Growing Community - Next Phase

[CoolC]

All,

I just want to throw this out to everyone so everyone can think the possibility of where we, as costuming community could be headed.

I was browsing the magazine rack at Wegman's and I noticed that there are tons of subjects on the magazines. Some are interesting and some are not so. There are some on hobbies, such as Scale Modelling, Collecting Coins, etc.

I thought to myself, wouldn't it be cool if there is a magazine on Costuming. A lot of our work here are unknown to the outside world. I think a magazine will give us the exposure that we need.

Just imagine a magazine covering 405th, 501st, Dented Helmet, The RPF and Japan Cosplay. The potential is limitless. There would be tips on how to make fiberglass costume or cheap costume using needle and felt (who knows).

Of course starting a magazine is not like opening a neighborhood book club. There are investments involved. Not to mention finding an office, printers, advertisers and hiring full-time employees. Then there is the issue of national distribution.

Anyway, just a thought. Let me know what you think.

 

[ACDCrockr209]

The 501st is alot more likely to have their own magazine since they are offical. The 405th isn't, so the odds of that happening are slim.

The other two are also possible to have their own mags, but that would mean alot traveling for the ones that are going to cover the costumes and stuff.

Just throwing in my two cents.

 

[spartanx360]

The 501st is alot more likely to have their own magazine since they are offical. The 405th isn't, so the odds of that happening are slim.

The other two are also possible to have their own mags, but that would mean alot traveling for the ones that are going to cover the costumes and stuff.

Just throwing in my two cents.

he is right, but maybe we could make a template, or a test magazine, and see how that works out

 

[SchizophrenicMC]

A good rule of thumb to keep in mind, is, there is no 405th. It doesn't exist. There's a forum named after this nonexistent entity, but there is no 405th, and as such, there is no power or means to put out a magazine.

You know, I wonder why, after all these years, and blatant approval from MS and Bungie, no one's ever bothered to come up with a charter for the 405th.

 

[Satchmo III]

Although a fully realized and actual hard-copy magazine may be somewhat out of scope I believe there was at one time a 405th e-zine created and ran by the administration with input and content from selected members of the community. A while back I spent some time looking around old and dead threads for info...it looks like a couple of (maybe) quarterly issues were released but production ended a couple of years ago. I haven't been able to track down any of the releases themselves but am quite interested to see them (if anyone has these it'd be cool to resurrect them).

Bringing something like a PDF e-zine back to the forums might be more achievable than putting a printed periodical in the news-stands.

 

[ImaGonnaGetYou]

Although a fully realized and actual hard-copy magazine may be somewhat out of scope I believe there was at one time a 405th e-zine created and ran by the administration with input and content from selected members of the community. A while back I spent some time looking around old and dead threads for info...it looks like a couple of (maybe) quarterly issues were released but production ended a couple of years ago. I haven't been able to track down any of the releases themselves but am quite interested to see them (if anyone has these it'd be cool to resurrect them).

Bringing something like a PDF e-zine back to the forums might be more achievable than putting a printed periodical in the news-stands.

From what I remember, the E-Zine wasn't really that popular, and also took a lot of work that most people would rather invest in their armor. I would like to see the released E-Zines reuploaded, though, as that seems to be a common request.

 

[ForgedReclaimer]

Bringing something like a PDF e-zine back to the forums might be more achievable than putting a printed periodical in the news-stands.

That's a good idea, while the 405th would need to shell out big bucks for making paper back magz. Using the Internet is a more wallet friendly and easier task to complete. You could put ads up for the online magazines on other forums and gaming communities as well as just about any other sites that have anything to do with prop building.


This option is even possible at this very moment.

While i would like to see a Mag in the stores, i don't thinks its going to happen soon enough.


If anyone starts a 405th mag, i'll be willing to help with photoshop.

 

[Caelest]

I know of a Guild Wars community that makes Adobe E-Zines every month. They're REALLY good. http://www.guildmag.com/ If we can collaborate to create something similar to this, I think it could really show our potential and motivation to go hard-copy.

 

[CoolC]

I totally agree with everyone's input. None of us have any means to start a hard-copy magazine. The limited resources are some of the biggest hurdles.

E-Zines maybe the answer, but what audience can we reach with E-Zines? The volume is probably limited. Regardless of how popular with E-Zines, I don't think it has reached mass distribution yet. I think hard-copy magazine is here to stay for at least 5 - 10 years time. Nothing beats the feeling of handling something physical and be able to flip the pages back and forth.

Every magazine out there has to start somewhere. That somewhere is passion. We are passionate of what we do here. The only thing holding us back is the dream, and resources. Just think one day we hold a magazine featuring one of the amazing armor from one of us. Or an article showing how real the cardboard assault rifle look. Or a photo spread of a Warthog made out of an old truck.

 

[Varsity]

we could make the magazine a regional thing, instead of it being all over the country.

 

[Caelest]

What about at 'Cons? We could make an exclusive that only appears at certain major Con events? Limited editions are usually wanted more.

