Anyone into gunpla - Japanophiles unite to share tips on painting our toys (GUNPLA IS FREEDOM)

[Another Char Clone]

Now that's a unique idea. Possibly a one of a kind photo. Maybe try an outdoor shoot. Dark skies and white grass might add to that unnatural or ominous feeling.

Spoiler: IR Camera sperg

Shooting with IR is actually quite a challenge, a filter to cut almost all visible light easily cuts as much of 50% or more of the light. I have some nice outdoor shoots.
I happen to be testing out my camera under incandescent lighting in a cabinet, with a giant f/1.2 lens wide open, it costs a fortune. It needs all the light it can get for shooting without a tripod.

I Zakus and cannot lie.

Same Thunderbolt Zaku in the center with other Zakus around, including an FZ.


Some MS-05Ls built earlier, unfiltered color shot.

 

[WelperHelper99]

I am so fucked.
View attachment 5109198
I didn’t quite know how big my backlog was until I pulled it all out. We are doing spring cleaning at the moment and I decided to organize my gundam shelf. I have so much work ahead of me. I’ve had some of these kits for years!

Luckily the Hi Nu, Transient and zeta are partially built, and I can knock the HGs out pretty quick.

Literally me lol, just I've accumulated mine in just half a year. It's why I'm moving from HG to HG so fast, I got kits for days. It's cool seeing the Zeta 2.0, might get that or the Ka version for my first MG when that happens. How does it feel, if I can ask?

Spoiler: IR Camera sperg

Shooting with IR is actually quite a challenge, a filter to cut almost all visible light easily cuts as much of 50% or more of the light. I have some nice outdoor shoots.
I happen to be testing out my camera under incandescent lighting in a cabinet, with a giant f/1.2 lens wide open, it costs a fortune. It needs all the light it can get for shooting without a tripod.

I Zakus and cannot lie.

Same Thunderbolt Zaku in the center with other Zakus around, including an FZ.
View attachment 5109745

Some MS-05Ls built earlier, unfiltered color shot.
View attachment 5109773

That camera may cost a shit ton but the effects are worth it man. Better than my getto ass pictures lol.

 

[CHARizard]

It's cool seeing the Zeta 2.0, might get that or the Ka version for my first MG when that happens. How does it feel, if I can ask?

Its been in a box for over a year because I really didnt enjoy what little I built of it. I think I will give it another shot at some point. I havnt looked into the Ver Ka but that may be a better kit since its so much more modern.

 

[An Ghost]

Some MS-05Ls built earlier, unfiltered color shot.

The green color on the scope is striking. There's probably all sorts of undiscovered things like how certain paints or marks would look with IR. Also just buy a tripod. Models don't move so long expose to your hearts content. I always use a tripod for consistency, even if I use strobes.
Ive never explicitly said what set up I use, but I have a 6x7 lens with a tilt shift adapter. I shift the wrong way trying to create a towering feeling, or at least try to. I've posted these before but let me know what you think:

Spoiler

 

[WelperHelper99]

Its been in a box for over a year because I really didnt enjoy what little I built of it. I think I will give it another shot at some point. I havnt looked into the Ver Ka but that may be a better kit since its so much more modern.

Alright, I think I read that in the thread somewhere that it kinda sucked. The Ka definitely looks cool, the problem is finding it in stock at any given time. BBTS has it basically eternally sold out, much sad. Well if and when you finish it I'd love to see pictures of one of my favorite Gundams.

As for progress on my projects, got this little bit done this morning

His weapons and head are done now, tomorrow should be arms

 

[Inafune Fanfiction]

Spoiler: IR Camera sperg

Shooting with IR is actually quite a challenge, a filter to cut almost all visible light easily cuts as much of 50% or more of the light. I have some nice outdoor shoots.
I happen to be testing out my camera under incandescent lighting in a cabinet, with a giant f/1.2 lens wide open, it costs a fortune. It needs all the light it can get for shooting without a tripod.

I Zakus and cannot lie.

Same Thunderbolt Zaku in the center with other Zakus around, including an FZ.
View attachment 5109745

Some MS-05Ls built earlier, unfiltered color shot.
View attachment 5109773

They really deserve some kind of spiritual successor in the post-zeon eras.

Didn’t care for the kappa themed one in Thunderbolt that annoying parapelgic nigger was piloting.

 

[CHARizard]

Wife surprised me today, I guess she saw this advertised and ordered it a few months ago. Im not the biggest Gfuel fan, but I really dig the metal shaker cup!




I forgot how shit the shield is on the RX-78 MG 3.0 fucking thing barely stays on for posing.

 

[Another Char Clone]

Spoiler: More camera sperg

That camera may cost a shit ton but the effects are worth it man.

The background blur effect is a function of the size of the lens diaphragm not so much the camera, any lens capable of reaching f/1.2 can replicate the effect.
In my case, I was shooting wide open because indoor IR lighting is pretty weak (modern LED lighting and CFLs barely emit any) and I don't have a tripod, a proper tripod starts around $500.

