Iron Man Mark VI Maquette by Sideshow Collectibles

With so many Iron Man merchandises coming out (kudos to the success of the 2 movies), it's no wonder companies are trying to outdo each other producing quality collectibles. Sideshow Collectibles, a huge company known for its extensive line of Marvel based statues, recently released (IMHO) the best Iron Man statue to date – Iron Man: Mark VI maquette.

When I first took a photo of Jon’s Iron Man Comicquette (still on my wish list), I kept telling him how much I love the statue. The Granov signature smashing the ground pose gave it a huge impact and the exclusive version came with an interchangeable head of Tony Stark. It was a blast and up to this day (it’s been more than a year or two) I still dream of having one.

When I first saw pictures of the Mark VI maquette from Sideshow’s website, I immediately said to myself, this is the best Iron Man statue to date. The resemblance to its movie counterpart is uncanny. I have seen (and photographed) several variants of Iron Man from classic, stealth, modern, extremis, etc. and they are all good with their designs. However, I so much love how they made him in the movie and this Mark VI totally blew me away!

The statue is at approximately 17 inches tall and comes with a base that when connected to the Mark VI lights up his eyes, chest and hands (via a power switch).

Sideshow Collectibles is selling this piece for $489.99 but the item is already sold out. You will be on the wait list if you decide to purchase from their site.

http://www.sideshowtoy.com/?page_id=4489&sku=400041&ref=preview_page

PhoTOYgrapher’s Perspective:

My tabletop setup works best for figures that are 15 inches, or less in height so I had to improvise on the background that I used. I also used a regular table instead of my Falcon Eyes one to have a more stable support for the 1/4^th scale statue.

A lot of possibilities entered my mind when I was taking pictures of the Mark VI. There was the dry ice effect (which Bleau already did with his BD Mark III, http://www.flickr.com/photos/bleau72/5068793674/) or maybe bring him on a dark alley with a single spot light place on top and use the dry ice there. Then again I would probably need to hire bodyguards to ward off nosy bystanders. Also the fact that this statue is not mine is another thing to be concerned with.

I did the usual rim lighting that I do, which I think worked really well for Mark VI. After several ‘catalog’ shots I decided to see how it would turn out by using just one light.

You can also flip the switch at the back of the base and be stunned when his eyes, hands and chest lights up. The base can be operated by 3 AAA batteries or a power supply (included).

Lighting Setup:

For this experiment I used a Union 4 Rime light 400 watts fitted with a bowl and 2 rectangular mirrors. I took one shot with just the Rime light and a couple of shots after using 1 mirror first then finally 2 mirrors.

As you can see from the 2 succeeding photos, the first one was just the Rime light while mirrors were added on the second one. By turning on the modeling light of the strobe and placing the mirror opposite it, I can see where the highlights will hit before I press the shutter. If you examine the left leg and upper torso carefully you will notice the difference. The other mirror was pointed towards the right leg.

Iron Man Extremis Version by Bowen Designs

I’ve been busy for the past 2 weeks with several things, and then I got sick so slowly getting back on track…

If you are a comic book fan (specifically Iron Man) then you have probably heard (or followed) the Extremis series. Here Iron Man gets a different look and basically after so many things that happened to Tony Stark he is back in the ball game.

This new 12” statue by Bowen Designs is inspired by the art of Adi Granov (remember the famous Iron Man punching the ground pose?) and features Iron Man firing his repulsor ray. It also comes with a base with the logo of Stark Enterprises printed in the middle.

BD makes good with the size of the statue (1/6^th scale) to collectors who have limited display shelves. I checked online and urban collector is selling this piece for $148.99, but is currently not available. I also checked Bowen’s site and this retails for about $175.00 and is also sold out.

http://www.urban-collector.com/iron-man-extremis-statue-bowen-designs.html

http://www.bowendesigns.com/sculptures.asp?id=567&type=

PhoTOYgrapher’s Perspective:

I did several rim light shots to see if this would come out as good as the Mark VI one by Sideshow Collectibles but I got a different treatment (you will see when I do a blog on the Mark VI).

