BrickJournal #77 Preview

Photography

How to Get Started in Toy Photography

Article and Photography by Sabrina Perry Instagram: @theperryadventures

As you flip through the pages of this Brickjournal issue, you may be in awe of the photography and toy photographers featured. You may ask yourself, “How? How did they do that?” And next you may wonder, “How do I do that?”

Believe me, I ask myself those same questions on a daily basis. I’ll be scrolling through Instagram wondering, “How do I compete with that?”

Well, I am sorry but I don’t have the answers to these big questions. All I have to share with you is my journey, and what I did to become a toy photographer. Hopefully my path, my trials, and my triumphs will help you on your toy photography journey.

I started taking toy photos in 2016 but didn’t consider myself a toy photographer until 2021. I started small, with one simple idea: To recreate moments from my life from the moment I met my husband to our wedding day, as a Christmas gift using two LEGO minifigures and my cell phone. I had read an article on BoredPanda about Andrew Whyte and his 365 LEGOGRAPHY Project and thought to myself, “I can do that. All he does is bring his Minifig around and snaps shots on his cell phone.”

The minute I snapped a photo of the two minifigures in the hallway at the college where I met my husband, I was hooked. It was addicting. I started carrying the minifigures around with me everywhere. Whenever I saw something cool, I would take the toys out and snap a photo with my phone.

They weren’t good photographs. Honestly, some of them are really bad. The angles were all wrong, I didn’t take a lot of time to compose them, and sometimes the wrong thing is in focus. It didn’t matter that I only had two figures, and it didn’t matter what gear I had. What mattered was the experience—and more importantly, my husband loved the gift.

After the project was over, I kept going. I recreated a scene from Dirty Dancing. I used a piece of tape to help hold one of the figures in the air. Looking back, the photo isn’t great either, but at the time to me it was one of the best photographs I’d ever taken. I was excited that I figured out a way to make it look like one of the figures was flying.

Over the next three years, I took toy photos sporadically. Some photos are better than others.

However, my investment in the hobby had increased. Once you discover toy photography, it seems there is no going back. I wanted to be a better toy photographer, so naturally I googled ‘toy photography.’ I started following toy photographers on Instagram, and reading articles on toyphotographers. com, listening to their podcast and following @brickcentral on Instagram because they both featured the best of the best. I was learning how to be a toy photographer. I was obsessed. I copied their ideas, I copied my favorite scenes in movies, and TV. I copied everything.

A

Photographer’s Story:

Arvin Coloma

I’ll start with a bit of background. I’m a graphic designer and photographer originally from the Philippines and now based in Melbourne, Australia, where I’ve been for the past two decades with my wife and kids. My favorite photographic genres are portraiture, street, and toy photography. Yes, I believe toy photography should be its own genre.

I began ‘toying’ with toy photography around 2012 when working from home. A few times while putting toys away, I found myself doing impromptu photo shoots—with toys! Since then, I’m never without a couple of LEGO Stormtrooper Minifigures in my pocket, ready for a scene. Toys are the best subjects, because unlike live models (humans and furry types), they do as they’re told, they’re always on time, and they never complain! Kidding aside, it keeps my creative juices flowing and is a good exercise to improve photography skills and techniques. Evoking emotions and storytelling in small plastic objects are a great motivation.

I run the Toy Shutterbugs blog where I regularly feature fellow toy photographers sharing their insights, views, and tutorials on toy photography. All toys are welcome!

The incredible toy photography community is another major reason I enjoy this hobby. Connected by a common interest, it’s a very supportive and creative bunch of people from across the globe. I’ve certainly made friends at an international level.

Ideas, Ideas, Ideas

“The best ideas come when you rid your mind of all thoughts.”

— Haresh Sippy

I treat ideas as presents—both out-of-the-blue and externally prompted ones. Out-of-the-blue ideas are those that spontaneously pop into your mind. These ideas may come about when I’ve just woken up, or in the middle of mundane tasks, or running house errands. If I can’t shoot immediately, I make a mental note or jot it down for future reference. It’s like being able to pluck ideas out of the ether.

Externally prompted ideas are those brought about by recent or present experiences. From newly watched movies, or recently heard music/lyrics, or sunlight coming through a window—these are elements that can fuel inspiration and inspire new ideas.

Some ideas are prompted by photo contest themes. The contest brief and how I translate it into photos is a great way to practice creative visualization. During the lockdowns when I was only able to shoot at home, BrickCentral hosted a photo contest with the theme “shot at home.” I was able to create a few well-received images, and even won the competition.

