Thread: Official ENTM-GD thread! 2.0

Such a fun round this week!! Well done, guys!
Also, wonderful hosting, Sakuraya!!

Originally Posted by Eirwen

Such a fun round this week!! Well done, guys!
Also, wonderful hosting, Sakuraya!!

Thank you very much~! I couldn't do it with my wonderful models and judges, and I'm very glad you're enjoying the cycle!

First off, yes I’m a bit late~ <3

That said… hello everyone and we have come to the end of Week #2! This week we asked our models so show us their Wicked Ways, and they didn’t pull any punches! So I am gonna keep this short and sweet, because all know you just want to see the results!
So first off, one of our Judges has something come up so we have 3 judges this week! That said, here are your critiques!

#TEAMTY

Marik:

Bastien Felicieux of Balmung:
What a wicked place for such a wicked Elezen! I must say you did such a wonderful job with your setting and background! Definitely get the wicked vibe from Haukke Manor! However, I’m not sure I’m entirely sold on your pose choice. Nothing really screams out to me “I’m wicked! Look as I dastardly do something devilish!” I suppose I just want more “wicked” from this, but regardless of that… I really do appreciate what you were going for here! Just make sure you really try to stick with the theme and it’s visible for others to see how well you can execute it. You yourself are such a beautiful Elezen and can rock any glamour shot in a heartbeat! Definitely have a keen eye for amazing angles and backgrounds.

Gangly Zilla of Cactuar:
Well well well… what do we have here? Some naughty adventurers not listening to their White Mage? Not allowing you to get buffs off in time?! Well I feel like you definitely deserved that wicked moment indeed! Maybe next time they’ll be patient enough to wait for buffs! (just an fyi, this actually annoys me and I’ve wanted to be wicked to people who just run off w/o my buffs lol) I absolutely love your framing, your lighting and how well you have your dead mates and the mobs that did the evil deed, in all the right places! My one concern would be I feel like the dead bodies should have been just a little closer to you. I needed to zoom-in just a lil’ bit to see what those dead, ungrateful, and impatient husks were on the ground. But over all a wonderful devilishly wicked shot!

Iris Dawnshade of Hyperion:
… … … I’m kind of speechless here… there is “wicked” then there is just down right heartbreaking cruelty! I always knew evil was in a small, tiny, and condensed package! And her name is Iris Dawnshade! I will admit I really appreciate the more comical approach to this challenge, it’s so wicked in its own right yet it definitely got out a cynical chuckle from me haha! This is definitely thinking outside the box and I really actually adore it! One of my favorites this time around. My one concern would be you are working with a very white and gorgeous background and a very white and gorgeous WHM body piece. That can easily clash and if it wasn’t for the reds in there, it could have easily just blended in right into the background. Just be sure to always be aware of not only your surroundings and angles, but what your glamours will look like in said setting. Again just splendid job!

Jester Ehrenfeld of Balmung:
Well someone is storming up some wicked-ness with our fellow bird beastmen friends! Off to war? Punish some naughty good-doers? I really like the concept and idea, but I’m not sure the execution is on point. Special effects from cut-scenes, skills, and other effects can be such a great boon, but can also hinder greatly as well. It is just a bit fuzzy making out everything that is going on from the obscuring particle effect going on from that particular cut-scene. I really love the idea and you yourself; you definitely rocked it out with great glamour choice and expression. Just make sure to be weary of what effects if any, that you use. Make sure you are the shining star in your shots! And shine brightly!

Mackayla Lane of Balmung:
What a fiery explosion of wickedness! I absolutely adore this shot so much! It’s so technically well done, and just so beautiful. You pop out so nicely against your effect from the furniture, as well as your glamour and posing is definitely on point. I feel like my biggest gripe and concern with this particular shot is that the Bahamut statue feels very out of place. I feel like either you should have been a bit more behind it or possibly even in-front of it and still achieve the same effect you got here. But overall minus that, just such a wonderfully wicked and fire-tastic shot! You make even Dalamud look dull!