I love photographing BD statues because despite of their smaller size than the others, they maintain the details of each piece. Here is where Bowen statues shine. The careful attention to details makes each statue a good photoygraphy subject. Kudos to the sculptor Avinash Hedge for executing this pose well (http://aysculpture.deviantart.com/).

I would probably try and shoot this together with War Machine, maybe do an outdoor shot or table top with dry ice on each side to emulate smoke. That would probably be nice. 

Some Issues:

1.) When I think of Iron Man I think of Tony Stark inside a suit of bulky armor (think of the movie) but the Extremis version is totally different. It looks more of a suit than armor for me. I still prefer Tony looking like a robot rather than one of the guys from Tron. However, BD captured the Granov Extremis very well with this statue. 

2.) The paint job could do some improvements. Once you use a macro lens for photoygraphy you get to see things that you normally would not using a regular wide angle or short-range lens.

Iron Man Mark VI 400% Bearbrick by Medicom

The first time I saw a Bearbrick was when the local vinyl store FRESH Manila used to operate a few years ago. The owner who had several Bearbricks of different sizes on display introduced me to this.  I saw a small one, roughly about 3-4 inches and another one that is almost twice the size. What caught my eye were the bigger pieces to which they were coined 400% in size.

One of Jon’s haul during his Singapore trip was a 400% Bearbrick of Iron Man Mark VI. Even Medicom, the company who manufactures these Bearbricks capitalized on the success of the movie and made their own version of Iron Man.

I browsed online for the cost of this item and I saw someone selling it on eBay for 120 Singapore dollars http://cgi.ebay.com.sg/Hot-Bearbrick-400-Iron-Man-Mark-VI-Be-rbrick-Toys-/380257967437

Packaging:

Bearbrick collectors will definitely grab this opportunity to own a fantastic piece of Iron Man memorabilia with this purchase. The print on the figure is of high quality and captures the essence of Iron Man Mark VI. Also when you try to move the arms and legs there is a clicking sound with each rotation that informs you of the certain degrees to which you can move both the arms and legs.

PhoTOYgrapher's Perspective:

The posing is limited so I was able to get only a few shots of it. I was impressed with the paint job (printing) done with this figure. After taking several shots I decided to imitate the famous Adi Granov pose with a touch of rim lighting effect.

Issue:

1.) Light up eyes and chest? Nah, too much.

* Comparison in size between the 400% Bearbrick and Hasbro Mark V

Stealth Iron Man by Bowen Designs

One of the most popular statues under the Marvel banner is Iron Man. I have seen countless Iron Man statues from classic to stealth to even a Hulk buster and a Thor buster version. With so many IM statues available I already lost track which is which.

When I decided to do a PhoTOYgraphy blog I asked Jon to loan me his collection. Jon being an Iron Man fan had several statues with him and I am going to start off with the Stealth Iron Man.

The stealth is packed in Bowen’s conventional styro and box with colorful illustrations. The base is separated from the figure, which shows Iron Man blasting off. Bowen Designs released this statue last April 2009, so chances are this is already sold out. Amazon is selling this piece for $ 119.99.

http://www.amazon.com/Iron-Man-Stealth-Statue-Designs/dp/B001VDYK24

Personally if you are an Iron Man fan then you will have to add this to your collection. The sculpting by the Kucharek Brothers made this statue come to life. The paint quality however is a different story. There are mixed reviews as to whether the blasting off pose is good or not, however I find it a bit stiff.

PhoTOYgrapher’s Perspective:

Iron Man is an interesting piece to phoTOYgraphed because you have to do well with the lighting to show off his armor. The stealth is dull compared with the classic red/gold combination but given a proper lighting treatment it will come to life.