Image Making Process

My creative process varies depending on how the idea for the images came about.

It’s the street photographer in me that aims to build an image based on available light at a location. As street photos are situational—reliant on light and how it affects the immediate location—it requires quick thinking and familiarity with the camera. The scene is already set up for the photographer and may or may not include additional elements like people (or in this case, minifigures). An example is when there’s sunlight coming through the windows and lighting certain areas of the house. I grab a minifigure (or action figure), adapt to the scene, and shoot. I love the immediacy of creating an image knowing that the light will soon fade or change direction. It helps me think quickly and use the camera properly to achieve my vision.

Since these images are captured as seen through the lens, there’s very little post-processing involved. Depending on how well the elements within the frame work together, the final image may be taken “straight out of camera” and then shared to the community.

Hope.

Raft Ahoy!

People

A Photographer’s Story:

Sarah Bastien’s Photo Album

Article and Photography by Sarah Bastien

Instagram: @sarouxbastoux

Facebook: Saroux Bastoux Lego

My name is Sarah. I’m a 36-year-old mother, and I live in Clermont-Ferrand in France.

As a kid, I loved taking pictures. I took my grandmother’s old camera to photograph objects, landscapes, and also my family. I never really stopped taking pictures throughout my life.

It was in 2014 that I started LEGO photography after attending an exhibition near my home. It was my first, and I immediately fell back into childhood. From there, the passion returned, and I started collecting some coins and some figures with my husband because he too had caught the toy virus.

This was the subject of my very first photo—a photo of my husband and I that I took for fun. He liked it a lot and so I continued.

What I like about LEGO photography is telling a story. Make the toys interact with our daily life. It’s as if our world is a big dollhouse and the minifigures live in it. But I also like to leave with a bag on my back to go and photograph them outside.

Photography is a passion that requires a minimum of equipment to create. I have a Nikon DSLR with three lenses. I most often use the Nikkor 35mm because it is the most complete for what I do.

I often start from a minifig or an everyday object to find an idea. I ask myself questions: “How to stage such a figure? How would figures interact with this object if it came to life in my world?“

For the most part, ideas come to me as a result of a situation I have already experienced.

My daughter has often played a role in my inspirations. I hope you enjoy a descriptive tour of the stories behind these photos.

For example, it is thanks to my daughter that I imagined this photo. When she was 1.5 years old, during a meal, she started playing with her peas. I couldn’t stop her—she was laughing so much. I caught myself trying to protect myself from this “attack”—so much so that I put myself in the place of a minifig running for cover. So I got the Pea Pod Costume Girl figure because I thought it was the perfect nod to recreate this “epic battle.”

A

Photographer’s Story:

Alicia Costalago Meruelo

Article and Photography by Alicia Costalago Meruelo Instagram: @taskera_photography

Allow me to introduce myself. I’m a Spanish engineer currently living and working in Germany. I’ve always been interested in arts and crafts and I have been collecting and building LEGO for years. I love to travel and take photographs of my trips. But with the birth of my son and the beginning of the pandemic happening together, I was kept stuck at home.

I started my toy photography journey in 2021. During the lockdown I was searching for an escape when I found toy photography on Instagram. I started building landscapes and scenes on a small table in my house and posted those pictures online. Slowly, I fell in love with the hobby and started learning everything I could about it, from building dioramas and creating MOCs to photography and post-processing.

My pictures usually represent outdoor scenes and figures in nature. There are moments of peace and wonder, including both magical and mundane moments. I use fairytales, books, and movies as references. Fantasy is always the best inspiration for my photography, even if what ends up in the picture does not look magical. The Lavender Fields photograph started out as an interpretation of a scene in the movie Big Fish, where the main character gives her beloved a field of daffodils (her favorite flower) in front of her house. I imagined what a special thing it would be when you grow old, to take care of such a wonderful present and be reminded of that love every morning.

Lavender Fields.

A Photographer’s Story: Richard Henry

The Empire is on the march. Hello there! I’m Richard Henry, aka @tongwars on Instagram. Born in England, my family emigrated to Australia when I was ten years old. I live on the New South Wales Central Coast which is about an hour north of Sydney. I’m 44 years old, married, and dad to four beautiful girls. I’m a Registered Nurse working in a busy hospital and toy photography has been my hobby for the past four-anda-half years.

