Not used for Contest 2013

[Federreptil]

Any museum should be proud to have such an educational and beautiful display.

Then I guess the task now is to find the museum that sees it the same way. I would be very pleased to be able to present these ideas in public space. Even though it will certainly be exciting to see where the museums can get the budget from and how the exchange with the experts will be, since I can't prove that I have a scientific background. In the best sense, I would be a three-dimensional paleoartist, who is also allowed to speculate with scientific advice.

[Federreptil]

  Fantastic! So many possibilities. It must have been very hard to choose the one pic for the contest.

Curiously, the selection this year was not the difficulty, because I had mentally separated the competition entry and the documentation of diversity in the diorama.

So Part 1 of these compilations shows the photo motifs that were taken with digital camera and tripod and where the naturalistic athmosphere got a stronger emphasis. Here essentially a basic situation with slight variations has been played through.

The pictures in Part 4.1 and 4.2 were taken with a smartphone and show the different situations and positions. However, the model-like nature of the set-up still remains perceptible. The scenes can still remain recognizable as a made diorama, because I'm really driven by the idea of how to make more than just a single photo motif out of these set-ups.

[Federreptil]

On your own doorstep
So far, I hadn't managed to stage a scene that wasn't set far away in Asia or America.



So I used the big diorama construction to show at least an intermediate state. The biggest find in the north of Germany are the different skeletons of Europasaurus holgeri. Exciting, because they are not only fossilized tracks, like most of the Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous finds. There is also the additional aspect of the inserterization, because the closest relatives of Europasaurus are Brachiosaurus and Giraffatitan, whose most famous reconstruction due to the colonial past is now in Berlin.



This is an intermediate state, because not all protagonists are yet perfectly selected. For example, the Stegosauriae in the background are indeed evidenced by a single tooth found. But whether it should therefore be the American archetype is perhaps not yet the best choice. A Miragaia would be already closer from the localization. Because of the island dwarfing of the Sauropden perhaps the smaller Kentrosaurus would be a more suitable companion. Iguanodonts are with a larger temporal dispersion for Europe very widely provable. With the predatory dinosaurs and the further sauropods one usually refers to the fossilized traces. Without the matching bone finds, however, the naming of the tracks often seems to me to be a question of marketing. Especially since I wonder why the Macronaria dwarfed to be able to use the habitat of island chains in the shallow water sea. But an Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Allosaurus or Torvosauraus could exist in maximum size in this biotope. Wouldn't they have to be dwarf species?



Because of the scale it will be exciting to be able to integrate Archaeopteryx here. The stand-ins for Pterodactylus are already there. Compsognathus, Juravenator, Rhamphorhynchus and the primeval crocodiles are still missing, for which the suitable models must be searched.



If you enjoy these mind games, you should definitely go to the book "Europasaurus. Urzeitinseln voller Leben" 2020 by Oliver Wings and Joschua Knüppe. Here he finds the whole biotope of the primeval times in detail represented, even if some stars from Solnhofen are missing. The painting of the Europasaurus is also based on the depiction of the Europasaurus by Joschua Knüppe in the book for a better "recognition effect". The figures are white 3D prints of GN models, which come from Shapeways.

[Federreptil]

I will wait for the official results of the DTF Diorama Photo Contest 2024 ...

But it is the 10th anniversary of the 6th Diorama Contest in 2014. Here the Horrible Horn Horde made the run.



This year the protagonists are a herd of Triceratops again. I hope you will see some improvements. And not only because of some newer models of Eofauna, Kaiyodo, Haolonggood and PNSO. This year's fashion are not alone the longer horns but the addition of small birds in the motif.



More details of the whole diorama will be viewed here in forum in some days.

[Libraraptor]

Now the votes have been casted, I am looking forward to you you offering some "making of" - pictures of this year´s winner diorama again. Although I personally like some of your past efforts a little more (complaints at a high level :-) ) , I  still highly admire your style and approach to creating dioramas like these very much!

