The Ultimate Group Project - Diorama Construction/Design

[Phrubruh]

I like the purple highlights with greenish brown leaves idea for colors. The red would make it look to much like stawberries and too earth like. How easy are these to make? Can you fill an area of about two square feet?

[roron corobb]

I can get one done in about an hour or two. I trying to find the best way to make them right now and maybe have them castable incase I can't make that many or they are just to fragile. Need to work on the leaves and get the best look overall on this, but I should be able to make many for a patch or large area.

Also planning something for that man eating plant idea of yours. I should have something to show by next week. Thanks again for all the help.
roron corobb

[roron corobb]

Had to take a break from the plants, so I don't know if I'll have them done by Thursday for the chat. I did however whip up a tree in about 15 min. munis drying time. This is only one idea I have, so I still have more if no one likes this one.

What do you guy think? Plus keep in mind it's only a mock up (15 min time to make) and I only had one color paint to use. Thanks
roron corobb

[Ryan]

Do you by chance have a picture of the tree next to a figure? I'm interested to see the scale on it.

It certainly is different, and I do like it, but it isn't exactly what I had in mind for the wilderness area, mainly because of the white leaves. I was thinking something green that has a real Earth-like feel to it but with a few obvious alien twists, like the type of shrubs you made. The trunk is pretty cool though, I think that is definitely something we could work into the various tree types. I think the thing that gets me with the white is that it seems to have no purpose. Trees on earth are [generally] green because they have chlorophyll in them that helps with photosynthesis. Flowers usually have colors to attract bees and other pollen carrying insects.

The tricky thing about making this dio is that the purpose of things will have to be almost immediately apparent, but at the same time it can't be exactly earth-like. We don't have narratives and a moving story so the dio itself will have to be able to convey the purpose, if it doesn’t it suddenly becomes nothing more than some randomly cobbled together pieces with a few plastic men standing around. At which point people lose interest and walk away. But at the same time we need to be careful not to make this look too much like earth, or there wouldn't be any point in saying it is supposedly from the Star Wars Galaxy. It's a delicate balance but I think we'll be able to pull it off.

[BrentS]

I like the tree... I'd also like to see the scale as well as a  brief tutorial in how you made it!

I wonder if you can you die or paint the cotton green in color and address Ryan's concerns.

[roron corobb]

I would have to agree with the white, but as I stated that I only had one color to work with at the time. I think my sister last time she was visting robbed me of my paints. She likes to do that stuff , and I only have blacks and whites until I can get some more. For the trunk I found some red primer, so it was just thrown together with whatever I had at teh time .

On scale it is about 6 inches or so, but again it was a mock up. I can make them as big as we need if you would like to have them twice that size or bigger. Or even smaller if you want to go that way.

Brent, here is the link again on how to do these tree: Wire Tree Tutorial. I did my own thing for the trunk using paper mache glue and paper towel to cover the wire frame. I might try something different for next time. And the white leave stuff is that Halloween decorative spider web stuff. It could be painted no problem.

The colors I had in mind was an autumn look with reds, oranges, and colors like that over a green tree. What would you think of those type of colors? Thanks again.
roron corobb

[Phrubruh]

I can see mixing the white with some regular tree colors might look pretty.

[BrentS]

Here are some WIPs for my current assignment.  I'm choosing to make a cave  

I started with a very rough, random shape out of foam core:



Next I added some layers of Instant Paper Mache Sheets.  I ran out pretty quickly so I added some instant Paper Mache on top as well.



Here's a figure to show the scale:


I've never really painted "scenary" before.  Any tips for painting realistic looking rocks???

[Daigo-Bah]

Looks cool!  I built my base last night (don't forget to raise your cave base up 1.5 inches around the edges )  I plan to make a ruins scene with my assignment.

[Nirvana]

Keep in mind that not all of us can incorporate a special scene like Brent's or Daigo-Bah's- if we do, the landscape would look too overcrowded. Some of us should just focus on making a plain landscape box with a few shrubs or something.

Just a thought.

[patreektherodian]

Here is what I got so far. It's simple to make and remind me of a combination of th pod race sceene and utapau
I'm thinkind dark soil raging from black, brown to rust. vegetation will be a drabby kaki. I think I might of bent the rules in terms of negative and positive terrain but I think it would be compatible. Please note, I posted the pics in reverse order by accident. so start from the bottom.

[patreektherodian]

I have some leeching hoanging plants that will hang from the cravaces and what not . Next i'm going for a crackled dried up riverbed in the canyon part. a heat gun will provide more relief

[BrentS]

Keep in mind that not all of us can incorporate a special scene like Brent's or Daigo-Bah's- if we do, the landscape would look too overcrowded. Some of us should just focus on making a plain landscape box with a few shrubs or something.

Just a thought.

DN,
I think that is a very good and very important point!

[Darth_Ennis]

I saw a couple of gnarley looking black Halloween trees at Walmart yesterday, that are in pretty good scale. They look like nothing of this world, so I figure with a few modifications it should suit our purposes. Has anyone else seen them? If not Ill see what I can do about getting a sample and posting it.

[patreektherodian]

Any comments about my submission?