HQ12-02 Race Queen; atelier iT 1/12 scale resin figurine [Completed]

It has been a somewhat convoluted journey for the Race Queen, a 1/12 scale resin figurine from Japan-based atelier iT. I had actually finished painting and assembling her late last year but scarcity of hobby time meant I couldn't take any photos of the fully painted Race Queen. However, an extended stay-at-home period has allowed me to do so and post them here. Videos of her weren't included because I'm still getting to grips with the VEGAS Pro 15 software that I bought to improve my video editing options. As such a video representation of the Race Queen will be uploaded later.  

1/12 scale resin figurine by atelier iT - HQ12-02 Race Queen [Completed]

Also just a quick heads up before you proceed further into this blog. By now, you would've noticed  that a majority of the photos you see here were taken against a black background. This was done consciously in order to see if details of the black hair could stand out against a dark background. As a comparison, photos of the Race Queen were also taken against a lighter azure background (see series of photos in the last third of this blog post). Lighting conditions were kept similar for both. 

Closeup view of the atelier iT 1/12 scale Race Queen figurine against a black background

As an artistic representation of a Japanese Race Queen, I painted her in a black hair and fair skin combo

Meanwhile, her racing outfit was painted in soft pastel hues of the 2016 Pantone Color of the Year

Front closeup view of the fully painted atelier iT 1/12 scale Race Queen figurine

From the outset I had realized there was an inherent risk in painting a figurine with a combination of black hair and fair skin. This contrast in tint/shade tends to result in an optical illusion in which the skin then looks too fair and the hair too dark. Perhaps a better choice would've been brown hair and a more tanned skint tone. But I'm fairly happy with how she turned out. Of course she could've been painted better. Each figurine I complete is a step towards a realistic life-like paint job, a goal that is the holy grail in this miniature and scale model kit painting hobby of mine.

This lovely resin figurine was sculpted by Hiroki Hayashi of atelier iT

While her skin tone was airbrushed, the rest was completed by hand painting

In the closeup views thus far, the Race Queen's shots were cut off at her knees

Because I had not done a good job at the prep stage - a recurring failure of mine that continues to haunt the impatient painter in me - there were areas that I could not lay on smooth layers of paint. Can you guess where by looking at the photos here? From afar it's not too obvious. But if you look closely enough at her hands you can just about make out mold lines along her fingers. It's an easily rectifiable flaw that rears its ugly head due to my over eagerness to rush the project workflow. 

For a zoomed out view, I pulled the camera out until the shot encompassed her from head to toe

Zoomed out side profile (from the left) of the fully painted atelier iT 1/12 scale Race Queen figurine

In this case, the Race Queen's high heels are a perfect accompaniment to her attire ...

... and color-wise her shoe's were coordinated with that of her clothes for a uniform look 

Zoomed out back view of the fully painted atelier iT 1/12 scale Race Queen figurine

Even from behind, the Race Queen's pose is excellent; so much sculpted detail that's taken for granted in real life

For the moment, the Race Queen remains as a figurine painted to accompany the Scout Trooper and his Speeder Bike. Both are after all of the same 1/12 scale. Logically speaking the Race Queen would be much better suited paired with a 1/12 scale Race Car. However, I don't have any cars at this scale to pair her with. Anyway, the Speeder Bike is technically a bike build for speed so the Race Queen will still fit in well in a vignette featuring the Star Wars character and vehicle.

Zoomed out side profile (from the right) of the fully painted atelier iT 1/12 scale Race Queen figurine

Part of the reason I used a black background is to see how well the details on her black hair can be seen ...

... against a dark background, that is to see if the subtle contrast is visible in extreme conditions ... it is

Zoomed out front view of the fully painted atelier iT 1/12 scale Race Queen figurine

Adopting a traditional car show pose, the Race Queen can seamlessly slot into any 1/12 scale vehicle diorama

Another positive of the pose is that it accentuates the Race Queen's curves; in other words a proper modelling pose

To show how hues may subtly shift when placed against a different background color, I also took a series of photos of the Race Queen against a lighter azure background. I had tried to keep lighting conditions similar throughout the photo shoot. Assuming I had succeeded in doing so, the overall colors of the Race Queen seemed warmer when compared to photos taken of her against a black background. Now I do not discount the possibility that I had not kept lighting conditions as constant as I assumed because the photos were taken so long ago that I have forgotten all the details of the photo/video shoot. At the very least, I'm pretty sure camera settings were unchanged for both.

Against an azure background, the Race Queen's overall colors underwent a subtle hue shift

With lighting conditions largely similar throughout the shoot ... 

... the Race Queen's colors looked warmer versus against a black background

One key takeaway from this project was the fact that realistic skin tones can be achieved using an airbrush. While I'm still not fully satisfied with how her skin tone turned out, it's still one of the best results I've ever achieved when painting skin. It's my first time painting skin using an airbrush and lacquer paints. My previous forays have been with the traditional hand brush and acrylic paints. Airbrushing allows for extremely smooth transitions between hues. And when this is combined with the right skin color combo, the skin tone will tend to closely approximate skin as it's seen in real life.

Against the lighter background, the Race Queen was posed on a rotating display base ...

... with a series of photos taken at key posing points as she rotated 360 degrees

Details on the Race Queen's black hair seems harder to make out against a light background

Incidentally, this series of photos with an azure background was still shots taken of the Race Queen while she was rotating on a battery operated Lazy Susan display. This is the same rotating display that I usually use when taking videos of fully painted miniatures that I have completed.

