Post by Micro on Feb 21, 2012 21:10:36 GMT -5
A picture fed is a fun way to enhance your collection. It’s a chance to live out dream matches, bring back your favorite era of wrestling, or rewrite history…Your way! You can create a working stage for your wrestling figures, tell a fun story, and present a show to other wrestling fans. It’s the ultimate mix of hobbies; Figure collecting, set building, writing, and photography. Like all hobbies, a pic fed requires some work but the results can be very rewarding. You’ll have a unique, personalized collection while unleashing your creativity!
So, how do you get started? Let’s look at different things to consider…
I. The tools of the trade: No matter how you present your pic fed, they all require the same basic things; Figures and a camera! Yes, technically, you can start a show with a couple of wresting figures on your kitchen table and your cell phone’s camera. It probably won’t look very good but it’s a start. To make your fed look more complete, you should look into a few more things.
Wrestling Ring: Unless your show is a 24/7 hardcore, falls-count-anywhere, backstage brawling federation with no rules, you’re going to need a ring to present your matches. This can be as elaborate as a Real-Scale-Ring/Elite-Scale-Ring or as simple as a Basic Ring. Don’t count out old rings, if you have a chance to get one. The Jakks Hardcore ring, for example, is a nice, balanced size. Your ring will be the main area that will be displayed throughout your show, so pick one that you’re comfortable working with.
Camera: This can be anything from a camera phone, webcam, point-and-click, SLR, to a professional grade camera. Some cameras are better, and more expensive, than others but the general rule that I know is that anything that’s 5 Mega-Pixels or better will give you nice shots.
Backdrops: A good show can be hampered if we can see your living room in the background. You don’t want your readers to pay more attention to the TV show in the back than your matches, so take some time to contain and cover up your arena. You can download and print out some unique backdrops from Warsman's Arena Printouts thread or use something simple like poster boards or even trash bags. I recommend getting some tri-fold cardboard backdrops that are made for school projects/presentations. They cover a wide area, can be cut down to any size, and fold up for easy storage.
Editing Software: Chances are, the pics from your camera will be large, high-quality files that are too big to post as-is. You’ll need to use some type of software to resize your images to an ideal size, as well as doing some photo manipulation like editing out string or adjusting the lighting. Photoshop is one of the best softwares out there but it’s also the most expensive. If you can’t afford any extra software, I recommend downloading Paint.net for free. It will provide you with similar tools and help you get the job done.
Accessories: If you plan on showing more than standard matches, you’ll need some accessories for special gimmick matches. Stuff like tables, ladders, and chairs are the most common type of weapons. Jakks also made a wide variety of special weapons like kendo sticks, mops, cookie sheets, pipes, buckets, etc. Certain playsets, like the TLC and Ringside Battle playsets, include a lot of weapons as well. Perhaps the most essential accessory of all, though, is a championship belt. Even if you won’t have several divisions or championships, at least get one belt for your world champion. Fortunately, both Jakks and Mattel have made several belts to choose from, so just pick your favorites.
II. Decide on a style: The theme of your fed will help set it apart from other feds, so carefully consider what type of wrestling show you’d like to present. It can be anything from current WWE/TNA to retro shows from the WWF/WCW/NWA/AWA eras to Indy styles like ROH/Chikara or niche promotions like hardcore ECW. Feel free to think outside the box and come up with something totally new, like a supernatural or inter-galactic show. The sky’s the limit, just make sure to stick to your theme in order to keep your show consistent.
III. Pick out your roster: Selecting your roster of wrestlers is just as important as setting the theme of your fed, so choose carefully. It’s usually recommended to start with a small, manageable set of figures in order to get your early storylines going. Establish your fed’s foundation before adding new talent. Too many wrestlers early on may confuse the reader or not give them enough time to shine. Aside from your main wrestlers, don’t forget to include some minor staff characters. Usually, a commentary team and a GM/CEO will give you a good start. A nice character to include, but can be optional, is a referee as well.
IV. Host your show: Unless it's a short preview, it's against the rules to post all the pics to your show in this forum. Instead, you have to create your own forum or website to host your fed. That way, you only have to make a short post with a link that takes the reader to your show. On the bright side, hosting your own site gives you the freedom to customize the look of your fed to your liking. If you're not sure where to go, or don't feel like spending any money on web hosting, there are a couple of easy, free options. I recommend using sites like www.proboards.com and www.webs.com to create your own website/forum at no cost. It's very easy to sign up and get started. You can have a default forum set up in a few minutes or spend some extra time personalizing the look of it. For example, my WWE Alt forum took me about a day of tweaking in order to get the colors/format to look right. Either way you go about it, you'll soon have everything ready to start broadcasting your own show!
