darkSpyro

So I received my Glitter Hot Head and Ninjinis in the mail today.

I didn't hesitate to start taking pictures. I will make some videos of her Heroic, which is simple yet fun, as well as walk you through some of her powers down each upgrade path.

First off, nothing we haven't seen before, but I thought I would post pics of Glitter Hot Head - in his packaging - from each angle.






Seeing a Glitter with your own eyes is much better than most pictures out there. He truly does have a glitter effect. With all of the other pictures out there, I thought the glitter would be dark, as pictures make the glitter look gray/black. As we all know, his head does indeed light up blue, which is a cool aspect to this variant, as you get variant lighting as well.

He registers in the Wii U and 360 versions of the game as "Special" but not in the Universe webgame.




I will be testing him on the PS3 version shortly, and will edit this post to reflect his status on that version of the game. I will also test it on my friend's copy of the Wii game, as I do not have an opened version of that game.

Now, for Ninjini. Before I start, I'd like to say that I made a video showing her off a bit, which is on my Youtube Channel (link below), including tiny details I thought was cool on the figure. However, the quality of the video won't be that great, as it was shot with a 16 megapixel Nikon Coolpix. Bear with me as well, as it's my first live video shot for the purpose of informing others as well. Things will only get better.

That brings me to a question I have for those in the know. Can anyone give me some advice on what kind of camera to buy, that shoots good, crisp, video, and what kind of lighting should I use to fill my otherwise dark room with light? Any help for future videos would be greatly appreciated, and it would only serve to hopefully help other Skylander fans out there, as I do video analysis of figures themselves.

Now then, on to Ninjini. Here is a pic of her lit up, as well as in package from all angles.







Here is a pic of her card.



Ninjini is a tall Skylander. I thought she would be the tallest Skylander of the bunch. I had theorized that perhaps she would even inch slightly taller than 6 inches. I was wrong, thankfully, and the peak of the figure itself, is the beginning section of her ponytail. The peak of the figure is about as tall as Swarm's right barb, which stretches upward, and has the Lightcore function.

I also felt she would be pretty deep. I feared she would be deeper than 3 inches, which would have caused problems in displaying her on the shelf I built for the Giants collection, as the boards they sit on only go 3 inches back. Luckily, this isn't the case. With the way she is twisted, her sword is at a diagonal angle outward and upward, allowing for no intrusion for those displaying her on a 3 inch deep boarded shelf.

Here are comparison pics with her and every Giant from the front and side. I am throwing back and alternate side shots for those who like to analyze Skylanders, but they will be in the form of links, so not to spam this thread with pics.

Front view -









Right side view -









Back view -

http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps1302a27f.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps50e7f155.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zpsdddef91f.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps4800bbe3.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zpsefb5ba55.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zpse9698bd0.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps124e5d34.jpg

Left side view -

http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps5903a414.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps3fc5047f.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps7556cb5a.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps489a76c0.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zpsa94e503e.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps23c9689b.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/alb...zps34cce008.jpg

And here is a link to a video I made of her, for my Youtube Channel. Suggestions for better camera and lighting techniques would be appreciated. Also, I will be adding a lot more videos soon to my Youtube Channel. Every Heroic, playthrough of both games, analysis of both of every Skylanders upgrade paths, and video reviews and analysis of the figures themself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_7nH0-XgO8

Awesome GameMaster, also, Ninjini is the biggest giant isn't it?

If she is, it's very-very-very slight. The top of her ponytail seems to be as tall as Swarm's right barb, making it so they are neck and neck in the tallest Giant race.

I would say she, along with Eye-Brawl, Thumpback, and Tree Rex have the best lighting. Crusher and Bouncer come in after those 4, but opinions are subjective.

What path will u take for her?

Glitter Hot Head still looks as breath-taking as before. I also have one coming to me, but it isn't expected to arrive until March.

Where do you work and are they hiring? My god. I just can't bring myself to pay 100s for one figure no matter what the variant is. I'd feel stupid saying man I wish I had an ipad3 or something else I could use instead of saying Oh I can't afford that now bc I spent the same amount on 2 skylanders. Wow. Just wow. If I had money to throw on these and not feel buyers remorse I would. So congratulations to you.

The Glitter effect does look better in person for sure.

Drill if you mean variants, it's the nature of the beast, sadly. Those not lucky enough to find them in person are going to be out a pretty penny.

i posted pics of glitter hothead ages ago but man its hot

Quote: GameMaster78

The Glitter effect does look better in person for sure.

Drill if you mean variants, it's the nature of the beast, sadly. Those not lucky enough to find them in person are going to be out a pretty penny.

How much didja pay? I got it for $90.

thumpback is a midget compared to ninjini!

Whats the link to your full collection Updated?

Right here, Jpaw.

