perfectlysanexd

[perfectlysanexd]

Chapter 4 is up now! :)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/61477987/chapters/158868139

Summary: Sephiroth attempts to find out the identity of the lone survivor from his company, but it doesn't go as planned. Zack is sent to Wutai and Angeal goes missing.

[perfectlysanexd]

How do you do your Final Fantasy edits?

The hard way, my friend. No AI is used here, I do it all by hand. 🥰 I assume you mean the screenshot manipulations I create? I'll try and give a simple summary... First, I boot up Remake on PC and use a "free camera" mod(you can find the links to the mods I use on my archive pages for manipulations, which is on my pinned post) to take a couple screenshots that I think will work well together. Sometimes I change my mind and choose a different one. It can be hard to match the camera angles and lighting, so sometimes I have to mess with that later, as well. But it's easier if they fit together from the beginning. We'll take my current WIP as an example. I started with these two screenshots:

I open them in the free program GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program), which anyone can download at gimp.org. Then the first thing I do is choose the base image. In this case, they're both facing the same way, so I choose to flip Sephiroth(you can't really do that with Cloud easily because of his earring, and his hair is less symmetrical). Since the camera was closer up on Cloud, and he's the smaller one, I usually choose Sephiroth's to be the base image. With that decided, I roughly cut Cloud from his background and paste him onto Sephiroth's image as a new layer. Then I position him, resize him, rotate him, whatever I need to do until he seems to be in the desired place, which ends up looking like this: (I ended up adding snow for this preview, so it would look more complete than it is when I showed it to my server, haha)

If you look at Cloud, you can still see a thick outline of his old background around his head. Once he's positioned properly, it's time to remove the rest of his background(I use a size 10 eraser with 100% hardness and zoom in about 5 times). Then I need to think about where they're connected, and how to make them look like they're touching, as well as layering to make them seem intertwined, as if they're truly occupying the same space together.

I cut away some of Cloud's shirt, and the rest of that effect will come with shading later. If I wanted Cloud even closer, I would make a duplicate of Sephiroth and erase his background, so that his lock of hair would appear to go over Cloud's face. I could also make it semi-transparent, so you could see the outline of Cloud's face through his hair. You can see I have some small game defects to fix, such as Cloud's hair clipping through his ear. I leave those tiny details for later, typically. Sometimes, because of their height differences, I have to "rebuild" missing parts of them from scratch, such as I did for this other manipulation:

It's a delicate process that's mostly the clone tool(to keep the textures) and some freehand drawing, but I don't have an art tablet, so I use my mouse for everything, which can be quite challenging. I've had a lot of practice from translating doujinshi, where I'd erase the words, rebuild the missing part of the image, and then place the translated words over that spot.

In any case, I decided I wanted more out of this manipulation than just leaning against each other. I wanted Cloud to be reaching up towards Sephiroth, and perhaps for Sephiroth to be pulling him closer. To do that, I needed pictures of their hands/arms like so:

I've taken hundreds of shots, so I looked through what I had first, but it wasn't the right angle, or was the wrong outfit for Cloud, so...then you open up those images and cut out the parts you want. After that, you work on positioning and things like that again. I haven't finished with that part yet, so it looks a little awkward. (And when you're doing these kinds of things, color matching is very important, but that's a bit advanced.)

I'm not fully satisfied yet, so I'll probably remove the rest of the background from the arms and then mess with the placement. As for Sephiroth's hand, I intend to thread it in Cloud's hair, so Cloud will need to be duplicated in order to create that layering effect, as mentioned previously. Which should end up looking similar to this one:

(I had to draw in most of Cloud's hand because I didn't have the camera mod back then, and the Sephiroth shot was provided to me by Coeurlwhiskers.) After that, it's a matter of shadows and highlights, remaining details, and finishing up the colors, etc. It's a long and difficult process, and can take many hours to complete, depending on how ambitious I get with it. Most of that stuff would be a much longer tutorial, and I did used to do some actual artwork a long time ago, so I...kind of know what I'm doing?? I probably do a lot of stuff the hard way(like not using layer masks) because I just don't have the time to teach myself more than the basics. 😅I know it may seem daunting, but it's really fun! I hope I managed to answer your question properly. Feel free to ask follow ups~

[perfectlysanexd]

Happy Sefikura Sunday! I finished this after midnight last night, so sadly there was no way to make it a Sefikura Saturday, but this is close enough, right? This was one of two holiday projects I had lined up, but didn't have time to complete until now. The background is this one, from Ever Crisis, when you completed the mission board:

I thought it was super cute, and the camera angle was unusual...so I immediately thought of their boots. I took some screenshots...which was actually a pain because Square updated Remake?? To basically put in a story mode and then some kind of..."fast forward" you can use during cutscenes? What? Listen, we play the game for the STORY, Square, to WATCH THE CUTSCENES. Geez. If we don't want to watch a particular one, we can skip it. Why don't you solve the stuttering problem with AMD FX motherboards instead, huh? If Rebirth has the same problem... 😒

The scene on Loveless Street in chapter 2 was pretty perfect for the lighting, though Cloud's boots still appear quite dark, so I had to brighten them up. Also, I had to work really hard to extend them, because after I resized them to fit the smaller image, well...there was a huge gap, especially for Cloud, as you can see here:

Overall, I'm happy with how it turned out and I hope you like it, too! 🥰

[perfectlysanexd]

Holiday Outfit

Some more new wallpapers for Ever Crisis, as of 1/3/2025. I won't like to the archive here, since I'm going to make a new one soon, but you can still find it on my pinned post.

Holiday Helper

Holiday Cheer Reindeer

Festive Crimson Attire

Festive Blue Daffodil Attire

Happy New Year: Massive Mochi Mayhem

[perfectlysanexd]

Redraw of my last years sephiroth drawing!

[perfectlysanexd]

Despite my internet being a bitch and disconnecting me every few minutes, chapter 3 is up! Tumblr won't insert the link properly, either. It's not my day...

https://archiveofourown.org/works/61477987/chapters/158333650

Summary: Sephiroth begins to become a bit suspicious of Angeal and Lazard after receiving some troubling information about Genesis's desertion. Back in Midgar after the failed mission, Cloud gets a visit from the Turks.

[perfectlysanexd]

I'm curious, why do you ship Sefikura?

Hm, that's not an easy answer, and it might be better understood through reading my work on AO3, but I'll try. 🤔 The short answer is probably chemistry and complexity. My absolute favorite couples are the ones that can sling witty banter like there's no tomorrow, and just seem to...fit together, naturally and perfectly. And you might be thinking, "The villain and his victim?? What?!" And if Sephiroth was just any villain, and Cloud was just any victim, I'd probably agree. And so here's where we get to the complex part...

Heh, it was so long that I went double over the character limit, so I'll screenshot it for you.

Did that kind of answer your question? Sorry that it got so long, I'm very passionate about them. Feel free to ask any follow-up questions you have! I don't tend to talk about my theories much on the internet, since some people are very, um..."protective" of their headcanons, let's say. I think we can all love the game in different ways and have different ships. People seem to forget that it's okay to have different opinions and like different things, but the sheer diversity of ships, I think, is a testament to the game itself and how wonderful it is—how much people love it. 🥰 My goal is always to spread the love and understanding of sefikura.

[perfectlysanexd]

Chapter 2 is up~

Summary: Genesis falls ill and deserts Shinra soon after. Abandoned again and betrayed in the worst way possible, Sephiroth desperately needs some kind of hope...and finds an unexpected light to hold onto within the darkness.

[perfectlysanexd]

Sephiroth is ready for his present~💕

And until I can manage to finish my other two festive WIP's, this is what I'll give you. Sorry, I've been really busy, but I had a little time today and wanted to make something.

They're the perfect pair for phone wallpapers, too. 🥰 One on the lock screen and one on the home screen, right?

Whether you're celebrating or not, I hope you guys have a wonderful week, and I'll be sure to pop in for the Friday 12AM CST release of chapter two of Stranger Inside. :)

[perfectlysanexd]

I present to you a new journey:

Before the mission to Nibelheim happened, Sephiroth was content with his existence, even though he had always felt that something was missing. However, as everyone he cares about begins to abandon him, he finds himself falling into despair. Zack and Cloud desperately try to save him, but it's already too late. Or is it? A gentle, familiar voice calls out to Sephiroth from somewhere within Nibelheim, and his decision to follow it leads to the beginning of a destiny he could never have imagined.

Rated: E Chapter 1 of 21, updated every Friday or Saturday.

Enjoy! :)

[perfectlysanexd]

I should have something for you guys in about 5 hours... 👀

[perfectlysanexd]

Hey there, fellow Sefikura shippers! Holiday season is upon us and it’s also time for yet another edition of the Sefikura Appreciation Week, an event that runs from January 25th through January 31st, during which you can share your love for this ship through fanworks in the #sefikuraweek tag.

Prompts can be found below. Feel free to be as creative with those as you can¹, and take your time working on your entries, but please don’t forget to post them in the right date².

