Reviewing models

  I've recently found myself drawn to the 2013 Breyer Classic Morab/Mariah mould. I don't know whether it's the colours she's so far available in, my passion for Morgans or just the overall aesthetics of the model itself, but she's starting to tug at my heart strings. It often happens that way; I'm not overly excited about a mould when it's first released, but give it time and I might just come round to it. But I can't seem to shake a niggling doubt at the back of my mind that her conformation is a bit...off. I felt it back in 2013 when the mould was first released, which is probably why I dismissed it as uninteresting, but it just feels as if there's something... not quite right about her.

   Now I don't pretend to be an expert in equine anatomy at all. I am well aware that my knowledge on the subject is basic at best, and whilst I may have learnt a thing or two over the years I am still in no position to judge the conformation of a model myself. So I went looking for reviews of other collectors online. And whilst I have found one or two that bemoan her conformation, not one of the ones I found explains why they think what they've said.

   This is a real bugbear for me, especially when I'm looking for information that will influence whether I purchase a model or not. A helpful review doesn't just give the reviewers opinion, it says why they think a model is poorly conformed: is the head too big, are the hindquarters too square, are the hocks too straight, are the shoulders set at an unnatural angle etc etc. Such information is not only helpful to someone who's trying to decide whether to get the model or not, but it also educates other collectors and trains their eyes to see the faults too.

   I understand that not all reviewers are experts in equine anatomy, and not all opinions about a model qualify as 'reviews'. But please, if you're going to review a model, explain why you don't like something about it, especially if you're critiquing its conformation.

  As for Mariah, I still don't know whether to get her or not. We'll just have to see.

Simple Model Photographry

 I thought it might be nice to give you guys a little 'how to' for photographing your models with a plain background. Ironically, these photos aren't the best, but they're good enough to show you how I photograph my models.

 First off here are the things you'll be needing:

• Your model (obviously)
• A sheet of white paper. For this I'm using an A4 sheet, but for larger models you can use larger sizes
• A sheet of stiff card
• A box (optional)
• Your camera
• Additional lighting, if necessary (something these photos sadly lack...)

Start by propping up your card so it stands virtually upright. If you have a flat surface that joins directly with a wall then you can just prop the card up against the wall, but if there is a gap between the surface and the wall, such as in the photo above, it's best to use a box to prop up the card instead. If there's any text/pictures/patterns on the wall or the box, the card will hide them.

Now prop the paper up against the card so it's sitting at a soft 90% angle against the card and the flat surface. Don't crease the paper or force it into the angle: you want the background to look seamless. You'll probably find that the paper doesn't want to sit up against the card on it's own, so quickly place your model down onto the paper to hold it in place. Make sure you photograph your models in a well lit area, preferably with as much natural light as possible.

 Now you can photograph your model against the white paper background. The closer you get to your model the fewer edges of the paper you'll see in the final photo, but don't be afraid to digitally crop your photo down afterwards.

 It's also very helpful to have a photo manipulation program on your computer to slightly adjust the photo digitally after taking it. Cropping, rotating if the photo is at an awkward angle, and lightening the image so that the colours are closer to the real model are all perfectly acceptable edits you can do digitally to really bring your photos to life. Just be aware that if you're entering a photo show there are rules as to just how much you can edit your photos after taking them. Each show will have their own rules; make sure you familiarise yourself with them before entering.

 If your model is too wide for your paper, or you want to photograph multiple models at once and your paper is too narrow, try flipping your paper horizontally and then placing your models down.

I hope that has helped out a little with your photographs. A4 size paper is only really big enough for Stablemates and some small Schleichs; anything bigger is normally too big, and would need the next size up for the background. But this method is great for photographing Schleich foals, Stablemates and anything smaller.

Dust Buster

 No, don't worry, it's not one of those super magnified photos of a bacteria colony...

It's actually a super soft microfibre mitt that I use to dust my model horses.  The mitt is double sided, with an opening at the end so you can put your hand inside for extra control.