Nadede Lasalle of Hyperion:
Wow, what a wonderful use of the wickedly evil Ultima weapon and Praetorium! I really love what is going on here, as if you’re giving who ever might be at the other end of your sight the option to stay a goody-two-shoes or join the wicked side of Nadede and Ultima! My main concern with your shot would be your hair color choice against such a dark background as well as being a dead centered shot with your current angle. The hair isn’t such a big deal this time around, but paired with dark glamours and even a dark background can easily just blend in all too well. Thankfully your amazing glamours saving grace is definitely being against the fire and other brighter parts of the background. I personally love dead centered shots done well, and this one is definitely on the more well aspect, just be careful because it conflicts a little bit with your overall screenshot and Ultima’s direction. But overall such a wonderfully wicked and evil shot! Keep up the naughty and devilish work!

Shayera Tano of Faerie:
Such a spikey and wickedly done shot! I really love the background and even the residual effect coming off of your Ravana bird. The outfit as a whole really works in your favor as well as the pose. I feel my only thing to address here is that you feel just a little too centered and I’m not entirely sure it works with your pose and angle. The headwear is just a bit concerning I’d love to see your eyes and how wickedly they had shone! But it’s not too big of a hit and miss, and it definitely compliments your outfit entirely. Just be careful of repeated covering of your face in future shots. Overall really love the idea, concept and overall execution! Can’t wait to see what other wicked ideas you have to show us!

#TEAMROPO

Eldaena:

Poppy Milkweed - What a huge improvement from last week! (In my opinion.) I'm loving this shot. I can't think of anyone more wicked than Garuda and you portray a minion of hers flawlessly. Never have those Miqo'te teeth and that crazed-eye look worked to the advantage of the model in this way. I love this - staging, lighting, expression, great work!

Caimura Rathe - I think you did great last week, and your streak continues. The background just keeps you as the center of attention, and this grin of yours also just gives me the vibe of a wicked person. (Maybe that's just all Lalafell in general =p) The blue lipstick pops with your eyes against the darkness, which is also awesome. Location, pose, expression, - all great, keep up the trend!

Sangriah Valere - You dropped down in my scoring slightly since last week. I still love your picture though! It was just a really tough round this time. I like the theme, your posing and lighting is good. It's mostly my personal preference, but I like to see faces a bit better in the modeling competitions, but this is still a good shot. I'd like to add that this is a good example of using an extra, but that extra not stealing your thunder. See you next week!

Kimberlynne Highwind - You raised up since my scoring last week. I like this shot a lot better and your background/pose helps draw the viewer into you, somewhat similarly to Caimura's shot this week. What I think you could have done more is further emphasize your wickedness. From this shot you COULD be wicked, but as a viewer, I don't fully get that. I think messing with your angles and where your character is looking could make this pose even better. Keep on improving!

Katarh Mest - Hey Kat! I did like your shot this week, but compared to some of the other shots, it wasn't as grabbing. You're actually at the same scoring as you were last week for me. Just as someone viewing the image, I couldn't gather that you were wicked. I like the effects, even the little particle to the right looks nice, but there were just other shots that were a bit more wicked/attention-grabbing. Keep at it, and we'll see you next week!

Lior Xanthos - This is a pretty good concept, but I feel like your extra is stealing the show from you here. She isn't doing anything interesting, but I think you against a dark background, in dark clothing...I just end up focusing on her. I think the background you chose is also highlighting her a bit. Maybe another idea could have been you in the foreground, but looking back towards her instead? Your character’s face looks really cool, and taking advantage of that with a closer shot would have be neat.

Masha:

Caimura Rathe of Balmung
Great use of background. The lines draw focus onto you and lead through the entire picture nicely. The pose and facial expression is just wonderfully on point. Oddly enough, with all the evil and darkness floating about that’s a bit of the trouble I had with your picture. The lighting and your dark clothing and hair make you tread a very thin line of blending in too much. A different chest piece could also have served well here, because with the crystals leading to the centre of the picture (your non-existent lalafellian chest :P) the eyes either move upward or downward. And the light patch on your stomach draws more attention through the contrast it provides, distracting from your great expression.

Katarh Mest of Lamia
Some would call it simplistic or you too obscured, but I call it minimalist and decidedly on point. You are the focus; you are probably as close to an accurate depiction of an Ascian as it can get. Everything works exceedingly well in your favour here. The only nit-pick I’d have is that your pose might be a little bland. I could see a Black Mage work really well in this setup, because /victorypose is such a deliciously evil chuckle, I’m surprised no one used it in this round.