I was introduced to toy photography in late 2017 by a workmate after we watched The Last Jedi trailer. He told me of his friend Jay Heywood (please checkout @budfutu on Instagram) who is a fellow massive Star Wars fan who builds and photographs his own scenes. Jay’s work is toy photography perfection, in my view. I was instantly inspired to see whether I could create similar style shots, but using Star Wars LEGO. At the time I only owned a small amount of Star Wars LEGO, but as you can imagine my collection has grown quite a bit over the past four years. I was instantly hooked!

Attracted to Toy Photography by Star Wars

I started toy photography in late 2017. I’ve always had a creative side, but never really had an outlet to focus on. As a child of the ’80s, I grew up with the original Star Wars trilogy and was drawn back to Star Wars in the early ’90s with Timothy Zahn’s Heir to the Empire trilogy. I’ve remained a massive fan since, especially of Star Wars fan art paintings.

Article and Photography

by Richard Henry Instagram: @tongwars

When it comes to tools, it’s pretty simple. My lights are Manfrotto, of which I have three. I’m a big fan of Atmosphere Aerosol and I also use canned air from time to time to create particle movement. Other items include things like baking flour for snow. I’ll use a tea light on occasion. I don’t use wires, but I do rely heavily on Perspex stands in shots that contain a flying vehicle.

I use a number of different iPhone apps for editing, depending on the shot. My standard editing apps are Afterlight for basic colour and tone adjustments. I use Retouch to remove any unwanted items like the stands holding up my flying vehicles. I may use other apps depending on the shot. If I’m using an image ‘stacking’ technique seen in shots such as my invasion series that feature multiple AT-ATs, my go-to app is called Photoleap. For additional effects such as planets, engine glows, etc., I usually use either LensFX or AlienSky. I’ll also add my watermark.

I’ll then do a final edit in Instagram before posting. Given that Instagram is the social media platform I use, using their native editor gives the shot the final touch to best suit the app it will be seen on.

Motivations and Audience Response

When it comes to my photography, it’s simply a case of hoping that people like what I’ve made. Hopefully I’m creating something that is as unique as possible and nice to look at. You can’t make every shot epic looking. I don’t put pressure on myself that every new post has to be better than the previous, but I do have a standard that I like to at least maintain.

Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive during the time that I’ve been doing this. It’s impossible to single out a specific memorable moment. Any feedback is great. For me, I’m lucky to cross multiple communities as feedback comes from LEGO fans, Star Wars fans and toy photography fans. I’ve displayed my work at some conventions over the past year, which has also been very rewarding. There’s a big difference in seeing face-to-face reactions as opposed to online feedback, both of which are incredible.

From an Instagram perspective, it’s great to get a follow from the top accounts. While a large following is great, I think it’s more rewarding to get a follow from my peers who I consider to be the very best in the genre. Some of these guys and girls are beyond talented and truly inspiring. For them to consider my work worthy of a follow is a very satisfying feeling.

Boba Fett with his ship.

Waiting for Imperials.

Building

Minifigs in Motion

Article and Photography

by Shelly Corbett

Transparent bricks are used to help stabilize minifigures.

Tools of the trade.

I’m here to show you how to get your minifigures off the ground. Your minifigure will be walking, running and even flying before you know it with these simple tricks involving wire, miscellaneous LEGO parts, and common household objects. When you master the art of toys in motion, your figures will come to life.

As you’ve probably already figured out, minifigures only stand on their own in a few simple positions. When you start placing your figures in nature, keeping them standing can either be an exercise in patience or incredibly frustrating—or both. Once I watched a cute little BB8 roll over a cliff, never to be seen again (by me) because it wasn’t properly secured with tac.

Tac / Poster Putty / Adhesive Dots

Tac or the equivalent is your first line of defense when it comes to keeping your toys in the proper position. A small ball of tac placed on one or both feet of a minifigure can keep it in place on most dry, hard surfaces. When I’m able to anchor one foot down, it gives me the ability to angle the figure forward. And when I push the other foot back, I create a feeling of forward movement. These subtle adjustments are the difference between a static looking figure and one living a full and active life! And don’t forget to position the arms in opposite directions from the legs for even more believability.

Technic Pins / Light Saber Hilts / Custom Stakes

The final photo.

