Virgo: 6th astrological sign in the Zodiac. Aug 23-Sept. 22. It is an Earth Sign. Associated with the end of Summer and onset of Autumn. Colors are green & dark brown. Plants are buttercup, yellow archangel, cat's ear, and forget-me-nots. The stone is Sardonyx. Body Part: Belly & Lower Intestines Being a mutable sign, it indicates an instinct towards changes and preparation for the future. This sign is exalted and ruled by Mercury, the planet of dexterity, communication, study and the exchange of ideas. Virgo is also a bi-corporeal sign, having both the maiden and the bird. ________________ Character & Unicorn set-up in Poser 7, Scene set-up & rendered in Vue 9.5inf, Post-work in Photoshop CS4 -------------------------- Thoughts behind this image: Because I am a Virgo, I decided to start with this sign. I included the unicorns to represent her purity; only those who are pure may be approached by a Unicorn - and it stands to reason only the most pure would be approached by a Unicorn and her foal. I included the book to symbolize Virgos love of study. The snow owl represents part of the Greek mythology surrounding this sign as well as the bi-corporeal aspect. The scenery reflects the changing of the seasons. The torch is made of Sardonyx (ok, my own attempt at creating a material that resembles it). I left her belly bare to show that aspect of the sign of the Virgin. There are both the symbols of Mercury and Ceres "carved" into the tree stump to represent both the modern & historical ruling planet(s) of Virgo. _________________ Thoughts behind the work itself: I am very frustrated with Vue's "translucency" feature (aka Subsurface Scattering). Each render I did, a problem I was having grew exponentially worse - the MESH was shining through the image (in red). It took extensive post-work to get rid of the problem. It mostly occurred on the Unicorns with some spotting on the owl. The adult unicorn had another interesting issue - the texture on the legs showed up in the material editor, and in the preview, but when rendering, they turned completely black - or red where the other issue over-rode that one. I am quite pleased with my "sardonyx" material - although it looks more like moonstone LOL. Total render time (not counting the NUMEROUS attempts to get rid of the 'red') approximately 2-3 hours (can't really remember). Total work time - over a week.