Very nice pickups!

Awesome as always GM78! Where did you get your Ninjini from? Does this mean she'll available in stores soon?

Quote: nocturnalnathan

Awesome as always GM78! Where did you get your Ninjini from? Does this mean she'll available in stores soon?

he got his from the NY thing.

^ He bought them from eBay.

Quote: Matteomax

^ He bought them from eBay.

which were FROM the NY TRU thing.

I didn't buy them from Ebay.

Someone on another site helped me get them.

Quote: GameMaster78

I didn't buy them from Ebay.

Someone on another site helped me get them.

But they are the NY Ninjinis, right? I just wanted to make sure I didn't need to start stalking my local stores again. Lol

Hi There!

You asked about camera lighting. You don't really need lightning, so much as a lightbox. A lightbox is simply a cube-shaped container, with one side open, and the insides white (normally). You can construct one yourself. For simple cheap one, you can use a white cardboard box, or even a laundry basket. Set your item up inside the box, and use the flash option on your camera.

For flash, the absolute best you can have, is a flash that's built onto a joint, allowing you to aim it. Normally, you don't want the flash to hit the item itself (which results in the glare that you have on the picture of Hot Head on the portal, as well as the reflection of your hands and camera) but illuminate the area about it; this means the best way to aim the light is up.

As for lighting setiings on the camera itself, normally, there are lightning adjusters. My camera has a setting labeled incandescent, which works pretty well under most normal indoor conditions.

Also, remember the camera focus setting; always use Macro for close-ups. Macro is normally represented by a small flower symbol.

Finally, a quick note; for figures constructed of white plastic, always use a dark color, or they'll blend in like a chameleon! Go with a color that astecially matches the figure; black, blue, and green, are normally your best bets.

As far as brands, most brands are pretty good; I prefer Panasonic and Nikon. I would steer clear of Olympus though, considering what I've seen of the software side of their cameras. For video cameras specifically, I quite liked Sony.

I hope this helps!

Congratulations on the Hot Head and the Ninjini! They're both beautiful pieces!

Quote: nocturnalnathan

Quote: GameMaster78

I didn't buy them from Ebay.

Someone on another site helped me get them.

But they are the NY Ninjinis, right? I just wanted to make sure I didn't need to start stalking my local stores again. Lol

Oh, yeah, sorry. They are indeed NY Ninjinis. They haven't hit mass retail yet.

Quote: Icespark

Hi There!

You asked about camera lighting. You don't really need lightning, so much as a lightbox. A lightbox is simply a cube-shaped container, with one side open, and the insides white (normally). You can construct one yourself. For simple cheap one, you can use a white cardboard box, or even a laundry basket. Set your item up inside the box, and use the flash option on your camera.

For flash, the absolute best you can have, is a flash that's built onto a joint, allowing you to aim it. Normally, you don't want the flash to hit the item itself (which results in the glare that you have on the picture of Hot Head on the portal, as well as the reflection of your hands and camera) but illuminate the area about it; this means the best way to aim the light is up.

As for lighting setiings on the camera itself, normally, there are lightning adjusters. My camera has a setting labeled incandescent, which works pretty well under most normal indoor conditions.

Also, remember the camera focus setting; always use Macro for close-ups. Macro is normally represented by a small flower symbol.

Finally, a quick note; for figures constructed of white plastic, always use a dark color, or they'll blend in like a chameleon! Go with a color that astecially matches the figure; black, blue, and green, are normally your best bets.

As far as brands, most brands are pretty good; I prefer Panasonic and Nikon. I would steer clear of Olympus though, considering what I've seen of the software side of their cameras. For video cameras specifically, I quite liked Sony.

I hope this helps!

Congratulations on the Hot Head and the Ninjini! They're both beautiful pieces!

Thanks and thanks for the info. I will see about getting a white box sometime this week, as I want to really start making a ton of videos.

^ Hellooooo? How much was Glitter Hot Head?

Very nice pair. I'm very jealous.

Thanks for the pics GM78. They look amazing.

I couldn't tell if Ninjini was bigger then Swarm.

120, Matteo.

You're welcome, Tribut. I am hoping it is the first of many, but next time, things will be done up a bit better.

Someperson, the pics above show clearly that they are pretty much neck and neck in the height factor, when you take into account Ninjini's ponytail and Swarm's right barb.

Dumb question here, do the variants such as Glitter, etc just randomly show up at stores (unless employees scoop them up)?

Quote: DarkBigDog

Dumb question here, do the variants such as Glitter, etc just randomly show up at stores (unless employees scoop them up)?

yup. If youre there when they open the boxes you have the best chances. Other wise they dont last a minute. But can be found on shelves hidden some times. Not that Ive ever found any. Just heard stories.

Quote: DarkBigDog

Dumb question here, do the variants such as Glitter, etc just randomly show up at stores (unless employees scoop them up)?