Okay, now that you’ve mastered tac, what happens if you’re outdoors and the surface you’re working on is either soft or wet? Moss, sand, dirt, snow, and ice all need a solution other than something sticky. This is where having a few Technic pins comes in handy. You can push these into porous material and then attach your minifigure.

Using any ridged LEGO part or material that can be pushed into sand, dirt, or moss, gives you the ability to pose your minifigure on a variety of

Toying with Light!

We’re living in a golden age of photography. It’s never been easier to take a picture and share it with the world. With over six billion smartphone users worldwide, most of us carry imaging technology in our pockets that we didn’t dream of even ten years ago. Along with the latest cameras, lenses, and software available to us, it’s truly an exciting time for photographers.

On Instagram alone, over a thousand pictures are upload ed each and every second of the day. And yet, some pic tures still stand out from others. How? Why? With LEGO photography, where we can often control almost every aspect of the scene, I believe that investing time and energy in the creative process can help make that difference.

Let me share my approach, which I’ve adopted from pho tographer Ming Thein. He teaches that there are four things to consider in making an image that ‘works’:

•

The Idea

• Light

• Subject Isolation

• Composition

The Idea

It all begins with the idea. Before I pick up the camera, I aim to have my concept or story clear in my mind, along with a pretty good sense of what the final result will look like. But where do ideas come from? Some of the best advice I’ve read was Stephen King’s memoir On Writing. This may sound unlikely, until you remember that the word photog raphy come from Greek and literally means “writing with light.” And what advice did I find applicable to me as a photographer?

King said that when creating a story, the situation comes first, and the characters come next. Once these are clear in mind, the story itself can begin to unfold. And the most interesting situations can usually be expressed as a what-if question. For example, what if Quentin Tarantino directed a Muppets movie?

Or, what if machines were alive?

A mother’s love is like nothing else in the galaxy.

Creative work is at its best when the imagination is hav ing fun. Shoot the things you enjoy, bringing them to life in LEGO form with your own personality and experience. As for me, I enjoy books, music, movies, and Gen X pop culture, and you will see this reflected in much of my work.

“Now, I wanna dance, I wanna win. I want that trophy, so dance good.”

Henson 25:17 The path of the righteous Muppet is beset on all sides by hilarity and the laughter of humankind.

Ready, Set, Action! Minifigure Posing

Article and Photography by Chellie Hyre Instagram:@littleplanetchell

Flickr Gallery: www.flickr.com/photos/ littleplanetchell/

LEGO minifigures sometimes get a bad rap when it comes to posing. With only seven points of articulation (neck, shoulders, wrists, and hips), it’s true that they are less “bendy” than many other toy figures. I believe their inherent blockiness and simplicity is actually part of a minifigure’s charm. But that doesn’t mean they have to look stiff and lifeless in photographs. So how do you increase the “posability” of LEGO minifigs and make them more interesting?

Posing Basics

Just like in portrait photography, the general rule is “if it bends, bend it”. Try these basic tips for posing minifigures:

• Move their legs and arms—even if they are standing, having the legs slightly apart adds interest.

• When walking or running, it will usually look less awkward if the arms and legs are positioned in opposite directions (e.g., when the right leg is moving forward, the right arm is moving backward).

• Turn their heads (and hair or helmets!)—they don’t always have to look straight ahead.

• Bend their body slightly forward or backwards.

• Give them something to hold—a map, a book, a mug, or another accessory that will complement their story. One challenge with minifigs is keeping them balanced once you get them into a specific pose. Use “tac” (reusable mounting putty), sticks, wire, or other support pieces to help temporarily anchor them. Once your figures are posed, pay attention to the angle you use to photograph them. It’s generally better to avoid straight-on front or straight-on side views. Get low to make the figure look larger in the frame. Take some time to see how everything looks in-camera, as even slight changes can make a huge difference and add more interest.

Spider-Man swings into action. TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Dean Gofnung: Camera Building

Article by Dean Gofnung Photography by Dean Gofnung & Geoff Vlcek

Dean Gofnung is a student who is also a filmmaker and a LEGO builder. He’s been building all of his life and combined his love of building with his other interests, to make a replica of a camcorder. Before building MOCs, though, he started as a toddler with Duplo bricks and progressed to his favorite themes: Adventurers, Ideas, and Jack Stone—he’s the only person he knows who is a fan of Jack Stone.

