Different Look

Before I launch into a discussion about the new LAQ head, I wanted to make sure I give glory to the clothing etc. from the full-body pic as I am wearing an awesome SWANK outfit from AnaSTyle.  I am wearing the Mireio Shirt in White, the Mireio Jeans Shores without pockets, and the Mireio Boots and Long Socks in Black.  This will be the outfit you will see me in for the next wee while.  I LOVE it.

The hair is WINGS-HAIR-EF0208 Blondes & Reds available at Collarbor88 and the pose is [piXit] Yapon - P2 Pose Pack

I took this photo at Bella's Lullaby and I am in the Firestorm-Alphax64 viewer. 

Okay, go get a drink and some snacks and settle in.  This is a long one!

So many people have been waiting for this day that I couldn't believe my luck when the doors opened and I was straight in.  I am normally one of those people who takes weeks to get new items or products, but not this day!

I am looking a bit different today as I am wearing the brand new 'just out of the box' LAQ Lara Era2 Elle head and the shape that came with it as I wanted you to see it with very little modification.  All I did was changed the eye colour, the lash length and put on some lipstick. 

I am wearing the SupremeUHD head, but there is also a standard and an EvoX head option if for some reason you wanted those.  However, I went for the latest look and am super impressed so far!

Here are some of the new features as stated in the release notecard:

4 times higher resolution than *any* previous SL skins! - Engineered by seasoned skin designers, Era2 boasts unparalleled texture smoothness and detail optimization. With expanded details in key facial areas, achieving flawless skin details has never been easier.

Animated sweat and blush - Experience heightened authenticity with animated sweat, blush, and tears, enhancing the depth of emotions expressed by Era2 heads.

Subtle iris dilations -  Era2 seamlessly integrates natural iris dilations and motion capture eye movements, ensuring a lifelike response to your surroundings.

Alluring animations - Indulge in captivating animations, meticulously crafted through genuine motion capture technology. Each subtle movement intricately captures the nuances of human muscle motion, enhancing realism and elevating your virtual experience.

Built in static posing - Effortlessly fine-tune your look with built-in face tweaking conveniently placed in the main HUD.

Beautiful smile - Efforts have been dedicated to crafting a range of natural smiles with Era2, each infused with subtle muscle movements that radiate warmth.

Versatility - Era2 is designed for diversity, with heads and addons that can be easily personalized to represent a broad range of facial features, identities and looks. Our goal is to ensure our heads adapt with ease to shape sliders and skins, providing endless possibilities with just one head. 

Other Era2 New Features

Universal Neck

Eye Size and Position

BOM

HD Hairbase

HD Eyebrows

Eyebrow Size and Position

Ear Angle

Ears compatible with most popular jewelry 

HD Ears

Elf Ears

Ear Animations

Earrings

Piercings

HD Eyelids

UHD Lips

Wet Tongue

Split Tongue

Vampire Tongue

Teeth Textures

New Animations

Static Posing

Accessories

My initial thoughts:

Firstly, I put on the wrong head (EvoX option) and then couldn't work out why the ears looked weird.  Finally, with help from a lovely LAQ fan named Pixy (shoutout) I put in the SupremeUHD head and then said "WOW!" out loud.  Thank you, Pixy!!
 

The hud is easy to use and does contain a lot of extra bits and pieces that will definitely come in handy for blogging! I also love that the items are big enough to actually see.  Small icons are a serious issue with some other huds especially for us with glasses!

The animations did not wow me straight away.  They are definitely better than some other heads, but I still find the smiles strange even when I am wearing the LAQ shape. As I played around a bit I did start to enjoy them more.  I will keep you posted.

I hate looking the same as everyone else, so I am hoping for an influx of cool shapes from the SL shape makers.  I will play around with modifying the shape myself, but I did laugh out loud when I tried my usual shape with it.  BIG no. Also, do not try an EvoX skin with this head.  It will give you nightmares!  I am using my normal 7 Deadly Skins VELVET  bom skin in CARAMEL body skin and SupremeUHD Elle/Bare by LAQ. 1.5 for the head to match it as best I could.  Doesn't look too bad. Looking forward to seeing what all the skin designers do with this one! (See full body pic)

One thing that has always bugged me with the mesh heads since they came in has been that darned neck line that I have to edit out of every photo. The latest mesh heads are a marked improvement, but it was still there.  I can't see a neckline on this, but I will have to see it with different lights etc to really gauge if it is gone.  If it is, I am going to be ecstatic.

All-in-all I am loving this head the longer I look at it.  It does look different up close and far away, but it is probably just me getting used to not looking like...me.  

The LAQ head is currently available to VIP Group Members at a reduced price and I am not sure when it will be open to everyone else.