  Unlike an ordinary dusting cloth, this mitt doesn't push dust around; it picks dust up like a magnet. Then all you have to do is shake it off over a bin or outside to get rid of the dust.

 I first heard about these mitts a couple of years ago from a fellow hobbyist who used one to dust her models for live showing. It seemed like a really good idea, so when I saw some for sale in my local £1 shop I decided to try them. I was not disappointed.

 I actually found them in the car section of the store, so I think they're intended for cleaning the paintwork of vehicles. But the great thing is that they are advertised as 'Scratch free', so they shouldn't harm your models. And like I said, dust sticks to them like a magnet, and those long dreadlock-like projections are ideal for getting into awkward places like grooves in manes and between your model's ears.

I've only tried this one type so I can't say whether others are any good or not. And I don't endorse one brand over another. Also, please remember that if you try these out they're at your own risk, so please be careful when using them; I can't guarantee they won't damage your models. But so far I've found this to be an excellent tool for dusting my models, so if you want to give it a try have a look in your local vehicle maintenance store or £1 shop.

Hornby Cassy Foal

   When I was a small child my parents bought me a little plastic foal in a second hand charity shop. The foal had no markings or brand stamps of any kind, so I had no idea what make it was, not that I really cared. It didn't really matter to me: all that mattered was that it was a horse :) It seemed about the right size for a Barbie horse, so the foal soon joined my small Barbie stable. However, it was too small for my Barbie horses, and the only other horse I had at the time that would be about the right size for it was my Grand Champions Magic Motion Stallion, the grey Lipizzaner named Pegasus (that was his official name, which I kept. He's a normal horse though: no wings.). So I paired them up. Pegasus became the father to my unknown foal, and both served as ponies in my Barbie Stable. To give you an idea of their size, standard Barbie horses are about 1:6 scale, normal Grand Champions are about 1:12 scale, and Grand Champions Magic Motion Stallions like my Pegasus were about 1:9 scale, or roughly the same size as a Breyer Traditional. That would make my foal 1:9 scale too.

  Anyway, I thought no more about it until only a couple of weeks ago when, completely by accident, I happened to discover what brand my mystery foal belonged to! Whilst browsing ebay I came across some listings for 'Hornby Cassy' dolls and horses, and right there was my foal! At last, after about 20 years, I had an identity for it: my foal was a Hornby Cassy model.

 My foal has undergone some renovations over the years. She (it's gone back and forth between a colt and a filly over the years) originally had a white faux hair mane and tail, but as children do I trimmed it until there was next to nothing left. Years later I discovered a tutorial for rehairing model horses (which is sadly no longer available) and decided to give it a go with some chestnut faux hair from another model. I think it came out rather nice.

 The only other change I made to her was to neaten up her blaze and socks and add some pinking on her nose and lips. Everything else is original. I've long forgotten what I originally named her, but Cassy seems like an appropriate name from now on :)

Science Fiction meets Breyerfest

Today's post is just a bit of fun, really.

   This year's Breyerfest has recently come and gone, and as per usual it seems to have been a massive event. I say 'seems' because, living in the UK, I've never been able to afford to attend a Breyerfest event (which is held in Kentucky, USA each year). As a result, my experience of it is limited to the videos and blogs of other hobbyists that did attend. They all seemed to have really enjoyed it, though.

   This year's event was themed around France and all things French, and next year's event is apparently going to be themed around carnivals. Other previous themes have included Britain and fairytales. This got me thinking "If I could create a theme for Breyerfest, what would I go with?". And then the answer hit me: Science Fiction. 

   I'm a massive sci fi fan, from Doctor Who to Star Trek, and I have no doubt many other hobbyists are as well. And it's such a broad genre that I'm sure there would be plenty of inspiration to draw from. Obviously the oganisers couldn't use copyrighted material without permission, but there's so much at the core themes of sci fi that I don't think it would be a problem at all. Robots, extraterrestrials, time travel, futuristic technology and space flight are all themes that span multiple sources and are copyright free. And just imagine the fun the competetors could have with sci fi themed entries!