[Federreptil]

Now the votes have been casted, I am looking forward to you you offering some "making of" - pictures of this year´s winner diorama again. Although I personally like some of your past efforts a little more (complaints at a high level :-) ) , I  still highly admire your style and approach to creating dioramas like these very much!

Thank You very much for the warm wordes and we will see, where the efforts count. Maybe not in the single shot and I got the problem, that I want to see the little birds on the Triceratops in any case. Also a new fashion – more as I have estimated.
In the next post I will show some more pictures of the diorama.

[Libraraptor]

Yes, keep them coming!
By the way, I completely forgot to ask where you got the Europasaurus figure from the pictures of October 2023 ? What brand are they? Or are they unique pieces?

[Federreptil]

After a long time, it's time to return to the Hell Creek Formation 66 million years ago. Exactly 10 years ago, the "Horrible Horn Horde", a herd of triceratopsids, moved through a plain for the Dinosaur Toy Forum's 2014 Diorama Photo Contest. Now the three-horned ceratopsids are on the move again. But the stage has changed a little. So here is just a flood of pictures.



The starting point is a savannah with hard-leaf trees for a landscape with a subtropical climate. Today, the west coasts of subtropical landscapes are covered in hardwood forests. When large herds of giant herbivores are constantly on the move, savannahs with sparse tree cover form as the animals reshape their landscape.



We have ferns, horsetail, lichens and moss, but no grass. Instead there are flowers, flowering bushes for bees and other pollinating insects. In addition to the conifers, there are the first deciduous trees such as gingko and magnolia. So the landscape would already look quite familiar.



Today it is generally accepted that birds are surviving dinosaurs. Since there was already a large fauna of bird species in China in the early Cretaceous period, there is much to suggest that birds had already spread everywhere by the late Cretaceous period.



Struthiomimus is a close relative of Gallimimus from Asia. Many dinosaurs have close relatives in both continents. This suggests a lively exchange and parallel development of the species. Even if there were perhaps no land bridges between the continents at the time, as the polar ice caps had melted and the sea level had reached a maximum height.



Why shouldn't the birds have entered into a symbiosis with the large herbivores, like the oxpeckers do today, if they were already plagued by insects and other parasites?



For some years now, many of the new triceratops models have had longer horns. On the one hand, this is due to a skull find with particularly long horns. But of course it also looks more spectacular.



These animals must have been like the medieval knights with their lances. This does not make them particularly agile and sudden changes of direction would probably often end up in the branches. If it were really a defensive weapon against predators, it would only work in a coordinated manner in a group. So it is probably more a feature of attractiveness. Perhaps even like a peacock's tail, which you can only afford if the male is bursting with health.



Whether conifer needles or hard leaves, the beak of the Triceratops would cope with both.



There are feathered maniraptors, less ridiculous than 10 years ago, but they tend to take care of handy prey like small mammals or lizards.



Large pterosaurs such as the Quetzalcoatlus could probably even cross continents with their wingspan. Let's follow you to the next scene.



The Tyrannosaurus rex is not only the apex predator of this time. Often enough, it is also a victim and only very few reach an age of over 20 years.



The giant fliers would probably have trouble breaking open this prey to get at the soft parts inside. Given their size, they are designed for lightweight construction. So they need a living T-Rex, which as a scavenger could break the bones with its jaws to give everyone access to the rich inner life. Even if everyone would then have to wait for the T-Rex to get its share.



But perhaps the pterosaurs are not waiting in vain. After all, with its extremely developed sense of smell and good eyesight, a hungry Tyrannosaurus only had to follow the big fliers to save itself a dangerous hunt.



Even the small dromeosaurs can only wait if there is rich prey to be found.



When the large herds of horned dinosaurs regularly pass through here, unfortunate herd members who have lost their lives here are also left behind. Most of them left no traces that we can still find today. This carcass serves as cover for a mammal.


That's the first part. The stage still has room for more stories.

