Rogerbee wrote:skywalkersaga wrote:
And Roger, it's great that you're willing to devote such time to 'garage kits'. It must indeed be satisfying to have something like that that you painted entirely yourself. Just to clarify though, by that term, do you mean the statues that you purchase in pieces, and then paint and put together? Or are there 'garage kit' versions of 1/6 action figures as well? Because while statue-painting is a very admirable skill, I don't think one can completely equate it with kitbashing or customizing action figures, as there are often different materials and skill sets involved....and vice versa.
Garage kits are either vinyl or resin, the majority of the earliest and best are of licensed subjects. Did you know, for example, that SSC started off making garage kits before they branched out into figures? Billiken could well be considered the Enterbay of their field and Horizon the HT. A lot of others were more limited run and weren't licensed and it's pretty much this section of the market that continues to this day. Because of the assembly and paint required I don't think you can truly call them statues, even though the end product is largely similar. A lot of the paint skills are transferrable, indeed it's techniques from Darren Carnall, who repaints 1/6 heads, that I intend to use on my kits. I found it all very enjoyable when I did it in the 90's and I don't doubt I still will.
Thanks for explaining! I wasn't aware of the particulars of the garage kit history, but I appreciate the info. And apologies if I was mistaken in calling them 'statues' -- what term do you prefer? Just 'figures'? And yes, of course, the painting skills are most certainly an area of overlap -- when I referred to the differences, I meant mostly in regard to the fact that action figures tend to require clothing and accessories to be complete, whereas I am guessing all of that is usually sculpted in a garage kit? Again, I was certainly not implying one hobby was better than the other, but just saying that from my very inexperienced perspective, it didn't seem that they were 100% comparable.
And I love watching Darren Carnall's painting videos!
Stryker2011 wrote:Skywalkersaga— You should NEVER feel that you need to do it all. Customizing and kitbashing doesn’t mean you have to do it all. There are very few people who have the skills (or the time) to do it all. Hiring someone to do custom work isn’t a cheat or a dishonor to your vision. I’ve sewn some things myself, but I do it by hand and it’s too tedious for me to do complex articles of clothing, so I’ve hired Amy Jones a few times to do things for me, based on my vision, and despite the final work being hers — I’m still proud of it. I’ve had head sculpts commissioned, and put my input into all stages of the process, and though the final work isn’t mine per se, it still has my mark on it.I know you may not see it as such, but creating characters and figures in this hobby isn’t a competition. Shazzdan likes to make his own stuff, and he has the skill to do it. I’ll make things when it’s necessary, but if I can purchase something pre-made that saves me a $#&tload of time and effort — I’d much rather do that, as I’m ultimately very lazy. Doesn’t make my appreciation for what others can do, and what I’ve done, any less. Enjoying the hobby, in whatever way you can, is ultimately the only point. It’s not supposed to be a chore. I’ve never made a diorama before the mighty Jabba, and while it’s been somewhat frustrating at times as I’ve run into errors due to my own lack of experience, it’s ultimately been a lot of fun, and very educational — and I’ve enjoyed it far more than it frustrated me.
Thank you for the words of wisdom, Stryker. And you are right, it's NOT a competition, and I certainly don't view it that way myself, though I suppose it is nonetheless easy to start to feel inadequate, and compare oneself to others in an overly self-critical manner, even if not doing so with a competitive spirit, if that makes sense. But, like with any art or hobby, the best way to approach things is to focus on what you're doing, and do it to the best of your ability, and not get bogged down in what others are doing. Easier said than done sometimes, but I can try.
I also feel you completely on the 'customizing out of sheer necessity' side of things. While there are some areas of customization that I enjoy and find soothing [for instance, I really do like making and painting little accessories and stuff like that], there are other aspects that I find tedious and daunting, and which I tend to put off as long as possible until I've explored all other options and found nothing else already existing out there.
But yeah... the minute something starts to feel like a competition is the moment I am 'out'. I simply cannot handle that kind of pressure. I have noticed that for some collectors [not the ones on this forum], it does seem to be a competition of who can make/buy/commission/acquire the 'best' figure, and while in one sense it's great to push the hobby to new levels, I personally can't participate in that kind of mentality. Especially since these things are so subjective. Just as an example, right now the trend is for hyper-realistic figures, so that is what many people deem to be 'the best', but that is not necessarily what everyone who is participating in the hobby is trying to achieve.
Ultimately, all I want are figures that I like and that fit my personal preferences and tastes and go along with the focus of my collection, and some of those might be purchased boxed figures, some of them might be kitbashes, some might be partially or entirely commissioned pieces, and some might be my own creations. Or a blend of all of the above.
I think when people are in this for 'bragging rights', then being or having 'the best' becomes more of an extreme focus. But those of us who are in this for maximum personal enjoyment, then all that matters is that our figures make us happy.
ETA: Meant to add that I'm so glad you decided to share your Jabba dio-making journey with us, it's been incredibly inspirational and educational from the viewer's perspective, as well. :')