Statue BLITZWAY- Enter the Dragon- Bruce Lee Tribute 1/3 scale Statue Ver. 2 spec

[Darkavatar]

Thanks for the photo! This is the best photo I've seen so far and I'm really excited to get this piece now.

I've preordered from Popcultcha too but I haven't received any emails from them.

Maybe they are slack with their emails, they called me. Maybe you should call them.

 

[xpl0sive]

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the lack of responses from me in this thread, I've been busy with work.

I have some good news for those of you who were unhappy with the colour of the body. I got home from work tonight and while there was still some light outside, I took the statue out into some natural light to get an idea of what the statue looks like in natural light and it is actually a really nice darkish, reddish tan colour, similar to Tyderium's photoshopped pic.

It actually looks really nice and the various tones/shading are more visible but still subtle, but I think it's perfect as anymore would look too artificial IMO. The excessive shading is usually best suited to figures that have unnatural flesh tones, such as comic statues, or Pop Culture Shock's Street Fighter statues are a good example, whereas this piece has a more realistic and natural looking base flesh colour. Some very slight shading would probably be alright, but nothing major.

Honestly though, I think as is, just fix up the sweat and cuts and it's pretty close to spot on IMO.

The reason why my original pics had a slightly yellowish pale tone to the skin is due to the fact that the statue was in a room lit with halogen lights which have a yellow tinge to them. I then used some small LED lights which are cool white in colour shining over the statue to correct the colour and add shadows, and give it a more natural appearance, but white LED's also have a tendency to make statues appear slightly pale, although I think it makes them look more realistic.

I'd say the large discrepancy in the colour between natural light and the light in room may also have to do with the translucent material of the statue, but I'm not sure. Either way I think it's pretty amazing how different in can look depending on how it's lit.

Anyway, I took a quick pic with the statue by the window to try and give you a better idea of the colour. It was a little hard to get a good shot as I was in a tight space and there wasn't a lot of light due to being overcast and getting dark by that time, but I'll try get some better pics on the weekend. For now, enjoy:

 

[Shoo]

Your pics and thoughts are really appreciated, xpl0sive, thank you very much.

 

[xpl0sive]

Awesome review Xplosive and superb camera work. Erm, I think it looks pretty stunning to be fair. Yea the decals are not great and the sweat is a bit iffy but the paint app looks pretty decent and possibly a step up from the god statue in terms of small details. If there were going to be faults and there always would be, id take that over a poor paint application. Should be an easy fix fro most peeps.

Congrats dude

Thanks mate, glad you like the pics! It really is a great statue and as you said, the main issues look like an easy fix.

Wow, great full body shot.
Easily the best photography we've seen on this piece.

Thanks brother!

looks very good in that shot,although your superb lighting helps a lot,and makes a difference,but it's not looking as poor as before and that's a big plus for future owners of this.

Thanks mate. As always with everything I take photos of, I try to bring out the qualities in the subject whilst minimizing the downsides. My intention was to try and capture a photo similar to that of the prototype shots, so that people have a more accurate and fair comparison, as up until now, people were comparing the professional and touched up photos of the proto with crappy in hand camera phone pics, and hence, were seeing a large difference between production and prototype. The statue looks nothing like it does in those pics, in real life. Disregarding the sweat and cuts, it's actually closer to the proto than people think. The proto is also mainly one colour on the body, but the body sculpt itself is sharper and more chiseled on the prototype, and the sweat and cuts are vastly superior. These are the major differences for me.

COngratulations friend, this is how you take pictures, U can not expect great results from an Android or iPhone camera, I can hardly wait to get mine, thanks for sharing these pictures.

Thanks man, glad you enjoyed them

Wonderful pictures~ Thanks for sharing xpl0sive

Cheers mate

So a great lighting setup and ability with a camera make all the difference

Hopefully mine arrives today, will be tomorrow at the latest.

Honestly, if this pic doesn't convince you its a must have Bruce Lee for your shelves, nothing will.

It really does mate. This really does look better in hand. Even in my pics it doesn't look all that great as I was using a pretty ghetto lighting setup lol if I was using a studio set up they would have turned out much nicer.

I really hope you enjoy yours, please share your thoughts when you get it You still wanna sell your GoD statue?

Thanks to this, I pay PREORDER asked me before these pictures, I did not think pay for my order, thanks xpl0sive, great image

You're welcome my friend, I'm glad my pics helped you make the decision to get this piece, hope you enjoy it

Thanks for the photo! This is the best photo I've seen so far and I'm really excited to get this piece now.

