European colubrid called grass snake (Natrix natrix) is unrelated. The rough green snake is docile, often allowing close approach by humans, and seldom bites.

At 90cm in length the figure is in approximately 1:1.28 scale. Sadly the scales are not keeled so it isn't a perfect match. The head is normally the same colour as the body but it isn't unusual for the head to be lighter or darker than the body.

[Newt]

Nice work on the customizations!


That last snake is clearly cast from a real specimen that was clearly not an Opheodrys. Besides the keeled scales you mention, Opheodrys are very very slender snakes. To my eye, it looks like an Asian rat snake (Ptyas spp.). You could turn it into a green rat snake (P. nigromarginatus) with just a little black striping...

[Jetoar]

Awesome customs, really awesome  .

[stargatedalek]

Thanks guys!
Actually, not every specimen of P. nigromarginatus has black striping, some have black patterns that almost look like a wash coat between the scales, and some lack the black markings altogether (this goes for the black stripe under the eye also). So it can already pass as is (a nice new wash would help tho )

[brontodocus]

Great! Now the Hatchetfish looks like a proper Hatchetfish. And the snake, while it's apparently not cast from Opheodrys aestivus, the figure looks like new again!

[stargatedalek]

Playmobil flamingo repainted as American Flamingo, original paint app on the left.

I got out my old Playmobil and as I went through it for nostalgia I realized some of them were actually decent sculpts, so I have a couple I plan on touching up. Man are these thing TINY!

[brontodocus]

What a neat idea to repaint the Playmobil flamingoes. And the face turned out excellent!

[Jetoar]

Lovely custom partner  .

[stargatedalek]

Litopenaeus vannamei

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whiteleg_shrimp
Whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei, formerly Penaeus vannamei), also known as Pacific white shrimp, is a variety of prawn of the eastern Pacific Ocean commonly caught or farmed for food. Litopenaeus vannamei grows to a maximum length of 230 millimetres (9.1 in), with a carapace length of 90 mm (3.5 in). Adults live in the ocean, at depths of up to 72 metres (236 ft), while juveniles live in estuaries. The rostrum is moderately long, with 7–10 teeth on the dorsal side and 2–4 teeth on the ventral side.

I wish I could tell you guys more about this little shrimp but I can't. I picked it up at Micheal's Crafts but it was sold as a "no-name" figure in a bag of other generic marine animals. My best guess is either its a bootleg or a cast of a dead shrimp, either way its worlds ahead of the other figures from that set, I could even find a species that seems to fit. It was originally a solid green plastic (there I go again, forgetting to take before pictures!). I would have liked to have painted its legs but the plastic is so pliable the paint would have chipped off even with a sealant.





You can see more diorama shots here: http://animaltoyforum.com/index.php?topic=1094.new#new

[stargatedalek]

Microraptor zhaoianus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microraptor
Microraptor (Greek, μίκρος, mīkros: "small"; Latin, raptor: "one who seizes") was a genus of small, four-winged paravian (possibly dromaeosaurid) dinosaurs. Numerous well-preserved fossil specimens have been recovered from Liaoning, China. They date from the early Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation (Aptian stage), 125 to 120 million years ago. Three species have been named (M. zhaoianus, M. gui, and M. hanqingi), though further study has suggested that all of them represent variation in a single species, which is properly called M. zhaoianus. Cryptovolans, initially described as another four-winged dinosaur, is usually considered to be a synonym of Microraptor.

I've always loved the Carnegie microraptor since I first laid eyes on it. The sculpt, the paint app, everything just, "pops" with life. But as times progressed the microraptor fell behind them. The colouration and trend to under-feather have since taken their toll on its accuracy (I still maintain its amongst the most accurate dromaeosaur figures available, I mean look at those wings attaching to the hands, and it even has an alula!). I decided I owed it to myself to try and update my microraptor, but I couldn't bring myself to touch that paint app so I acquired a second one. Before someone mentions the tail being the wrong shape I'd like to point out that this could just be the pose of the figure, and that the arrangement of tail plumes could have varied between species of microraptor.






More photos here: http://animaltoyforum.com/index.php?topic=1094.msg12489;topicseen#new

[stargatedalek]

AAA Tokay Gecko Juvenile.




AAA Praying Mantis



Once upon a time it was a Chap Mei "gastornis", now its a Chaos Effect "Dilophornis"




JW Blindbag Mosasaurus, camera decided so suddenly start showing its age there...






Safari Carnegie Caudipteryx, I actually returned to this custom and did a bit more work on the wings, I didn't remove enough fingers the first time: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Caudipteryx.gif






I've always been a sucker for life cycle sets/series and for 1:1 animals, so having both the adult and infant green iguanas is amazing. The adult is a definite contender for my favorite figure ever. Both of these are really little more than touch-ups, the cheeks and spines on the adult, dewlap on the infant, and eyes and nails of both (what is it with companies and giving lizards slit eyes?). The camera really makes the eyes look sleepy

Now for the WIP montage! If anyone guesses what any of these colour schemes are based on you win an imaginary cookie! (guessing for the turtle and cuttlefish is cheating )

[Jetoar]

Nice custom partner, Tokay gecko looks really good  .