Kimberlynne Highwind of Malboro
This is a very nice picture. Your bright colours are in stark contrast to your background, your pose is great and as a whole, the picture works incredibly well. BUT – and this is a huge but: Yours is one of the 4 pictures this round I felt missed the point of the brief somewhat. What I see here when I look at this and drawing common associations with what the colours tell me, what I know of your job as dragoon and the place in the background – Aery – is a brave Dragoon going for some kicking ass and taking names. Nidhogg’s specifically. Again, this is a great picture, but none of the things great about it – pose, colours, imagery – spell “I am evil/bad/wicked” to me, so as an entry for this round, it automatically loses a lot of points for missing the brief.

Lior Xanthos of Gilgamesh
I was really conflicted about this one. The idea is great and for the most part it is well executed. The main trouble I have here is that with it being night and the extra wearing the maid costume, it has the largest bright areas in the picture and will automatically draw the eye more than you do. One the one hand that’s good for an assassin – blending in with their surroundings – on the other it’s bad for you as a model and supposed focus of the picture. I’m not sure how it could be alleviated in this kind of composition. One possibility would be shifting the Maid into a profile perhaps and you a bit more to the left, so you are more directly framed by the trees above and to the left, and by the house to the right (you’re more covering it up than being framed by it atm).

Poppy Milkweed of Cactuar
*whispers* “Now fall.”
Fantastic expression that fits one of my favourite Primals. I also love the feather effect of the fancy daggers, it’s such an odd soft contrast to the crazy face you are making. Two big upsets I have with this picture though. One, it is incredibly unbalanced. Everything left of the centre feels pretty void. You’re also covering up your counterpoint, Garuda. Ideally I’d flip you entirely onto the left side, so the space is used a bit more equally. Second, the subligar. ._. That’s such an infamous garment it automatically draws the eye – and in the rarest occasions do I want to stare at someone else’s crotch as focal point of a picture. I feel there are a lot of bikini-esque bottoms that could have done the job just as well here…

Sangriah Valere of Excalibur
Really nice idea and execution. (I cannot be the only one thinking “please make the sword slip upwards a bit, then we’re done with her”.) I do wish the image was shifted slightly to the left, because the right side feels a little empty, and more of Zodiark’s crystals would be on the left. The portal is also something I am a little conflicted over, because while it serves as a vital source of light and stops you from blending with your background, I often feel they take a little out of the immersion of a picture.

WINNERS:

The overall winner for the week with the highest combined score of public and judge votes is:

Caimura Rathe

You’re on fire girl, once again you’ve risen to the top and proven that Lalafells are downright evil! I’m sue the other models will be fighting for the top spot, so let’s see if you can hold onto it another week!

The overall team for the week with the highest combined score of public and judge votes is:

#TEAMROPO

They came back with a vengeance, snatching not only top team but top model of the week! But watch out, #TeamTy is lurking right behind you and could come back once again!

As always we couldn’t do this without the support of the models, judges, tumblr fan’s and of course the players of this awesome game! See you later today for Week 3!

Hello everyone and welcome to Week 3 of Eorzea’s Next Top Model!

This week we are bringing back a cycle favorite! COSPLAY! Everyone always seems to love this round, so I’m excited to see the responses we get!

Cosplay

Idea: Cycle Favorite!

The favorite of every cycle - cosplay! Dress up as your favorite character from movies, shows or games. Make sure that the outfit and the surroundings really match with this character and make us believe that you are them! Be creative!! No FFXIV characters, no Cloud, no Firion - basically nothing from this game or full outfits that SE has released of characters’ outfits.

Note: All areas/dungeons are usable for this week, no restrictions.


Who will bet the model to take the top spot, well that is up to you! Vote and let your voice be heard!!

Here are the lovely models images for this week:

IMAGES HERE

Here is where you can vote, as always rank from #1 to #13, and be careful not to double vote (put the same person twice) or your vote will be removed!

VOTING HERE

As always, voting is open until this coming Tuesday by the end of that day. Have fun!

I don't have much in funny outtakes because I found the perfect spot and just played with angles for my Cosplay shot, But I did photo test another concept but the outfit just wasn't doing it for me.
Kingdom Hearts - Axel

Wow… Week 3 has come and gone, it is now time for the results of the poll! Will we have another repeat of last week, or will someone else finally rise into the top spot?

