[click image for larger view]

Introduction

I am by no means a serious photographer in SL, but I do enjoy taking photos and every so often a miracle occurs and I manage to snap a decent shot. I will provide below some very simple advice on improvements that can be made over default settings and information. And finally, I will provide you with some resources to those who know far more than I; and I strongly urge you to learn the finer points of SL photography from them.

Viewer & Camera Controls

The Quick Setting Adjustments that follows is for SL Viewer 1.2x or Emerald 1.2x. If you have SL Viewer 2.x, please use various help resources to locate the same settings. I use a Logitech gamepad for my controls instead of keyboard and standard mouse — please view the help resources regarding camera controls for your viewer. Thank you for understanding.

Quick Setting Adjustments

Advanced Menu

Turn on Advanced Menu:  < Ctrl  +  Alt  +  D >.

X High-res Snapshot (this option ONLY works when saving your snapshots to disk).

X Quiet Snapshots to Disk.

X Disable Camera Restraints

[Advanced Menu Settings]

Edit Menu

The extent to which you can modify your settings will depend on your graphics card(s) and the speed of your computer, as well as your Internet connection. Be aware that you should test these settings after making updates — you may crash… this is relatively normal and indicates that you need to move some sliders to the left. If you do not crash, congratulations, you are good to go!

Edit> Preferences> Graphics.

Check off Custom.

Quality and Performance: slide to Ultra.

Draw Distance: this will depend on what you are shooting and how much you want in view. Start at 256 m.

Shaders, Reflection Detail, Avatar Rendering, etc.: Turn it all on and max it all out, then see what happens.

Lighting Detail: Either Sun and moon only or Nearby local lights, depending on the effect you want. Experiment for your shot.

[Edit Menu Settings (click image for larger view)]

Hardware Options: Anisotropic Filtering should be checked, and Antialiasing a minimum of 4X.

Click Apply then OK and hope you don’t crash.  It may take several minutes for your monitor to “settle”.

[Hardware Options (click image for larger view)]

Snapshot Basics

Menu

File> Take Snapshot

Click More >> for the full menu

Snapshot Destination

Send via email: great for friends and family or reference.

Save to inventory: this will reduce your L$ balance by L$10 for each photo taken, AND the quality will NOT be as high as if you had saved to your hard drive.

Save to your hard drive: this is the setting you wish so that you can further tweak in Photoshop if you like or choose and upload your favourites among many.

[Snapshot Settings]

Size

The bigger the better but your graphics card may produce some rendering quirks with higher resolutions — experiment, experiment.

Format

PNG for best quality

Other

Check Keep open after saving if you like to use the Snapshot Preview.

< Ctrl  +  ` > will snap a photo when the Snapshot Preview window is closed.

Refresh Snapshot (from the Snapshot Preview window) is very useful for trying take that perfect shot (i.e. clouds are moving, sun is setting, a dance is ongoing, eyes are blinking etc.)

Do not be surprised if your computer crashes after taking a series of snapshots — this is, sadly, normal, although becoming less frequent.

Windlight

Windlight are atmosphere settings (like filters), modifying water, sky and the environs. If you do not have Photoshop or simply wish to take advantage of these filters, exploring the infinite Windlight settings can prove to be a most enjoyable distraction.

If you are an Emerald user, you will quickly discover that you have dozens upon dozens of Windlight presets which will provide numerous engaging effects.

Your subject matter and your desired “look” will determine which Windlight settings are the most useful to you at any given time. This really comes down to experimentation. Do it often.

You can begin with no Windlight presets or one of the many available to you. Then, begin tweaking the settings and see how this affects your image.

[Windlight Settings]

Access your Windlight settings via the menu: World> Environment Settings. Access the Sky and Water settings for their advanced options.

[Advanced Sky Editor's Lighting Tab (click image for larger view)]

Under Advanced Sky and Water Editor, drop down the Sky Presets list and enjoy the numerous presets within. The sky settings provide more obvious changes to the environment.

[Advanced Sky Editor's Cloud Tab (click image for larger view)]

You can easily spend an entire evening or afternoon exploring the numerous presets under the Emerald viewer.

[Advanced Sky Editor's Atmosphere Tab with Emerald Presets (click image for larger view)]

You can also fashion your own presets based on any available. Make sure you Save your custom preset. NOTE: If you need to reinstall your SL viewer, your custom presets will likely vanish — make sure you know where your viewer and computer’s operating system stores the presets so that you can back them up and copy them over after reinstalling your viewer.

Experiment with the sliders on the Advanced Editors — particularly Sky. There are three tabs of settings to explore — atmosphere, lighting and clouds. Find a quiet place to experiment with how modifying each aspect affects your view.

Don’t forget the Sun/Moon Position settings on the Advanced Sky Editor’s Lighting tab for even more tweaking.

And of course, take photos of anything interesting along the way.