I've preordered from Popcultcha too but I haven't received any emails from them.

Thanks dude, you'll love it give them a buzz if you haven't already.

You'll need some sleep tonight mate, must have been around 3am in Melbourne when you were sending through those pics

haha yeah it was 3am. I was farked when I woke up for work!

As far as the decal speculation goes..
I think these are just 3D raised, rubber decals with no sculpt underneath. That is how they look to me.

I think that's what they are mate. I had a good look at them and felt them and I don't think it's sculpted underneath, it does feel like raised rubber decals, but can't tell for sure unless you remove them. I'm fairly certain that is the case though. I'm still not game enough to remove them, so I'm just gonna paint straight over mine lol. Not accurate, but I can live with it.

If the cuts on the face are decals they will be going as well if I get this.

The cuts on the face are painted mate, no worries there they look really nice too.

For those planning on attempting the cuts and sweat upgrades..

I used xpLOsive's awesome shot to see for myself how some of these changes might look.
I did change the skin tone to a more red tan colour (just for interest's sake) because I agree with Darkavatar in that it does look a little yellow, but overall I think the paint actually looks much more lifelike to what we have seen before thanks to xpLOsive's revealing photography .

I've applied extremely subtle shading to certain muscles but it is hardly anything because it does start to look overdone if it's anything more pronounced. Just a tiny bit darker 5 o'clock shadow on the top lip.

But I think the only mods really worth doing (and are hopefully achievable for most) are the cuts, sweat and nipples.
With these changes it really does move it toward the definitive ETD piece IMO.

Great photoshop mate, love your photoshopping skills the cuts look a lot better. Shame it didn't come like that.

The paint on the sculpt is perfect IMO. The 5 o'clock shadow is there, along with little dots to simulate stubble. I'll try take a close up shot of the head in various angles and see if I can capture it.

 

[xpl0sive]

Your pics and thoughts are really appreciated, xpl0sive, thank you very much.

You're welcome mate I hope they help those who cannot see this in person to get a good idea of what it looks like in person. Having now seen it in natural light, I think it looks fantastic. My issues with the sweat and cuts remain, but the rest of the statue is fantastic and thankfully the sweat and cuts look like a fairly easy fix, even for someone who isn't experienced at painting statues.

 

[Darkavatar]

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the lack of responses from me in this thread, I've been busy with work.

I have some good news for those of you who were unhappy with the colour of the body. I got home from work tonight and while there was still some light outside, I took the statue out into some natural light to get an idea of what the statue looks like in natural light and it is actually a really nice darkish, reddish tan colour, similar to Tyderium's photoshopped pic.

Hmm that's good then.

It actually looks really nice and the various tones/shading are more visible but still subtle, but I think it's perfect as anymore would look too artificial IMO. The excessive shading is usually best suited to figures that have unnatural flesh tones, such as comic statues, or Pop Culture Shock's Street Fighter statues are a good example, whereas this piece has a more realistic and natural looking base flesh colour. Some very slight shading would probably be alright, but nothing major.

I know what you mean by excessive shading but I don't think shading on the proto was excessive and the tones on this look nothing like that, which is to be expected for the price. But what I am getting at is that ideally there should be more shading if this was to look more realistic.

Honestly though, I think as is, just fix up the sweat and cuts and it's pretty close to spot on IMO.

The reason why my original pics had a slightly yellowish pale tone to the skin is due to the fact that the statue was in a room lit with halogen lights which have a yellow tinge to them. I then used some small LED lights which are cool white in colour shining over the statue to correct the colour and add shadows, and give it a more natural appearance, but white LED's also have a tendency to make statues appear slightly pale, although I think it makes them look more realistic.

Oh see, this would explain the color differences then in people's pictures.

I'd say the large discrepancy in the colour between natural light and the light in room may also have to do with the translucent material of the statue, but I'm not sure. Either way I think it's pretty amazing how different in can look depending on how it's lit.

I would have to agree and probably the major reason why it can go from looking awful (in color) to looking good.

Anyway, I took a quick pic with the statue by the window to try and give you a better idea of the colour. It was a little hard to get a good shot as I was in a tight space and there wasn't a lot of light due to being overcast and getting dark by that time, but I'll try get some better pics on the weekend. For now, enjoy:

That does look like the right color.

 

[xpl0sive]

I know what you mean by excessive shading but I don't think shading on the proto was excessive and the tones on this look nothing like that, which is to be expected for the price. But what I am getting at is that ideally there should be more shading if this was to look more realistic.