First off, let’s go ahead and look at the critiques~

#TEAMROPO

Marik
Caimura Rathe of Balmung:
Pretty impressive, as far as your cosplay you definitely captured the essence of your character. Now for everything else, again just another amazing job this week! Everything just seems to be on point, from your lighting, to your angles, to your background. I greatly appreciate every little detail that’s going on in this shot, yet… you always remain the sole focus! That’s how it’s done for ENTM! You are the star and this is your time to show me how bright you can shine! Just be mindful of your lightning cause it could have easily just been too dark, but thankfully was just that right brightness to make you pop easily from your background. Again beautiful job, I’m always excited to see what you’ll bring each time!

Katarh Mest of Lamia:
Very nice on the cosplay, feeling the outfit and look, but boy if we just had capes in here (Ednanocapes.gif). Your background, glamour, and lighting are phenomenal! Just really amazing job! You have such a command of the foreground while your background still shines through as if you’re jumping right out at me! Very impressive, but my one concern is definitely your pose or even the angle. The pose itself is great, works perfectly for your shot; the angle is amazing as well! But both of them together? I’m not sure it honestly works as a whole, I feel like maybe you should have been facing the camera or the angle be different with that pose and looking in that direction. It just feels slightly off to me, but regardless everything else is just amazing! Electrifying work this week! (Ruh-roh puns!)

Kimberlynne Highwind of Malboro:
Great job on the cosplay, definitely get the feel of the character. As for your shot as a whole, I absolutely love it! Setting is on point, lighting, angles and even your pose is just beautiful. To be honest though, I’m not entirely sure your extra was needed. They are very close to upstaging you, and you never want that as a model. You are the focus and need to be the focus always. As I tell others be the star you are and shine brightly! Your saving grace for you is you are looking at the camera and he is not, as well as his face is very shadowed. But when I first look at the pic I almost want to look at him first, rather than you. I get why the extra is there, just make sure in future shots you are always the star! Beautiful work this week though, loving it!

Lior Xanthos of Gilgamesh:
Lovely work on the cosplay, very spot on. The overall composition of the shot is really good, focus to you is on point, I love the angle of you and your extra very well. Glamours are definitely on point and lighting is fantastic! I’m not really understanding your background that much thought to be honest. It’s very flat and not very inspiring or works that well honestly. I get why the background is the way it is because of your angle, but just as making sure you are the star that shines in your photos, you should always be aware of your surroundings as well. The angle works very nicely, and I love everything else about the shot! Just all around a good job, just be weary of your surroundings and you can make for some amazing photos!

Poppy Milkweed of Cactuar:
Great job on the cosplay, really love the playfulness of your character. Now, everything else I really love the area, your background, you, the glamours, and just all of it! But the lighting is a bit difficult and I feel like you aren’t the center of attention for this shot. Everything is so well placed, but I don’t immediately hone in to you when I first look at the shot. I see the bees first, and then I see you. You always need to be center stage in your shots as a model, and never let anyone or anything upstage you. Aside from that you’re easily the very next focus and honestly everything else really does work for you, just be sure to always stand out and shine! Be brighter than the northern star itself! Still loved the shot overall!

Sangriah Valere of Excalibur:
You yourself on the cosplay is really great! The overall shot is just simply superb! I really love your background, and your pose as well as lighting and your look on your character! Just amazing job. I’m not entirely sure the glamours really work though, just… it’s a little off putting and not sure it meshes well. I feel like there is just a lil’ too much going on and I’m not entirely sure it fits with what you are going for. You are amazing and the shot is amazing as well! I honestly love it, and one of my favorite backgrounds this round!

Flare
So I wanted to start off by saying I didn't have a clue who some of the characters some of you chose to cosplay. I looked up and judged based on likeness. Please bear with me.... :P

Caimura Rathe: This is a very accurate cosplay! I think you captured the essence of Fortune very nicely. That background is beautiful and brings a Metal Gear feel to your picture. The only issue I have is the lighting. The sun minion would have given you a bit of light while still giving your background that dark feeling.

Katarh Mest: I love risk takers and you did just that this week and made it work! I know when a lot of people think of Storm, they always picture her flying and such. Since we can't actually fly, you brought us a stunning background that complements your character a little too well. This is what I would picture Storm if she time traveled and were stuck in Eorzea.