Posing

Using a posing stand is very convenient for portraits or posing — whether in a studio setting or out and about. There are also very creative posing balls specifically for photography use.

[Syzygy Pyxis' Photo Planetoid (click image for larger view)]

However, sometimes taking a photo of yourself can be difficult when your eyes seem to be roaming everywhere (they do follow your mouse cursor). To alleviate this issue, rez a cube (resize if you desire), drag it out of the image shot, but in the general direction of where you wish your avatar to be looking.

[Focus cube rezzed & moving into position with camera controls on standby (click image for larger view)]

< Alt > + Click the cube until your eyes are focused in the direction you desire.

[Focus cube clicked, time to move the camera (click image for larger view)]

Then use the camera controls ONLY to line up the shot. Take your photo.

[Resulting photo (click image for larger view)]

Furries generally do not need to concern themselves with eye focus. I’ve found the experience of taking photos as my fox self to be much easier than human. But sometimes even as human, the eyes, the pose and camera position are perfect without having to resort to a focus cube.

[What luck -- no focus cube required (click image for larger view)]

Size is Everything

Take your photos as large as possible. Experiment a few times as your graphics card and computer may not be able to handle the size you set in the Snapshot Preview. If your computer cannot handle the size you set, you will notice things like black lines appearing in the resulting image, rendering issues especially where water is involved etc. Find the sweet spot and make a note of it.

[Some serious rendering issues involving submerged items (click image for larger view)]

Resize and/or crop photos in any capable graphics program. If you enjoy playing in applications such as Photoshop, you may enjoy embellishing the photos further with various filter effects.

Once you have created your masterpiece, publish your photo on the web or upload into SL. If you upload your photo into SL, be mindful of the photo size and ratio. The larger the photo (i.e. 2048 x 1024 vs 512 x 256), the longer the image will take to load when placed on a prim or in a book. However, quality also increases with larger photo sizes — again, find the optimum size for your purpose. When applying your photo to a prim, be mindful of the ratio so that the image doesn’t appear distorted. Placing a 512 x 256 image on a 1 x 1 prim surface will distort the image as the image’s original ratio is 2:1. Ensure that the prim surface bears the same ratio (i.e. is 2 x 1).

[NOT a 1:1 Ratio image, and therefore in need of prim resizing (click image for larger view)]

Stretch your prim with the white corner resizer handles as desired and then stretch the depth ONLY to make your canvas prim thinner.

[Stretching with the white corner resizer handles (click image for larger view)]

If you have a graphic that is oddly sized (i.e. 1052 x 746), create a base prim that is sized as a fraction of that (i.e. 1.052 x .1 x .746). The ratio will be perfect when you apply the photo to side 1 or 3 of a standard cube prim. Again, stretch via the white corner handles to size and then thin out the Y depth.

[A very oddly, 997 x 801 pixel, sized image (in fact, NEVER upload an image with an odd numbered pixel resolution) (click image for larger view)]

But wait, there’s more!

If you are taking photos for your profile or an advertisement, you will need to size the photo according to the ratio of the target display. For example, under SL Viewer 1.x and Emerald 1.x, the Profile tab’s picture has a ratio of 4:3. You will need to crop your image in a graphics program accordingly. Thusly, if you took a 1600 x 1200 photo in SL, that ratio is already 4:3, and you’re in luck. If, however, your photo was taken at 1680 x 997, you will need to crop this image to 1328 x 996 to comply with the 4:3 aspect ratio the profile picture demands. Mind your purpose before you begin taking photos. If you know you will need to crop your photo, account for this when lining up your shot.

[Cropping a full screen saved image in a graphics application (click image for larger view)]

Most photos are more visually appealing when the prim face upon which you’ve placed the image is set to Full Bright under the Texture tab of the object editor.

Experiment and have fun!

Resources

Torley’s Taking snapshots wiki page
Snapshot resources wiki page
Rezzable’s Tutorial: Optimizing Windlight for Second Life Photography
Ana Lutetia’s Tutorial: Windlight Presets and the new SL Viewer
Soigne’s Optimizing Windlight for Avatars 2.0
Gogo’s Updated Windlight Tutorial
The Chicken Diaries’ SL Photography Resources
Vint Falken’s Tutorials
SL Wiki on Windlight
Windlight Settings Galore
Torley’s aspect ratios
Aspect Ratios of Profile, Places, Classifieds etc.
Camera Controls
Elric Anatine’s Photosphere & Poses Information

If you are aware of any other wondrous SL photography related articles or blogs, please do let me know so that I might add their resource above. Thank you kindly.