Well, I hope this helps! I tried to cover as many topics as possible but feel free to add your own thoughts and/or questions to this topic!
So, how do you get started? Let’s look at different things to consider…
I. The tools of the trade: No matter how you present your pic fed, they all require the same basic things; Figures and a camera! Yes, technically, you can start a show with a couple of wresting figures on your kitchen table and your cell phone’s camera. It probably won’t look very good but it’s a start. To make your fed look more complete, you should look into a few more things.
Wrestling Ring: Unless your show is a 24/7 hardcore, falls-count-anywhere, backstage brawling federation with no rules, you’re going to need a ring to present your matches. This can be as elaborate as a Real-Scale-Ring/Elite-Scale-Ring or as simple as a Basic Ring. Don’t count out old rings, if you have a chance to get one. The Jakks Hardcore ring, for example, is a nice, balanced size. Your ring will be the main area that will be displayed throughout your show, so pick one that you’re comfortable working with.
Camera: This can be anything from a camera phone, webcam, point-and-click, SLR, to a professional grade camera. Some cameras are better, and more expensive, than others but the general rule that I know is that anything that’s 5 Mega-Pixels or better will give you nice shots.
Backdrops: A good show can be hampered if we can see your living room in the background. You don’t want your readers to pay more attention to the TV show in the back than your matches, so take some time to contain and cover up your arena. You can download and print out some unique backdrops from Warsman's Arena Printouts thread or use something simple like poster boards or even trash bags. I recommend getting some tri-fold cardboard backdrops that are made for school projects/presentations. They cover a wide area, can be cut down to any size, and fold up for easy storage.
Editing Software: Chances are, the pics from your camera will be large, high-quality files that are too big to post as-is. You’ll need to use some type of software to resize your images to an ideal size, as well as doing some photo manipulation like editing out string or adjusting the lighting. Photoshop is one of the best softwares out there but it’s also the most expensive. If you can’t afford any extra software, I recommend downloading Paint.net for free. It will provide you with similar tools and help you get the job done.
Accessories: If you plan on showing more than standard matches, you’ll need some accessories for special gimmick matches. Stuff like tables, ladders, and chairs are the most common type of weapons. Jakks also made a wide variety of special weapons like kendo sticks, mops, cookie sheets, pipes, buckets, etc. Certain playsets, like the TLC and Ringside Battle playsets, include a lot of weapons as well. Perhaps the most essential accessory of all, though, is a championship belt. Even if you won’t have several divisions or championships, at least get one belt for your world champion. Fortunately, both Jakks and Mattel have made several belts to choose from, so just pick your favorites.
II. Decide on a style: The theme of your fed will help set it apart from other feds, so carefully consider what type of wrestling show you’d like to present. It can be anything from current WWE/TNA to retro shows from the WWF/WCW/NWA/AWA eras to Indy styles like ROH/Chikara or niche promotions like hardcore ECW. Feel free to think outside the box and come up with something totally new, like a supernatural or inter-galactic show. The sky’s the limit, just make sure to stick to your theme in order to keep your show consistent.
III. Pick out your roster: Selecting your roster of wrestlers is just as important as setting the theme of your fed, so choose carefully. It’s usually recommended to start with a small, manageable set of figures in order to get your early storylines going. Establish your fed’s foundation before adding new talent. Too many wrestlers early on may confuse the reader or not give them enough time to shine. Aside from your main wrestlers, don’t forget to include some minor staff characters. Usually, a commentary team and a GM/CEO will give you a good start. A nice character to include, but can be optional, is a referee as well.
IV. Host your show: Unless it's a short preview, it's against the rules to post all the pics to your show in this forum. Instead, you have to create your own forum or website to host your fed. That way, you only have to make a short post with a link that takes the reader to your show. On the bright side, hosting your own site gives you the freedom to customize the look of your fed to your liking. If you're not sure where to go, or don't feel like spending any money on web hosting, there are a couple of easy, free options. I recommend using sites like www.proboards.com and www.webs.com to create your own website/forum at no cost. It's very easy to sign up and get started. You can have a default forum set up in a few minutes or spend some extra time personalizing the look of it. For example, my WWE Alt forum took me about a day of tweaking in order to get the colors/format to look right. Either way you go about it, you'll soon have everything ready to start broadcasting your own show!
Well, I hope this helps! I tried to cover as many topics as possible but feel free to add your own thoughts and/or questions to this topic!