Kimberlynne Highwind: First off, I wanted to say that this was a welcome surprise. I love Spirited Away and I think you did a very nice job. The background works, but for me I could have done without Haku in this. There are some wonderful pictures of Chihiro that would have worked better while still staying true to the cosplay. Still a wonderful job for giving us something different.

Lior Xanthos: This was a character who I had no idea who or what they were from. While googling, I came across a picture with this character and the princess so props for getting the actual cosplay looking great! Background is a little underwhelming but overall a nice picture.

Poppy Milkweed: This is a cute picture, but I wouldn't have noticed that it was Isabelle without the text at the bottom. This is a hard one to judge. I like the creativity and effort you put forth as this is a hard cosplay to do in FFXIV as well as thinking outside the box and giving us something new. But with the shot being a little far away from your character and nothing really screams Animal Crossing to me. I would have tried to do something else. Also, this picture would have benefited from the sun minion as well.

Sangriah Valere: It's the battle of the Storms this week and I have to say, I enjoyed your photo as well! Both you and Katarh gave us something different. It looks like your hoovering and almost approving of your work in the background. Everything in this picture works together to take you and this shot to the next level. Nicely done!

#TEAMTY

Masha
Preface:
I love cosplays but at the same time I actually dislike them in competitions. It’s very hard to judge unbiased when one is familiar with some characters and completely unfamiliar with others. Yes, I can pull up reference pictures, see if costume and setting kind of match, but really good shots can bring in nuances and details of characters that people unfamiliar with them cannot pick up. Ultimately I am sure we judges end up nit-picking things that are based on personal preference every round, but the added layer of familiarity and unfamiliarity in cosplay intensifies that in my opinion. I’m sure everyone put a lot of thought in their work and I’m sorry if I lack the ability to sometimes appreciate that in this round. :3

Bastien Felicieux of Balmung
And right at the start I have to point to my preface. I am not familiar with this character and a short research for references revealed to me that this character is from a book series without any official visual references. This makes the cosplay part of the picture rather hard to judge. In terms of framing and background, the picture feels a bit unbalanced. You have 3 different light sources on the left, and only barrels on the right, with you fairly centered, the eyes will inevitably be drawn to the right after focussing on you. Always keep in mind how light sources can draw focus, how the picture should be filled and focus points should lead the eye through the entire picture.

Gangly Zilla of Cactuar
The colour scheme alone serves to make Sakura instantly recognizable. The crisp blues of the background balance greatly with your colours and I love how you used your pose to fill the frame and bring motion into the picture. Some might see this a more minimalist picture but I think it does well representing Sakura both in looks and character! Well done!

Iris Dawnshade of Hyperion
Another character I am not familiar with, but from the references I found, the cosplay is very on point, even down to the fierce facial expression. I really like the gradual lighting and how it naturally brings you into focus, but it sadly does not detract from the fact that aside from you the image is rather blank. To me this picture stood in stark contrast to Gangly’s because both of you chose minimalist backgrounds to focus on your characters, but she pulled it off better by filling the entire screen.

Jester Ehrenfeld of Balmung
The thing I liked about this picture is that everything seems so well thought out. We have the iconic look, the robes, the broom… then there is Hedwig and Ishgard/Hogwarts in the background. Everything we look at underlines aspects of your cosplay and that’s amazingly well done! The only nitpick I might have is that the lighting feels a tad bit staged, in that I am 95% sure I can pinpoint where there is a sun minion in the picture. But otherwise this is just great.

Mackayla Lane of Balmung
This here is the other side of the spectrum that I am concerned about in my preface. I grew up with The Last Airbender and of course watched Korra. People that have watched this will know the scene and what it means instantly and that has a great impact. Frankly I freaked a bit going “Oh wooow!”. You did so well choosing Korra, because her character play perfectly into yours, the Highlander bodytype and the skin colour match perfectly, and while those should not matter in cosplay, one cannot deny the effect a well matched look achieves. The outfit and hairstyle are just on point and the scene and effect is just so well done and well timed. The only minor complaint I might have is that the picture is very balanced to the left. The background is great on the right side, but the flashiness and action is all on the left, leaving me wanting to have something that draws my eye right.