The one I have is from Canon:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/457680-USA/Canon_1257B002AA_Normal_EF_50mm_f_1_2L.html

On the opposite end, for clearer, more clinical shoots, you typically want to reduce the aperture to around f/5.6 or f/8, most lenses also have far better resolution than when it is wide open.

The green color on the scope is striking. There's probably all sorts of undiscovered things like how certain paints or marks would look with IR. Also just buy a tripod. Models don't move so long expose to your hearts content. I always use a tripod for consistency, even if I use strobes.
Ive never explicitly said what set up I use, but I have a 6x7 lens with a tilt shift adapter. I shift the wrong way trying to create a towering feeling, or at least try to. I've posted these before but let me know what you think:

The green scope is actually just a regular sticker. By unfiltered, I meant not blocking any particular light spectrum as seen by the modified camera, so all the way from near UV, visible and IR. The camera flash emits some IR, you can see the effect on sniper rifle power cable braid (made of nylon or cotton?) on the right Zaku, glowing purple slightly from the camera misinterpreting the sensor data when it is supposed to be black. If you mount an 850nm IR pass filter (the hard black and white IR), clothes typically appear white regardless of color, some fun I had in a mall:

There usually isn't much reason to use a tripod when using flash, all my cameras are stuck to sync flash speed around 1/60. I plan to get some continuous lighting in the future as an alternative to get around that.

I have some Pentax 6x7 lenses too, they're dirt cheap off ebay. Sadly, I haven't experimented much with tilt shifting. The 80s-90s era lenses not as high resolution as modern lenses but for the purpose of web sized images (or even a fullscreen image on a 15" laptop screen), they're usually good enough. Just don't zoom in to inspect the pixels, they're terrible at that level.

There's also some cheap and easy effects you can do to make your shots not look flat with a flash. The Zaku sniper picture before was done by placing the camera right beside the wall, so that when the flash fires, it is close enough that the background lighting becomes hard and inconsistent, giving it some gradient rather than a bland solid background color. It takes some tries to find an interesting angle, I shot more than 30 poses and position but narrowed the best down to one.

Thread tax: An oggo with the same FZ Zaku from way back when I first started shooting.

 

[An Ghost]

Spoiler: camera stuff

I don't have a tripod, a proper tripod starts around $500.

But it doesn't have to be. I have a $60 dolica (head and legs) that does just fine for taking pics of my toy robots. It's not macro tier but I've used it to "scan" film. And I can reverse the head to point down, essential for pics of the kiwi coin.

high resolution as modern lenses

I understand the amazement of zooming in and seeing every speck of dust on a model, but the only person who will blow your pics up to 200% is you. And I like crappy lens character. My 50mm 6x7 imo is more than sharp enough but it flares like a bitch so I lean into that.

 

[King Dead]

I dunno why it took me this long to bother searching for a Gunpla thread.

Just finished my Sazabi and Nu Gundam Ver.Ka builds recently. I'd bought the Sazabi almost two years ago because it was a dream kit of mine, but I never got around to building it because I didn't want to fuck up a kit I really cared a lot about. After getting some better tools and practicing with them first, I mustered up the courage to build it and had a blast. Goddamn is it a massive sumbitch though. Bought and built the Nu Gundam right afterward, and they look great together. Haven't started any of the detailing yet, but from experience I know the waterslides will be fun.

I want to get around to topcoating some of my kits, but it gets really hot and humid here during the summer (lowest humidity is 60% in the middle of the afternoon when it's upper 80s or low 90s). I know that can cause issues, so any kiwis with experience in maximum temps/humidity for topcoating would be a big help. I'd prefer not having to wait until winter rolls around again to topcoat, but I will if I must. The ideal would be having a setup for airbrushing, but that's not in the cards currently.

 

[Abbadon's Gate]

Just got into Gunpla this year. Aside from a Strike Freedom, I have three different Gundams from G-Witch.

 

[WelperHelper99]

Just got into Gunpla this year. Aside from a Strike Freedom, I have three different Gundams from G-Witch.

Awesome dude! I've been working on many Gundams since we've got knocked off clearnet. Let's hope I can show them

My Hyaku Shiki with stand. Zeta Gundam, Very poseable, gold looks better in person, tons of weapons, fun build, do reccomend.

Guntank, 0079 Gundam. Portable as a brick, wouldn't have it any other way. Very detail molds, I'll note. Another thing is that since it's old, 2000, it has this weird PVC smell that just won't go away, though most of its gone, but I've had to keep it out of my room. @Another Char Clone if you have a recommendation, let me know. Sunlight seems to kind of work but not totally.

The Dijeh, Amero's suit from Zeta. A nice chunky suit, quite poseable, has some smol stickers so take note, and he has a beam Nagata, beam rifle, and clay bazooka. If you like chunky suits that'll take some time, this is it

Zaku, from 0079. He's one of the newer ones, very solid, gave him the rubber leg skirts for extra poseability, and the bazooka for more dakka. One sticker for the eye, so be happy. Solid, do recommend.