 

[ImaGonnaGetYou]

Every magazine out there has to start somewhere. That somewhere is passion. We are passionate of what we do here. The only thing holding us back is the dream, and resources. Just think one day we hold a magazine featuring one of the amazing armor from one of us. Or an article showing how real the cardboard assault rifle look. Or a photo spread of a Warthog made out of an old truck.

I believe you'red forgetting demand, which is a thing I think is missing in this scheme. I mean, people from around the country/world make armor, sure, but that doesn't mean a magazine would have a market in those areas. Even a general costuming magazine would be a hard sell unless it was at a convention or something where enough people are potentially interested in reading it. And then, the 405th wouldn't be getting much publicity at all, considering it's an unofficial group, which could easily lead to any number of legal issues if the magazine was indeed being sold.

And, as stated before, the E-Zine idea has been done before, and from what I recall it lost steam very quickly. Most of what I saw in it was easily found on the forums or through Google, depending on whether it was information on armor/members or the Halo universe/games.

I'm not trying to shoot down the idea outright, but the 405th really isn't large enough to warrant a physical magazine, no offense to anyone here. An E-Zine would be an appropriate solution, except that it wasn't the solution in the past when the 405th was more active, and most likely won't be now, when it seems to have deflated somewhat.

 

[RadioactiveMicrobe]

The 405th honestly isn't big enough to warrent any kind of magazine. Not enough stuff goes on here to do that. There are only a few hundred active members here, and only a very small handful of those members actually do stuff.

@SchizophrenicMC, They haven't come up with a charter of what would come with a charter. If we became official, limitations and restrictions would immediately follow. They'd probably have to be an age restriction applied, as Halo is an M-rated franchise. Plus a lot of the materials we use is not technically legal for minor use.

 

[ForgedReclaimer]

The 405th honestly isn't big enough to warrent any kind of magazine. Not enough stuff goes on here to do that. There are only a few hundred active members here, and only a very small handful of those members actually do stuff.

I think the point shouldn't be if we are worthy (capable) enough to have a Magazine in paper or online format. Its what the Magazine could do for other people and the community. One person could start a magazine, it only depends on if its what the people want and need.

The 405th has so much to offer, we don't just build Halo armour. We paint, sculpt, build, sew, use electronics, use computer software of all types, and we create just about anything from anything and more. We have many areas that cover a wide variety of people from all kinds of interests. Prop building itself crosses games, movies, TV shows, real life objects and just about anything possible. Despite the fact that we would concentrate more on Halo, people will always learn something from what they read.

Lets not forget the New blood and popularity for the 405th if the mag were to be advertised and distributed properly. Although i don't want to see the 405TH become crowded and too busy for its own good, people around here are still learning new things from new members and the other way around.

The 405th is a place for showing your work and sharing your knowledge and thats exactly what the mag is good for.

 

[Necrogenesis]

The 405th has so much to offer, we don't just build Halo armour. We paint, sculpt, build, sew, use electronics, use computer software of all types, and we create just about anything from anything and more. We have many areas that cover a wide variety of people from all kinds of interests. Prop building itself crosses games, movies, TV shows, real life objects and just about anything possible. Despite the fact that we would concentrate more on Halo, people will always learn something from what they read..

With that in mind, there does not have to be a specific demand for a product that can become anything. If a core group of people put enough kick as stuff together; ie interviews, tech previews, crazy inventions, conventions, graphic novels (Spartan based), etc, the product would be unique enough to hold its own weight and people will buy it.. I really hate that im about to write this but consider 'jackass', they tie string to bee's and let alligators loose on their parents; do you really think there was ever a specific demand for that? No, because the people watching most likely would have never known they wanted to see it.

So i say go for it, put a bunch of really cool projects together, keep it DL enough to be intriguing until its done, but whisper it enough for someone like Burnie Burns to catch wind, and after a rough copy is compiled drop the bomb on the digital underground and hold on tight. I personally would love to see a magazine about Anything and everything that isnt boring, changes face but holds to a central theme, and has people in Spartan gear interviewing some badass public figures, gatherings, travels and the like.. sooo tired of reading the same recompiled and rechewed stories presented by three competing companies all trying to sell the same thing...

So far as the comment about the special editions bringin in the most money your absolutely right, convention editions can be especially unique and nerdy; most techno fu blackbelts would eat it up quick too. So far as the business aspects, DONT ruin the 405th, call it something different for all the reasons mentioned above, especially the underagers, (my son is 9 and super pumped about working on his own armor and will join this site in a minute when i get a chance to pass it along, we already had to remake his Bookface bc of that bs.) but mabey make a specific group of armor for conventions (all types of conventions) that feature the 405th emblem exclusively and pull the most of your talent from this group.. actually that 'squad' could be a central theme, a team of unique Spartans dedicated to traveling the conventions, with unique code names for each squad member that Arent based on a particular game.. In fact, i wouldnt base the armor on a particular model either, the group could collectively rock MJOLNIR Type VII armor...