Windlight Samples

Syzygy Selene: Grotto & Beach of Romance

[Default (click image for larger view)]

[Alchemy Immortalis - Fog Lifting (click image for larger view)]

[Canimod (click image for larger view)]

[Euphoria Monochrome (click image for larger view)]

[Nam's Robots of Dawn (click image for larger view)]

[Rouge 5 (click image for larger view)]

[Starley Settings2 (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Deep Blue Sky2 (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Oriental Delight 2 (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Special Blacklight (click image for larger view)]

[Torrie Senne WL Settings (click image for larger view)]

Visit in world: Grotto & Beach of Romance

Syzygy Pyxis: Neko no Jinja

[Default (click image for larger view)]

[Rouge 4 (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Anime Ciel (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Arrakissed Variation (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Chouchou Rockets (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Das Fog (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Foggy Fogvari (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Lilack (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Slips Through Walls2 (click image for larger view)]

[TOR Sunset Warmer (click image for larger view)]

[An Experiment (click image for larger view)]

[Another Experiment (click image for larger view)]

Visit in world: Neko no Jinja

[click image for larger view]

Background

I often say that avatars come in all shapes and sizes, and it is this variety that maintains avatar diversity Second Life, which in turn is what makes Second Life such a fantastic realm to explore. However, for some, as it was for myself, creating a pleasing shape shortly after entering Second Life can be a daunting task. Nearly three years ago, whilst travelling the Grid with newbie eyes wide open, I observed that most males had extremely broad shoulders and thick limbs that would put Arnold Schwarzenegger to shame. Moreover, most men’s heads were either far too small or even too large for their bodies – usually the former.

I suspect it’s not uncommon to fashion a shape in Second Life that you have always wished for yourself in Real Life, whether it’s a serious pursuit or purely fantasy. We all have our desires and about three years ago it seemed to me that the “muscle-man” was quite in vogue and dominated the world with his Atlas physique. This, however, was not my ideal image for SL, as I had a suspicion that I would be wishing to drape Victorian and Elegant Gothic Aristocratic fashions over my body and thusly began mentally forming the image of a Gentleman with a slight and European build.

I attempted to play with the body shape sliders on my own, and the results were disastrous. While I know artists in RL, and understood the most basic concepts of body proportions, I never thought to actually research such information on the Internet to use as a basis for creating a properly proportioned body shape. Mind, I could barely rez a prim in those days either, so I’m uncertain how effective harnessing this knowledge would have been for myself.

Since then, there have been a couple blog posts about body shape proportions, one of which I will link to from here for the benefit of anyone curious about body shape proportions. I should also perhaps clarify that at this juncture I am referring to human body shapes. As a furry or non-human, pretty much anything goes but I do like to proportion my fox self after humanoid proportions as well.

What I did discover, that assisted me greatly three years ago, was that I could purchase a pre-made shape. I decided that if I could find a shape that most closely resembled my ideal, I could then tweak that shape to satisfaction. And so began my quest. There were very few shape shops for men and only one that I came across purveyed an extensive collection of shapes. This was Q-designs by quintin Kostolany (still in business today, I discovered). Three years ago he offered up his collection in a basement warehouse setting and I remember spending hours upon hours trying to determine which shape would suit me. Nearly all the shapes for purchase featured heavily muscled men. I remember searching for key words like “bishounen”, hoping to locate a Japanese creator, but three years ago, I had little luck; this has since changed and bishounen shapes are more readily found. I believe there was one shop that had slighter build shapes, but they did not satisfy my needs.

I finally settled on Q-designs’ “Slave” – no comments from the peanut gallery, please and thank you (/me laughs). Slave to fashion, yes, I will concede on that point. This allowed me to work from a creator’s shape, and from solid proportions. At least that was what I was hoping. I never thought to verify at the time, and simply began tweaking my Body Parts appearance sliders. I have since adjusted my height now and then, on a whim, as well as making a few other subtle changes along the way, and now am left wondering if I am at all still, or ever was, proportioned according to average human norms.

Self Study

Using the guides I have found on the Internet (links below), I will now perform a quick analysis of my various body shapes. In order to measure my body in heads, I simply rezzed a box prim, set the transparency to 10, and then resized to the top of my head and bottom of my chin. I shift dragged downward new copies to measure my body height in heads.

Original Slave body shape by SlaveTo Demain via Q-designs

[click image for larger view]

Rather than the standard proportion of 6-8 heads high, this shape puts me at 10 heads in height. The head seems well proportioned with eyes, ears, nose and mouth. The elbows seem to be well above the waist rather than at the waist – clearly the upper torso is too long for conventional proportions. The arms could also be a little longer although this would likely occur if the torso were shortened.

My current human body shape

[click image for larger view]

It would appear that after tweaking my shape originally over two years ago, I am still 10 heads in height. My nose is perhaps a little higher than it should be. Elbows are likewise too far above the waist. Essentially, apart from some cosmetic changes, I did not alter the proportions at all.

Another round of tweaking

[click image for larger view]

I managed to reduce myself to 9 heads in height with improved proportions, but now I feel stocky in stature, which is uncomfortable for me. I maintained my height, increased my head size, increased my arm length, and dramatically decreased my torso length and leg length. This is definitely not suitable for me.

