#the shutterbugs

Accidental baby switcharoo

Happens to the best of us! Not so easy keeping an eye on multiple scrumbly little troublemakers, and for one of the parents, this is not the first time something like that has happened, so there's nothing to be embarrassed about! Hopefully, they can convince the other one that there is no need to be so mortified. All is well if it ends well, after all!

Hello! Welcome to another entry detailing the Shutterbug race from my worldbuilding project, All Outsides!

Last time, we took a look at what the Shutterbugs look like physically. But! They aren't walking around naked all day! They, like many, also enjoy fashion!

So, today's entry will focus on this issue.

Based on Lyle's way of dress, the "covercloth" is just a big piece of thick cloth to drape over the individual, to protect their sensitive lenses from the light.

Although the covercloth in these drawings is colored dark grey, please keep in mind that coverclothes can come in many colors. As long as the cloth is thick enough to block out the light, you can go crazy with it.

The covercloth is usually the first thing you think of when you think of the Shutterbugs, due to how iconic this look is- although today, most don't really wear it in their day-to-day lives.

So, let's take a look at the modern version of the covercloth, one that is worn by many Shutterbugs today!

Making sure that the cloth is secured with zippers, tapes, and sleeves for comfort, as well as the excessive cloth that can get in the way being cut off, we get to see the more efficient variation of the covercloth!

Although only four variations are present in the picture, there are many more different ways one can make a cut! As long as it follows the rules of comfort, it's all up to you!

But, different cloth cuts are not the only way to differ from the way your peers are dressed! Different Shutterbugs have different personalities, traits, and preferences, so naturally, many would like to wear clothes that represent their tastes or what is considered fashionable at the moment. Let's take a look at the possible ways to personalize the covercloth:

Although the most popular, the covercloth is not the only type of clothes the Shutterbugs wear. Here are some concepts of different types of clothing I came up with.

As long as the clothes do their primary job of blocking out the light, anything works!

Other than clothes, Shutterbugs also enjoy stylizing other body parts. Hands and necks can get necklaces and jewelry. But the body part with the biggest amount of different ornaments? The heads.

Again, these are just a few examples of different styles or ornaments that can be worn by them. Let your imagination run wild with these!

And so, we conclude this entry for today. I hope these references are useful, or at least interesting to you.

These illustrations are bonus content for my Fanfic series on ao3, "All Outsides", which explores the world of Look Outside post-Denial, thousands of years in the future. If this entry interested you, feel free to check out my series!

additional ramblings under the cut:

A friend of mine gave me the idea of drawing the shutterbabies and their caretaker like the Jacanas bird and that idea wouldn't leave my mind.

✨ Shutterbug Fashion ✨

Hello! Welcome to another entry detailing the Shutterbug race!

Last time, we took a look at what the Shutterbugs look like physically. But! They aren't walking around naked all day! They, like many, also enjoy fashion!

So, today's entry will focus on this topic.

Based on Lyle’s way of dress, the covercloth began as a large piece of thick fabric draped over the body, designed to protect an individual’s sensitive lenses from light.

Although the covercloth shown in these drawings is dark grey, it’s important to remember that covercloths can come in a wide variety of colors. As long as the fabric is thick enough to block out light, anything goes—feel free to get creative.

The covercloth is often the first thing people think of when they picture a Shutterbug, thanks to how iconic this silhouette has become. That said, in the modern era, most Shutterbugs don’t wear the traditional covercloth in their everyday lives.

So, let’s take a look at the modernized covercloth—a version still worn by many Shutterbugs today.

By securing the fabric with zippers, tapes, and sleeves for greater comfort, and by trimming away excess material that might hinder movement, the modern covercloth becomes far more practical and efficient. While only four variations are shown here, there are countless possible cuts and designs. As long as comfort and functionality are prioritized, the rest is entirely up to the wearer.

Different cuts aren’t the only way Shutterbugs distinguish their clothing, either. With their wide range of personalities, traits, and preferences, many choose to personalize their covercloths to reflect individual taste or contemporary fashion trends. Below are just a few examples of how a covercloth might be customized:

Although the most popular, the covercloth isn’t the only type of clothing worn by Shutterbugs. Here are several concepts for alternative garments as well. As long as a piece of clothing fulfills its primary function—blocking out light—almost any design can work.

Beyond clothing, Shutterbugs also enjoy decorating their bodies. Hands and necks are often adorned with jewelry and necklaces. But the body part with the biggest amount of different ornaments? The heads.

Once again, these are only a handful of examples of possible styles and accessories. Let your imagination run wild!

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And with that, we conclude today’s blog. I hope these references prove useful—or at the very least, interesting.

Additional rambling under the cut:

✨Let's try keeping pace with mama✨

Another small illustration for this part in the fic:

The little guy is trying his absolute best to keep up, his tiny legs working overtime next to his parent’s long strides. He might be a bit too young for that just yet, but he’s not giving up. He’s determined to prove that he’s a big boy who doesn’t need to be carried. And with his siblings cheering him on, he’s even more motivated to succeed! (Though perhaps their encouragement has less to do with wanting to support their sibling and more to do with enjoying the extra space they get on the abdomen while he’s on the ground.) It’s not the mother’s first time raising hatchlings. She knows that trying to reason with a determined babybug is a losing battle. So instead, she simply slows her pace, keeping one of her many eyes on him as he toddles along, letting him figure it out on his own.

