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Odd Looking TMP Images

Vger23

Vger23

Vice Admiral
Admiral
Hi everyone,

Does anyone know the origin of some of the images (see links below...never have been able to put pics right into a post) that are used in may of the TMP tie-ins (the read-along record, the Topps trading cards, etc)...but were obviously not part of the movie?

There seems to be a series of shots made that were REALLY lit and photographed differently, and even looked like they used a slightly different model.

http://www.tradingcarddb.com/ViewCa...-The-Motion-Picture-51-Into-the-Nameless-Void

http://www.tradingcarddb.com/ViewCa...Star-Trek:-The-Motion-Picture-64-Alien-Menace

http://www.tradingcarddb.com/ViewCa...-The-Motion-Picture-81-Pride-of-the-Starfleet

There are another series of shots that look MUCH better, but also were not from the movie and were lit in a very different manner than what we saw on film:

http://l7.alamy.com/zooms/8c087eddf...-star-trek-the-motion-picture-1979-dwefch.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zDAdUdn1beY/UxNvCNghpAI/AAAAAAAAn6s/xFnRAJ5LLxQ/s1600/Scan0106.jpg

http://c8.alamy.com/comp/F4PXMA/sta...e-motion-pictures-1979-directed-by-F4PXMA.jpg

http://www.starshipmodeler.com/tech/cz_refit/cz_STTMPEnterprise.gif

Any gurus have any info on the story behind these images?
 
Yeah, those are gorgeous. There were several with that same lighting that were done almost for promos only.
 
The Enterprise poster that came with the soundtrack album was arguably the best. I had it saved on my PC at one time, but it vanished. It was the one that had the copper coloring. Does anybody have it?
 
I remember those cards, still have them somewhere. I recall being confused At age 13 by the differing appearance of the Enterprise. I believe The shots where the Enterprise looks sorta greenish were prior to Douglas Trumbull's taking over the FX for TMP. These may have been only "test" shots by the prior effects team, as opposed to discarded footage ever intended to appear onscreen. It is the same model as used in the final film, but the bridge, "B/C deck" (teardrop shaped bulge directly under the bridge), the photon launchers and the area surrounding the lower sensor dome were changed later. They also pre-date the "opalescent" paint job. There were other changes as well, but these are the most notable to my mind.

The second set may Include "test" shots done under Trumbull's supervision; not sure about that rust color in the the spacedock shot. The ones with the purple "flux chillers" on the inboard nacelles are my favorite shots ever of the ship due to how beautifully they depict the paint scheme; these may have been strictly publicity stills, as I don't think the purple chillers were ever shown in the film (rather they were blue).

There are those with more knowledge than me that can offer more info., or correct anything wrong I may have said. There's actually a long story about the evolution of the movie Enterprise and the different people and effects houses involved.
 
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The first photo from the second group of links is definitely a lighting test. It's after the modifications to the upper and lower domes and the new paint job, but there's no registry markings, so the decals hadn't been applied yet.
 
To complicate things further, there is a photo linked to in the following thread that shows the earlier bridge and B/C deck, but also the Aztec/Pearl paint and registry decals (on the upper saucer at least). I've seen other photos of the model being painted in its TMP livery that also show the more TOS-like lower sensor dome and the earlier style photon launchers (as depicted in the "green" shots). At one point as well, there was a lot more red pin-striping, which I think carried over to illustrations by Rick Sternbach as seen in the Spaceflight Chronology from 1980. So the ship went through a lot of revisions prior to what we saw in TMP.

http://scifimodelaction.com/sfmaforum/index.php?topic=716.45
 
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Here is the copper picture again - good that I have my pics organized so I didn't have to search too long. I have never noticed that the markings are missing.

enterplhl.jpg


Anyone has it in a higher resolution? I had it as a desktop picture (back when it was fitting the screen) , would love to do that again.
 
Green Shirt said:
The Enterprise poster that came with the soundtrack album was arguably the best. I had it saved on my PC at one time, but it vanished. It was the one that had the copper coloring. Does anybody have it?
Click to expand...

Oh, yeah, I had that on my wall for many years. I still have it stowed away under my Trek bookcase with a bunch of other posters I no longer have room for, but it's kinda worn around the edges and probably a bit faded. And it's too big to fit the whole thing into my scanner, although I guess I could fit the whole ship in if I scanned it sideways.
 
ihno said:
Here is the copper picture again - good that I have my pics organized so I didn't have to search too long. I have never noticed that the markings are missing.

enterplhl.jpg


Anyone has it in a higher resolution? I had it as a desktop picture (back when it was fitting the screen) , would love to do that again.
Click to expand...
The copper photo that came with the soundtrack album was of the "E" in space, not in drydock. Anyone have a scan?
 
The "Into the Nameless Void" card looks like something from TOS. :cool:

Kor
 
I'm very certain that the Enterprise pictured on the "Into The Nameless Void" photo is the Magicam Enterprise model designed by Richard Taylor to be used by Robert Abel's group while they were still contracted to do the visual effects.

What's not certain however is how "finished" this model is. It's not clear if this was before the final paint job since it looks very flat as if it's been painted with a primer coat. There certainly does not appear to be any markings or decals on it.

I'm always amazed how ugly these photos are, as if someone really didn't know how to light the model for photography. I've always wondered if these photos might have been test exposures that were drafted for publicity photos.

Ultimately, it's the same model we saw onscreen but before Douglas Trumbull asked for revisions, including all the self-illumination fixtures added to the model and before the upper saucer decks were reduced in size giving the ship a sleeker profile.
 
pfontaine2 said:
I'm very certain that the Enterprise pictured on the "Into The Nameless Void" photo is the Magicam Enterprise model designed by Richard Taylor to be used by Robert Abel's group while they were still contracted to do the visual effects.

What's not certain however is how "finished" this model is. It's not clear if this was before the final paint job since it looks very flat as if it's been painted with a primer coat. There certainly does not appear to be any markings or decals on it.
Click to expand...

The pre-Trumbull version of the refit model ended up being completely finished, as this publicity photo shows:

latest


They completed the pearlescent paint-job, lighting, and all decal work (including the racecar-esque pinstriping that Andy Probert thought up).
 
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