[Federreptil]

Yes, keep them coming!
By the way, I completely forgot to ask where you got the Europasaurus figure from the pictures of October 2023 ? What brand are they? Or are they unique pieces?

The Europasaurus figures are two white prints from Shapeways (design Galileo Hernandez 2013) and are painted by me like the color sheme from Joschua Knüppe to connect them to his book project. Unfortunately Shapeways is now history and we will see how some model sculpts will survive.

[thomasw100]

The Europasaurus figures are two white prints from Shapeways (design Galileo Hernandez 2013) and are painted by me like the color sheme from Joschua Knüppe to connect them to his book project. Unfortunately Shapeways is now history and we will see how some model sculpts will survive.

I am not too sad that Shapeways went down. I ordered these Europasaurus from them and got a terrible print quality with missing parts on the head. Fortunately I was able to purchase the print files of both Europasaurus later.

[GnastyGnorc]

On your own doorstep
So far, I hadn't managed to stage a scene that wasn't set far away in Asia or America.



So I used the big diorama construction to show at least an intermediate state. The biggest find in the north of Germany are the different skeletons of Europasaurus holgeri. Exciting, because they are not only fossilized tracks, like most of the Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous finds. There is also the additional aspect of the inserterization, because the closest relatives of Europasaurus are Brachiosaurus and Giraffatitan, whose most famous reconstruction due to the colonial past is now in Berlin.



This is an intermediate state, because not all protagonists are yet perfectly selected. For example, the Stegosauriae in the background are indeed evidenced by a single tooth found. But whether it should therefore be the American archetype is perhaps not yet the best choice. A Miragaia would be already closer from the localization. Because of the island dwarfing of the Sauropden perhaps the smaller Kentrosaurus would be a more suitable companion. Iguanodonts are with a larger temporal dispersion for Europe very widely provable. With the predatory dinosaurs and the further sauropods one usually refers to the fossilized traces. Without the matching bone finds, however, the naming of the tracks often seems to me to be a question of marketing. Especially since I wonder why the Macronaria dwarfed to be able to use the habitat of island chains in the shallow water sea. But an Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Allosaurus or Torvosauraus could exist in maximum size in this biotope. Wouldn't they have to be dwarf species?



Because of the scale it will be exciting to be able to integrate Archaeopteryx here. The stand-ins for Pterodactylus are already there. Compsognathus, Juravenator, Rhamphorhynchus and the primeval crocodiles are still missing, for which the suitable models must be searched.



If you enjoy these mind games, you should definitely go to the book "Europasaurus. Urzeitinseln voller Leben" 2020 by Oliver Wings and Joschua Küppe. Here he finds the whole biotope of the primeval times in detail represented, even if some stars from Solnhofen are missing. The painting of the Europasaurus is also based on the depiction of the Europasaurus by Joschua Küppe in the book for a better "recognition effect". The figures are white 3D prints of GN models, which come from Shapeways.

I love europasaurus because of that book. Artwork is gorgeous. I have been hoping that we get a good figure of europasaurus from one of the big companies soon.

[Totoro]

Part 3: The making-of



The submission deadline for the 2023 Dinosaur Diorama Photo Contest at Dinosaur Toy Forum is fast approaching. Five days before, the setup on about 2.56 square meters of table space begins. First of all, a new water base is tested and the new jungle trees from Malaysia already show the place where the protagonists will stand later.



In the first attempt there is a red floor this year. But in the end it looks too much like the red tartan track in the stadium. The shoreline design and the headlands also still need some work.



The next day, the ground has a three-layer structure of light sand, black gravel and red subsoil that partially shows through. Now the planting can be re-compacted with the ground covers.



The structure is ready: The vegetation consists of about 720 plants, of which a large part are of course mini ferns and ground-covering fern bushes. Most of the 57 protagonists have already moved in. Only the 11 members of the Saurolophus herd are still drying in the workroom.



The actual photography takes place at night, so that the artificial light from four LED lamps is not disturbed. In the bay, the small cosplayer fog machine is used to create a ground fog on the lake in the foreground.



