Hi Incom,
Thanks for the comments. I painted all of the Ssi Ruuk (except the eyes), added the shoulder pauldron, paddlebeamer and 'nose tongues' (ewe...). It started out as a velociraptor from JP2. He's a little front heavy now with the pauldron and weapon so I actually had to glue him to the base until I get a chance to go back an put in peg holes.
I think part of the proportions on Skirata are a result of camera angle. It looks a little better in person but stll may not be quite right. That being said, I've seen people with big heads too, so he may be okay. After reading Triple Zero, that wasn't quite how I was picturing him. I did see a painting of him, however, that made him look a lot like Ed Harris, so that is kinda what I went for with the figure.
On the furry figures, I use acrylic based paints (usually Testors acrylics). I start out by making sure the base color is what I want. If the figure is already the right base color, I usually do a wash with watered down black, and then wipe it off right away. This gives some depth to the fur. If it is not the right base color, I paint the figure with an even coat of the color I want. Once it's dry I may or may not do a wash again, depending on the look I want. I usually finish the fur by drybrushing a lighter color over the top to give it some highlights. I do most of it in flat paint. It you do a gloss base coat with some flat washes and drybrushing, it can give fur a little more shine too.