Type VII example - http://sgthk.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d3brinh (mad props Sarge!!!)

That is what i think, your group has done the grunt work and proven itself worthy, ive seen the best of humanity come out of this group to help better a young Spartan's life before his passing and its that level of dedication telling me you as a community can step up to the big boy (girl) plate; you dont have to get cybernetic enhancements or rock next gen armor to cowboy up and do something Epic with your lives.. let each man and woman consider: Are you a Spartan, Or a friggin Puppet???

Get Some 405th!!! H-MINUS!!!!

 

[CoolC]

I believe you'red forgetting demand, which is a thing I think is missing in this scheme. I mean, people from around the country/world make armor, sure, but that doesn't mean a magazine would have a market in those areas. Even a general costuming magazine would be a hard sell unless it was at a convention or something where enough people are potentially interested in reading it. And then, the 405th wouldn't be getting much publicity at all, considering it's an unofficial group, which could easily lead to any number of legal issues if the magazine was indeed being sold.

Supply and demand are always issues in a market economy. It depends on how you market the mag. If the focus is on Halo armor only, the audience would probably limited to hardcore XBox gamers. If we broaden the focus, the audience may be broaden as well. I live in the Northeast and big motorcycles are not a big thing here. Yet they sell custom bikes magazines. Go figure.

Anytime we use someone's IP we run the risk of being pursued legally. If we are not mass producing and sell the armors/costumes, and we are hand buiilding them, I don't think we violate any copyright laws. Just my thought.

The 405th has so much to offer, we don't just build Halo armour. We paint, sculpt, build, sew, use electronics, use computer software of all types, and we create just about anything from anything and more. We have many areas that cover a wide variety of people from all kinds of interests. Prop building itself crosses games, movies, TV shows, real life objects and just about anything possible. Despite the fact that we would concentrate more on Halo, people will always learn something from what they read.

100% agreed. There are wealth of information in 405th. The problem is they are buried in the forums. I'm sure everyone knows how frustrating it is to find anything.

 

[ImaGonnaGetYou]

Supply and demand are always issues in a market economy. It depends on how you market the mag. If the focus is on Halo armor only, the audience would probably limited to hardcore XBox gamers. If we broaden the focus, the audience may be broaden as well. I live in the Northeast and big motorcycles are not a big thing here. Yet they sell custom bikes magazines. Go figure.

Anytime we use someone's IP we run the risk of being pursued legally. If we are not mass producing and sell the armors/costumes, and we are hand buiilding them, I don't think we violate any copyright laws. Just my thought.

Anything Halo related could technically be illegal to put in a magazine, and if Microsoft pursued a lawsuit (assuming the magazine got anywhere), you would be in the wrong. That's Microsoft's IP, and without explicit permission, it would be illegal to use, handmade costumes or otherwise. The chances of Microsoft granting permission are small enough to simply disregard. The 405th is also unofficial, so Microsoft has no reason to change their decision. A magazine dedicated to, or partly dedicated to, Halo costuming is not going to happen.

Besdies, Halo costuming is a niche corner of a niche area of a niche hobby, and wouldn't be a good idea to start off with even if there weren't legal issues. Maybe something simple and general (a small sample magazine, maybe) to sell/hand out at a convention and get feedback on? Sure, sounds great, get some criticism and see if you could refine it, and go on from there. But it sounds like you guys are jumping way ahead of yourselves, especially by involving the 405th in any of it.

If what you're trying to get at is a general costuming magazine, it can be (and has been, and is still being) done, that part I don't see a problem with. As soon as you bring up the 405th, though, there's a storm a brewin', and it isn't a good one. Making Halo costuming a feature also throws Microsoft's fury into the mix, which is just as bad, if not far worse.

100% agreed. There are wealth of information in 405th. The problem is they are buried in the forums. I'm sure everyone knows how frustrating it is to find anything.

As a reply to both this part of your post and the post you replied to, the 405th is in no way unique with the knowledge it has posted in the stickies and other tutorials. I agree that the stickies and FAQ's need to be organized better (that's for another topic), but most of it is known by basically all other costuming groups/forums, so making that a selling point would really serve no purpose.

 

[LoneHowler]

I have seen books on cosplay and fursuit building do well, but as others have said since ours is a fandom based off a North American companie's product; huge legalities come into play.

If someone was creative enough to show how to use pepakura, foam shaping, and moulding using original builds that have no copyright attachments. I think it could be a big hit, its only a nitch market because so few people are determined enough to look for it.
I'm sure there are thousands of regular Joe guys and girls who would love to know how to make a better armor costume than cut out cardboard gundams

The book could be done if the armor peices shown can't clearly be identified as specifically from one corporations work. Like on the fiberglassing, bondo and rondo parts you are showing the insides of the armor, which would be difficult to tell where the piece is from

At the back of the book list the 405th, 501st and other sites as resources.