Scale Diorama Material Maker SCALERAMA have added some jungle trees to their range.




Link to Item

If you have comments or questions please post them here.

Thanks!

Because I place importance, and gain much satisfaction in the construction of natural elements in a diorama, I would not buy this ready-made product.

I find as much enjoyment in constructing and painting a tree as others may find in building a Panzer, except my PE comes from nature, and costs me nothing.

Thanks for the news though, this product should prove popular with some.

Chas

Options are always good. These look to be pretty nicely done.
As Chas mentions - some will not go this route, others will when this type of thing isn't naturally available.

gee Chas you begin to feel the same as guys like Claude Clervaux might feel when they see some crap ready made plastic buildings being made available now the diorama leech companies attack your own yard
Seriously there is *so* much of those companies around selling ready made products for dioramas and *so* much choice that it's like people actually eat them. And then i don't happen to see many dioramas using those products in the end. Those are probably for the guys who have enormous stashes and never actually get around to build anything.

Oh well, yet those plants don't look that bad though i would suspect the photographer that took those wonderful pics is very good at what he does, I would like to see some closeup pic someday..
Thanks for sharing the news Pat

Hi

Well I'm sorry Chas and Jean -Bernard you are entitled to your opinion but not everybody wants to take the route you do and buying diorama items in kit or ready made form is no different to buying kits of tanks or planes.

After all you don't buy the plastic card, gets plans and create the tank yourself you buy one from Tamiya, Dragon etc., although I know in Jean- Bernard's case scratch building everything is his enjoyment and art.

Why make the distinction between the kit you buy being a tank or a house, or a tree, and then in some way wish to regard those who take the shop brought route as less of a model maker.

It's all about the fun and enjoyment of the hobby regardless of what that entails. Hope I don't sound like I'm coming down on you, far from it, it's just it sounded a bit elitist and all we want to do is enjoy ourselves in our own way and for some buying these may just be that .

Alan

Have to Agree with alan here, there isnt even a review or such, nature may be good, but i have found 2 useful things in a few months of looking, a fuscia branch makes good log, or tree, and birch seeds.

Some people rave about using natural materials in dioramas however many times Ive found natural products will wither and discolor over time and eventually just die, and end up looking completely unnatural.

These products are perfectly viable in my opinion, often Ive seen modellers combine such products with a variety of different materials on the market to achieve a range of foliage and greenery. I believe these products have a very useful purpose for many modelers, and not 'lazy' ones who arent willing to make their own. Many companies produce different diorama greenery products, namely the japanese printed flowers and the grass mats from a company that escapes my name, these non natural products are simply outstanding and the best products available in my opinion.

Anyway, lets also wait until we can see the actual product up close!

Sorry for butting in here, however Rob has made a good point, yeah its great going into your garden and cutting down the real thing, then paint, and establishing it within your chosen subject, so what actually happens as the real plant dries out after a few days, does it still look as good as when you first painted it ?

Hi

To be fair I wouldn't take anything from outside such as plant material etc. and not expect to do some kind of preservative work on it.

Just bringing it in and painting it is no good at all.

You'd need to follow the same sorts of procedures those people who take up collecting and creating dried flower arrangements do. Using a Glycerine solution if need be.

Alan

Hey Alan, I think you are right, maybe my approach to diorama making ("don''t buy anything you can build by yourself better") could be tagged as being "elitist". But then I resent the word as it's got a negative meaning, and could mean that I don't respect my colleagues which would not be the truth.

However, i certainly tend to have a lot of doubt concerning all those companies that sell diorama products, as a lot (if not most) products look like they are of very dubious quality (especially with the buildings side of diorama making).
In some case those lead to some kind of trends in diorama making -like when Heki grass came out, and every diorama started looking like a hairy monster a few years back, and there are other examples like that. this I don't consider as being a good thing as it kills diversity and creativity etc..

But about those ferns i don't consider those at first sight as being bad looking, on the contrary. But like Rob said, I wait to see those close, because I fear the great picture taking and the fact that those pics are taken from afar somewhat hides quite a few problems with those products.

As for the material taken from nature ageing problem, browse this site, from Chas to CK Tang you will find plenty of details about the glycerine tricks to keep them in a good shape.

But then like told once Armorama's home Mr BuyBuyBuy: "modellers love spending money" . that's simply the best thing i ever read on those forums and then nobody can argue against that

IMO they actually look pretty nice - the exception being the first product in the right side column of photos. Is that the Elephant Ear Leaf? Sorry, but IMO that looks like an aquarium plant.