He began building MOCs during the pandemic. Inspired by other builders, Dean wanted to start making his own models and become a better builder! The inspirations behind his build are his fascination with cameras and his drive to build better. The camera that the MOC is based on is a vintage Hi8 tape camcorder. Dean’s dad found it at his grandfather’s house, so he gave it to Dean since he knew how much Dean loves cameras. Dean had an idea to make a camera in LEGO, but this time, he knew he found the camera to replicate!

Building a MOC can take days to weeks depending on the complexity and size of the model. Dean starts building, not knowing exactly what the MOC will look like com pleted. He will have a rough idea of what he wants, but his ideas can change anytime. For instance, the camera he built has a Hi8 tape door. He wanted to add the camera’s door opening mechanism but couldn’t find a way to build it. He tried different mechanisms until he found one that he was happy with. Having a rough idea of what to build, Dean starts building until he feels finished with the model. He loves completing his MOCs—when he builds a MOC,

Dean’s camcorder.

Polaroid® Camera

Design and Instructions by the BrickNerd Team

Few things are more iconic than the classic Polaroid camera—there’s just something magical in taking a photo and being able to hold it in your hand a few moments later.

To pay tribute to this icon of photography, and to follow up on our Vintage Camera instructions from last year, the BrickNerd team designed a small replica Polaroid camera for you to build at home. It is scaled to the 6x6 tile that is doubling as the instant film that made Polaroid cameras so captivating. The tile slides right into the thin opening on the front, so we can’t wait to see custom printed ones hanging on fridges and pinned to bulletin boards!

We even snuck in some interesting techniques to align the colorful strip across the camera’s body. It was such fun to design, and we hope you’ll enjoy building this little model just as much as this little trip down memory lane!

BrickNerd is your place for all things LEGO and the LEGO fan community. Spearheaded by Dave Schefcik and some of the best LEGO builders in the world, the site’s mission is to showcase the best of the AFOL community by highlighting builds, interviews and in-depth articles. BrickJournal is proud to continue its partnership with BrickNerd.

Parts List

(Parts can be ordered through Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color)

Qty Part Color Description

1 4274.dat Blue Technic Pin 1/2 5 2431.dat Black Tile 1 x 4 with Groove 6 2653.dat Black Brick 1 x 4 with Groove 1 2780.dat Black Technic Pin with Friction and Slots

3 3004.dat Black Brick 1 x 2 2 3005.dat Black Brick 1 x 1 10 3023.dat Black Plate 1 x 2 1 3024.dat Black Plate 1 x 1 1 3032.dat Black Plate 4 x 6 2 3039.dat Black Slope Brick 45 2 x 2 6 3040b.dat Black Slope Brick 45 2 x 1 5 3045.dat Black Slope Brick 45 2 x 2 Double Convex

5 3069b.dat Black Tile 1 x 2 with Groove 2 3245c.dat Black Brick 1 x 2 x 2 without Understud

6 3623.dat Black Plate 1 x 3 1 3700.dat Black Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Hole 2 4733.dat Black Brick 1 x 1 with Studs on Four Sides

1 6636.dat Black Tile 1 x 6 8 11212.dat Black Plate 3 x 3 1 15571.dat Black Slope Brick 45 1 x 2 Triple with Bottom Stud Holder

1 18674.dat Black Plate 2 x 2 Round with 1 Centre Stud

1 49098.dat Black Wheel Rim 11 x 18 Side with Tyre Widener

1 60478.dat Black Plate 1 x 2 with Handle on End 2 63864.dat Black Tile 1 x 3

1 72206p01.datBlack Wheel 11 x 24 with Integral Rubber Black Tyre 3 78329.dat Black Plate 1 x 5

5 85861.dat Black Plate 1 x 1 Round with Open Stud

1 85975.dat Black Minifig Hat Fez

2 87079.dat Black Tile 2 x 4 with Groove 5 3023.dat Tan Plate 1 x 2

4 3024.dat Tan Plate 1 x 1

1 3069b.dat Tan Tile 1 x 2 with Groove

1 3070b.dat Tan Tile 1 x 1 with Groove

1 3622.dat Tan Brick 1 x 3

2 3623.dat Tan Plate 1 x 3 1 3700.dat Tan Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Hole

1 6636.dat Tan Tile 1 x 6 Tan

You can go to the BrickNerd website by typing: https://bricknerd.com/ on your browser or by scanning this QR code!

Building

Building Peacock MOCs

Article and Photography by Seth Peacock. Instagram: @obsessionist_seth

You can see Seth’s Instagram gallery by scanning this QR code!