And yet one more round of tweaking

[click image for larger view]

This is perhaps a little more to my liking. The general body proportions are improved over my current body shape, and I still maintain the torso length that I desire. While not perfect in terms of proper human proportions, it will have to do (at least for another couple years until I venture this way again).

And for amusement, my fox self

[click image for larger view]

It would appear that I managed to tweak my fox’s shape quite well. I confess that I went through a few renditions before settling on this shape, but have been using this shape for quite some time.

Attaining a Well-Proportioned Body Shape for the Slider Challenged

Yes, avatars come in all shapes and sizes, and while overall proportions are not hard and fast rules, I believe people should be encouraged to create whatever they wish in the end. But for those like myself who are terrified of body shape sliders, and who also wish to maintain a semblance of average body proportions, I offer the following suggestions:

1. Review the following links regarding body proportions:

* Diagram for Human Proportions

* Proportion and Second Life Models

2. Acquire a pre-made body shape that most closely approximates your ideal body shape.
3. Bearing in mind the above regarding proportions, carefully experiment with the sliders to achieve your desired results. Try not to veer too far from 50 on most of the slider points.  And most importantly: Save copies of your modified shape along the way so that you can easily revert to an earlier shape if your tweaking is not satisfactory.

I would also like to reiterate that a perfectly proportioned avatar is not a must as humans are not all perfectly proportioned in RL.

Sources for Men’s Body Shapes

Ensure that the body shape you purchase has modify permissions – unless you desire the designer’s exact body shape.

• XStreet listing of male body shapes
• Q-designs by quintin Kostolany
• MADesigns by Maddox Dupont
• kOwP by Skyler Melnik
• Ax by Angelx Faith
• The Body Politik by Maximillion Grant
• Noon by Noon Twine
• Sophistishapes by Sophia Rossen
• Adora Shapes by Emaleigh Guyot

Happy shaping. And if anyone knows of any other shape tutorials or resources, please let me know so that I may post links here.

Other Details:

Pajamas: (men’s)(batties) pajammies pants by hyasynth Tiramisu of Silent Sparrow

Photos taken in my home… somewhere.

Human avatar

• Hair – Elliot (LightBlond) by Six Kennedy of GuRL 6
• Skin – Scorpio Revelation (3A Smooth) by Khai Sinister of The Abyss
• Eyes – Blue Opal by Miriel Enfield of Miriel (very sadly retired)

Fox avatar

• Avatar – Male White Fox by Mephitis Jezebel of Aventity
• Hair – The Dauphin (Powdered) by Siyu Suen of Illusions

With all of my ranting these days and railing against improperly used resizing scripts, I thought that I would locate some item resizing tutorials. I found a resizing tutorial for hair (always useful) where the techniques outlined can easily be applied to any other worn object. There are more tips and tricks that could be utilized in resizing non-hair objects, and as I find other tutorials, I will post their links here. If anyone reading my blog knows of any others, I would also be grateful for links.

Why Resize At All?

Not every avatar has a shape that conforms to the conceived ideal of an object’s creator. Whether it’s hair, jewellery, other accessories, or prim components of an ensemble, sooner or later, you will eventually find that something needs “tweaking” to look just right on you.

Sometimes it’s a very simple matter of making an entire object larger or smaller along the same ratios, and other times only one or a small group of prims within the item requires adjusting (i.e. a cane’s shaft requires lengthening for taller avatars, but the ornate shod and tip are just perfect).

Before You Start

You can only resize objects that have modify permissions. If the object is no modify, then you can try contacting the creator, but it’s unlikely they’ll be sympathetic.

If the object is copy, always retain an original and modify copies only. If you have multiple avatars with different sizing needs, rename each modified and copied object accordingly (i.e. CollarJabotBlack-fox & CollarJabotBlack-human). If the object is modify but no copy — decide if this is something you really wish to and if so, you may wish to record the original object’s position, size, and rotation (where possible).

Quick Points About Resizing Scripts

Resizing scripts add lag to your Second Life experience. Not only that, but also to the lives of those who are on the same sim as you.

Resizing scripts can only be removed from an object if it’s scripted to do just that (and the script actually works) OR if the object is modify (in the latter case, edit the object and delete the scripts).

The most ideal permissions for objects containing resizing scripts are: no transfer, copy, modify.

A small percentage of creators will be receptive to changing the permissions of an item for you. These creators are gold! And these creators will also see repeat business.

Resizing scripts placed in no copy, no modify objects is NOT protection against copy theft. From where I sit, this is not a valid reason for creators to use them in this manner.

The Tutorials

As a reminder, while some of these tutorials are geared towards specific item modifications (i.e. hair), the concepts can be applied to more than this particular type of item.

Wunderlich’s Historical Garb: Hair resizing in SecondLife

Mermaid Diaries: Prim Hair Adjustment

Again, if you know of other tutorials, please let me know about them so I may post them here.

