Jim

[MINI] Technic Mini Build Contest - Information Topic

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Structural integrity is one of the pinnacles of an official LEGO set.

Could someone fake the assembly enough for a photo? Such as missing studs on the backside that you can't see to keep the parts count down, or loose construction where if you actually played with it, it would fall apart and wobble around? That would be very un-LEGO-like.

I propose that we present a video of the model actually being played with to prove that it's indeed what it appears to be.

I understand what you mean, there are a lot of shortcuts to use, some better than others, to keep the part count down. I myself utilized a lot of them during the last competition here on the forum (TRIPLE). While some seriously compromise structural integrity, others are just workarounds that you would never see in an official set (for example, instead of connecting four engine cylinders in line with 10 friction pins, I instead used two 10L axles, thereby saving 8 parts. :blush:

During that competition though, making it "something LEGO would sell" wasn't part of the description, and that you can see by just looking at a lot of the entries.

If the goal of this competition is indeed to make something small that LEGO would sell, then it should be mandatory to show some sort of proof that it holds together, functions work as intended, etc.. Either in the form of a video, or an LDD file, where the MODs could dive into the model to check both part count, and how it's put together. :thumbup:

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Set must have at least one, preferably more, functions.

Somebody who has enough green Technic should really make a Perry the Platypus "It does nothing!" Inaction Figure, merely to violate this rule. (so I'm talking about http://phineasandfer...Marketing_4.jpg) I'd do it if I had enough green Technic. :tongue:

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Stickers count?

Hope not and don't think so. When in doubt I'm going on how parts appear in the instructions to an official set and LDD. Stickers do not appear in either. Also, turntables appear/count as one part in both. Hopefully Tim/Jim/Ted/Jeb/Jed/Tom/Frank can clarify :classic:.

Edited by allanp

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Hope not and don't think so. When in doubt I'm going on how parts appear in the instruction to an official set. Stickers do not appear in the parts list inside an instruction manual. Also, turntables appear as one part. Hopefully Tim/Jim/Ted/Jeb/Jed/Tom/Frank can clarify :classic:

Hmm, yes, you are right...i hope so:)

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Hope not and don't think so. When in doubt I'm going on how parts appear in the instructions to an official set and LDD. Stickers do not appear in either. Also, turntables appear/count as one part in both. Hopefully Tim/Jim/Ted/Jeb/Jed/Tom/Frank can clarify :classic:.

I too was a little puzzled by the "turntables are two pieces", as they are clearly meant to work together (one might argue that U-joints are three pieces). Small turntables (most relevant for the [mini] contest) appear as one part in LDD, but two in instructions. The last thing I want to do is create more confusion, I am perfectly fine with leaving it/them as two pieces :wink:

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I have some questions:

1, What's on, when i build my project in reality, but i don't have the suitable colour of part and i use other colour. Is it disadvantage for me in this competition? (of course the original part is an official colour, but I don't have it :sceptic: )

2. I build my project in LDD using offcial parts and colours. What's on, when I use other part in the real project, because i don't have that part and i'dont have money to buy it :sceptic: What will you consider, the LDD version or the real version? Will i suffer disadvantage, because I don't have money to buy these parts to complete my project?

(I hope you understand me in spite of my poor english :blush: )

thanks!

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Probably, imagine someone who couldn't afford any LEGOs, they would be at an extreme disadvantage in this competition. Unfortunately with most competitions, there is some cost involved with entry.

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If you can post a picture of the ldd version and clearly say that these are the colours it is supposed to be then hopefully you should not be at a disadvantage.

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If you can post a picture of the ldd version and clearly say that these are the colours it is supposed to be then hopefully you should not be at a disadvantage.

Well, I guess you'll always be, as an LDD picture just doesn't look like a photo. Similarly somebody who has a good camera and ability to photoshop their picture to look nice and have some effects/background also has an advantage over someone who just uses their webcam to snap a picture.

In theory only the model would be judged, but in reality there will be other factors. While the model with the wrong colors will probably be judged as if it looks like the LDD model, you'll still have a subconcious disadvantage.

In short, enter the competition and hope for the best!

By the way, another question.. One is allowed to post as many [MINI] threads as desired, correct? Just that only one of them can be selected for the contest, but you can make any number of [MINI] projects?

