Sirens-of-Titan

Welcome to the Guild Jaeric! It's an honor and a pleasure to have you in the mighty northern guild! Looking forward to seeing your MOC's. There's a week left for challenge 3, it ends on the 12th, so if you think you can complete it by then please join in!

Very good; some creative use of parts and a very organic and balanced posture. Welcome to the wonderful world of Castle MOC'ing! Looking forward to more from you.

Hello Mitgardians, Just a week left until challenge 3 comes to a close. If you're close to finishing you MOC's please get them in ASAP. A note about prizes: I am happy to say that the custom minfigure prizes are about 2 -3 weeks away from being shipped out to winners of current and past contests! Also: Those who entered Ecclesiastes' mini challenges; great job so far! Go get those figures, they sure a re an alluring prize! Lastly: I'm taking ideas for a group build we Mitgardians can do together after challenge 3 is done,. (Think something like CC community build) Let me know what you want to see!

Hello GZ, Interesting idea; I like that you approach building in a unique way and try out parts in ways most people never even think to try. The column is good, although the hollow inside really takes away from the realism of the design. It's hard to imagine it bearing any real weight with such a small diameter. Perhaps if you could somehow work the hands and arms pieces in around that 2X2 cylindrical part and have the column pieces extend from top to bottom, it could achieve the effect and continuity you're looking for. Cheers and I hope to see more from you!

Looking good soccerkid! The designs and layout are excellent, and I like that you angled the houses instead of simply plopping them down; it really adds to the run-down feel of the scene. Your photography is improving as well, some natural colors and good focus really let you experience the scene. Now that you're getting to be a regular busy MOC'er I'll pass one piece of advice your way; watch the colors you use carefully. The scene is very very colorful in an almost carnival-like way,which is OK since it's your take on the build. My one criticism is that there are too many colors in use here; green, red, blue, tan, brown, black and white in huge quantities and close proximity really start to clash and challenge the realism of a scene. (I know it's sometimes a matter of having the right parts, but had you left 2 of those colors out this would have appeared even more excellent.) Just a thought, good seeing you building and improving, keep it up!

Another thing to worry about is dust gathering on your MOC's. It's something that is hardly noticeable with low quality pictures, but as you move into good quality crisp photography, that fine film of dust really hurts the appearance of MOC's. This only happens if they are on display. I never display anything and keep all my current builds in upside down bins like these: (I.e. the lid is on the floor and the bin part acts like a big transparent "lid") This really helps to keep the dust off, and I've had entire displays sitting stagnant for months and still look as crisp as the day they were built. I highly recommend cleaning your bricks if that's possible.

Looking good kabel! If sunlight works for you go for it. Spring summer and early fall are good for pictures outside; it's winter that really makes artificial light a necessity, so use those sunbeams while you can!

DAMN!!! That's beautiful Z!

Maybe I'll compile it all in a big stylized PDF and upload it for free download. The whole professional publication process is a nightmare that i haven't got time to face at this point, plus the picture quality from chapter 1 until now is so different, uniformity goes out the window. It'd be like seeing a movie shot in cell phone for the first half which slowly progresses to HD.

I can only tell you what I've found to be effective. (That's not to say it's the best way to do it) First of all, it depends on whether you use natural light or not. If yes then location is everything. If not then get ready for a whopper because half the battle is getting the lighting right. What I can say for sure is; use white cardboard or nylon cloth both under and behind the model. Avoid sheets/clothes as the wrinkles are unavoidable and cast deep shadows. I don't know what kind of camera you have but if you have a macro setting, as well as adjustable shutter speed use them!Sometimes a slight bit of overexposure is all it take to make a really dark picture look it's natural color. But it's mostly in the lighting. Let me give you an example: These 2 pictures were taken with the same exact camera and settings and the only difference was the lighting I used. See the difference? You see the quality improve? It's only because I got better at getting the lighting right. If you need tips on that I'll PM you because otherwise I'll congest this thread.

Rarely, I write fast.