In efforts to assert that my blog is not JUST about my apparel addiction, I present to you sundry methods of navigating Xstreet (the SL product purchasing site formerly known as SLX). Mind, my purpose for navigating the seemingly labyrinth-like digital hallways of this epicentre for virtual consumerism is but one method I use to stay abreast of new clothing ensembles, shoes, and more. But still… there is more to my blog than fashion. … Really. You are not buying into my proclamation, are you?

I realize that most people likely have no difficulty making effective use of Xstreet, but for those who are new to Xstreet, or quite simply have not had an opportunity to make use of this informative system, I present to you some tips, tricks and methods for procuring almost anything (provided it is listed on Xstreet, that is; and even then sometimes Xstreet simply serves as a stepping stone on your quest for whatever obscure paraphernalia you have your heart set on).

Basic Notations

Xstreet allows for intensive organization and categories for nearly every type of creation. While this is wonderful, know that not every creator lists their item(s) in the appropriate category, or a category that is logical to you. Moreover, some items truly do defy categorization or potentially span several categories. Therefore, do not rely on categories alone to find what you are searching for.

Creators do not always advertise the same price on Xstreet as they do at their in world shops. Before you buy on Xstreet, check the creator’s in world shop (if they have). You may also find more of a selection at their in world shop than they have on Xstreet.

The Advanced Search interface and the Sort by drop down list sometimes run along the same results (i.e. both will provide with items from newest to oldest etc.). Do not be confused by this. Both mechanisms are useful in their own right.

[click for larger image]

First Things First

Obtain an Xstreet account, if you have not already. It also very true that it is easier to sign up via an in world terminal.

Depending on your preferences, and what you are searching for, I suggest searching Xstreet in an uncensored capacity. You will be asked to agree to their warning/disclaimer. If you are searching for anything that might even remotely be classified as “adult” (furniture, clothing, etc.), it’s best to have more options at your fingertips. If, however, what you are searching for in no way encroaches on mature subject matter, then you can fine tune your search immediately by disregarding those items from the adult pool.

[click for larger image]

If, after searching with mature content active, you decide that your search results are being hampered by the adult content, you can easily disable the mature content from view.

As screen resolution varies, choose a suitable number of columns for viewing items (1, 2 or 3). I suggest 2. Choosing a Large image size is preferable for those of us with failing eyesight.

[click for larger image]

Let’s Get Started

[click for larger image]

The main page displays some featured Marketplace items, Real Estate listings, and links to other regions and displays of Xstreet. This is not an important page – usually. If you use IE 6 or earlier, or some other browsers, you may not be able to see the interface for navigating through the Marketplace items via the main page. If, on the other hand, you are using Mozilla Firefox, then you will see a nice little navigation interface for the front page Marketplace listings. Is it important? Not really. Is it amusing or a great time-filler while on hold? Sure, why not, and you may discover something interesting that you were not even searching for in the first place. Once you’ve reviewed the items displayed, simply click Get More or the >>. Click the << to return to the previous presented list. Click Stop to halt the cycling. Items cycle every 30 seconds.

[click for larger image]

Instead, go straight to the Marketplace. This page is a general repository, showing the day’s most popular items. Is this important? Not really. What is important is that this page offers up every important link and text box that is essential for your search.

To the left you have a listing of Categories. Beneath each category are subcategories and sometimes more subcategories (on and on). Be aware that creators will sometimes mis-subcategorize within a main category according to your perception, and therefore you may need to step out of a finely tuned sub-sub-sub-subcategory. More on this later.

Close to the top, centre, you will find some interesting links to: My Favorites, Popular, Featured, New, Free and Merchants. These can be quite useful in various capacities.

At the top right you will have a Search the Marketplace region, which, if used as is, may provide results as accurate as finding a polyester Hawaiian shirt in a Victorian gentleman’s haberdashery. On the other hand, depending on your search, it may actually yield some acceptable results. I try to never say never. Click the Advanced Search for more options and to increase the accuracy of your results.

[click for larger image]

Basic Search

There is a difference between performing a general search for Victorian prefab and “Victorian prefab”. Take note of the category matches to the left of the screen.

[click for larger image]

[click for larger image]

The search results when not using quotation marks will provide you with a larger list of matches, and quite often a pain in the backside to sift through, especially if you are searching for the most recently added Victorian prefabs (sort by age: new to old from the drop down below).

[click for larger image]

Searching within quotation marks indicates that this precise wording must exist within the item’s listing (as opposed to at least one of the words existing, not necessary sequentially, within the listing). However, by using the quotation marks in your search, you are banking on creators using the same language. I know for a fact that there are more than 20 Victorian prefabs on Xstreet. Having said that, sometimes use of the quotation marks will yield the results you wish, so do not discount this search method entirely.

As an aside, clicking on the Category Matches to the left, after a search has been performed, will reveal the items in those categories based on your general search verbiage. However, based on the example above, there are approximately 3,000 items containing the word Victorian or prefab under the Residential Structures category, and thusly this is not always an effective search method.

