JoshWedin wrote:You mention your "poor" photography skills quite a bit, but they aren't really that bad. The picture has decent focus and you got your whole MOC in there. Like Blueandwhite said, it is more a matter of making sure you only show what you want in the picture. I highly suggest doing as much of that as you can before you take the picture, rather than relying on editing software. There is only so much the software can do. Lightboxes can be cheaply made and are more than worth the cost, especially for small MOCs. My own minimalistic lightbox cost about 15 dollars to throw together. Of course they won't work for a MOC this big, but you might pick up a white flat bed sheet and use that under and behind your MOC. It gives you a nice neutral background, as long as you iron it first.
I'll have to try that. Originally, I thought maybe posterboard would be nice, but a white sheet seems like a very good idea, thank you for that.
Regarding your MOC itself, this is a very decent scene. What really stood out to me was the figs and how they were posed. You obviously have a knack for that and should develop it. They all look very fluid but not regimented. That is something I look for and it is nice to see in your scene. The reloading crossbowman is a nice touch. You obviously put some thought into the figs.
Thank you! I'm glad somebody noticed that. I found with other battle scenes that figs can seem to be static and rather bland. I tried to make the minifigs look as if the MOC had been caught in motion.
The castle itself is fair to middling, mostly because the walls go straight up. The effort at mottling is a good start (I often forget about mottling in my own creations) but some overhang for the battlements or some detail to spice up the walls will get you out of the "Big Grey Wall Syndrome".
Yeah, the original purpose of this MOC was to test out castles and towers in a shape other than what I normally do. Rectangles and squares is what I usually build towers in, so I tried a Latin cross shape for it. Originally it was going to be much bigger, but I ran out of the bricks I was using. More detail is something I plan on using in my next MOC, with larger and more intricate arch windows.
I like the cobbled road. That is nicely done. Perhaps curving it to the side, so that it ends of the edge of the baseplate would give the illusion that it continues. Having it simply fade away isn't quite realistic.
Thank you! I wasn't too sure about the cobbled road. I have experimented with various patterns, some with more tiles and less studs, and some vice versa. I'm glad this one goes over well with others.
As for the road ending rather short of the plate, I have to say I ran out of available plates and all the 1x1s were on another MOC (Which has yet to be photographed, time to test out your advice!).
Lastly, I was impressed with your attitude and response to Blueandwhite's critique. Most people are not actually keen on constructive criticism. Your response showed that you really do want to improve, which is why I wrote my own, rather lengthy, reply.
Well I'm very glad and appreciative that you and Blueandwhite were able to give me constructive critique. Thank you very much to both of you.
By the way, I added you as a contact on Flickr (I'm floodllama), so I can keep up with you on there as well.
Build On!
Josh
I noticed that, thank you very much for that and the reply in general.
Again though, thank you for your advice, it means a lot.
