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Post by Adrenaline on Apr 1, 2014 8:01:54 GMT -6
It's a legitimate claim, but there was enough time to make any new customs in the time period before the contest as we all did.
I think a rule that needs to be implemented is NO MORE PAPER PRINTED BACKGROUNDS. I drew the backgrounds for my scenes and to me, some people don't have the access to print a background and it's really nothing more than cheating because it makes the scene look really good, but also not that real, since there's no 'life' effect.
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Post by PGV on Apr 1, 2014 8:10:38 GMT -6
It's a legitimate claim, but there was enough time to make any new customs in the time period before the contest as we all did. I think a rule that needs to be implemented is NO MORE PAPER PRINTED BACKGROUNDS. I drew the backgrounds for my scenes and to me, some people don't have the access to print a background and it's really nothing more than cheating because it makes the scene look really good, but also not that real, since there's no 'life' effect. lol you have enough time to go to any place where they can print you a background for 2$ new customs shall be an encouragement, not an obligation. Also because first of all there are partecipants who DO NOT make customs at all, second it is in the interest of every partecipant to bring new items that could be enjoyed more, so everybody shall decide for themselves. The point is that I have to be able to show my custom even before the contest. Believe me, that if this happened you would have been advantaged. and again, partecipants who do not make customs shall be allowed to buy them and use them for scenes, even if they've been already photographed. |
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Post by Adrenaline on Apr 1, 2014 8:16:23 GMT -6
No one was obligated to make a custom, so maybe I don't understand. I only felt like I had to because most of my figures are modified and others could recognize that they were mine. Still, I'm fine with that rule change. I'd like to use any of my figures.
As for the backgrounds, getting it printed for $2 does NOT make it ok to use. I spent another 5+ hours drawing my background for the Wheelo scene while others just printed it. In a perfect world, voters should see that and give thier vote to whom put more work into it (if it looks good of course). Printing the backgrounds is nothing more than half-assed cheating and can either really help you or work against you. Like Bran said, if he had a real car and trees in that Bulma scene, he might have gotten 2nd or even won. It backfired.
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Post by PGV on Apr 1, 2014 8:23:10 GMT -6
No one was obligated to make a custom, so maybe I don't understand. I only felt like I had to because most of my figures are modified and others could recognize that they were mine. Still, I'm fine with that rule change. I'd like to use any of my figures. As for the backgrounds, getting it printed for $2 does NOT make it ok to use. I spent another 5+ hours drawing my background for the Wheelo scene while others just printed it. In a perfect world, voters should see that and give thier vote to whom put more work into it (if it looks good of course). Printing the backgrounds is nothing more than half-assed cheating and can work against you. Like Bran said, if he had a real car and trees in that Bulma scene, he might have gotten 2nd or even won. Again I say, there are people who want to buy customs and use them to make scenes for this contest. They shouldn't just because they were already photographed and shown by those who created them? The sense of this rule was to not recognize the author of the scene, but in this perspective it would make no sense, as you can't really always connect the owner of a figure with its creator. For backgrounds, people see if it is 3D or 2D... you might have painted it manually, but still wasn't much 3D looking like since it was a paint over something flat. For a sky you can use a spray bottle, spray a cardboard and you'll never notice the difference between a printed version and this. My hildegarn red sky was also painted with red and black spray, but nobody was able to say if it is printed. Like you might have been sure it was printed... Rules shal be the less possibly strict to allow more people to partecipate. |
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Post by Adrenaline on Apr 1, 2014 8:40:01 GMT -6
I see what you mean now by the customs. All I can say everyone has a plethora of figures and many scenes are possible to do with them. It's the scene that should be the toughest part. When there were basically no Figuart scenes, it baffled me. If that becomes a rule change on the customs, then I'm alright with it I suppose.
As for the printed backgrounds, it's fine is you use one for the sky, as long as there are real pieces elsewhere in the scene like in the Hirudegarn scene. But some scenes had printed backgrounds and made it further than they should have. Your Gotenks and Piccolo scene to me, was awesome and your 2nd best, but it lost to the printed background in the South Kai scene. I felt that that was wrong. If I plan to use the sky, I'll probably take my figures outside. That's as real as it gets, but anything else that is hand-made is good to. Printed backgrounds aren't hand-made lol
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Post by Branjita on Apr 1, 2014 9:06:46 GMT -6
Well, problems in Scene Stealers 1 and 2 are what caused me to make the rules really strict in 3 and the rules got even more strict in 4. In 1 and 2, people made extra accounts to vote for each other and people would campaign for votes publicly. It would become a popularity contest, and "cool members" would end up endorsing a scene and other people who looked up to those members. I like it being anonymous because then the scenes getting votes are getting votes because of their own merits instead of the merits of the person who put it together.