One of the outstanding MOCs that was shown at BrickFair Virginia and online was a rendition of a peacock. Titled the Automaton Peacock, the builder is Seth Peacock. He spoke with BrickJournal about building peacocks and other builds!

BrickJournal: Hi Seth! What do you do?

Seth Peacock: I work in Research & Development for a paper packaging company. Most of my time is either in the laboratory or wrangling spreadsheets and databases. How long have you been building? Since my first birthday, when I got a Duplo set.

What got you into building as an adult? I never had a Dark Age. I discovered the online LEGO community in middle school, and once I realized I could just keep building forever, I knew I couldn’t stop. I checked MOCpages and BZPower daily, along with a whole list of LEGO blogs. (Editor’s Note: MOCpages was a creation-sharing site and BZPower is an online forum for Bionicle fans.) It was a pretty smooth transition from a TFOL nervously sending my creations to internet “strang ers” through the BZPower convention circuit, to an AFOL who could afford to attend some of those conventions in person.

Let me get this out of the way quickly—no, I have not made Frosty the Snowman. For any one old enough to recall the 1969 TV special and know this character with his magic top hat, perhaps another time.

Minifigure

Customization 101:

Happy Birthday!

Article and Photography by Jared

Burks

Um, no.

Today, I have made a custom figure for my daughter as a birthday present. She enjoys playing Genshin Impact and has a favorite character; even though she doesn’t have this character, it is still her favorite. Therefore, I set off to make her a custom LEGO based version of the character Hu Tao!

For those that don’t know, Genshin Impact is an action role-playing game developed and published by miHoYo, and it has been released across multiple platforms including Microsoft Windows, PS4/5, iOS, and Android. It is typically referred to as a GATCHA game, meaning it can be free to play, but to get the best items and characters you have to pay (notice my daughter doesn’t actually have the character). Anyway, Genshin Impact follows the deeds of the mysterious “Traveler” through the fantasy world of Teyvat. Teyvat is home to seven distinct nations, each of which is described by a different element and a different archon/god. The Traveler is searching for his/her twin sibling, as you get to choose if they are male or female. I can go on and on about the game, but the long and short of it is that the Traveler’s exploits take them to a city called Liyue. Different game plots introduce the character Hu Tao to the player and she is obtainable through specific wish banners, but has not been available to this point in my daughter’s play. Hu Tao is the 77th Director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, features a Pyro Vision (connection to the powerful element), and fights with a polearm. Typically, she is best equipment with the Staff of Homa (https://genshin-impact.fandom.com/wiki/ Staff_of_Homa). There is an immense bit of background on Hu Tao as with all characters in the game. To learn more, please visit: https://genshin-impact. fandom.com/wiki/Hu_Tao/Lore

Hu Tao with a ghost.

Character turnaround. TM & © miHoYo.

As for the custom LEGO-based version of Hu Tao, there are certain required elements and additional bonus elements. I went after the critical ones first and will continue to chase the others as time permits.

As you can see from the character study of Hu Tao, she is a character with a unique hair style and hat. These are critically important, and use of any “official” LEGO element to portray Hu Tao would be limited, as the hair must be unionized to the hat. So this was part #1 to find, create, or modify. Part #2 is the staff of Homa, her ideal weapon—actually almost every polearm-based character’s ideal weapon. As far as the non-critical, it would be a waist cape to emulate the tails of her jacket. I place less emphasis on these, as due to the LEGO proportions, she will have substantially less leg showing because of the way LEGO legs are scaled. What this translates to is it is less notable if missing, and now I wonder why I shared this bit beyond basic design. I will circle back shortly.

Hu Tao’s hat hair combo is challenging and critical because there are many small details, from the flowers on the side to the delicate projecting hair bangs. These convey her character, and as such are key elements to her design, and will likely be fragile. Many of these elements may need to be reduced to properly create the part. It is terrible when I create a figure, and five minutes after it is created it, it’s damaged because I pushed the envelope of scale, so I had to critically think through how to manage this part of her design. While I do have some skills at designing parts in 3-D programs like Fusion 360, and I am attempting to learn Blender, this part would take me ages to create from the ground up. So I started looking for statues that others may have created that I could use as starting points. I found three different versions that were free and many for sale (several were the same model being sold by multiple people and at many price points, so please be careful). I found one listed on Thingiverse, but it was too low resolution for what I wanted. I found one in Blender, which looked amazing; however, details were way too small and I would lose so much. The third version I found was on a random website that led back to Thingiverse and is missing the character ’s face; luckily I didn’t need that part.