The light and camera are moved into position. Unfortunately, the 4K resolution will not yet come into play in the contest. The resolution of the submissions is unfortunately limited to 1,000 pixels, which is not really an advantage for mass scenes.



The good old fog machine from 2015 is positioned with a tripod so that it makes the contours in the background disappear. Otherwise, of course, the jungle would have to be much deeper and denser to prevent views.



Shortly after the picture is taken, the fog wafts through the room. The only thing that helps is to ventilate the room, because otherwise the ground fog will be blown away at the same time.



The fourth light brightens the sky as a ground floodlight so that a bright edge is created on the horizon and the trees do not cast shadows on the background.

As usual, just amazing craft in your diorama @Federreptil.  You could have probably chosen any of those other photos and won the contest, and I love how there are so many elements and mini-stories happening in your scene.  Like @irimali's dioramas, yours really do capture that magic that can trick your brain for a split second and make you feel like you're living that dream so many of us probably share of going back in time in a protective bubble and observing life as it once was so many millions of years ago. 

I'd love to see more of the 'behind-the-scenes' images (like those above from last year) and discussion sometime, if you have those and the time to share them.

Congratulations again. If feasible, I hope your diorama photo gets posted as the DTF banner for a period as a reward (I can't recall how that discussion was resolved), though I know @DinoToyForum is crazy busy with the new blob launch, etc.   

[Quiversaurus]

Can't believe how much I enjoyed reading this thread. I especially like the inclusion of smaller fauna, like the frogs, tiny birds, monitor lizard. Little hidden gems like these are, to me, what makes a diorama shine.

I really need me some 1:35 Velociraptors.

[Federreptil]

Here is the second series of pictures of the Hell Creek diorama:



A group of thescelosaurs resting in the shade of the hard-leaved tree. These herbivores would have been ideal prey for the predatory dinosaurs. In reality, these are Tethisaurus from Wildpast, whose ribcage was probably somewhat longer. I am still waiting for a suitable Thescelosaurus model.



I wonder if this family idyll even existed with the Tyrannosaurus. Because the difference in size between the Tyrannosaurus hatchlings and the sexually mature T-Rex female would have to be much, much greater. And then the mother is not much predestined to look after the nursery. She cannot breed and can hardly provide any warmth afterwards. She would probably have been a danger to her own offspring. She cannot feed the young and has no crop to provide food. She would also have had to leave the young alone for a long time to look for food herself. It would be more logical to have a brood care system like that of crocodiles, which provide a good start after hatching and then the young have to fend for themselves. The clutches could be larger to compensate for a high loss rate.



This T-Rex hatchling from PNSO is far too cute, as a young T-Rex probably had completely different proportions: a narrow, pointed head, long thin legs and proportionally even longer forearms. This means that the hatchling was still very similar to the early relatives of the tyrannosaurs at the beginning of the Cretaceous period. And the diorama also reaches its limits here with the blue butterflies dancing around on this chick's nose.



The flock of birds pecking away in a relaxed manner is also speculative, because there is no danger from a resting family that the birds could not escape by flying up quickly.



Here it is corythoraptors that live in the shade of the forest. Even if they are represented here by the same models that were supposed to represent Anzus in the Gobi Desert.



There are snakes at the end of the Cretaceous period. I wonder if the specimens were already this big? The mammal on the tree trunk should be sure that the snake is still digesting its last prey.



Unfortunately, humping dinosaurs are far too rare. This raptor model from Wildpast is a laudable exception. As is so often the case in youth protection. Blood, murder and manslaughter are apparently less dangerous than reproduction.



The huge fliers of the Quetzalcoatlus have their retreat on the rock.