Nadede Lasalle of Hyperion
Even when I know a character, I always pull up a bunch of pictures for reference and try to see which iteration the person cosplaying went for. I had a bit of trouble really pinpointing why this felt a bit off… it might be the colour palette – Katniss’ outfits most of the time are very tone in tone dark – but it might actually be the boots. I love those boots, use them myself, but I feel it throws me off because I know Katniss in combat boots or leather boots reaching just below the knee. It’s a weird thing to get hung up on, but details like that are sometimes what make me think “this is a perfect cosplay”. Alexander in the background is pretty, but at the same time I wonder what it has to do with the character. Our most common association with Katniss is her in the forest. I think that could have helped underline her character more.

Shayera Tano of Faerie
The costume is very on point, making the character recognizable with one glance. You chose a very busy background (watch for that crafter in the bottom right ) though you manage to remain the focus thanks to lighting. Be careful though, the brightness is almost too much, threatening to wash parts of you out. I think a little more zoom might have helped as well, because you are ultimately the focus here and not the scene, so the less cluttered the picture seems the better. With fighting game characters, I always remember the picture a friend took, cosplaying Chun Li. They went with a very steady camera, aligning the ground horizontally, and giving the background a very symmetrical fighting screen look. I almost wish you’d have gone a similar route, since I’m not sure if the current angle really adds to the picture. Overall still a great cosplay though, well done!

Eldaena
Jester Ehrenfeld - So cool! Great attention to detail here! There isn't much I would change (if only a realistic owl minion was in game!) Good lighting, great use of mount and minion, amazing background, and you look like the character you are attempting to portray. Great work!

Gangly Zilla - It feels like FFXIV is having a Naruto crossover right now! This is an uncanny rendition of Sakura, even the kick! I don't mind there not being a focus on the background here because you are trying to show not only how much you look like Sakura, but how much you can replicate her completely! Really cool!

Nadede Lasalle - I liked your pose, the lighting, and the epic feel of your background. I do feel like your look isn't exactly "Katniss." If I didn't read the title I wouldn't have thought of Katniss even though I am familiar with that character. However, I did see your effort and it's still a nice shot! Good job!

Mackayla Lane - You have me a bit torn here. I think you do look like Korra, but I don't know what's going on in this shot. Probably because I'm not familiar with this series. The lighting, shadows, and background are pretty. Just unsure as to the big picture. Still a nice shot, so keep it up!

Shayera Tano - Your outfit is really great here! I instantly knew who you were, however...I found your facial expression and pose distracting. It was definitely heading in the right direction, but it ended up looking a bit awkward and out of place with your background. I think the lighting is also a bit harsh on the upper body. Still a great cosplay though, so, Nice job!

Iris Dawnshade - Let me start by saying you did well in choosing your attire and hairstyle. Your lighting here is soft and not too harsh either. What I have a problem with is how empty your shot feels. It's not the same kind of empty like Gangly's shot this week. She's filling it up with action relating to her character. I'm just not drawn into this image that feels rather empty. Also, since the costume is simple, it does distract me slightly that you didn't dye the set to jet black. Not fully sure how to feel about this one, but I'm looking forward to next week.

Bastien Felicieux - Unfortunately, you were towards the bottom for me this week. Obscurity sometimes can be really cool, or it can land kind of flat. I tried looking up references to the character you are trying to cosplay, but nothing really looked like your character that I found. You don't look bad, and the pose is okay, I just don't think it was cosplay-y enough, I guess. I hope to see some new work next week!

WINNERS:

I do want to say this first… 1st place and 2nd place - only a few points away from one another! Which shows why it’s important to vote. This is honestly anyone’s game!

The overall winner for the week with the highest combined score of public and judge votes is:

Gangly Zilla

Congratulations on using your slick ninja moves to chop away the rest of the competition! But can you hold onto this spot, or will someone else snatch it away? We will have to see next week!

The overall team for the week with the highest combined score of public and judge votes is:

#TEAMTY!!

It seems that #TeamTy came back with a vengeance due to the double win last week by #TeamRoPo! Oh this is getting good, and it will only get better as we continue on! Good luck to holding onto first place, #TeamTy!

As always we couldn’t do this without the support of the models, judges, tumblr fan’s and of course the players of this awesome game! See you tomorrow for Week 4! Don’t forget to vote, it can make a difference!