The camera sometimes lies

This coming week is Red Nose Day, and following on for several previous Doctor Who involvements, there is a special mini-episode to be screen as part of the  Comic Relief fund raising entertainment.

This gives the excuse for a Red Nose Day inspired photoshoot. David Tennant had appeared in 2009 to publicise the cause (see left) and this year it turns to Matt Smith to take up the baton.

He was joined in the photocall by Karen and Arthur, and images of them appeared on the cover of this month’s Doctor Who Magazine (see right).

It gives another nice close-up of the new ‘tweed’ jacket Matt wears, as well as the while gridded shirt.

He can also be seen sporting a new bow tie in a midnight blue silk.

The pictures were also picked up by some of the UK tv guides, notably TV & Satellite Week, which needs only the slightest excuse to use a Doctor Who cover to increase circulation!

You can clearly see it is from the same photoshoot, but hold on a moment – Matt’s shirt is now a very pale BLUE! (see left)

Now, TV & Satellite Week have form when it comes to messing around with the colour of Doctor Who images!

Look at this image from June 2010 (see right).

Matt is wearing the blue variation of the Paul Smith shirt, but his bow tie is BURGUNDY!
But if you look closely you can see a texture to the fabric of the tie. The burgundy tie was a plain fabric, but the blue had a woven texture – exactly the same as seem here.

The bow tie has been Photoshopped to the wrong colour.

BUT WHY? Who know. Someone was bored . . . .

Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day is a very good cause,
and if you want to donate some money, click the link below to find out how you can help.

Red Nose Day 2011

Eleven Shirt . . . in green?

To kick off the New Year I thought I’d share with everyone something I made myself late last year.

I had already run myself up a Burgundy and a Blue Matt Smith Shirt, and once they were all done I was itching to make another, but not in the screen-seen colours!

I thought it a bit of fun to make myself on in an imaginary third colourway.

Here it is – let me know what you think!

Radio Times - first good look ofMatt’s refreshed costume

Today a new copy of the Radio Times dropped through my letterbox (see left).

With Christmas coming soon, this was not actually next weeks issue (that arrived on Tuesday), but the one after, covering the 4th to 10th December.

Right at the very back is a preview of the following issue, being the week before Christmas itself (see right).

Part of the features in that will be inevitable coverage of the Doctor Who Christmas Special, and it’s accompanied by a nice festive portrait of Matt in costume.

As far as I am aware, this is one of the clearest photos I have seen to date, showing the refreshed costume (the paparazzi photo taken during filming were distant and blurred, and official stills to date have been equally unclear).

Anyway, no sooner had this great pic been published, a rival magazine, TV & Satellite Week, put Matt Smith on their front cover, showing the fabric detail of the jacket and shirt even better! (see left)

You can download a high res version of the cover here:

TV & Satellite Week

And while we are about it, being a steadfast Radio Times reader I have never given TV & Satellite Week a second glance, but they have run some cracking Doctor Who covers for the new series (see below).

26th June - 2nd July 2010

All the covers for these issues are using top resolution images, which have been somewhat enhanced with sharpness and contrast.

Some, like this one, look to have been un-nesecarily messed around with.

Notice matt is wearing the blue Paul Smith shirt, with the burgundy bow tie!

But if you look closer, it has the texture of the blue one – it has been retouched to burgundy – for no good reason whatsoever!

24th - 30th April 2010

Though this is quite a nice shot of Matt in costume, it is not the correct image for this episode! (Time Of Angels, Flesh & Stone)

He is wearing the Donegal version, not the Mackenzie two-by-two dogstooth as actually seen.

Oops!

3rd - 9th April 2010

Another nice, if again somewhat over enhanced image.

This time he is wearing the Mackenzie two-by-two dogstooth jacket – but alas it is again not for this week’s episode (The Eleventh Hour).

19th Dec 2009 - 1st Jan 2010

A nice shot of David Tennant – annoying that the text covers the tie otherwise we would have a really good detail shot of the pattern!

Never mind :(

28th Nov - 4th Dec 2009

This is a good example of excessive post shoot manipulation.

The pinstripes on the suit have been played around with too much and are now a bit removed from their correct colour. The 19th December issue (see above) is a more accurate representation of their true hue.

14th - 20th Nov 2009

Again, pity (for us) about the placement of the text, otherwise we’d have another good reference picture for the tie!

4th - 10th July 2009

Thought I would put these two Torchwood covers in as well, partly to share the nice detail of the buttons on Jack’s coat – but also to show the work John Barrowman has had done on his face!

No-one looks like that in real life!

23rd - 29th May 2009

Jack’s face is way less retouched on this cover compared to the one above – but there has still been a lot of magic wand work done here!

11th - 17th April 2009

I get the feel not everything in this cover was together in the same place at the same time . . .

6th - 12th Dec 2008

Quite a crowded cover this one. Only person missing is Rosetta.

21st - 27th June 2008

Billy Piper’s had work done . . .

26th April - 2nd May 2008

 . . . . and so has Freema!