We'll try doing the next one with fewer rules perhaps and see how it goes.
We still need pretty good rules though. For example... There's no way we should allow megahouse gashapons. Several were used in ss1 and ss2 and it's totally unfair.
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Post by PGV on Apr 1, 2014 11:36:01 GMT -6
I see what you mean now by the customs. All I can say everyone has a plethora of figures and many scenes are possible to do with them. It's the scene that should be the toughest part. When there were basically no Figuart scenes, it baffled me. If that becomes a rule change on the customs, then I'm alright with it I suppose. As for the printed backgrounds, it's fine is you use one for the sky, as long as there are real pieces elsewhere in the scene like in the Hirudegarn scene. But some scenes had printed backgrounds and made it further than they should have. Your Gotenks and Piccolo scene to me, was awesome and your 2nd best, but it lost to the printed background in the South Kai scene. I felt that that was wrong. If I plan to use the sky, I'll probably take my figures outside. That's as real as it gets, but anything else that is hand-made is good to. Printed backgrounds aren't hand-made lol well I agree, but I still say you need to attach the background somewhere manually and it requires partially artwork. As usual Branjita seems the most reasonable person there... we should give a try anyway to not be strict to "new" customs for the reasons I explained, and itself to give the chance to have more time for creative people on the forum to focus more attention to the scenes rather than on new figures.  Nobody shall declare which scene is made by who, I agree with that... so maybe you are right to keep dioramas out to avoid an implicit declaration on whos scene is which... but at least I think it is reasonable to be more felxible on customs... |
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Post by Branjita on Apr 1, 2014 11:56:14 GMT -6
On the next one, we'll let all custom figures be allowed. Megahouse, Bandai Imagination, and those $200 statues that are already scenes will still be outlawed for already being scenes. I think printed backgrounds should be allowed, because pretty much anyone can print a background if they want to. Can everyone photoshop one to get rid of the characters in the scene? No, but that's a skill that is not any different from someone having the talent to use toilet paper rolls to make a Hildegarn scene or plaster to make ground. It's just work and effort. I spent several hours making the background for my Bulma/Goku scene, and none of the photoshop work was done after I took the photo. I made screen shots, cut stuff out, combined it, and then printed it. It's best to keep rules that allow almost everyone to participate, so printed backgrounds will remain allowable. Allowing people to edit the pictures after they are taken will still not be allowed, because not everyone is a graphic designer and it's unfair. Also, let's not forget that this son of a bitch (yeah, I'm still angry!!!  ) won first place in scene stealers 1, and I assure you, printing a background and making stuff takes a lot more effort than 20 minutes of looking for an ok tree branch on a decent day and just using figures you purchased.  Here are the other entries from SS1. I wasn't able to save large versions of every pic years ago because DBT's a mess of a corrupted website. I think you'll see why when I started running Scene Stealers in 2008 (the 3rd contest) I added rules, most importantly... that you had to choose a specific scene from the show/manga.                                  |
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Post by Branjita on Apr 1, 2014 12:02:11 GMT -6
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Post by PGV on Apr 1, 2014 12:02:43 GMT -6
I totally agree with you Bran. haha, what memories with that scene I made: believe me, I spent more time doing that than the hildegarn one  |
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Post by Branjita on Apr 1, 2014 12:08:43 GMT -6
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Post by PGV on Apr 1, 2014 12:12:59 GMT -6
I submitted 3 entries for scene stealers 3 bran, I can see them there |
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Post by Branjita on Apr 1, 2014 12:42:54 GMT -6
I totally agree with you Bran. haha, what memories with that scene I made: believe me, I spent more time doing that than the hildegarn one Yeah, that is another factor. We were all younger with fewer responsibilities, more creativity, and more imagination when we were younger. So there were better scenes with more work in them, particularly in SS2. Most of DBT during SS1 and SS2 was 10 to 20 years old. During SS3, most members were 15 to 25. Most of DBF is 20 to 35 years old. PGV can you identify which scenes were yours in all of the contests? I'm not sure of some of the older ones. These were my scenes... I spent a lot of time on the figures... some time on the stuff... and barely any time on the planet... it was a sweater on small pillows... I won something this year I think, but I don't remember what. I think I was Despotes's pick (the original owner of DBT)? The goku climbing after Bubbles beat me by a few votes. I was angry I spent a long time on the figure and a long time on the scene this year. The scene was made from two pieces of wood I hammered together and I sculpted with plaster and painted it. I won staff's pick. The Piccolo firing the special beam cannon won 1st place. Pretty sure there weren't other prizes, just those two.  I was unemployed when Scene Stealers 3 happened and bored out of my mind. I spent FOREVER on these figures and FOREVER on the scene. The scene was made from cardboard, aluminum foil, and tons of plaster. I won 1st place with this one.  I won 4th place with this one. I spent a long time on the figure, and I used colored paper that I painted for the background.  I won 3rd place with this one. Same figures as the first one, but a new scene made out of paper and cardboard I painted, tree things made of aluminum foil and plaster, and a gong I made from a lid and model builder wood of some kind.  I won 4th with this one and only made it because we didn't have enough entries to run the tournament well. My bed was the background. I spent basically no time at all. Was done in 10 minutes flat.  In Scene Stealers 4 these were my scenes. I came in 4th with this one. I worked like hell on the figures, and Bulma was (and still is as she isn't finished) one of my most difficult customs, mostly because of difficulty in painting her and making the paint not come off when things are moved. Both of these figures sucked to paint. So many colors, and so many colors that have to be custom mixed because they aren't typical colors I use a lot of and own premixed. The background I spent several hours creating from I think 6 screenshots and 1 scan from a Daizenshuu for the replacement sky and blue mountains. They are standing on a manila file folder. I didn't have time to make a car or tree and meet the deadline. I was also suffering from my surgery and not sure I'd be able to enter at all this year.  I won 13th with this one. No prize. Made from a bunch of random crap with a black posterboard background and lots of little lights for lighting. The only things that weren't random crap was the blue carpet which doesn't even look like namek grass in the pic, and the rocks as those are real rocks.  I won 9th with this and got 1 prize. Lots of effort on 1 custom figure. Barely any effort on the background, it's just my table with blue paper and some lights. I didn't use my customizing light for lighting because I didn't want people to recognize my table.  I won 12th with this and 1 prize. A lot of effort repainting the figures and stuff. Not a ton of effort with the background stuff. I had to make the scene really big in order to make Pilaf's gang small. They were like 3 feet away from Bulma. This was the first time I ever made an enormous scene or had to, so there was no way I could make any of it permanent.  I won 6th and 1 prize with this scene. I used HG Dende and my Shenron I customized with clear poles. You could argue that this wasn't a new custom, but to be honest... I would argue that it isn't even a custom. It's Shenron propped on top of clear acrylic poles--anybody could do it and it could be anyone's. I printed and cut out mushrooms and double stick taped them to books and stuff. I used a big hunk of painted wood for the ground. I had to use a big hunk because Shenron's clear poles are really long and I had to get him closer to the ground without cutting the poles.  You know... seeing how poorly some of my scenes ranked makes me not want to do the contest as multiple rounds next time we do it. It sucks that I got 12th and 13th place and stuff. I'm sure many of you feel the same disappointment that your scene didn't make it as far as it could have if it didn't face a very powerful scene in the first round. I think the next time we'll just do 1 or 2 rounds and they will be free-for-alls. It would make the contest easier for me to make graphics for and run, and the best scenes will obviously get the most votes and rank in order of how good they were. |
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Post by Adrenaline on Apr 1, 2014 13:32:47 GMT -6
Lets remember the top three scenes didnt have strictly printed backgrounds.By saying I don't want printed scenes, I mean where the entire background is printed. Sometimes, it helps scenes and other times, hurts them. I think it hurt Bran's Bulma scene, but helped PGV's South Kai scene in voting, but wasn't necessarily better. I still think Bran's best scene was Shenron and Pilaf where everything was real.
How about this for a rule, it must include3 real life objects aka glass, plastic, box, table, rocks, dirt, tree etc IF the background is printed.
SS 1 scenes look hilarious. Each contest has improved in quality, but not quantity or creativity unfortunately
I don't remember ever participating before this last one....weird
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Post by Branjita on Apr 1, 2014 14:00:09 GMT -6
I don't know if adding rules will help. I think the voters look down upon purely printed scenes already, as the results reflected that. I'm not criticizing here, or at least that's not how I want it to come across, I'm just stating what I saw. You could have printed a background for your Wheelo scene just as well as anybody could have and it would have looked better and probably gotten more votes. You could have just googled "gradient" like I just did and printed this on a big piece of paper either from work or somewhere else and then you could have drawn the shapes on top and tinted things green, yellow, blue, and purple with your crayons or colored pencils.   I didn't print any of my backgrounds in Scene Stealers 3 and that's because I just needed pretty solid skies (and also because I would have had to pay for professional printing because my scenes were all much further away from the camera than my Bulma/Goku scene, and I didn't want to spend money). I already had some big sheets of colored paper, so I watered down my paint and just painted my backgrounds. Your backgrounds would have looked better if you painted them or used some technology and printed part of them. I think if someone wants to print backgrounds that's fine, and just being resourceful. Everybody has access to printers after all. |
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) won first place in scene stealers 1, and I assure you, printing a background and making stuff takes a lot more effort than 20 minutes of looking for an ok tree branch on a decent day and just using figures you purchased.
