Drawing Inspiration for Saber Designs
As I labor over the hilt design of my next saber, I'm curious how others around here draw inspiration for their designs. For me, I've been cruising through the Gallery saving pictures of things I like. What I seem to end up with, though, are awkward hodgepodge designs that don't do the source material justice and very few elements that look original.
Aside from the movies, where do you guys get inspiration for your saber designs?
For me since this is a way for my son and I to relax and bond out side of our intensive coach/player existence. It has been him coming up with the character that the saber is for, their back story, and motivations in the force. Then I use my experience in designing products tailored toward a specific persona (PC term for demographic) by drawing from design elements of SW Universe elements that character might be drawn to, as well as real world elements they might be drawn to. For images and details I look to rat rods, cafe racers, steam punk, found object artists, sci-fi artist, and of coarse the many masters on this sight and throughout the saber building community.
As the design mentor/instructor. If your designs are looking hodgepodge and that is not the desired look/feel of the product, the solution is actually a simple one. More upfront planning and more concepting. For found art type stuff like this hobby tends to be it is accumulating interesting bits and pieces everywhere you go, sometimes for years before you begin to formulate where it fits in to a design. Don't be afraid to sketch, sketch, sketch and sketch more, hundreds of sketches litter my project folders for each design I do, and not sketching enough as you think through designs and details is the #1 mistake even professional designers make. Also don't be afraid to deviate from a sketch concept if the design begins to "talk" to you. Most importantly don't rush it, give designs time to mature and evolve as they come together.
Last edited by FenixFire; 07-20-2016 at 08:02 AM.
Awesome, thanks for the feedback! Do you have any specific examples of something that inspired you and how you incorporated it into a saber design?
For me, I really like to borrow elements from game sabers and see if I can replicate something. I usually think about the silhouette or profile of the design, then flesh out the details from there. I think a lot about textures in my designs, how it feels in the grip, particularly, so I often try to incorporate elements like knurling, leather, or wood. From there it's a matter of placing the elements in logic places, and it all comes together.
Last edited by Ty_Bomber; 07-20-2016 at 02:06 PM.
I'm working on a commission for which the future owner sent me a bunch of ancient African swords and basically said "I like these." I tried to distill some of the common and more notable elements into a hilt design and it's been a lot fun to work on. It's definitely non-traditional but it looks way cooler than I expected when I first said "are you really sure that's what you want?"
My first personal hilt was really just a vision I had with some revisions after making some mockups. I used craft foam and a plumbing tailpiece to tweak the design and get the layers I was looking for.
My current build is a Replica saber from The Force Unleashed, so I have been trying to stay as close to the screen images as I can, however I have had to tweak it slightly as mine is going to be a dueling saber & as such, I've had to modify certain parts to strengthen the hilt. My chassis however is all my design with ideas taken from several chassis that I have seen here & online
If things go well with this first saber, I would like to eventually build a custom hilt & I have been looking thru TONS of images the last couple months & have found certain aspects that I like that I will incorporate into a custom design. My daughter has also designed her own custom saber as well by looking thru pics & adding her own flair.
hmm- this is a good question…. i don't use pics- at least not in an exact way- but everything I've seen i would say influences me. I may be a bit of an outlier- but i buy "extra" stuff- and then i experiment… when it gets to a certain point- i start to paint and put it together. Now- i will also say- this is what i have done SO FAR- and I'm literally about 50% through my first saber. I will also say I'm about 25% done with my 2nd and 3rd sabers- Building some family fin for Disney/halloween. But… maybe just let it flow……..
Disney would not let us in with our "non-Licensed" lightsabers...not even to the special outdoor showing and Charector Experiance of TFA they had at our resort during MegaCon. They also stopped several of the Megacon guys/gals that were staying at the resort and made them take of their storm and scout trooper gear as well.Originally Posted by Avidgrant
well- we were going to go for halloween- and it would be part of our costume, but not sure we are doing that this year…. but… regardless- thats pretty bogus.
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