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

Jan. 25 || Day 1. Childhood

Jan. 26 || Day 2. Fire

Jan. 27 || Day 3. Home

Jan. 28 || Day 4. Mother

Jan. 29 || Day 5. Hero

Jan. 30 || Day 6. Abduction

Jan. 31 || Day 7. Time

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

Please remember to include the week’s tag within the first 5 tags or else it might be almost impossible to find your work! If you fear you won’t be found anyway, please @ this blog or send a DM. Anything containing any Character/Ship Hate won’t be accepted, so avoid including those in your entries.(Making characters as villains is fine, however.) Also don’t repost anyone else’s work as your own! Definitely don’t harass other people and remember that fiction is fiction.

We’re also on other platforms as well! Find even more of the event in the AO3 COLLECTION, TWITTER or our brand new BSKY branch.

And if you have any questions, don’t be afraid of sending a message.

Hopefully it’ll turn out to be a fun event for everyone!

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

¹: please remember to tag content appropriately

²: delays are completely forgiven and the tag will be checked for 7 days after the 31st just to be sure

[perfectlysanexd]

Some fun facts about the development of Advent Children, specifically the remnants:

Kadaj's voice actor (Showtaro Morikubo) struggled greatly with capturing Kadaj's insane mood swings. He would switch from laughing to yelling to crying within the same sentence, and he couldn't really get it down pat. It was only after he started saying Kadaj's line in a frustrated frenzy that he got the lines done the way they wanted. Talk about method acting.

Yazoo's hair is so layered and complicated that every fight scene with Yazoo had to be animated by hand because his hair would completely bug out if they tried to use an automatic engine to animate it. They had a similar issue with Sephiroth but Yazoo's was constant.

Loz's super-speed was also hard to animate constantly, so they created a separate animation tool for it called the "Loz warp tool" that helped them animate it much faster. Additionally, a lot of Loz's lines had to be re-recorded because his voice actor accidentally made him sound "too cool."

And last but not least, Advent Children's director stated that the remnants of sephiroth as a collective reminded him of a "pretty boy band."

[perfectlysanexd]

FINAL FANTASY 7 REBIRTH COMING TO PC - Jan 23, 2025 PREORDERS AVAILABLE TODAY

NSFW Modders... You know what to do.

[perfectlysanexd]

Holiday Formal Wear

The latest Ever Crisis wallpapers as of December 11th, 2024. View the archive here!

The Holy Flame's Bounty

And I also thought that this background on the winter campaign was cute. 🥰

[perfectlysanexd]

Did you guys notice…

In the old version of Crisis Core, the DMW flashback of this conversation between Zack and Sephiroth more clearly shows where Sephiroth was standing and what he was looking at when he was in a bad mood.

The level 49 training room…

It’s a sad detail that is also missed because of blurred backgrounds in Reunion. Sephiroth is alone and looking through the glass of the empty room before Zack approaches. He was probably remembering his times with Genesis and Angeal or the accident with Genesis. It explains his cold mood in this scene :(

[perfectlysanexd]

Doujinshi Interest Check

Back in day, as some of you may know, I was a huge collector of FFVII doujinshi. I drifted off into different fandoms and stopped collecting as much, but I still have over 500 books that I own.

The problem being, I am going to be moving and changing living situations soon. I will not have the space to keep my collection, and it has been so long that I feel like they'd be better off going to people who will enjoy them anew anyhow.

So, the question is.

Are there still avid doujinshi collectors out there? Would people be interested if I were to sell the books?

There are a lot of big name doujinka from back in the day, Kiki and Nightflight, Yubinbasya, FINALWORLD's old stuff, and a fair bit that was pretty rare for me to get back then and would be even rarer nowadays. And plenty of stuff in between as well.

Majority is Sefikura and Zakkura. However, there are also other pairings, mainly permutations within SOLDIER (Seph/Zack, Seph/Gen, Angeal/Zack, Zack/Kunsel, ASG-ish, etc.), and a couple of stray Turks, Vincent, an Aerti or two.

Some examples:

(These are just some examples, of course. There are more. Many, many more...)

This is an insanely huge undertaking; if I'm honest, I've been thinking about it for years, but just didn't have the energy, there is so much.

But if I know there are people interested, I'll probably get off my ass and start making a proper sales post sooner, because I hate to let people down once they're excited for something. So please spread the post around and let me know if you'd like to see them up for sale!!

(I'll need figure to out how to price them and where to list them and how I'm going to organise the whole thing, but I'll worry about ironing out those details once I know if the interest is there. No point putting all the work into that just for it to be met with dead silence, lol.)