I usually do 2 types of lighting here, one a rim lighting style and the other a high key effect just to show my flickr colleagues what the statue looks like. The fact that statues do not move gives me more time to prepare for the shoot and not worry if my model is uncomfortable.

It would probably be nice to bring this outdoors for some realistic scenery shot but it is not mine.

Issue:

1.) The blasting off pose is a bit stiff for me.

Lighting Setup:

Here is a diagram of how I did the lighting. The Octabox acts as a reflector only (notice there is not strobe/flash gun attached to it) so basically what I did was a one light setup. I did the same shot with the classic and the stealth so the pictures are similar except the classic has more punch.

Invincible Iron Man by Bowen Designs

Iron Man shot to fame when his official movie was released 2 years ago with Robert Downey Jr. pitching in as billionaire Tony Stark. Statue manufacturers cashed in on his popularity by releasing several versions of Iron Man with different armors (I lost count already).

When I recently started to try blogging I turned to Jon to loan me his statues for this purpose. I’ve already taken pictures of his collection but decided to give it another shot using a different style. He delivered to me both the Invincible and Stealth by Bowen Designs (special mention to the Kucharek Brothers for the great job).

Like with the stealth version the Invincible is already sold out and your chance to get it is the secondary market. Amazon is selling this for $148.99 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001EVX5HO/ref=s9_simh_gw_p21_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=015HW68Y3B71N2990607&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846).

Same with what I mentioned in the other review, if you are an Iron Man fan then this is definitely a must have. If you go to Bowen’s site they release a lot of Iron Man statues (and busts) already so just imagine if you can own every Iron Man release they made and put in your display cabinet, wouldn’t that be cool?

The fact that the scaling of their statues is smaller compared to what Sideshow Collectibles is doing is favorable to collectors with limited display cabinets.

PhoTOYgrapher’s Perspective:

I decided to give this Iron Man a different treatment by incorporating a little bit of enhancement via Adobe Photoshop. If you check out my flickr stream around 99% of my toy shots are with plain backgrounds and I just play with the light. However my jaw dropped when I saw what my colleagues are doing so I decided to give it a shot. It’s far from their masterpieces but I am slowly getting there.

Issue:

1.) The blasting off pose is a bit stiff for me.

Lighting Setup:

Because of the limited time and space I decided to shoot this on my trusty Falcon Eyes product table with a savage background. The setup consisted of one 400 watts light fitted with a softbox on one side and an Octabox which acts as a reflector was on the other side.

Batman Mini Cosbaby by Hot Toys

When Hot Toys introduced their DC mini Cosbaby a few years back I was still unaware of what a Cosbaby is. Fast forward to the current time line and I am happy to own the Toy Story and Iron Man 2 set.  My recent acquisition of IM2 mini cosbaby set garnered another bonus, I was offered a complete set of their Batman line at a reasonable price and immediately grabbed the opportunity.

Now I am also a proud owner of the Batman mini cosbaby set. However Robert informed me that he does not have the Nightwing exclusive so I did what any nutty collector would do, go to eBay. I only got 2 hits, one seller selling the whole set and another one selling an opened Nightwing. After inquiring on the shipping fee here in the Philippines I decided to purchase the item.

Package Contents:

Each piece is packed in a small sealed box and contains the following characters: Batgirl, The Joker, Catwoman, Two-Face, Batman (Classic), Batman (Modern) and Robin. For more information kindly check Hot Toys' site at http://www.hottoys.com.hk/index.php?target=categories&category_id=6 and look for the Batman icon 

below.

Collector's Perspective:

Toy collecting is addicting. You can never have enough unless your fund diminishes; otherwise you keep on buying and buying. Though I do not see the value of these to increase extensively someday, they are still worth to collect in my book. The good thing with mini cosbabies is that they are also for play and not just for display. 

I checked Amazon's site and this is what I got http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=batman+cosbaby&x=0&y=0&ih=12_3_1_0_0_0_0_0_0_1.4_161&fsc=-1.

