How do you do it?

[amadeus]

I have built a few MOCs but I am never satisfied with them. I feel as though they are just thrown together; not a wonderous MOC that looks excellent. I was asking if any of you had some good hints on building techniques that would make my next building project (A keep) a real success.

thanks and happy building,

Trust me. I know how you feel. I have built some pretty large elaborate creations, but I am never satisfied with the size of any of my works. I do not have that many pieces. And I am young, 14 to be exact. Do not worry, creativity is in the hands of our generation, and it's up to us to bring back Lego. We will fight the good fight, you and I.

Another way to make the MOC look epic is minifigs. The more troops you have, the better it looks. That is what brings the piece to life. The people.

[James]

I don't believe dressing is the be all and end all of a moc (mainly because I'm usually to lazy to do it) I've seen lots of bad mocs hidden behind lots of figures (including some of my own ) Making a model you are truly happy with is a rare thing, and even then other people won't be happy with it. The way I tend to go about making a moc is to have a basic idea of what I want to incorporate into it. A architectural feature like a window surround, a gable, an archway or an interesting crenelation and try and incorporate that into the model. Always take inspiration from real life. Ask yourself if the design is practical in the real world and if its not, its likely it will look odd in your moc. (apart from scale of course .. unless you have LOTS of bricks) but overall the best way is to look at other peoples mocs for ideas you like and rip them off .. err I mean take inspiration and see if you can better them , that, and keep on building. You will always break up in frustration more than you finish (at least I do) but you can take on board what you learnt and put it to good use in your next creation.

[WilliamH]

Another way to make the MOC look epic is minifigs. The more troops you have, the better it looks. That is what brings the piece to life. The people.

Only in Hollywood movies.

The standing garrison of Harlech and Criccieth Castles was between 15 and 25 in times of "peace". Harlech was first defended successfully with only 37 men.

[Bruce N H]

Just wanted to clarify that when I said "dressing", I didn't mean tons and tons of figs. I meant figs with purpose. If you look at those MOCs I cited upthread, some of them did have tons of figs, but others very few (e.g. Takeshi Itou's Snow Field Castle), but in all of them, the figs looked like they had actual purposes--they were doing tasks and going about their lives rather than just thrown in for sheer numbers. "Dressing" also includes things like accessories, carts, vegetation, animals, etc. Also, I didn't mean to imply good builder = dressed, bad builder = naked. I meant more, given this creation, how can I kick it up a notch. A naked Itou or Carney creation is still tons better than any of mine, but a dressed Itou or Carney creation is better than the same one undressed (IMO).

Bruce

[amadeus]

I didn't mean soldier too. I meant regualr townspeople. A market square in the center of the fortress is a good way to dress.

[Lord Felix]

Wow, this thread became popular again
I made an MOC responding to this; I dressed it up with animals, figs, trees, and landscape.

And for the first time, I'm proud of it. I like the way it feels.

Here is the link. I donno how to make pics in posts, or else I would do a preview pic.

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=183711

This is if you missed my other post.

Thanks for the hints! Any body know how to do arrow loops that look good? (Any technique, SNOT perhaps?)

Oh and amadeus, I'm young too; I'm 13!!!

Enjoy.

[amadeus]

Nice job Felix, I love the water. And the ducks in the piece make it look so much more natural. You have given me some great ideas, thanks. You outpost is looking fine as ever, may we have a peek inside of it?

Feels good to have someone my age here *takes deep breath* ahhhh.

[JPinoy]

My style of building is build, redesign, disassemble, and rebuild. Sometimes this process happens more than once.

[amadeus]

My style of building is build, redesign, disassemble, and rebuild. Sometimes this process happens more than once.

Yeah, I can't stay keeping a piece, unless it's really good.

[Jojo]

Hello!


In my not always humble opinion the the bottom line of your problem (that's the problem of other younger builders as well) is well described in the bottom line of your signature:

Still a 13 year old, wishing he could build like the masters...

Well, those considered "masters" most likely didn't build like masters when they were 13 year old themselves. But back then it didn't matter, though, because when they were young there was no internet. When I was a 13-year-old I only knew the MOCs (and I did not call my own creations "MOC") of myself and my friends then. Among those my own buildings seemed quite good to me. Of course they didn't have to bear comparison with MOCs of adult master builders. And that leads me to your MOC:

And for the first time, I'm proud of it. I like the way it feels.
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=183711

For a 13 year old this is a pretty fine MOC. I'm not good at giving advice. All I can say is that when you are getting older and you have acquired both more bricks and more building experience your MOCs will become better and better. Just don't expect your buildings could possibly be as perfect as any Takeshi-Itou-MOC. Better compare them to MOCs of Lego builders of your age.


Bye
Jojo

[brody]

saw this thread before I was registered and wanted to put in my two cents...

I'm short on MOCing experience, but I have a lot of experience in graphic and industrial design. One approach to producing anything creative, whether with ink, pixels or Legos, is to conceptualize a story that you want your work to tell visually. In the case of a castle MOC this story could include a time or era (indicates technology), setting (indicates topography and landscaping), politics (kingdoms, warfare etc...). Basically, you might develop a detailed narrative that you can work within; this helps you to make creative choices. Of course you can adjust things as you go along, but for me this is a good way to start. Also remember that details count!

Another tip which has been working for me is to start with the thing that excites you the most. There's nothing to suggest that a MOC must begin with a baseplate. Curiously enough, I almost always begin with the roof...and build down and out. Follow your design story, and good things will happen.

Hope this is helpful to someone,
brody

[Lord Felix]

Thanks brody! It gives me a different idea to how I should build, and I totally agree about creating an entire story around the creation. For the first I get to welcome someone to CC!!! Welcome to CC brody! Can't wait to see some of your MOCs that you build from the top down

Thanks and welcome,

[Lord Felix]

Sorry for the double post, but no one else seems to be talking and I have something to say. First off, does anybody have any ideas for arrow loops and windows? That is really my weakest point in my beginner building. Second, any tips for photography? I have all my creations still (except the forestmen clearing the forest in my Black Smith shop (check my brickshelf in my signature). Third, how do you do raised landscaping without making it weak? I mean, weak as in cave ins when placing bricks and figures on it.

Thanks,

[erikut]

Sorry, I dont have anything to help you with your question, but I just want to say, when I build, I just build until I feel that the MOC is done, I don't know how to say it, it's just, when you feel the MOC is done, it's done. I have a house wich have stood on my table for the last two weeks, i built most of it in the first two days, but still I keep on adding, removing and changing stuff on it. I don't think I am finnished yet. And my camera has broken down so I can't post any pictures.

Just a small tips from me.

Erik

[smcginnis]

Well, I know that there are a lot of great arrow loops around, and I think there's an article about it somewhere, but I'm too lazy to search for it right now. Here's an old topic though (it's very old).

For photography, I use an 11x17 piece of paper, taped to the back of a bench in my house, and I let it curve down to the bottom of the bench, so that there is no corner. You could use a much bigger piece of paper though. I also use custom white balance on my camera to make the paper considered 'white', if the camera thinks it's yellow or something. I do need to get a camera (or at least a lens) that can take pictures close up though. Also, always try to get as much of your MOC in focus as possible; I usually use manual focus. I know that there is an example of this background technique in Fry_slayer's gallery, but that folder happens to not be public right now. I'll try to link to it later, so that this isn't so confusing.

About landscaping, I really don't have the parts for it meself, but you can see some examples here, and here.

~smcginnis

Edit: Ok, I guess I was looking for it in the wrong folder. Here it is: