CT Vader's inconsistently shiny helmet

This may be a silly topic, but let's discuss Vader's helmet

At times, it appears rather dull (ANH is excused due to being very low-budget in comparison)

For the majority of TESB and most of ROTJ, it's VERY shiny, as shown here:



Yet in other scenes, it loses that smooth quality and seems to not reflect very little light:



This is just one example. So is there any particular reason for this costume inconsistency? Perhaps something revealed in the Making Of books?

No, I didn't add those subtitles. They were already present in the images I found and I am far too lazy to look for actual screenshots

 

I think it depends on the mood of the scene. When Vader's acting depressed, a shiny helmet wouldn't fit.

 

It is definitely tied to the mood of the scene. When Vader's helm is shiny, he is being the leader and ordering people around. When it is less reflective, it's more an emotionally charged scene. Shiny is intimidating, dull is deep.

 

Exactly. Shinyness implies strength, which wouldn't fit an emotionally charged scene.

I think the subtitles make the screenshots better. Humor never hurts.

 

It depended on whether he was wearing his shiny cape.

 

Shininess was a status symbol in the Empire.

 

Maybe he cleans his helmet often, but it's quite a sticky surface, so it gets grimy easily?

 

I never noticed this difference between the helmets, very interresting.

 

Did't really notice the helmet look much before. I don't know why but I always loved how Vader's helmet looked when it was shiny.

 

I think the Vader costume looks different in each episode and not just the helmet

In universe explanations.

Perhaps he changes/upgrades armor? I don't think his suit would be consistently the same for 24 years.
Armor gets cleaned or polished perhaps.

 

I bet his meditation chamber has a helmet shining machine or something. He can't stop to shine when there's the Emperor's bidding to do.

 

The chest panel certainly is:

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Darth_Vader's_armor

 

What the hell did I say? I changed my sentence mid-posting and didn't notice I left in a grammatical error

Conglaturation, me

 

There's also a difference in how vader looks between Star Wars and Empire. A definite subtle design change that I can't quite put my finger on.

 

I did notice that the shininess of the helmet changed between ANH and TESB to RotJ but not that the shininess changed. I just thought that it was lighting.

Now, I'm going to watch Columbo nail another murderer.

 

This site goes into more detail on the subject:

http://www.starwarshelmets.com/Original-Darth-Vader-Helmets.htm

 

Another difference. The first scene is in a brightly-lit environment, while the second scene is in a dimly-lit environment. That will affect shininess as well.

 

The place where I really noticed this sort of thing is when Luke is being electrocuted at the end of ROTJ - Vader's helmet has fingerprints and stuff all over it, if I recall.

I wonder if perhaps they used different helmets (or sprayed the helmet with some type of finish) depending on how the reflection looked (like if it was reflecting parts of the crew or camera, etc).

 

It's almost certainly a dramatic device to help in mood transition and connotation of emotion, and a very subtle one at that.

 

They used different helmets in each of the OT films. Of course, that doesn't explain the ROTJ shiny/dull issue. My guess is they used different domes. I know there were different helmets in ROTJ as well for the reveal scene. It does seem that the shinier helmet in ESB and ROTJ seems to denote a powerful Darth Vader who is an authority and in control. When the dull helmet shows itself in ROTJ, he's no longer in control. He's conflicted, and then the Emperor is in control.

There's also a discrepancy in ANH. Vader's helmet is dull for most of the film, then when he asks the TIE pilots to cover him it's very shiny.

 

So instead of a mood ring Vader has a mood helmet?

 

^ Groovy.

 

Vader: Now, Biff, I want make sure that we get two coats of wax this time, not just one.

 

The shiny vs dull helmet is especially noticeable in the scene where Palpatine is zapping Luke. In several shots, Vader's helmet is dull. Then as soon as he makes his move towards Palpatine, it's suddenly shiny again.

 

They probably had to dull it down if it was reflecting set pieces; depending upon the lighting for that scene and what set they were on.