A photograph taken at the beginning of a leg asymmetry correction procedure, performed by a Dentith nurse under the supervision of an adult Shutterbug. The neonate, having hatched only twelve hours earlier, presented with a mild case of leg asymmetry: a fifth leg on the right side, while the left side had only four. This condition is fairly common among the Shutterbug population and is easily corrected through the quick removal of the extra limb—a procedure that even basic nursing staff are trained to perform. Despite the safety and routine nature of the operation, the parent was, naturally, highly anxious. For both their own comfort and that of their child, they were permitted to hold the hatchling throughout the procedure.

I wanted to illustrate this small piece of Shutterbug lore from this fic,

and also use it as an opportunity to give a glimpse into what Shutterbug nests look like—as well as to draw a different race for once (in this case, a Dentith working as a nurse on Caligo).

Don’t worry! Even though the scene might look a bit scary, the nurse is fully trained and knows exactly what they’re doing. The hatchling was given a local anesthetic to prevent pain and will make a full recovery within just a few days.

📸Anatomy of the Shutterbug and everything that has to do with it!

Here it is—a full reference sheet for the modern Shutterbug!

At first glance, Shutterbugs appear remarkably similar. They all share a common body structure: hairless centaurian forms with relatively limited variation in head and facial shape.

…but that’s only if you stop at the surface.

As always, the beauty lies in the details. A closer look reveals countless subtle differences from individual to individual.

Their body colors tend toward dark, desaturated tones, but there is still considerable variation in hue. Most fall within greys, blacks, blues, and browns, though no two individuals are quite the same. The rims of their lenses also vary in color, ranging from blue and black to brown and even purple.

Both the number of legs and the number of lenses embedded in the body differ greatly. Most individuals possess anywhere from 8 to 24 legs, with extremely rare cases reaching up to 32. The small lenses on the body can range from none at all (though very rare) to a dense scattering across the torso.

The abdomen typically bears a distinct “mark,” whose color follows the same muted palette as the rest of the body. While the exact shape varies, it will always resemble some form of flash, star, or spark motif.

The most visually striking features, however, are the arms and the face.

The base skin tone of the arms can reflect any pre-Visitor human skin color—a wide range in itself. The stripes layered over this base are where variation truly shines: they can appear in virtually any color, with no hard limits, though browns and purples are the most common.

Equally distinctive are the facial markings. Each individual’s facial “skin” folds in subtly different ways, creating unique face-marks for each individual.

Naturally, conditions such as albinism, vitiligo, unusual patterning, atypical body builds, physical disabilities, and other variations also exist among Shutterbugs. This reference sheet represents the most common traits seen in the modern population—but it is only a foundation, meant to be expanded upon with your own interpretations and ideas.

. . .

So, we’ve seen how modern Shutterbugs look—and how they differ from one another… but wait, there’s more!

Time and evolution can do some truly wild things to a species. So how do today’s Shutterbugs compare to their ancestor, Lyle?

…Yeah. That’s a huge change. Evolution really worked its magic here—it’s a bit like putting a dinosaur next to a chicken.

And while I think we can all agree that Lyle looks awesome, we can probably also agree that his body… wasn’t exactly comfortable to live in. It was large, uneven, and bulky, with poor balance, too many limbs, and awkward proportions in both length and thickness.

To be fair, we can’t really fault the Visitor for that. It wasn’t exactly an expert in designing bodies optimized for long-term survival or comfort.

Evolution, thankfully, is.

It gave them smaller bodies, making movement and maneuvering easier. Gave them fewer legs, centered them for better balance, made sure they were symmetrical for better control, and made them thicker to support the body weight. As the overall body size decreased, so did the stomach—leading to smaller lower mouths as well. The main lens migrated toward the center of the body, once again improving balance and stability.

Not all changes were strictly about survival, either.

Some traits were favored simply because they were more pleasing to the eye. Early Shutterbugs still carried pre-Visitor ideas of attractiveness, and those preferences mattered. Individuals with smoother skin folds and—perhaps most importantly—better posture were considered more attractive and therefore, more likely to attract a partner. Boom! Certain features got simply bred out, replaced by ones deemed more desirable.

Who would’ve thought that the reason modern Shutterbugs have such a clear dual-body silhouette and noticeably straighter posture is because, a few thousand years ago, some of them collectively decided: "Yea, straight backs are kinda hot..."

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If you wish to go in depth about Shutterbug biology, feel free to check this fic right here:

Another art entry for All Outsides!

This time, I simply wanted to showcase the size difference between the baby Shutterbugs and an adult- and also to show how adorable Shutterbug hatchlings look. They are such little goobers, drawing them genuinely brings me so much joy. Look at the tiny lens cap they are wearing to stop them from taking photos before they learn how to properly control that <3<3<3

This is a complementary art for my All Outsides fic series on AO3. Feel free to check it out!