Edited by W3ird_N3rd

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I have some questions:

1, What's on, when i build my project in reality, but i don't have the suitable colour of part and i use other colour. Is it disadvantage for me in this competition? (of course the original part is an official colour, but I don't have it :sceptic: )

2. I build my project in LDD using offcial parts and colours. What's on, when I use other part in the real project, because i don't have that part and i'dont have money to buy it :sceptic: What will you consider, the LDD version or the real version? Will i suffer disadvantage, because I don't have money to buy these parts to complete my project?

(I hope you understand me in spite of my poor english :blush: )

thanks!

It's explicit in the rules that there are no digital entries - the photo that you submit should be an actual photo of your actual model.

I would say that the corollary to that is that you're limited to the parts that you have (or are willing to buy). Yes, that gives an advantage to those with a large parts collection, but those people are always going to have an advantage with physical builds.

If you start saying things like "here's what I built, but just imagine that it looks like this render", then it what's the point of having a physical model at all?

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It's explicit in the rules that there are no digital entries - the photo that you submit should be an actual photo of your actual model.

I would say that the corollary to that is that you're limited to the parts that you have (or are willing to buy). Yes, that gives an advantage to those with a large parts collection, but those people are always going to have an advantage with physical builds.

If you start saying things like "here's what I built, but just imagine that it looks like this render", then it what's the point of having a physical model at all?

Maybe your are right, maybe not.

In my opinion the function of a competition is that people show how much creativity they have, not how much money (lego parts) :tongue: . But it doesn't matter, I am here not because of the prize, because I love MOC, I enjoy building technic constructions and it's a big fun for me :blush: Hope you enjoy too :wink:

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Maybe your are right, maybe not.

In my opinion the function of a competition is that people show how much creativity they have, not how much money (lego parts) :tongue: . But it doesn't matter, I am here not because of the prize, because I love MOC, I enjoy building technic constructions and it's a big fun for me :blush: Hope you enjoy too :wink:

He is right!

The rules are there for a reason. Some people may be missing that one part in that one colour, tough luck. Write it in the entry topic "oh, by the way, that panel/connector/whatever should preferably be yellow, not black, but I was missing that piece, and over the course of the competition's 7 weeks' running time, if was physically impossible for me to get a hold of that one piece." Do that, maybe the scales will tip a little bit in your favour. In the entry WIP topic, take as many LDD or LDraw screencaps you will, using whatever colour you will, to illustrate your point, but the actual entry has to be a photograph, of a real, physical model.

Some people might lack the necessary parts to really dot the i regarding their creation, others might lack the photographic skills needed to really sell their model (I happen to fall within both of these categories), but hey, that's how it is! There are dedicated digital contests in the LDD forum, knock yourself out!

Your second point is the excact meaning of this sort of competition :thumbup:; to inspire us all to build and be creative with the parts we have, staying within the given framework (rules) given.

There are a lot of really fantastic entries already, most of which we'd never see hadn't it been for this competition! Can't wait to see what else is in store for us in the coming 5 weeks! :grin:

Edited by D3K

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You have more than one month to complete the model with 200 parts. More than one month to borrow a camera, or ask a friend who can make okay photos (making model photos is really not a science).

More than one month to buy or borrow pieces, maybe you could even start a thread and request the pieces. Don't tell me that you can't spend 10 dollars on a bricklink order (then how do you have any pieces at all, or a computer to work with LDD?). But if you really can't, you could still borrow pieces, 1 month should be enough to receive a package from even foreign countries.

Don't expect that your discoloured, badly presented and photographed, slobby model (even if it's creative and well-built) to be treated like the professional entries you can expect here (professional entrants do the work on every aspects of the entry, not just the model itself. And the toughest work is still with the model. In my entry of the last contest, the work on the model took 95% of the whole time. Still, I managed to make a professional entry with okay photos and video in the last week before the deadline while having a full-time job and having just a very limited experience and tools with photography and video editing).

Edited by Lipko

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You have more than one month to complete the model with 200 parts. More than one month to borrow a camera, or ask a friend who can make okay photos (making model photos is really not a science).

Making nice photos is actually not that easy.

Ideally you would have a good single color background, good lighting, knowledge of photo editing, etc.. If you really want to get it right, it's not that easy. And not everyone knows a friend who even knows photography, and if they do, a friend is not always willing to come over and photograph some Lego. (not everyone understands an AFOL :cry_sad: )

Video similarly, if you want to do it really well, it's not that simple.

