WIP: Sneak peek!

Hey gang!  I'm super excited to share with you a little preview of my upcoming design...  It's a Bearded Dragon!  

In the attached image you can see the in-progress head sculpt.  A little insight into my process...  since I see the head design as the most important part of the model, I usually start there.  Once I find a shaping that I think is working, I start printing out these matte gray heads.  The gray helps me most clearly see the way the shapes play under real world lighting, and how the shadows push the forms in one way or another.  I look for what's working and what's not.  Then, I head back to the computer to make updates and reprint once again.  If you look closely at the heads in the background of this image, you can see slight variations in the spikes, nose, mouth, and most obviously the eyes.  I'm really happy with how the irises came together, and the sculpted specular highlight really brings life to the face.  

I'm getting close with this design.  I'm working on finalizing and test printing the body now, and hope to have an early release for you guys toward the beginning of next week.  This one will be similar in assembly to the Axolotl, though it is shaping up to be a less challenging print (no thin tail fins, woo!).  The body will once again be print-in-place and will not need any supports.  So far I'm finding that it doesn't need a brim/raft either (results may vary by printer configuration).  The head will need support, but not as much as the Axo.  The supports seem to come off easier too.  Lastly, I found a way of positioning the neck joint along the layer lines, which should make it even stronger.  

I'm really excited about how this design is coming along.  I hope you like it!

Cheers,
Matt


P.S. I think he'll make a great fridge magnet too!