Highly realistic avatar query

hi, if this is the wrong forum, my apologies in advance, I'm a newb. I want to create a very highly realistic human avatar. What is the state of the art in this regard ? Are there examples of this on SL ? Thanks in advance for your time.
Steve

Steve: I'm new too. There are a LOT of avatar pix in the "Gallery - Da Sexy Avie" thread. Recommend you start there.

State of the art would likely include components such as: a quality skin and shape customized to your whim, prim hair (quite ubiquitous by now), clothing to match that may be photosourced, and as Sitearm pointed to, it's a good idea to really get to explore the world, check out the rich diversity of avs here in SL, and see what appeals most to you.

It's also important to realize that "very highly realistic" in SL usually means a hyperbole of stylized beauty, so we tend to be taller in here and have shinier eyes, for one thing!

photo-realism is great - i often strive for it myself, but there's possibilities that sometimes your hard work can go for a bit of naught, as the rendering/display is subject to individual vcard capabilities + graphics preference settings. to quote the butthole surfers - 'y'never know just how you look through other people's eyes...'

i'd postulate that if the avi-user is not using much with their gesture setups (a bit of a pain, as it seems way too easy to wipe out previous gesture customizations - something i hope is improved in the future), the end effect for the avi is a bit 'wax-museumish'. motions/gestures to avis are like audio to movies/television - you can 'blow the farm' on great effects/visual production, but if the soundtrack sucks, then you ruin the whole thing.

(i sadly haven't been inworld for a couple months now to see what's going on with the 1.7 betas; hope that gesture setup has improved in the meantime... but last i was inside, that's what i was concentrating on, was getting a handle on gesture sets and using them frequently to help communicate myself to others.)

hope i don't sound like i'm demeaning your quest - certainly not!! just wished to point that out as a tangent-able thought... as far as photo-realism projects, if you hadn't found them yet, there's another thread where someone (can't remember who) was tackling only eyes, specifically - realistic iris-colorings and reflections. also, there's chip midnight's terrific ultra-detailed templates... plus jinny fonzarelli has some really great default nudes to start with.

quest on!

Hi,

I also wanted to make my avi look more "real". I thought that most of the body packages that are in SL make the avis look inproportionate. I bought a couple and I didnt like the way they looked at all. So I made adjustments. The biggest thing was the head. Everyones head is just too small!!! (Or maybe mines too big???) I think my avi has the maximum head size and proportiate features from the neck down.

I found the most realistic skins at Exotica. They come with several makeup options as well. If you stop by their shop, you can try the demo skin.

As for hair, I try to walk around with realistic hair, unless there is a theme at a party or something.

Also remember, that if you or others have the "Avatar Detail" reduced in your settings, it will minimize your "realistic" effect signifigantly. If you max this out, avatars look more realistic.

I hope this helps!

XOXOXOXOX
MadamG

For realistic hair, I highly recommend Robin Soujourner's shop in Benten. (The exact coords escape me for the moment, but if you search on the name, you will find it...)

Because her hairs are low- or no-prim, they cause no lag, but the texture she uses has a photorealistic quality that i have seen nowhere else. In addition, if you are not into the "Hair Chemistry" look, your gonna love her hair... even the Sapphire colored hair (For elves?) looks as natural as can be expected with BLUE hair...

The one caveat I would add is that men will have to tinker with it to get the facial hair colors right, since the hair textures used have color already, and the highlights are significantly affected if you try to darken your beard. It can be done well, though... Just takes patience.