Stars custom figures and repaints

[stargatedalek]

Here's some things I've posted previously, some aren't finished yet, I figured even though these were modern animals I might as well post them since I have some extinct ones on the way.

AAA "snapping turtle" (actually a juvenile big headed turtle) WIP
not much done on it, the first coat of patterns for the face, but I thought it might be interesting to document the process

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wild safari microraptor WIP
the bottom half is only the base coat

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AAA "toad" (American Toad) repaint

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AAA "scorpion" (mastigoproctus giganteus/vinegaroon) repaint and edited model

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I decided I wasn't pleased with the chelae, so I did a bit more work on them

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today's status 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

[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.

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Safari Cambrian Toob Sanctacaris

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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/

[Arul]

Nice and interesting  do you also custom the other safari ltd cambrian toob figure ? 

[stargatedalek]

Thanks, I'm planning on it but I've only done these two thus far.

[Megalosaurus]

The spoiler tags don't work in this forum. I wish they will.

I like the Sanctacaris repaint.
As for the anomalocaris, its nice but it has a ghostly appareance to my eyes (and simply I didn't attracts me).
Hope you repaint the whole toob soon and show it to us.

[stargatedalek]

oops, I forgot to remove the tags XD

Thanks, actually ghostly is what I was aiming for.
I have the rest of the toob prepared to start, but I think I'll try and finish that turtle first.

[Dinomike]

That toad is especially impressive! Looks like a real animal!

[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.

[Tyto_Theropod]

I like the snake, Star. From what I can see in the photos the eye is very realistic!

[Crackington]

Lovely work SD, the hatchet fish looks like you've just pulled it out of the sea! The Sanctaris looks a lot better now too, but you might want another go at the Anomalocaris.

[Arul]

Good work the snake looks so interesting   

[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!

[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://dinotoyblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=2397.0

[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://dinotoyblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=2397.0

[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  .

[stargatedalek]

Thanks, I was really surprised when I looked it up how much they change as they age.

[Halichoeres]

Let's see: for Desmatosuchus: Dendrobates pumilio (blue-jeans frog)?
For Quetzalcoatlus: Spinus tristis (American goldfinch)?
I don't have a guess for the sauropod or the ichthyosaur.

The goldfinch colors on the Quetz suit it surprisingly well.

[stargatedalek]

You got the Quetz! well, part of it (but I haven't even started on that part yet so I'll just come out with it and say yellow anaconda).
Desmatosuchus is based on a video game Desmatosuchus, Ichthyosaurus on a fish, and the Diplodocus is based on another figure.

I didn't expect the colours to suit the Quetz as well as they did either.

[Halichoeres]

You got the Quetz! well, part of it (but I haven't even started on that part yet so I'll just come out with it and say yellow anaconda).
Desmatosuchus is based on a video game Desmatosuchus, Ichthyosaurus on a fish, and the Diplodocus is based on another figure.

I didn't expect the colours to suit the Quetz as well as they did either.

Well, with those hints I have to guess again. Ichthyosaurus=smoothhound shark? And the Diplodocus must be the Yowie Kakuru!