OK, so what I like to do when working on something like this is to start by coming up with a sketch on paper of how I want it all to go. I wanted to show the belts at a good angle that illustrates all the details of them in as clear a manner as possible. This is where Gino's photos came in as they were the only accurate reference I could find of the belts taken from straight on at the front but from slightly above (so as to allow the back surface of the belt to be visible). I wanted to have these diagrams be as accurate a representation of the belts as possible, so I wanted to get the perspective on the boxes just right. With all the various angles on the boxes and their details playing off each other, it can be difficult to achieve the right proportions without some good reference to follow. Now if you all have seen these photos that Gino posted, you will obviously see that since his belts were unbuckled, the shape of the belt and the obscured angle of the buckles prove to be of no use as reference for this project, so I had to go it on my own for that.
So my ANH sketch looked like this:
I figured I would just copy, flop, and paste the one belt box for the other, so I didn't bother drawing both. I also skipped sketching the buckle as I had already made up a digital ANH buckle a couple of years ago when I posted some proposed measurements for it on the RPF.
I had created this buckle image by using one of the photos in the Chronicles book for reference.
Anyway, once I had scanned my sketch onto my computer, I started out in Photoshop by laying out the shape of the belt itself:
Then I set to work on the box and it's details:
Again, I would draw out one green lamp and then copy it for the second one. Same thing with the knobs, I drew one, then copied it for the other five. I did this to not only make a bit more professional looking image, but also to cut down on work! ;)
After I completed the one, I copied it and flopped it for the other one:
I then dropped in the buckle (after modifying it to have some appropriate perspective to it) and added the belt hook:
After all the line drawing was completed, I could go about colouring the whole thing and have a completed image:
For the ESB belt image, I did basically the same thing except with this sketch of the ESB box:
Since I could just use the same belt and buckle drawings from the ANH image for this one, I didn't need to re-do all that. And for the ROTJ image, I used the same completed ESB box drawings and simply modified the belt to be thinner and altered the buckle to be ROTJ accurate (using that ROTJ lobby card photo of Vader standing alone on the Death Star or where ever he is).
For the completed diagrams, I also went about creating some straight on images of an individual belt box and the buckle for each film, again using a similar method, but without any specific photo reference to work from directly. Those were achieved by a lot of research and trial and error with my own belt projects. I do think I've got those pretty close all by myself! ;)
Well that just about covers it all. I'm sorry if I offended you Gino in anyway, but I was just trying to create the best reference I could to help out those working on their own costumes. Obviously I'm not making any money off of these, they are just a small way for me to help out the community. I did put a lot of work into these and have done countless hours/days/years of my own research into all aspects of the Vader costumes (and others), just as you have. It would be next to impossible to go through and identify each and every source of all reference material found and each tid-bit of information ever conveyed that has come together in my total knowledge of these props. So I will say thanks to you for all that you have told/shown while I also say thanks to everyone else who has contributed a piece of the pie!
Take it easy everyone, and I hope someone has found these diagrams useful.
Later,
MJC.