The proto is mainly one colour mate, have a look:

It's just a really nice base colour and the sculpt is more chiseled. Expert photography makes all the difference. Their statue was shot in a studio with correct lighting.

My setup was really ghetto. My studio lights/backdrops are at my GF's house, so I had to improvise and place the statue in front of a black feature wall and simply used my LED lights that I use for my glass cabinets shining on the statue from the side lol. The problem is that I still had to have the room lights on as the LED lights were small so not enough light, and unfortunately the room lights make the statue look yellow. This can be corrected to an extent in post processing, but I try to minimize the amount of post processing used and try to capture something as close to real life as possible, when it comes to this sort of thing.

That does look like the right color.

Glad you think so mate. You're certainly hard to please but I think even you would be happy with the colour of it in person. I honestly think if the cuts/sweat matched the proto, it would look perfect.

 

[nongshim]

Maybe they are slack with their emails, they called me. Maybe you should call them.

I got an email tonight saying it was going to be sent out tomorrow. Might get it Friday!

 

[Darkavatar]

The proto is mainly one colour mate, have a look:

It's just a really nice base colour and the sculpt is more chiseled. Expert photography makes all the difference. Their statue was shot in a studio with correct lighting.

Maybe, but it sure looks like there are a few different shades on there, the detail in the shading appears to be a night and day difference compared to the product and it looks like they didn't use translucent material there.

My setup was really ghetto. My studio lights/backdrops are at my GF's house, so I had to improvise and place the statue in front of a black feature wall and simply used my LED lights that I use for my glass cabinets shining on the statue from the side lol. The problem is that I still had to have the room lights on as the LED lights were small so not enough light, and unfortunately the room lights make the statue look yellow. This can be corrected to an extent in post processing, but I try to minimize the amount of post processing used and try to capture something as close to real life as possible, when it comes to this sort of thing.

You mean so you can see the detail?

Glad you think so mate. You're certainly hard to please but I think even you would be happy with the colour of it in person. I honestly think if the cuts/sweat matched the proto, it would look perfect.

Yeah that's mainly because it is a lot of money for me and it is hard to part with that sort of cash when it you have mixed feelings about it, especially when everyone (including you) mentions that they need to touch it up.

 

[mrchris]

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the lack of responses from me in this thread, I've been busy with work.

I have some good news for those of you who were unhappy with the colour of the body. I got home from work tonight and while there was still some light outside, I took the statue out into some natural light to get an idea of what the statue looks like in natural light and it is actually a really nice darkish, reddish tan colour, similar to Tyderium's photoshopped pic.

It actually looks really nice and the various tones/shading are more visible but still subtle, but I think it's perfect as anymore would look too artificial IMO. The excessive shading is usually best suited to figures that have unnatural flesh tones, such as comic statues, or Pop Culture Shock's Street Fighter statues are a good example, whereas this piece has a more realistic and natural looking base flesh colour. Some very slight shading would probably be alright, but nothing major.

Honestly though, I think as is, just fix up the sweat and cuts and it's pretty close to spot on IMO.

The reason why my original pics had a slightly yellowish pale tone to the skin is due to the fact that the statue was in a room lit with halogen lights which have a yellow tinge to them. I then used some small LED lights which are cool white in colour shining over the statue to correct the colour and add shadows, and give it a more natural appearance, but white LED's also have a tendency to make statues appear slightly pale, although I think it makes them look more realistic.

I'd say the large discrepancy in the colour between natural light and the light in room may also have to do with the translucent material of the statue, but I'm not sure. Either way I think it's pretty amazing how different in can look depending on how it's lit.

Anyway, I took a quick pic with the statue by the window to try and give you a better idea of the colour. It was a little hard to get a good shot as I was in a tight space and there wasn't a lot of light due to being overcast and getting dark by that time, but I'll try get some better pics on the weekend. For now, enjoy:

great pics and review.and you seem very pleased with the statue.the body tone does look better but the statue is badly let down by the decals,they look awful on the pecs. the proto appeared painted,and with better attention and care they should have been painted on this.as a few of you have said,with a little touch up here and there,this will be the definitive ETD.i personaly think it should be that out of the box.funny how easy little things do have an overall effect.
I also agree with steve about the cost,for some it is a lot of money,and unless you have the skills,the ''improvements'' will cost extra..at least we all agree on the lack of care on the cuts.

 

[Tyderium]

I'm thinking I might actually have a go at painting over the cuts a little ..... I don't even own brushes I know so little about modding.