Targeted Search

Knowing that there are more than 20 Victorian prefabs on Xstreet, you may try a different angle for your search. Proceed to the main Marketplace page. Under Categories, click on Building Components, then Structures, and then Residential Structures. You can easily navigate back via the arrowed links above the Subcategory listing on the left.

Now enter Victorian into the Search text box. Check the Search within the current category checkbox and click Search.

If you wish to see the latest additions, either Order by Age Ascending or Sort by age: new to old.

[click for larger image]

You will find some unwanted items resulting when creators misuse keywords. For example, a creator who offers Victorian and Medieval prefabs may use the same keywords in both listings. Worse still are creators who make Gorean silks and Victorian prefabs, whose keywords never change even between extremely different item listings.

Some items, especially prefabs, can pull double duty (functioning as a home or shoppe). As such, and based on my previous remark that creators do not always categorize according to your perception, you may do well to search further back. In other words, step back to Building Components -> Structures, and then Search for Victorian within the current category and subcategories. Order by Age Ascending if desired.

More on Advanced Search Features

As useful as the advanced search features are, some of the parameters can be limited to downright useless.

Searching by a specific language is only useful for items that require considerable documentation.

Price Range I have never seen a use for, although I see this as being useful in land sales.

Ratings are subjective and tainted by creators bribing friends, using alts or being the victim of others playing silly bugger as is oft to occur on the Internet. While numerous consistent ratings may be telling, even excellent products remain unrated for numerous months or even years.

Permissions are quite useful for those of us who wish specific permissions for certain products (i.e. modify prefabs, copy clothing, full perm sculpt building aids etc.). However, I do caution that this is not always useful as creators may not categorize properly and limit themselves inadvertently. Use this as a last resort or for very specific searches.

More on Views

My Favorites

I find favouriting items very useful when performing research that may span more than one session on XStreet or as just a list of items to “one day buy”. No one else can see your favourite items (for now).

[click for larger image]

Popular

I do not find the listing of Popular items to be particularly useful except as a gauge to see what people are buying.

Featured

Featured listings only tell me who is willing to pay for featured listings, and what those items may be. Useful? Unlikely.

New

I do enjoy viewing new listings on occasion. This list changes by the minute as creators add new items to Xstreet, but I find it fascinating to see what is currently being listed for about five pages before my attention is drawn somewhere more exciting.

Free

Free listings may sound wonderful at first, but often you will find demos in here – so don’t get too excited when you see something spectacular, and it’s really a demo. L$0 and L$1 items are listed. However, for the newcomer to SL, this may be an excellent listing to sort through for those beginning necessities (clothes, AO, silly gestures, vehicles and more).

Regular Use

For those, such as myself, who have certain addictions, we find ourselves on Xstreet daily, weekly or whenever you begin twitching for something new. Don’t forget to Order by Age Ascending, and when you hit a sequence of items that are familiar, you know you’re finished perusing new items in that section.

I routinely search out the latest men’s goth outfits, themed outfits, costumes, and footwear. I also perform routine searches of Victorian, and steampunk in the wide expanse of men’s apparel because god forbid I miss a gem hiding in a category I do not always search.

In Closing

Comments, questions, anything I missed? Please comment here or ask.

As a reminder, don’t forget to check out a creator’s in world shoppe for more items than they may have listed on Xstreet, along with any variances in price.

Happy shopping!

[click for larger image]

Further to yesterday’s blog regarding a gentlemanly AO, I have spent considerable time combining the Gentleman Jim and Irresistible Male AOs to what I feel is a pleasing effect. While results and preferences will vary between individuals, I pass the contents of two notecards on to you for your use if you so desire:

Without a Cane

[ Standing ]VAmocap1FP2|VASmocap5P2|Gentle Jim 1-4|VAmocap5FP2|VASmocap4P2|VAmocap2FP2|Gentle Jim 2-2|Gentle Jim 3-4|Gentle Jim 4-3
[ Standing ]Gentle Jim 5-1|VASmocap2P2|VASmocap3P2
[ Walking ]VAmocwalk1.3handsB
[ Sitting ]VAmocAsit1b|VAmocAsit2|Gentle Jim Sit 1-3|VAmocAsit3|VAmocAsit5.1
[ Sitting On Ground ]VAmocAgsit5|VAmocGsit1.4F|VAmocGsit1.1F|VAmocGsit3F
[ Crouching ]VA08CROUNCH2
[ Crouch Walking ]VAmocCROUNCHWALK2
[ Landing ]VANEKLAND
[ Standing Up ]Gent Rise 1-0
[ Falling ]Gent Fall 1-0
[ Flying Down ]VAmocFDOWN2
[ Flying Up ]VAmocFUP
[ Flying ]VAmocFLIGHT2
[ Flying Slow ]VAmocFSLOW
[ Hovering ]Gent Float 1-0
[ Jumping ]VAmocJUMP3
[ Pre Jumping ]VAmocPREJ
[ Running ]VISTARUN
[ Turning Right ]Gentle Jim Turn Right 1-1
[ Turning Left ]Gentle Jim Turn Left 1-1
[ Floating ]FLOAT
[ Swimming Forward ]VA.DIVE
[ Swimming Up ]su
[ Swimming Down ]sd
[ Typing ]Cane Typing 1-1