Would I buy a set though? I'm not sure, but I wouldn't rule it out totally (not just because I like spending money, JB You know Tracey doesn't permit that )

Rudi

Yes, I do have a very strong opinion, but I wouldn't call it elitist though. My love for scenery creation is just like another modellers love for building and detailing a Tiger tank. I'm sure news of a ready-built, ready-painted Tiger 'kit' would not go without criticism here on the site.

These plants do look quite realistic, especially the small banana palms. Jungle plants released so far by other companies tend to be very generic, for example, this pattern:

Most of the major scenery manufacturers have released this type of fern, yet I have never seen anything in nature that looks remotely close.

I bought my first P.E leaf kit last week. Why? Because I liked the design and wanted to be able to replicate it myself (using Fimo Deco Gel). This is a way to support PE companies, yet get more bang for your buck.

As JB said, preserving natural plant material is very easy and effective. Browse the site for info...

Damn, I just bought the Custom Dioramics Palm Tree set These look far superior, so I'll probably get a set, inspite of the fact that like Chas, I like to use natural materials, these fit my needs for my current project.

Im with Chas and Jean.
I wouldnt pay money for these sorts of items, and if i wanted to, i'd go down to the local pet store and get it for half the price.
I am not attacking the News Bearer, or the manufacturer, well maybe a little the manufacturer ...
But my point is, the item shown here...its extremely artificial looking, i mean, what is it even meant to be? A pole, wrapped in a hose, with enourmous leaves? Leaves of this size are found on very specific Tropical plants, not on some sort of vine on a stick.

It looks like a generic, plastic looking product designed to attempt to pull in the profit of beginners who have not yet discovered you are able to make your own from paper, card, or, go to the extent of searching the garden.....or an aquarium store...Just my opinion.

However i assume those of us shooting down the item pictured, have also had a look at the other products in the artical, which are far from the same standard as the one pictured, the banana trees are very nice indeed!

Cheers

What reviewer? there's no review here. It's a news story that says these are available. There's no comment on quality in the news story, simply a list of what's available and some pics. Big difference betrween that and a review.

Well , .....................
They look pretty good , .........................

Actually on a par with Chas's palms ......................... then again Chas paid nothing for his and learned how to make very well done palm trees which in a sbs he shared with us.
I've got nothing against people buying and using them , some feel they can't make them , but have they tried ? ...................... I just think that with the information on this site you can make your own " whatever " , most dont look too tedious or hard.

In the end game I think there's more satisfaction when you create something from spit , squirrel turds and foil than buying something you could easily make.

As far as elitist goes , ................ Jean Bernard is ............ [ ]
He sits in a garden shed in all climates and creates bueaty from basically nothing so he dosen't harm his family from vapors and such ...................

I don't think Alan used " elitist " as a cut , ........... remember it's had to convey meaning good or bad on a keyboard , especially with language barriers and J.B. actually being an elitist , ............... sorry couldn't resist ....................

I've hammered back and forth with Claude many a time over the smallest detail , [ good lord another elitest ] , but he wouldn't have taken the time to pester me about things unless he thought it would make my work better , ................... that's a friend and fellow modeller , ........................ not an elitest .

Sorry too much coffee this morning ...............

Now, there's a REALLY radical idea....

Ah, that would require buying the product in question. IMO, these photographs are of high enough quality for us to form an opinion before we buy (isn't that part of the reason why we look at these News articles anyway?).

Chas

Oooerr, another Radical idea. Alternatively, why don't we we wait for someone like Scott Slodder to Review them as the company sends us Review material regularly..?

Slodder is a committed, thorough reviewer but in this case, I don't think anything he may say could convince me to buy these products. Not this time anyway. However, my mileage may vary. Buy the bloody product if you bloody want to.

-I heard an impatient father say that to his kid in the LHS the other day.

My apologies Pat for my useage of the word reviewer instead of bearer of news or something of such connotation, but i believe you and everyone else wouldve understood what i meant, but thanks for the correction.



Ah Jim! You havent lost your way with words i see.
Though i am with Chad on the image of the item pictured here, i severely doubt that it requires a thorough review to know the in's and out's of a vine entangled pole with massive leaves, i think the picture speaks for itself in this case...

Very interesting looking accessories, but there is nothing to indicate the actual size of the products. While a vehicle or weapon's size may be derived from its known scale, a plant can be anything. Are these four inches high? Six ? Eight? Twelve? Perhaps a photo next to a ruler would be helpful for items like this.

I'm desperate to order a couple of the banana trees, but I can't figure how to order off their site.