I mean ...they are the worst special effect in the history of cinema anyway ....you can't make them look worse than how they looked in the movie

I think SAB is exactly right here.

If you want to be accurate to the film, they really were just slashes in a flat red paint without any shading.
And it looked water soluble since they ran and beaded with the sweat (or fake sweat). So I think you could do these cuts without any particular artistic skills. You could use a water based paint so that you could easily clean up/remove until you were happy with each one.

Just removing the decals and doing your own in a simple red paint is going to be an improvement, it certainly won't look worse.

 

[Tyderium]

I have some good news for those of you who were unhappy with the colour of the body. I got home from work tonight and while there was still some light outside, I took the statue out into some natural light to get an idea of what the statue looks like in natural light and it is actually a really nice darkish, reddish tan colour, similar to Tyderium's photoshopped pic.

Yep, colour looks really pretty good here.
And it actually looks how it did in 30cm's original grainy pics showing the size comparison to GOD.
I always thought the colour in that distance shot of his with GOD looked pretty spot on.
So this new shot confirms that.

 

[xpl0sive]

Maybe, but it sure looks like there are a few different shades on there, the detail in the shading appears to be a night and day difference compared to the product and it looks like they didn't use translucent material there.

It's just lighting and the photography. Have a look at this shot I just took of the head sculpt. You can see various tones in this pic as well. I did nothing different in my post-processing technique. In fact, I hardly did any post processing at all, just some slight tweaking. The biggest difference was the change in lighting, and the white balance settings used on the camera (this was later tweaked slightly in post processing to correct it a little).

You mean so you can see the detail?

It's to create an image that's as realistic looking as possible, yet still close to what you would see in real life. Too much post processing leads to an image that starts to look fake, or not like the actual object you took a picture of.

When I said it can be corrected in post processing, I was talking about the figure being yellow due to the lighting. This can be a white balance issue, and as I shoot photos in RAW format, I can adjust the white balance in post processing and correct it to something that looks normal. When you shoot in JPEG, the white balance is applied to the image and you have no adjustment, so if the white balance is wrong and the image has a blue or green or yellow tinge for example, you're stuck with it.

I try to take the photo as accurately as possible so that it doesn't really require much (if any) correction, but rather just some slight enhancements to make the image pop a little and bring out the details and realism.

Yeah that's mainly because it is a lot of money for me and it is hard to part with that sort of cash when it you have mixed feelings about it, especially when everyone (including you) mentions that they need to touch it up.

Understandable mate, I was just taking the p**s lol. I don't blame you, it is a lot of money and when you're spending 1k on a statue you want it to be perfect. It certainly does need some slight touch ups and it is unfortunate that this is the case as it should pretty much be perfect for this sort of money, but I guess I jumped on it anyway as I saw these flaws as something I thought I could fix myself.

 

[xpl0sive]

great pics and review.and you seem very pleased with the statue.the body tone does look better but the statue is badly let down by the decals,they look awful on the pecs. the proto appeared painted,and with better attention and care they should have been painted on this.as a few of you have said,with a little touch up here and there,this will be the definitive ETD.i personaly think it should be that out of the box.funny how easy little things do have an overall effect.
I also agree with steve about the cost,for some it is a lot of money,and unless you have the skills,the ''improvements'' will cost extra..at least we all agree on the lack of care on the cuts.

Thanks mate. I certainly feel better about it after seeing it in natural light. It still has it's flaws, which I'm going to fix, but it does look great on display and I'm enjoying looking at it.

Mate you are spot on, it is badly let down by the decals. First thing I noticed when I took the pic and thought to myself, 'cool shot, looks realistic', then I noticed the decals and was annoyed They do look pretty bad if I'm honest. It sucks because I can make the statue look quite realistic in a photo, until you notice the cuts.

You're absolutely right mate, it definitely should have come out of the box with the cuts and sweat correctly done. It should have been the definitive EtD piece out of the box. Sometimes it is the little things that have a big overall effect. On something this large, it's hard to ignore and not notice really.

Cost is a big factor, you're right, and I can understand some people being very picky and they have every right to be when it comes to the cuts and sweat. Those 2 were my complaints all along.

There was once upon a time where I wouldn't even think about spending 1k on a statue, even if it was perfect. Seemed like a crazy amount of money to spend on a collectible, and I had a hard time even considering it. It was actually my main reason for passing on the GoD piece. I guess over time you become conditioned to spend more money on this stuff as costs rise and you delve into more expensive pieces and the decision to go for this was a little easier for me, as I've always wanted a nice Bruce piece and if I was going to get a Bruce collectible from any movie it would be EtD, so when I saw the prototype pics for this my jaw hit the ground pretty much and I was sold from day 1. I went ahead with my purchase despite the flaws as my only real complaints were the sweat and cuts, mainly the cuts really, but I saw them both as things I could fix without too much effort.