With a Cane

[ Standing ]VAmocap1FP2|VASmocap5P2|Cane Stand 1-0|VAmocap5FP2|VASmocap4P2|VAmocap2FP2|Gentle Jim 2-2|Cane Stand 2-0|Cane Stand 3-0
[ Standing ]Cane Stand 6-3|VASmocap2P2|VASmocap3P2
[ Walking ]Cane Walk 1-10
[ Sitting ]Cane Sit 1-0|VAmocAsit1b|VAmocAsit2|VAmocAsit3
[ Sitting On Ground ]VAmocAgsit5|VAmocGsit1.4F|VAmocGsit1.1F|VAmocGsit3F
[ Crouching ]VA08CROUNCH2
[ Crouch Walking ]VAmocCROUNCHWALK2
[ Landing ]VANEKLAND
[ Standing Up ]Gent Rise 1-0
[ Falling ]Gent Fall 1-0
[ Flying Down ]Swan Dive 1-0 Fist
[ Flying Up ]VAmocFUP
[ Flying ]Gent Fly 1-0
[ Flying Slow ]VAmocFSLOW
[ Hovering ]Gent Float 1-1
[ Jumping ]Cane Jump 1-0
[ Pre Jumping ]VAmocPREJ
[ Running ]Run 1-4
[ Turning Right ]Gentle Jim Turn Right 1-1
[ Turning Left ]Gentle Jim Turn Left 1-1
[ Floating ]FLOAT
[ Swimming Forward ]VA.DIVE
[ Swimming Up ]su
[ Swimming Down ]sd
[ Typing ]Cane Typing 3-0

[click for larger image]

Instructions

• Purchase the above two AOs.
• Create two separate notecards using the text above beneath the headers, name them as desired (i.e. w/ cane & w/out cane).
• Pull the animations out of the Gentleman Jim AO (you will need to edit linked parts to pull the typing animations out of the typing prim of the Gentleman Jim AO).
• Rez the Irresistible Male AO (make a copy first) and copy the Gentleman Jim animations and the aforementioned two notecards into the Irresistible Male AO.
• You may, if you wish, remove any unused animations and notecards from the AO, but it is not necessary.
• Do not delete the Irresistible Male’s default notecard in case you wish to use that AO exclusively.
• Pull the Irresistible Male AO into inventory (I suggesting renaming it before doing so — i.e. Personal AO V1.0).
• Wear & Enjoy (load either with or without cane notecards as required)!
• Tinker and modify over time as desired.

Other Details:

Shirt – King Of Hearts Suit Shirt White by Azriel Demain of Falln
Cuffs – King Of Hearts Suit Cuffs White by Azriel Demain of Falln
Jabot – Elric Suit Jabot White by Azriel Demain of Falln
Trousers, socks and waistcoat – Lord Edward Baroque Suit Chocolate by Nicky Ree of Designing Nicky Ree
Shoes – b_Montgolfier shoe (buckle retextured and shoe retinted) by Arundelain Dumart of Arundel Design
Gloves – FORTISSIMO Gloves, White by Nix Sands of XNT
Cane – Gentlemen’s Fancy Clear Cane by Kheph777 Enoch of Kheph’s Creations
Monocle – GC-Monokel (Dark-Knight clock) by Grazioso Alekseev of Guild of Crie Eyewear

Photos taken in My home on Syzygy Selene

Fox avatar

• Avatar – Arctic Fox by Cheetah Kitty
• Hair – The Dauphin (Blonde) by Siyu Suen of Illusions

[click for larger image - one of Posture is Everything's original stand animations]

While clothes may make the man, an inappropriate Animation Override (AO) may negate any desired impression one wishes to give and I therefore attribute to an AO a very close second in terms of importance after clothes. The default walk we are born into this world with makes us appear as though we are comprised of popsicle sticks bound together with electrical tape, and the recently added male walk is not much improved.

[click for larger image - one of VISTA's stand animations]

For the new to SL, I suggest the acquisition of a single new walk before spending money on a complete AO system. Abranimations has an extensive selection of cost effective and acceptable walking animations. Once someone has been in SL a sufficient enough time to determine their character or the impression they wish to give, then forge ahead with researching an appropriate AO.

[click for larger image - one of Posture is Everything's stand animations]

If one is searching for an AO that would befit a gentlemen, the choices become increasingly limited. There is much available if one wishes to be a “boy in the ‘hood”, neko, casual or even a sexually charged muscular dynamo, but the selection of AOs geared towards the gentleman are very few and far between.

