The Dinosaur Diorama Contest 2012 - poll now open

[Aram-Rex]

Ah ok, cuz mine had a fire on the background and I thought when you said about lighting, that came to me.

[radman]

Ah ok, cuz mine had a fire on the background and I thought when you said about lighting, that came to me.

Just to clear this up:  Your diorama had two paposaurs representing dinosaurs that lived millions of years apart, on different continents, inexplicably fighting in front of (what appeared to be) a campfire apparently made of several charcoal briquets.  Plus, you shamelessly lobbied for more votes!  Please stop, already.

[SBell]

Ah ok, cuz mine had a fire on the background and I thought when you said about lighting, that came to me.

Just to clear this up:  Your diorama had two paposaurs representing dinosaurs that lived millions of years apart, on different continents, inexplicably fighting in front of (what appeared to be) a campfire apparently made of several charcoal briquets.  Plus, you shamelessly lobbied for more votes!  Please stop, already.

Okay, in truth I had about the same feelings--I was just trying to find a kinder way to say it.

If I had to offer critique (I don't, but given radman's assessment, I guess I'll throw in here) I was also initially put off by the theme and species mix.  I can't and won't speak for everyone, but I and at least some others prefer dioramas to show 'possible' scenes. We all know that there are limits based on the use of toys--scale, posture, species available, etc.  But an image that throws together an impossibility could meet resistance.

Plus, referencing a show that annoys more people than it impresses (plus, the name Jurassic is inappropriate for both species) isn't going to help.

The vote-lobbying, on the other hand, probably turned away more votes than it garnered.  This is meant for fun, and the people want what they want.

Question for Adam--is it possible to hide the votes tallied until the poll closes?

[amargasaurus cazaui]

Ah ok, cuz mine had a fire on the background and I thought when you said about lighting, that came to me.

Just to clear this up:  Your diorama had two paposaurs representing dinosaurs that lived millions of years apart, on different continents, inexplicably fighting in front of (what appeared to be) a campfire apparently made of several charcoal briquets.  Plus, you shamelessly lobbied for more votes!  Please stop, already.

Okay, in truth I had about the same feelings--I was just trying to find a kinder way to say it.

If I had to offer critique (I don't, but given radman's assessment, I guess I'll throw in here) I was also initially put off by the theme and species mix.  I can't and won't speak for everyone, but I and at least some others prefer dioramas to show 'possible' scenes. We all know that there are limits based on the use of toys--scale, posture, species available, etc.  But an image that throws together an impossibility could meet resistance.

Plus, referencing a show that annoys more people than it impresses (plus, the name Jurassic is inappropriate for both species) isn't going to help.

The vote-lobbying, on the other hand, probably turned away more votes than it garnered.  This is meant for fun, and the people want what they want.

Question for Adam--is it possible to hide the votes tallied until the poll closes?

I did wish to add something to this discussion. I appreciate that you spent alot of hard work and time making an entry and put yourself out there for everyone to appreciate and enjoy. Speaking perhaps for everyone involved , we all love to see the different ideas, concepts, angles, and stories people attempt to tell with their entries . I can say this is very true of myself at least.
   I did feel that Radman and Sbell stated some very valid points of view for you to consider for your next entry . I too am rather bored with the title you used and mentally somewhat frowned when I saw it used yet again. Going a step further the fight between these two animals seems a direct steal from the Jurassic Park movie franchise and offers nothing I can grasp that is unique. So you have a tired and worn title for an already "worked" idea. But, when I look at the scenes I also look for angle, perspective and composition.
   From a photography standpoint, your two combatants in the scene are imposed one in front of the other obscuring the head and face of the secondary. The lighting that you did opt for, the vaunted fire effect, created a total wash out in color and created such glare and lack of contrast the picture then for me at least became a monochrome effect, that lacked an original theme or title. For me it felt like the fire was used to mask the surrounding scene to create no effort for surroundings at all...no trees, no other fauna, no geologic formations.
     That being said, the best thing that those of us who did not win can do is this. You look, you study the other entries, you watch what people are saying and you learn from those things to become a better diorama maker. It is a learning process, and not something that you should take so personnaly or deeply. There is nothing wrong with failing, and picking yourself up, learning from it and becoming much more for the effort.  Most of the better entries have their own threads where they are discussing the pros and cons and there is a ton of insight to gather from them.
  In addition, people like the winners, Gwangi, Bokisaurus and so many others here have TONS of insight, and great ideas, to share. None of them seem stingy with their input and willingness to make suggestions and help one another , from my own experiences.....
   Try to make it a positive for yourself, rather than taking it that hard. In the end you still made the picture you wanted, got to express yourself and were given the same chance as everyone else. That in itself should mean alot for you.
  enough of the soapbox and sorry but I felt it needed saying
 

[SBell]

Ah ok, cuz mine had a fire on the background and I thought when you said about lighting, that came to me.

