Skins: Can They be Too Real?

LOTR? Lord of the Rings? I don't understand the relavence?

Basically the main program making the best CGI out there is Maya..King Kong..Mighty Joe Young...all those hairs on the ape..individually drawn and laid out over the apes body..moving and reflecting light..blowing in the wind...alot of engine strength to pull that off.

Will be neat to find a Virtual world thats curtailed to that sortve design.

~Lana Tomba

I have been holding off posting this picture as I had already posted it in another thread, but this picture just seems to go with this thread.
photorealistic skin

I dont think that one looks that bad..I guess it depends on the background..a skin needs to reflect the stylized surroundings. Maybe if the surroundings were more real the skin would look even better.

Prolly helps to build the avatar to fit the skin?

~Lana Tomba

Uncanny valley ??

That shape came with the skin.

yes it looks like someone spent the time to study the SL avatar map and make sure their skin fit. Is it yours Soji?

~Lana Tomba

I did not create it, though it is a snapshot of me by me. It is the Matt Damon skin from IC-Skins. There was another thread where a particular individual noted wanting to dance with Damon. That individual has still not seen the Damon skin, at least not while I was wearing it.

Ballsh to Matt Damon, thish forum wantsh to shee your Sean Connery av, Shoji.

I think that picture is a good example of where phtorealistic skins need to be going

It's not the photrealism that's bad..but the artists technique and understanding of sl that makes or breaks a skin.

The previous pics of photorealistic skins were just "bad technique". The face on yours is quite good. Not to pry..or be too personal..but is the body just as good?..Are there seams in the back of the skull and at the shoulders?

I may check out that store.

~Lana Tomba

The Sean Connery av is not photorealistic. And has odd ears.


The original box I got, and the skin that was in it, is one that I wore at the forum hangout shirtless. The head is photorealistic in that skin, but the rest of the body is not (which was commented on a lot). Then, after noting that the item was supposed to contain eyes as well as skin and shape, I received three more skins and another shape from the creator (thanks ). I haven't looked too closely, but I believe that these skins are actually photorealistic head and upper body. I haven't looked at the legs yet. Actually, the head is photorealistic, while the rest of the body is shaded to try to make the head . . . I think. Again, I haven't looked closely.

too real actually looks fake in sl from the ones i have seen.
to look close to real or a look that really catches the eye you have to be matched in all areas..hair clothes and skin and shape..if one looks too real it stands out from all the rest..wearing a real looking skin and having clothes that are textured down .the skin stands out like a flood like and looks like someone pasted thier picture on thier avatar..
but my opinion and 2 dollars you might be able to get a coffee.

I do not think it is realistic to have hands melting into an arm. Ok, I actually quoted the picture because I didn't see it before. Not sure why. And it is on the bottom of the next to last page on my system (max settings).

Too real? Not real enough? (personally I wish I could make them more realistic)

Ah, and there we have the reason you're the recognized master of photorealism. Nice work Chip

Makes my "photorealistic skin" look like it's hand drawn.

I think this is the most important point. To a certain point the more photo realistic the skin the more lifelike the avatar but when it is too much more realistic than everything else in view it becomes the element that doesn't belong.
Imagine reading a comic strip like Doonesbury. At first those eyes seem pretty weird but all the characters in the strip have them so you accept them as the reality of that universe. If a character from Rex Morgan MD suddenly entered the scene that character would be the one that looked unreal even though Rex Morgan drawings are more true to real life.
However detailed, so far SL is a cartoon universe and everything looks best when the style is consistent. That's why ruth skins look so bad: they are cruder than most of the scenery around them.

Those examples of yours, Chip, are great! They manage to be very lifelike and artistic in a way that fits in well with SL visuals!

Honeybear, yours is a perfect example of how great a skin can look in the best style of the SL universe.

I think that looks great, HoneyBear, and from the sentiments expressed in this thread, probably more to most people's liking than hardcore realism. Lovely work.

Kaimi, I think that's a good point. From my POV it has less to do with clashing with the surroundings and more with highly realistic skins really bringing out how unrealistic the avatar model is and how bad some of its mapping is (like the shoulder area flaws are made so obvious by Beowulf's chainmail). Some parts of the avatar simply can't support much realism.

Thank You! Even I, with my limited Milkshape 3d skills could make the SL avatar so much better than it is now!!

Those examples are fantastic, Chip. Is that your work? The attention to detail is incredible...

Thanks! Yep, those are mine.

chip I love that last one
is it for sale? do you include a note as to where to get the hair and shape?

I totally love the last one!!

The Beowulf skin is a freebie. You can pick one up anywhere there's still a Beowulf kiosk in world (probably not many now, but I still have one up at my store in Freelon). The others are for sale at my stores in Freelon and Midnight City. I'm not sure where Erika (Thereian) got that great hair she uses with it but if you send her an IM I'm sure she'd be happy to tell you. I'm pretty sure she did that shape herself.

thanks chip

I am at your store in feelon now, having a look around once it rezzes

Thanks. I looked long and hard for this one, trying on what seemed like thousands. I just don't think I could find another that I would be happy with, although there's one wandering around SL, a celebrity, that I'd sure like to try wearing lol

Well, compared to another game I've played for a couple years, SL is VERY real to me