As I didn’t know if this was going to work, I started with the last two, even though the details were fragile on the Blender version, and started reworking them using Meshmixer. Meshmixer is a dated program that is no longer supported, but still has some great options to alter and edit mesh files (STLs) so that they can be adapted to other purposes. So I twisted, warped, scaled, and modified the two designs, and ultimately decided on the one that was originally designed for a chubby style of statue, as opposed to the more direct game play figure, because it complemented the LEGO scale more. This design was created by Epsilonaughty (https://www.thingiverse.com/ epsilonaughty/designs). Epsilonaughty designed this figure off of Poofybird’s work (https://www.thingiverse.com/poofybirddesign/designs), which is where the face that is missing in the image above could be found. By using this chubby style, the smaller fragile parts were already a bit thicker and minimized the amount of systematically adjust needed. So perfection solution found, now I had to continue the modification to get it to fit on a LEGO head.

Hu Tao with the staff of Homa.

Another look at Hu Tao’s hair.

Some 3-D models of the character found online.

lee goldman jedi vector

Lee Goldman’s Jedi Vector Fighter

Article by Steven Smyth, Bantha Bricks: Fans of LEGO Star Wars Photography by Lee Goldman

Galactic greetings! I’m Steven Smyth from Bantha Bricks: Fans of LEGO Star Wars. Since the community’s founding in 2016, on an almost daily basis, I have witnessed amazing and creative Star Wars builds in the best Star Wars themed building brick group on Facebook. Lee Goldman is one such creative builder and recently shared this custom build of a Jedi Vector starfighter from the Star Wars High Republic era. You may remember Lee from a previous BrickJournal issue, #74 in July 2022, where we talked about his Sith Fury-class Interceptor from Star Wars: The Old Republic. His amazing ability to transfer a Star Wars craft design into a LEGO medium is a topic we wanted to revisit!

Steven Smyth: How’s it going, Lee? I know you have quite a following with the members of the Bantha Bricks Facebook group and I know people in the community and beyond in other online discussions have been amazed by your many awesome Star Wars brick builds—but for the uninitiated, please introduce yourself and tell us a little about what you do.

Lee Goldman: My name is Lee Goldman and I have a business that focuses on educational snorkeling tours in places throughout the tropical Pacific. I started this business after many years working for travel companies that hired me to design and lead adventure tours throughout the Indo-West Pacific. I have a Master’s degree in marine biology and my family and I moved to Las Vegas in 2019 after living 20 years in the Philippines, Palau and Guam. I come from a family of engineers and although I did not follow their paths in life, I certainly got my love of building from them.

If you would be so kind, please refresh us on why you love Star Wars so much and why you choose the LEGO brick as your medium to express yourself?

In 1977, I was that wide-eyed, nine-year-old kid believing he just saw sci-fi fantasy perfection. To this day, I do not

think much has changed! Star Wars is a philosophy to me. It is my childhood story that brings up only good things even to this day. To some degree, LEGO is like that too. I grew up with LEGO and building takes me to a comfortable place. Even more so, I love that LEGO can be a complicated and complex puzzle to be solved: “Here is the ship, now recreate it using plastic parts of various shapes and sizes and that fit together in specific ways.” Very challenging and very fun! Marrying Star Wars with LEGO was genius and something I jumped on the moment I saw set 4483!

I love that you designed and built a LEGO version of the Jedi Vector starfighter. What inspired you to build this particular ship?

I fell in love with this design the moment I saw it. I love ships that, even subtlety, resemble animals and nature. The hard part in the beginning was finding enough images. It took me several months before I could make a go at it, and I am still not sure I did an accurate job on the rear section.

Data File: Jedi Vector Fighters

Jedi Vectors were a model of starfighter used exclusively by the Jedi Order during the High Republic Era. Designed to be a physical extension of the Jedi’s connection to the Force, the Vector was a sleek and streamlined vessel that emphasized performance and maneuverability. Renowned for its speed, it was a highly-precise craft that demanded extreme concentration from its pilot. Further cementing itself as the premier ship of the Jedi Order, the Vector’s weapons systems could only be activated with the use of a lightsaber as a key. This prevented non-Force-sensitives from using the ships and ensured deadly force could only be used in carefully considered situations.S

Source: Star Wars Wookieepedia