Just to clear this up:  Your diorama had two paposaurs representing dinosaurs that lived millions of years apart, on different continents, inexplicably fighting in front of (what appeared to be) a campfire apparently made of several charcoal briquets.  Plus, you shamelessly lobbied for more votes!  Please stop, already.

Okay, in truth I had about the same feelings--I was just trying to find a kinder way to say it.

If I had to offer critique (I don't, but given radman's assessment, I guess I'll throw in here) I was also initially put off by the theme and species mix.  I can't and won't speak for everyone, but I and at least some others prefer dioramas to show 'possible' scenes. We all know that there are limits based on the use of toys--scale, posture, species available, etc.  But an image that throws together an impossibility could meet resistance.

Plus, referencing a show that annoys more people than it impresses (plus, the name Jurassic is inappropriate for both species) isn't going to help.

The vote-lobbying, on the other hand, probably turned away more votes than it garnered.  This is meant for fun, and the people want what they want.

Question for Adam--is it possible to hide the votes tallied until the poll closes?

I did wish to add something to this discussion. I appreciate that you spent alot of hard work and time making an entry and put yourself out there for everyone to appreciate and enjoy. Speaking perhaps for everyone involved , we all love to see the different ideas, concepts, angles, and stories people attempt to tell with their entries . I can say this is very true of myself at least.
   I did feel that Radman and Sbell stated some very valid points of view for you to consider for your next entry . I too am rather bored with the title you used and mentally somewhat frowned when I saw it used yet again. Going a step further the fight between these two animals seems a direct steal from the Jurassic Park movie franchise and offers nothing I can grasp that is unique. So you have a tired and worn title for an already "worked" idea. But, when I look at the scenes I also look for angle, perspective and composition.
   From a photography standpoint, your two combatants in the scene are imposed one in front of the other obscuring the head and face of the secondary. The lighting that you did opt for, the vaunted fire effect, created a total wash out in color and created such glare and lack of contrast the picture then for me at least became a monochrome effect, that lacked an original theme or title. For me it felt like the fire was used to mask the surrounding scene to create no effort for surroundings at all...no trees, no other fauna, no geologic formations.
     That being said, the best thing that those of us who did not win can do is this. You look, you study the other entries, you watch what people are saying and you learn from those things to become a better diorama maker. It is a learning process, and not something that you should take so personnaly or deeply. There is nothing wrong with failing, and picking yourself up, learning from it and becoming much more for the effort.  Most of the better entries have their own threads where they are discussing the pros and cons and there is a ton of insight to gather from them.
  In addition, people like the winners, Gwangi, Bokisaurus and so many others here have TONS of insight, and great ideas, to share. None of them seem stingy with their input and willingness to make suggestions and help one another , from my own experiences.....
   Try to make it a positive for yourself, rather than taking it that hard. In the end you still made the picture you wanted, got to express yourself and were given the same chance as everyone else. That in itself should mean alot for you.
  enough of the soapbox and sorry but I felt it needed saying
  I think Radman and Sbell rather well stated some of the reasons the scene failed to draw popularity votes. For my own personnal take on things, I liked the title of the Documentary Jurassic Fight Club.........for the first week or so I had the program on disc. Then it somewhat grew old .

Thanks amarga--interestingly, I thought I'd put something down about learning from the other dioramas (in particular the winners, but they all have something to learn from). I don't know what happened there 

It's also interesting to hear from a 'photographer' perspective.

And I think we should be clear--we aren't necessarily picking on the one entry, but he seems to be the most vocally disappointed, so there is an element of trying to encourage him for next time.

[Aram-Rex]

I thank every member from Dino Toy Forum for the critiques and comments on my diorama. I really want to do better because I love doing it (making dioramas) and I love seeing dioramas from other participants from all over the world. It's one of my hobbies that I enjoy the most and if anyone has sensed that I tried to lobby votes then I apologise, but it is not true at all. I asked those questions because I only wanted to learn and the main things that I did not know at all was that we were not supposed to fantasize or visualize scenes from films. I will try much harder then this time and will hope for another exciting Diorama Contest, thank you again for everything, I really appreciate your comments and suggestions .

[Balaur]

I'm listening to WWD Antarctic Dinosaur music as I am on this thread, makes everything feel so much more epic. And beautiful. 

[DC]

I was impressed with the photos submitted.  The out doors format enhances the realism.  I have always had problems with lighting when I do out doorshots.  One thing I found that can help is diffussing the light by using the white plastic garbage bags as a light sheild between the shot and the sun.  I like the Ghost Ranch and  Unexpected Company dioramas because they had a consistency of design for the animals and plants.  It all fits.  I enjoyed the traditonal diorama display format where everything is constructed by the artist.  I also like the fact they are busy with lots of figures doing different things so that I find I can discover something new about the diorama every time I look at it.  They make me think.