PhoTOYgrapher's Perspective:

Cute is just one of the many words to describe a cosbaby. Since they are only 3 inches and 7cm tall you can practically bring them anywhere to be phoTOYgraphed. My good friend Jon was kind enough to lend me his PF Thor statue and I took the base to be use as a prop. The backgrounds are added via Adobe Photoshop.

Some Issues:

1.) How come Penguin, Riddler and Mr. Freeze were not included? =D

2.) Accessories for Batman, Catwoman and Robin would have been nice.

Gears used:

Canon DSLR

Canon 100mm f2.8 L lens

2 pcs. Jinbei 180 watts (each), Rectangular and Octagonal Softbox, Green Background and Pocket Wizards

Falcon Eyes Product Table

PF Thor's Base

Iron Man 2 Mini Cosbaby by Hot Toys

I recently caught the Mini Cosbaby bug and during my last trip to HK I was able to complete The Toy Story characters and bought a couple of Iron Man 2 Cosbaby figures. I was browsing through eBay the other day in hopes of completing the characters from Iron Man 2 and found a couple online. Prior to this writing I only had Whiplash, War Machine and Tony Stark face Mark IV.

My colleague Jon knew about my quest to complete the set and on one of his toy trips in Greenhills (one of our local malls here) he was able to buy the whole set (Rhodey included) for P 4,000.00 (roughly $85) after discount. He tried to get in touch with me to see if I wanted a set for myself as well but I was unavailable during that time.  When I finally came to my senses and knew of his great deal I called a friend of mine who owns a store there as well and finally after 2 days of hard thinking I grabbed the opportunity. The fact that I was able to sell a toy made the decision easier for me.

My friend gave me a great deal as well for the set that also included a Tony Stark Mark VI Taiwan Exclusive version (love the box design). Thank you Robert!

Taiwan Exclusive Tony Stark Mark VI

Package Contents:

Each box is sealed and contains one of 7 characters including Whiplash, Nick Fury, Black Widow, Tony Stark Mark IV, Iron Man Mark IV, Iron Man Mark VI and War Machine. If you opt to get 1 case then it contains all 7 characters plus the secret version, James Rhodes Mark II. For more information kindly check http://www.hottoys.com.hk/index.php?target=categories&category_id=6 and look for the Iron Man 2 icon below.

Collector’s Perspective:

Toy collecting is addicting. You can never have enough unless your fund diminishes; otherwise you keep on buying and buying. Though I do not see the value of these to increase extensively someday, they are still worth to collect in my book. The good thing with mini cosbabies is that they are also for play and not just for display. I was also happy to acquire the Tony Stark Mark VI which was exclusively released last July at a Toy show in Taiwan.

Amazon is selling the Taipei exclusive for $15.99 (http://www.amazon.com/Iron-Man-Cosbabies-Exclusive-Version/dp/B003XUI9SY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1281176273&sr=8-1).

PhoTOYgrapher’s Perspective:

There is only 1 word to describe these figures – CUTE! The cuteness level alone already makes these mini cosbabies worthy to be phoTOYgraphed. A Captain America statue was recently loaned to me for pictorial and when I saw the base I figured it could make an interesting diorama for the toys. Check out the pictures below…

Since they are small bringing them outdoors for a location shoot is hassle free. I will definitely bring them out the next time I plan a trip. I mostly did tabletop shots and digitally added backgrounds via Adobe’s Photoshop.

Some Issues:

1.) The quality of paint job done is not consistent or I am probably just nitpicking.

2.) Detachable weaponries for War Machine would be a welcome addition.

3.) They should have included Mark V.

For more pictures of IM2 Mini cosbabies kindly check my flickr site:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/powerpee/sets/72157624535884069/

Gears used:

Canon DSLR

Canon 100mm f2.8 Lens

3 pcs. Jinbei 180 watts (each), Softbox, Grid and IR Trigger

Falcon Eyes Product Table

PF Captain America's Base