Back view of the fully painted Race Queen figurine, posed against an azure background

A key takeaway from the Race Queen project was that airbrushed skin tones can look ultra realistic ...

... and this means the airbrush is now going to be my new best friend when painting skin tones

My quest for near-perfection in the painting of realistic miniature figurines is far from complete. There were so many things I could've done better starting from the Race Queen's hair, eyes, all the way down to her high heels. Ways to improve seem endless. And as I wallow in the pseudo-misery of  my own creation i.e. a never ending quest for a near-perfect figurine paint job, I will leave you with yet another quote from one of my favorite characters in the TV show Community, a certain Abed Nadir ... "You can do whatever you want, you just have to know what that is."

Star Wars 1/144 scale Millennium Falcon [WIP - Upper Fully Assembled and Snap-fitted onto the Lower Hull]

With all its separate pieces and sub-assemblies fully painted and accounted for, the Millennium Falcon was finally ready to be put together. After years in this hobby, I seem to have settled upon a modus operandi that involves painting a miniature figurine or scale model kit's parts first before assembling them. Most, if not all, of my projects have been carried out in this manner. Doing so has its pros and cons. The former being the ability to paint parts to a high degree of detail while the latter sometimes negated the former by causing damage to the paint during assembly. With that in mind, lets see how the final assembly process for the Millennium Falcon itself turned out.  

1/144 scale Millennium Falcon Work-in-Progress: Upper Hull snap-fitted onto the Lower Hull

Steps can be taken to prevent paint chipping and decal damage when piecing together the separately painted pieces. Apart from the obvious step of being extra careful when handling the parts, one could also spray a protective clear topcoat onto the final layer of paint and decals. While all the care in the world isn't necessarily foolproof against damage to paint and decal, it can at the least minimizes it.  

Forward Mandibles of the Millennium Falcon (closeup view)

Forward Mandibles, prior to being attached to the inner edge of the Lower Hull

Forward Mandibles, after they were attached to the inner edge of the Lower Hull

Once the Upper Hull (not shown) is snap-fitted onto the Mandibles, the attachment becomes more secure

Both Forward Mandibles are first attached via Lego-like connecting studs onto holes on the inner edge of the Lower Hull (see above). At this stage the Mandibles weren't yet securely attached in that they could easily be shaken loose from the Lower Hull. A secure fit could only be achieved by fixing the Upper Hull onto Mandibles and Lower Hull also via similar Lego-like connecting studs and holes. This would then place the Mandibles firmly in between both hulls (see final third of photos).  

Underside of the Millennium Falcon Forward Mandibles, which attach to the Lower Hull

Lower Hull (compared with Upper Hull) takes on a greater yellowish tint due to sand weathering effects

My main concern about the Upper Laser Turret was whether it could blend inconspicuously into the Upper Hull. This worry arose because I did a less than stellar job on the Laser Turret's weathering effects. In the end, I guess everything turned out okay. Not great but okay. Unconsciously, I may just be trying to reassure myself that I didn't mess things up. Still, I intend to leave things well alone.

Upper Laser Turret prior to be fixed into the Millennium Falcon's Upper Hull

Upper Laser Turret snap-fits securely onto the Millennium Falcon's Upper Hull

Closeup view of the Upper Laser Turret once it has been attached to the Upper Hull

And just like that the two halves were ready to be snap-fitted together. At this late point, you may have noticed that the Cockpit section still hadn't been attached to the Upper Hull. As per the instructions, both halves had to be fixed together first before the Cockpit section was inserted. I believe this method was suggested to prevent clumsy hands from somehow pressing too hard on the Cockpit and breaking it. Sans the cockpit, I actually had more surface area in which to apply force with my fingers in order to ensure both halves of the hull had indeed snap-fitted securely into place. 

Bandai Star Wars 1/144 scale Millennium Falcon - Upper Hull and Lower Hull prior to being snap-fitted together

Due to the flimsiness and fragility of certain sections of the Upper Hull, e.g. the Exposed Innards, Quad Laser Cannons and Radar Dish, I still had to be extremely careful not to accidentally press onto them and break them. But as mentioned in the preceding paragraph, there was enough unobstructed surface area for my fingers to rest on thus ensuring sufficient force was used to assemble both hulls.

Millennium Falcon's Upper Hull snap-fits so securely onto the Lower Hull ...

... that there is absolutely no need for any glue to be used in the assembly process

At this stage, all that was left for me to do was insert the Cockpit into its rightful place. Similar to what has worked so well thus far, the Cockpit contained Lego-like connecting studs which allowed it to be fixed securely into the corresponding holes on the Upper Hull (see below).

Similar to the other parts, the Cockpit section has Lego-like connecting studs ...

... which help it attach securely onto the Upper Hull via just a snap-fitting process

Cockpit of the Millennium Falcon after it has been attached onto the ship's Upper Hull

It's a great testament to Bandai's snap-fit design that absolutely no glue was needed during this final stage of assembly. If only the past me - more than four years ago - had realized this and had not glued shut the armor panel which allowed access to the on/off switch of an LED lighting system. 

1/144 scale Millennium Falcon completed and ready to be attached to its display stand/base

Before I proceed to showcase the Millennium Falcon into its final form, there is the issue of its base to tackle. I expect this next step to be a quick one as I intend to put as little effort as I can get away with in order to make it work. There are reasons for putting minimal effort into the desert base which I'll make clear in the next post. For now it's time for - you guessed it - yet another quote to end my weekly (sometimes biweekly, sometimes semiweekly) blog posts. This one is from William aka Man in Black from the HBO series Westworld ... "When you're suffering, that's when you're most real".