[click for larger image - one of VISTA's ground sit animations]

The general rule of thumb that “you get what you pay for” almost always applies for AOs. I have purchased a fair number during the past couple of years and by and large have discovered quality is usually proportional to price, so do not waste your Lindens on an AO for less than about L$1,000. However, buyer beware, and anything exceeding the aforementioned should be trialed by way of an animation display stand.

[click for larger image - one of Posture is Everything's hover animations]

For a couple of years, the only truly gentleman’s inspired AO was created by Kamilah Hauptmann of Posture Is Everything. Her first incarnation of the Gentleman Jim AO was superb with an easy to use HUD interface. The animations were few, but well crafted with the animated stands cycling seamlessly.

[click for larger image - Posture is Everything's tail end typing animation]

Recently, Miss Hauptmann released the second generation of the Gentleman Jim AO. Unfortunately, despite having animated stands for those of us sporting a walking stick (which I do most of the time), I was a little less impressed with aspects of it. The typing animation which makes me appear as though I am delivering a sermon or pleading for relief from some ruffians can be disabled through the HUD, which is helpful (although the initial typing animation is quite nice and it is a loss). Nicely done, one can load either the regular Gentleman Jim AO or the Gentleman Jim AO for use with a walking stick – most useful. Now included are some elegant hovers, a hat tip and sits as well. No one offers up gentlemanly animations as well as Miss Hauptmann.

[click for larger image - one of VISTA's walking animations (hands behind the back and one of my favourites)]

Desirous, however, of a more complete AO with increasing options, particularly suiting a gentleman, I set out on another search. As previously mentioned, the world is replete with AOs for the overtly masculine, the casual man, and the neko boy, while quality elegance is nigh impossible to find. I did, however, find an AO (Irresistible Male 1.5 by Vista Barnes of VISTA Animations) that offered a retinue of options and high quality animations quite suitable for the gentleman (with some flexibility for the gentleman who likes to take a walk along darker alleyways on occasion). While the price tag may be prohibitive to some, a quality AO is a sound investment and unless you enjoy swapping out new AOs regularly, the purchase should last a long time (I had used the same AO for about two years quite contentedly before I felt a need for a little change).

[click for larger image - one of Posture is Everything's new cane stand animations]

The VISTA AO’s HUD is the most complete of any I’ve seen and extremely easy to use. One can select their default pre-jump, jump, flight, sit, ground sit and much more from several available. One can even add one’s own animations acquired elsewhere (which is what I intend to do as Miss Hauptmann’s animations still hold great appeal to myself). Easily remove the stands and other animations you do not desire. Creating a custom AO with the Irresistible Male as a basis, highlighted with Miss Hauptmann’s latest Gentleman Jim AO will provide you with an AO that suits your gentlemanly image.

[click for larger image - one of VISTA's sitting animations]

Naturally, if I had my druthers, I would like to see additional animation variations for the gentleman by either of the above mentioned creators, but the Gentleman Jim and Irresistible Male AO are the most compatible I have thus far found.

[click for larger image - Kheph777 Enoch's Gentlemen's Fancy Clear Cane animation overriding the AO]

One final mention, as a lover of walking sticks; most canes provide their own series of animations (one or more), and these will sometimes override an AO’s stand or vice versa. It is an imperfect world, but for the extremely fastidious, having one AO to use with a cane and one without is likely the best solution. Time consuming, but then again, your image is everything in a virtual world.

[click for larger image - Kheph777 Enoch's Gentlemen's Fancy Clear Cane animation being overriden by the AO]

My suggestion is as follows:

For new residents: Locate an acceptable walk at Abranimations.

For residents awaiting their fortune: Acquire the Gentleman Jim.

For residents who come in to some wealth: Acquire the Irresistible Male.

For residents who have amassed their fortune: Acquire both the Gentleman Jim and the Irresistible Male, combining them as desired for your personalized gentlemanly projection.

/me tips his cane in your general direction.

Other Details:

Shirt – King Of Hearts Suit Shirt White by Azriel Demain of Falln
Cuffs – King Of Hearts Suit Cuffs White by Azriel Demain of Falln
Jabot – Elric Suit Jabot White by Azriel Demain of Falln
Trousers, socks and waistcoat – Lord Edward Baroque Suit Chocolate by Nicky Ree of Designing Nicky Ree
Shoes – b_Montgolfier shoe (buckle retextured and shoe retinted) by Arundelain Dumart of Arundel Design
Gloves – FORTISSIMO Gloves, White by Nix Sands of XNT
Cane – Gentlemen’s Fancy Clear Cane by Kheph777 Enoch of Kheph’s Creations
Monocle – GC-Monokel (Dark-Knight clock) by Grazioso Alekseev of Guild of Crie Eyewear

Photos taken in My Photosphere

Fox avatar

• Avatar – Arctic Fox by Cheetah Kitty
• Hair – The Dauphin (Blonde) by Siyu Suen of Illusions