When the Tyrannosaurus roams through the forest, the birds fly up in fright. The Tarannosaurus in the forest is an exciting idea - but many question marks remain: As big as a minibus, surely it would often have to get caught in the trees? Even if it had cushioned footpads - like some newer models - would it not have been able to move noisily given its weight and size? Would it even have been able to sneak up on a single hunter? How deaf and blind must the potential prey be? After all, it could hardly reach the smaller, more agile prey by sprinting. The heavy head and massive tail give it a statics like a construction crane and its maneuverability. And sprinting in the jungle could be dangerous. Because a broken leg caused by stumbling is probably a death sentence for the predator. Is a single Tyrannosaurus a giant scavenger after all?



That's why it's a pair here, watching the savannah from the edge of the forest. And on the lookout for suitable prey. They follow the large pterosaurs to their next meal.

[Libraraptor]

These ideas are all very good, too, but you definitely made the right choice with the Triceratposes this year.

[Federreptil]

These ideas are all very good, too, but you definitely made the right choice with the Triceratposes this year.

You're right, it was the best decision.
But all these motifs are the consequence of the broader idea for this year's diorama. If I were to build this scenario for the competition, it should also be the proof of presentation as an exhibit with a more complete fauna and many stories through interactions of all the protagonists. Storytelling as a driver to make the themes more accessible. How can a diorama in a museum work better and provide a richer experience than the small display cases with two species? Seen in this way, all the images in the two posts belong to one overall work.
This is all done on a level that is hopefully close to the level of illustrations in paleo art. So it should be possible to illustrate some ideas and concepts about the typical way of representing individual species and discuss theories about behavior. Even if I come across more and more questions as I try to clarify. Much of what we see in the pictures and films only partially matches the depiction in the texts or the finds. And I am bored by the most typical clichés in the minds of the general public. I'm thinking about how I might find a way to discuss all these questions in the forum. And then these photos could partly serve as illustrations.

[Federreptil]

Can't believe how much I enjoyed reading this thread. I especially like the inclusion of smaller fauna, like the frogs, tiny birds, monitor lizard. Little hidden gems like these are, to me, what makes a diorama shine.

I really need me some 1:35 Velociraptors.

Thank you very much, you keep exactly an important part of my intentions.

Thanks to Kaiyodo, Bandai and some 3D-Printers it should be possible to get a good representation for the Velociraptors.

[Federreptil]

The Europasaurus figures are two white prints from Shapeways (design Galileo Hernandez 2013) and are painted by me like the color sheme from Joschua Knüppe to connect them to his book project. Unfortunately Shapeways is now history and we will see how some model sculpts will survive.

I am not too sad that Shapeways went down. I ordered these Europasaurus from them and got a terrible print quality with missing parts on the head. Fortunately I was able to purchase the print files of both Europasaurus later.

My experience with Shapeways was not so bad. The models were complete and the white basic prints are exact enough for the further work. Some models were untested and had some minor issues. If I have wanted, I could have rejected the models but this was no decision. Now 3d-Printing is more common but 10 Years ago Shapeways was a pioneer.

[Federreptil]

Some pictures of the making-of of the diorama for this year's Diorama Photo Contest in the Dinosaur Toy Forum.



The area for the new diorama is the same size as last year's Gobi Desert. Four tables make up 1.8 x 1.8 meters of prehistoric times. That's all you can fit in the stairwell if you want the landscape to be accessible from all sides. As most of the trees have a wire spike, they are inserted into polystyrene plates, which are blackened at the edges with masking paint. The most important innovation compared to the previous year is the paper roll as a photo background, which becomes the sky with colored light.



The vegetation makes a clear difference to the previous year. In the previous year, it was a coastline with a beach that merged into a subtropical jungle. This year it is a savannah with loose vegetation of ferns and a few flowers with a loose cover of hard-leaved trees.  Behind it begins a mixed forest with conifers, other conifers and a few deciduous trees, which could stand for gingko and magnolia. A few palm-like trees such as cycads complete the planting. A rocky escarpment provides a plateau for large pterosaurs.