Finally Barzam with stand, Zeta. He's quite tall, and surprisingly complex internally, though not unpleasantly so. Quite a fun build, newer kit so color separation is great, do recommend.

I should have the Darlbalade coming tomorrow, so hang tight! Let's get this thread rolling again!

 

[Fungible penis]

 

[WelperHelper99]

The Darilbalide. Completed this a week ago, he's from Witch From Mercury, Guel's Mobile Suit and my personal favorite.

He's quite posable, from the shoulder mounted shields, to the legs that you can detach, and with the wires and action 5 stand, make it look like he's using it as a claw. Comes with a non poesable clear stand, two purple blades for the funnel arms on his back that can go in place of his regular arms, as well as his staff, which can split in two.

Build was very quick, the pieces basically flew together, yet satisfyingly so. Half the instructions are in color, quite nice. He does have stickers, most of which are supposed to go BELOW the clear pieces, so be careful, and use tweezers.

Finding cons, if you want to adjust the stand, which is already limited, you have to remove the peg part and do it manually. Also you need to buy another specific stand to get the most our of him. And while the horn is pretty tightly stuck in on the head, at least on mine, I'd still recommend glue.

Overall, I love this kit. Extremely well done, feels straight out of the show. Next is Ariel. Until then, see ya!

 

[Tarka Dhal]

Finding cons, if you want to adjust the stand, which is already limited, you have to remove the peg part and do it manually. Also you need to buy another specific stand to get the most our of him. And while the horn is pretty tightly stuck in on the head, at least on mine, I'd still recommend glue.

I quite like that basic action base, the G-Portent came with it and I wish more kits did too. Any kind of transforming kit should have one as standard, but instead it just shows up paired with seemingly random models.

 

[WelperHelper99]

I quite like that basic action base, the G-Portent came with it and I wish more kits did too. Any kind of transforming kit should have one as standard, but instead it just shows up paired with seemingly random models.

It's very stable, I'll say that, and if you don't have the room to display him with the arms and legs flying out with action base 5, attached with wires, then it's perfectly fine. I just had to be a fair critic and find something I thought could be better on a otherwise great build.

Speaking of builds, my progress on Ariel

Again, half the instructions are in color, so she's coming together fast. I've found color separation to be very good, and sticker application to be alright with tweezers so far.

 

[WelperHelper99]

Just got into Gunpla this year. Aside from a Strike Freedom, I have three different Gundams from G-Witch.

I finished half of Ariel (base model) this morning. I'll say this, she has a fair few stickers and those clear parts on her chest are a bit fiddly to attach and sticker up, but overall she's very solid feeling, not bad to give someone as a starter kit.

 

[King Dead]

View attachment 5215750
I finished half of Ariel (base model) this morning. I'll say this, she has a fair few stickers and those clear parts on her chest are a bit fiddly to attach and sticker up, but overall she's very solid feeling, not bad to give someone as a starter kit.

Aerial already seems to be a lot of people's first kit; any time I go browse r/Gunpla it feels like half the new posts are Aerial builds. WfM got a fair amount of new people into the hobby, it looks like. None of my local shops have had any of those kits in, but if they do I'll give them a look.

I'd like to get my hands on a couple more Ver. Ka kits in the future. Hi-ν Gundam and FAZZ are top of my list, though Zeta and ZZ are also up there. I also like the ridiculousness of the Thunderbolt designs, if I had space to display them. The waterslides are a pain, but the end result always looks so satisfying.

 

[WelperHelper99]

Aerial already seems to be a lot of people's first kit; any time I go browse r/Gunpla it feels like half the new posts are Aerial builds. WfM got a fair amount of new people into the hobby, it looks like. None of my local shops have had any of those kits in, but if they do I'll give them a look.

I'd like to get my hands on a couple more Ver. Ka kits in the future. Hi-ν Gundam and FAZZ are top of my list, though Zeta and ZZ are also up there. I also like the ridiculousness of the Thunderbolt designs, if I had space to display them. The waterslides are a pain, but the end result always looks so satisfying.

I'll admit, WfM revitalized my interest in the hobby, though only now am I building kits from that show. These kits are very well engineered for noobs, better than the IBO kits I started with as a kid, tons of weapons, sometimes stands; it feels premium without the price.

Zeta ver. Ka is definitely on my wishlist, and now that my car seems ok, might work on getting it. I'd say go for it, it's sexy as fuck. Space is definitely a issue though like u said, which is why I've stayed with HG and RG's so far. You could just buy the kit and hang onto it.

 

[Abbadon's Gate]

View attachment 5215750
I finished half of Ariel (base model) this morning. I'll say this, she has a fair few stickers and those clear parts on her chest are a bit fiddly to attach and sticker up, but overall she's very solid feeling, not bad to give someone as a starter kit.

That was the one I started with. I'm actually looking at purchasing a new one soonish to see how far I've come in the last six months or so.