 

[xpl0sive]

I think SAB is exactly right here.

If you want to be accurate to the film, they really were just slashes in a flat red paint without any shading.
And it looked water soluble since they ran and beaded with the sweat (or fake sweat). So I think you could do these cuts without any particular artistic skills. You could use a water based paint so that you could easily clean up/remove until you were happy with each one.

Just removing the decals and doing your own in a simple red paint is going to be an improvement, it certainly won't look worse.

If you look at the prototype pics I posted earlier, especially the one from the back, that's pretty much what they did there. Looks like just some basic red paint, could easily be replicated by almost anyone with a steady hand.

 

[mrchris]

yep simple paint job.if those decals can be removed,then they are going.i'm really am feeling this statue more,but it's so frustrating blitzway screwed an easy part of production up so badly.

 

[Darkavatar]

It's just lighting and the photography. Have a look at this shot I just took of the head sculpt. You can see various tones in this pic as well. I did nothing different in my post-processing technique. In fact, I hardly did any post processing at all, just some slight tweaking. The biggest difference was the change in lighting, and the white balance settings used on the camera (this was later tweaked slightly in post processing to correct it a little).

TBH I am struggling to see different shades on the sculpt, maybe some areas look darker than others but can't see any different hues. Man you are the only one on here that owns this that has said the paint job on this is as good as the proto, everyone else has said it's not the proto but it's good. Now I am not saying you are wrong but I highly doubt the paint job on this is as good as the paint job on the proto, the proto looks like a real human being, no matter how good the paint job looks in these pictures, it just doesn't capture that level of realism. Whether this is because the proto was photoshop who knows, but I don't see a realistic paint job when I look at this. Besides you said it yourself, this could due with more shading, specifically around the muscles.

It's to create an image that's as realistic looking as possible, yet still close to what you would see in real life. Too much post processing leads to an image that starts to look fake, or not like the actual object you took a picture of.

Hmm interesting, I didn't know that.

When I said it can be corrected in post processing, I was talking about the figure being yellow due to the lighting. This can be a white balance issue, and as I shoot photos in RAW format, I can adjust the white balance in post processing and correct it to something that looks normal. When you shoot in JPEG, the white balance is applied to the image and you have no adjustment, so if the white balance is wrong and the image has a blue or green or yellow tinge for example, you're stuck with it.

I try to take the photo as accurately as possible so that it doesn't really require much (if any) correction, but rather just some slight enhancements to make the image pop a little and bring out the details and realism.

Well you do a good job.

Understandable mate, I was just taking the p**s lol. I don't blame you, it is a lot of money and when you're spending 1k on a statue you want it to be perfect. It certainly does need some slight touch ups and it is unfortunate that this is the case as it should pretty much be perfect for this sort of money, but I guess I jumped on it anyway as I saw these flaws as something I thought I could fix myself.

I am glad that the claw marks on the face are painted and not decals like the ones on the body, I look forward seeing your next set of pictures.

 

[mrchris]

looking at that close up..that sweats gotta go.i know different lighting will effect it but compare the two headshots,and the sweat in the 2nd looks more prominent(and poor)

 

[xpl0sive]

 

[xpl0sive]

looking at that close up..that sweats gotta go.i know different lighting will effect it but compare the two headshots,and the sweat in the 2nd looks more prominent(and poor)

Unfortunately can't get rid of it, you can only add to it, but I promise you it doesn't look that bad in person. It's really hard to photograph well as it looks different depending on the way it catches light.

The reason it looks more prominent in this pic is because of the way I'm shining the light on him. I also find sometimes it doesn't catch the light throughout the whole sweat stream, if that makes sense, so only part of it is visible, making it look odd.

Don't get me wrong, it certainly could have been done better, but it's also not as bad as the pics are making it out. Certainly not as bad as the body. It actually looks like sweat (just not done very well), whereas on the body it looks like candle wax as you say

Still, if you're really picky and it does bother you, you can add some streams of sweat running down his face in addition to what's there, which would work well to mask/hide any dodgy looking ones.

I think what I'm going to do is buy an el cheapo action figure, some clear paint and practice painting sweat on it. Once I think I have it down pat, I'll attempt the Blitzway body first, and if I nail that I'll give the head a go.