But it's always like that. Some have an advantage over others in that sense, always been like that. When I was poor, I couldn't afford a decent videocard and while I wasn't that bad at games, my computer was just so damn slow I would be losing all the time. When I was able to borrow a videocard from a friend, I started winning.

It's like that, sad as it as.

As I said before, make your model, explain if some part should preferably be colored otherwise, hope for the best. All the fun is in the building/designing, winning is just a bonus if that happens.

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For making photos, the most important thing is the white background. That means a sheet of A0 paper. Or much smaller for this contest. Then either take the photos outdoors in the shade, or use 2 simple lights (yellow is okay too). Or just the windows. Then apply some auto color correction and auto contrast, then that's pretty much it. The most disturbing thing on a bad photo is the background. There is no excuse for not using a white paper for that.

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For making photos, the most important thing is the white background. That means a sheet of A0 paper. Or much smaller for this contest. Then either take the photos outdoors in the shade, or use 2 simple lights (yellow is okay too). Or just the windows. Then apply some auto color correction and auto contrast, then that's pretty much it. The most disturbing thing on a bad photo is the background. There is no excuse for not using a white paper for that.

what if you photoshop it onto a white background, or something like THIS:

minichallenge5copy.jpg

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@Anton:

That's perfectly okay. If you think that removing a colourful background with Photoshop (a non-free software) from each and every photos (with nice antialiased edges) is easier than getting a 2 cent paper sheet...

Edited by Lipko

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...

WHAT DO I NEED TO ENTER?

All participant should create a WIP topic for discussion purposes and create a post in the [soon to be created entry topic].

WIP TOPIC

  • A WIP topic beginning with [MINI].

ENTRY POST

The entry post (in the soon to be created entry topic) should contain:

  • Entry name
  • Part count
  • Short summary of the functions.
  • Promotional image (this one should kick megablocks!)
  • Parts image (a picture of all the parts used, spread out on a surface)

The part image needs to show all the parts used in the model. Preferably all the parts are shown separately, but if it's clear that the part count won't exceed 200 parts, some small sub-assemblies will suffice

I need a picture of all the separate parts! That way we can clearly see which, and how many, parts have been used.

The promotional image needs to be clear and crisp image, which really shows the model in it's best way. Think of it as the image on the box. Building a great MOC is one thing, but a decent presentation really helps you to get more votes.

...

2 questions about the "promo image"

1. can the "promo image" include sub-images ? ie. there is 1 big image and possibly 1 or more smaller images stitched or overlayed into the larger image ? or what about 1 large image composed of 4 smaller rectangular images ?

2. can the "promo image" include pieces that are NOT counted against the 200 limit ?

both of these questions have already appeared in some excellent promo images...

thanks :classic:

Edited by CNT2

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2 questions about the "promo image"

1. can the "promo image" include sub-images ? ie. there is 1 big image and possibly 1 or more smaller images stitched or overlayed into the larger image ? or what about 1 large image composed of 4 smaller rectangular images ?

2. can the "promo image" include pieces that are NOT counted against the 200 limit ?

both of these questions have already appeared in some excellent promo images...

thanks :classic:

Great questions. For example: a dump truck full of little lego round 1x1's? The images from inside the front flap on a box are usually VERY interesting.

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Jim, when is the entry topic going to be created?

I thought it was soon-to-be-created?

Apparently Jim is still very busy with the world hockey club 2014,so it could be a little while yet. :tongue:

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Cool contest! The parts and time limit mean I should be able to participate. :thumbup:

I tend to agree with you, but it can be interpreted in multiple ways. If TLG provides a single tube to be cut....it's a single part in the inventory. So we need to find a consensus on this matter.

I can vaguely remember cutting tubes in an official set.

8272 Snowmobile.

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Jim, when is the entry topic going to be created?

I thought it was soon-to-be-created?

Apparently Jim is still very busy with the world hockey club 2014,so it could be a little while yet. :tongue:

I was under the impression that each person was responsible for their own entry thread, and that Jim (or whoever else) would create a voting thread once the submission deadline has passed. The voting thread would then have a single image linked to each entry thread. Is this not correct?

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