To go into a little more detail on this.

As the previous poster said they do show up in random boxes. You have to be extremely lucky to find. Now, we do have some variants that come out a toy fairs and such. For example the chrome Chop Chop came out at the NY Toy Fair.

As far as stores to get the variants at it is pretty much just plain luck. If you can get to know a stores delivery schedule you can track it down a bit.

Gamestop you have almost zero chance of finding a variant. They open the boxes at the warehouse and take out any variants. They usually sell them in bundles or sometimes as with the glitter sprocket and Sonic Boom will sell them at retail on the web site.

Quote: Bazinga

Quote: DarkBigDog

Dumb question here, do the variants such as Glitter, etc just randomly show up at stores (unless employees scoop them up)?

To go into a little more detail on this.

As the previous poster said they do show up in random boxes. You have to be extremely lucky to find. Now, we do have some variants that come out a toy fairs and such. For example the chrome Chop Chop came out at the NY Toy Fair.

As far as stores to get the variants at it is pretty much just plain luck. If you can get to know a stores delivery schedule you can track it down a bit.

Gamestop you have almost zero chance of finding a variant. They open the boxes at the warehouse and take out any variants. They usually sell them in bundles or sometimes as with the glitter sprocket and Sonic Boom will sell them at retail on the web site.

I've heard of gamestop doing this in the USA, but i wonder if places like eb games do this too? I've never seen any variants on the web page. But it wouldnt surprise me if employees were keeping them. Theyre becoming more widely known.

I'm pretty close to the future shop and eb games employees out here. The future shop guys are keeping an eye out because theyve gotten a glitter skylander in already once before. But i showed a pic to one of the eb games guys and he's never seen them.

Quote: Tupelo

Quote: Bazinga

Quote: DarkBigDog

Dumb question here, do the variants such as Glitter, etc just randomly show up at stores (unless employees scoop them up)?

To go into a little more detail on this.

As the previous poster said they do show up in random boxes. You have to be extremely lucky to find. Now, we do have some variants that come out a toy fairs and such. For example the chrome Chop Chop came out at the NY Toy Fair.

As far as stores to get the variants at it is pretty much just plain luck. If you can get to know a stores delivery schedule you can track it down a bit.

Gamestop you have almost zero chance of finding a variant. They open the boxes at the warehouse and take out any variants. They usually sell them in bundles or sometimes as with the glitter sprocket and Sonic Boom will sell them at retail on the web site.

I've heard of gamestop doing this in the USA, but i wonder if places like eb games do this too? I've never seen any variants on the web page. But it wouldnt surprise me if employees were keeping them. Theyre becoming more widely known.

I'm pretty close to the future shop and eb games employees out here. The future shop guys are keeping an eye out because theyve gotten a glitter skylander in already once before. But i showed a pic to one of the eb games guys and he's never seen them.

I wonder since Gamestop owns EB Games (atleast I think they do) that they may just ship stuff from the US over to those stores when they become available to sell over seas.

can you post video of ninjini in game

Any idea on Nijini's release to the public?

Yeah, Sprocket. I will be making a video of Ninjini's Heroic, but I have to track down the cables I was using for game capturing. I will then be doing a video of her upgrade paths.

Thanks for the pics. Can't wait to get ninjini!

If you are looking into a really good P&S camera that does video I'd recommend the Canon S100. Some youtubers I think used to use this for filming. It is basically the highest model P&S until you start getting into the bulkier cameras and dslrs. The camera functions well in low light so is better for indoor photography than the avg point and shoot.

As far as lighting, natural light is always best. Or just bring more lamps into the room, the ones that diffuse the light by shining it on the ceiling.
If you are shooting mostly figures then as icespark mentioned, a lightbox works best. It's REALLY easy to build your own. Some people just literally take a cardboard box lay it on it's side, and tape white paper on the inside. Then you just need some desk lamps to shine into it so it bounces the light off the walls an onto whatever you place inside the box.

Bouncing light, always looks better than direct flash.

I'd also recommend getting a tripod of some sort, maybe a gorilla pod if you're shooting most things on the desk.

Thanks for the advice, Berry. I will look into those options, as well as the others that were posted here.

I posted this in the Ninjini Heroic topic, but I need some more advice.

When I capture video with my Roxio Game Capture, the music and dialogue sometimes distorts. Could this be Roxio Game Capture itself, or could it be that I am using the game capture program on a laptop that's not that reliable when it comes to power?

Does game capturing require a pretty good computer, in order to not lag?

I mean, I have a better PC than laptop, but I keep using the laptop, because the USB cable that came with the Game Capture device isn't long enough to reach my PC. If capturing video on my PC would make for less lag and distortion, then I can look into getting a USB extension cable of sorts.

Thanks for any advice.