It is not easy to get model trees in the appropriate scale of 1:35 that do not look like a nursery next to the dinosaur models. Foliage and needles also improve the look. The forest becomes denser towards the back and a rise is filled with smaller trees. This creates the illusion of more depth. Unfortunately, a lot of material disappears in this compaction. Therefore, the area should not be much larger to achieve this density. This is because the supplies for planting have been exhausted for the time being.



Various groups of animals move in to form compact scenes, which are naturally much closer together than would be the case in the wild. It is a test of how far a diorama can be loaded for storytelling. Whether these five to six situations would be versatile and interesting enough to inspire non-nerds. That is why there is not one big overall production but several islands with individual stories. Not really an ideal condition for a Diorama Photo Contest, where everything should come together in a single photo.



Some of the smaller inhabitants of the area are still missing and some of the figures need to be better positioned. Only part of the large herd of horned dinosaurs fits into the motif. That's why the focus is more on the youngest members of the herd, who have particularly long front horns.



An overall picture that will not be seen in the diorama motifs later on. Also because the viewpoint is far too high to achieve a credible dinosaur perspective. Even if the difficulty always arises that many details are obscured again. Especially when the fog from the fog machines is added and even more disappears into the haze.



The protagonists from the first act have to leave the stage and park at the side. There are so many possible performers in the Hell Creek formation, all of whom have been waiting months to appear.



The area of 3.25 square meters is far too small to accommodate large populations and herds of Triceratops, Torosaurus, Edmontosaurus, Ornithomimus, Pachycephalosaurus, Alamosaurus and groups of Quetzalcoatlus, Troodon, Dromeosaurus, Tyrannosaurus and individual members of Anzu, Ankylosaurus, Thescalosaurus at the same time. Small mammals, frogs, lizards, tortoises and snakes and, this year for the first time, birds also have to be included in the picture.



During the day, we set up and move around. It should be dark for the photos and filming with the slider so that the lamps can provide controlled light. The stray light disturbs the pictures and the blue light on the background is not yet visible.



The herd of Edmontosaurs keeps a respectful distance. At the moment it consists mainly of models from PNSO and Haolonggood. There have been attempts to integrate other members of Collecta and Safari into the herd. But in the mix, the interpretations simply didn't fit together. Instead, this time the Pachycephalosaurs migrate with the gentle giants. Ten years ago, they were still moving with the Triceratops herd, but had completely disappeared.



The third section is the large sauropods. With the Alamosaurus, long-necks come into the picture, if they fit into the picture at all. Even the trees suddenly become small. Even a full-grown Tyrannosaurus Rex has to let the giants go. The titanosaurs grow together into a herd because the smaller PNSO models have been given a new coat of paint. Instead, the small nyctosaurs - an addition to the Haolonggood models - now hover above the sauropods.



The two Tyrannosaurs in the foreground will have to return once again, as they are somewhat lost here. They will make room for the torosaurs and will return elsewhere. In contrast, the curious Troodons will also return in the next scene.



The fourth round is the return of the "Horrible Horn Horde". The large herd of Triceratops moves in. Most of the members were already there 10 years ago. The two Torosaurs from back then have since joined their own herd. In contrast, 15 new members plus many young animals from current productions have joined the herd. It will therefore be impossible to see all the animals at all in the end. Yet the herd - under the new livery - consists of a representative cross-section of Triceratops figures from the last 25 years. From Schleich, Bullyland, Battat, Safari, Collecta, Papo to Dinostoreus, Favorite, Kaiyodo to PNSO, Rebor, Eofauna, Nanmu and Haolonggood.



The central zone has been largely cleared and the trees have moved to the edges to give the horned dinosaurs more space. The design deliberately quotes the competition scene from 10 years ago. This applies to the arrangement of individual Triceratops models as well as to the other protagonists. The Troodons, the Ankylosaurus and Quetzalcoatlus are back in a current version.



The flock of birds has landed. Over 100 mini birds are now sitting on the individual members of the horned dinosaur herd. The next round of shooting can begin.

[Paleo Flo]

So many models!!!
And a herd of Alamos! Neid!