It's a good little MOC! Fun as a slum can be. My only recommendation is to show with white poster board behind and under the MOC to prevent the 'real world intrusion" of objects in the vicinity.

Wonderful entree! The statue is grand, and I really like the shield! A great story and characters make it a heavy-hitting contender for challenge3! Well done!

I think it's better left as a visual story, it relies too much in the builds to stand up on its own.

Thank you for the great feedback guys! There are 3 more chapters to go, each more epic than the last both in story, scale and techniques. Firstly thank you for keeping up with the story, it's great to hear you have a favorite character. Secondly, this is part of the central conflict of the series; being unable to tell which side is the "good guys" and which side is the "bad guys". Both have their transgressions and flaws, and both have a good side. Whichever you pick to root for, you may always paint the other as villain. So in his own right Vanek could be a hero here; doing what he can to undermine the "evil empire". Thanks for reading!

After a month-long leave from building I am happy to present the newest chapter to my Rise of the Mage Series: Dwarven Treachery: A few notable images: Full Story can be found on MOCPAGES More Pictures on Flickr. Those of you in Mitgardia will note this is another prat of our famous dwarf city "Omurtag". As always, I like to hear what you think. This is a bit smaller than my previous builds, but there's a lot more technique usage. I hope you like it! Cheers. -Sirens

Hands-down your best work to date! :thumbup: Keep it up!

Credit goes to Ecclesiastes for this mini challenge, thank him, not me. It's a great challenge and I look forward to seeing what people build! Kabel, I like your idea of standardizing a wall, perhaps that's something we can do after these mini challenges elapse. I hope everyone is moving along on Challenge 3, the WIP pics look amazing so far guys! Way to represent Mitgardia!

@Stormbringer: Spring is in the air in Mitgardia, so no need to worry about snow. @ darkdragon: I don't see why not!

@ Angeli: Very cool, I see why you use those black heads now. Shame there aren't more black printed face. Perhaps series 8, you never know!

Angeli, can you deeplink a picture of a drow here? For all the time I've watched you build I still have no idea what you're basing your concept on, and the internet seems to have a very erratic opinion on exactly what a Drow looks like. As for the crystal, we would like to see the correct color choice. Now if you've already done your photo shoot and don't want to redo it just for the sake of the crystal we'll let it slide, but for those of you who are still building, we would like to keep to the thematic colors suggested in the rules. Cheers!

Attention Guild members! Due to the scale and complexity of Challenge 3, and the great number of builders who need more time to finish their entrees, we are officially extending the deadline for Challenge 3 by 2 weeks. This is a one-time only extension that we give because we want to see everyone at their best. If you have already submitted, take this as an opportunity to refine your design, or focus on free builds instead; the choice is yours! The new deadline is now May 12th 2012. Thank you for your hard work! -The Guild Leaders

Attention Guild members! Due to the scale and complexity of Challenge 3, and the great number of builders who need more time to finish their entrees, we are officially extending the deadline for Challenge 3 by 2 weeks. This is a one-time only extension that we give because we want to see everyone at their best. If you have already submitted, take this as an opportunity to refine your design, or focus on free builds instead; the choice is yours! The new deadline is now May 12th 2012. Thank you for your hard work! -The Guild Leaders

Attention Guild members! Due to the scale and complexity of Challenge 3, and the great number of builders who need more time to finish their entrees, we are officially extending the deadline for Challenge 3 by 2 weeks. This is a one-time only extension that we give because we want to see everyone at their best. If you have already submitted, take this as an opportunity to refine your design, or focus on free builds instead; the choice is yours! The new deadline is now May 12th 2012. Thank you for your hard work! -The Guild Leaders

Attention Guild members! Due to the scale and complexity of Challenge 3, and the great number of builders who need more time to finish their entrees, we are officially extending the deadline for Challenge 3 by 2 weeks. This is a one-time only extension that we give because we want to see everyone at their best. If you have already submitted, take this as an opportunity to refine your design, or focus on free builds instead; the choice is yours! The new deadline is now May 12th 2012. Thank you for your hard work! -The Guild Leaders