I Need a Better Camera

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David Johansen

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From my workbench:DSCF0069.JPGDSCF0069.JPGDSCF0073.JPGDSCF0074.JPGDSCF0085.JPG
 

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This is really a spinoff from my game ideas thread. Some 30mm fairly cartoony Mutant Chronicles style figures. I've started three light infantry to go with them but I'd like to do six of each with six head options and six weapons. I haven't quite decided on pouches and the like, whether to go with simple high tech looking boxes or baggy cloth ones. I might do both as addition kits but I'm not a huge fan of metal figures with too many parts and I'm already doing separate heads and weapons.
 
It looks like the focus is off. Some of the stuff in the background looks sharper than the close up stuff. Do you know if it has a manual focus ring? One of my cheap little usb video cameras I have to manually focus to get a picture.
 
I think I'm going to redo some of the heads and the light infantry isn't quite done. I still haven't managed to sculpt a sword I'm happy with. My plan is to cast them in resin using a cornstarch and silicon mold. Of course, I'm writing a game... :grin:
 
Tonight I made a mould of the heavy infantry. You mix silicon sealant and cornstarch and it makes a kind of putty. The cornstarch catalyzes the silicon somehow and it cures in much thicker blocks than it normally would. I couldn't find my box of nitrile gloves or my caulking gun so I coated my hands with detergent and used the back end of a hammer to push the caulking out. It's a speed job not a precision one. Anyhow, you also use detergent as the release agent. I've done moulds this way before and the detail comes out good but they haven't filled well. Also, the resin doesn't cure right if it's at all cool outside. You didn't think my wife would let me do this stuff in the house did you? Anyhow, we'll see how it comes apart in an hour or so.
 
What kind of budget do you have for a camera? Canon has some nice pocket cameras in the $150 range that can do macro shots pretty well. My dad has an older one which he uses to take good close ups of small ship models. Any of the current ones I'm sure would blow his 8-10 year old one away.


I've done quite a lot of resin casting in the past and it is pretty hard to beat real casting supplies, and I didn't find it terribly expensive. Is the caulking and cornstarch a budget thing, or just what you are familiar with using?
 
The giant grey cat figure is your finest work so far.

But, yes: get some kind of cheap and decent cellphone or digital camera. It's tough to provide feedback, other than, "well, that grey blob looks like it could have an interesting pose."

For some reason your tank reminds me of gingerbread and icing...
 
Well, I had a block of terracotta plasticine sitting around and spent an hour working it up because it was old and hard but I ran out because my daughter sculpted a bunny and the craft store didn't have any more terra cotta. It's a bit softer than I'd like. You can't sand plasticine. Still, it's supposed to be in the mode of Mutant Chronicles stuff. There's going to be two machinegun mounts on the sides but I think I want to cast them separately to keep the mould depth down.

I think I'm going to try a layered rtv gasket replacement mould. I did one last year for some 54mm sf stuff but the detail wasn't great. But that was using scrap lead and from what I've read, I think if I put in 50% lead free solder it should flow better. I was kind of hoping I could get away with the lead for 54mm figures. It's as much about preserving the masters while getting copies to paint.
 
The tank is neat looking, if you sculpted at, very nice job.

Have you cast plasticine before? Not all modelling clays are compatible with silicone molds, there can be chemical incompatibilities that will prevent the silicone from setting up. I'm not sure how sensitive the caulking you are using is, but it may be much more tolerant considering its intended use.


On the camera end, an old cell phone might be a cheap option. Any smartphone from the past 10 years would have a decent camera, better than what you are using. I've not tried buying an old phone but with most having a service life (as a phone) in the 2-4 year range, something 6-10 years old might be dirt cheap.

I'm assuming you don't have a cell phone with a decent camera or you would be using it.

This is a photo from 2011 using my Droid X which I got in 2010. It was replaced in 2015 with another Motorola Droid, and last year, that was replaced with a Samsung. Photo unedited, just resized using Paint. The gas pumps are about 1-1/2" - 2" tall so probably similar to the photos you are taking.

little gas pumps.jpg
 
Well, we finally had a warm enough day for the resin to set up and after re-working the venting on the second mould I had a 98% successful fill. The only problem is that the mould seems to have added a bit of texture. I'm not sure if it's from the corn starch or the Dawn detergent I'm using as release agent. I did have a problem with that on a plaster mould once. Lots of tiny bubbles! I'm going to pour a couple times tomorrow and maybe Thursday, weather permitting. But I'm going to be assembling and painting them soon. I've also got the tank and a giant battle yak ready to make moulds though they'll be silicon / laytex layered moulds and a decent bit cheaper.
 
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