   And one of the biggest draws of Breyerfest every year are the exclusive Breyer models released at each event, all based around the central theme. Just think, you could have a blue roan stallion named Time Traveller, a short brown pony named Extraterrestrial, or a massive grey drafter named Starship. 

So, how about it: a science fiction themed breyerfest for 2017?

Schleich Dressage Horse Set

Not a 2015 model, not even a current model, but the Schleich Dressage Horse Set is new to me so I wanted to give an in depth feature of it as I did with my other models. In particular, I wanted to talk about the colouring of the horse.

This set came to me second hand so it is not perfect. However, I was able to clean it up quite a bit, so it's not as bad as it was before.

 I believe this set came out around 2009. It features a removable base, removable rider and dressage warmblood with moulded on tack.

The horse itself is performing quite an advanced dressage manoeuvre which i believe is called a 'Half Pass', where the horse moves in a diagonal motion across the show ring, crossing the far side legs across the body in the direction the horse is travelling.

With the exception of freestyle, which is set to music, I'm not normally very interested in dressage. It's just not really my thing. What drew me to this set in particular is, surprise surprise, the chestnut horse. At first I dismissed it as unrealistic: why does the horse have a flaxen mane but it's tail is the same colour as it's body?

 To be honest I thought it was weird, just another semi-realistic model horse, and ignored it. But years later I discovered that , although uncommon, it actually is possible for a chestnut horse to have a blonde mane but not a blonde tail, as shown in the 2nd photo down on this site. How cool is that?

 As far as I can tell, this unique colouring doesn't have a specific name, like a Gulastra Plume, or at least if it does I can't find out what it is. I've never seen another original finish model horse with it (probably because, like me, most people would assume it's unrealistic). The uniqueness of the model's colour lifts this set from just an interesting dressage model to a unique and really quite lovely model in it's own right. I'd have liked it if the braids in the mane were painted a little better, but that's a minor thing.

 The whole set is really nicely painted, even with the odd mishaps. The rider's face is a little odd: her eyebrows seem a little fierce and judging from the colour of them, she's not a natural blonde. Her bottom lip is painted a blue-ish shade which is probably meant to look natural but to me looks like she has a bruised lip. But I love the detailing on her jacket and the little golden tie pin is a brilliant little extra.

 The horse is, naturally, the star of the set. She has a lovely ombre tail, gorgeously shaded colouring and finely detailed moulded on tack. Sadly my camera isn't good enough to photograph them, but her hooves are exquisitely painted. The only white marking on her (aside from rubs) is a lovely star and connected stripe on her face, which like the mane adds character and interest to an otherwise plain colour.

 Though glued in, the reins and stirrup leathers were obviously moulded separately and then added to the model later. I love all the intricate little metal details on the bridle.

 The Schleich 'S' logo is a bit misplaced here. The rider grips the model a little too tighter with her heels, so removing her from the horse tends to cause rubs on the mare's flanks, which you can also see here. 

 The mane has white detailing to simulate braids.

 As you've probably guessed by now, the horse is a mare. The awkward position of the back legs make sculpting mare anatomy a little difficult, but you can just about make out two little bumps to simulate the udders that all newer Schleich mares are sculpted with.

The mare can stand without the base, although she's incredibly tippy (likely accounting for the rubs on her rump) and as you can tell she tends to incorrectly rest on her foreleg when free standing.

 The base is a simple strip of beige-coloured plastic with a clean plastic stand to support the horse. I think the footing is meant to simulate an arena, but the detailing looks more like straw than sand to me.

Overall I'm delighted with this set. Of course it has its flaws, but what model doesn't? I might try to patch up some of the rubs at some point, but I'm not very confident in my restoration abilities. Oh, and since I mentioned how much I love finding out what other people named their models, I've called the rider Althea Goodyear, and the mare is named Serenity. If you'd like me to (or like me not to) tell you what I've named my models in future posts, please let me know :)