Thanks Charles,

Yep, i somewhat know what the problems are, but mostly do not take the necessary time to adress it.
I do not always want to mount a whole lighting just to get a WIP photo. Anyway, i really should do that as i am noticing right now that some WIP pics are not worthy to put in my next book.

I had some better results already with the aperture not so wide open and longer exposure times. I always use a tripod and that makes me even more angry when i have unfocused pictures, despite the tripod.
I had for a long time the ISO settings at automatic, meaning that nearly every picture got shot at ISO 1600 in my cellar. I have it now set at ISO 100, it's better already.

I also playing around already with stacking software.
That's really cool but takes a hell lot of time and even more organisation to find back the photos belonging together for the stacking process.
I am literally drown already in pictures i need to sift through for my next book.

I promise i will try to do my best

That letterbox rocks!! This is classic for you. Every tiny detail is completely researched and given great care during construction,
J

Hey Claude, been some time since I stopped by to view your progress. As usual, it is coming along very nice. Your farm house/barn reminded me of growing up on my grandparents dairy farm in Vermont. Just about smelled the old wood mixed with the hay up in the rafter storage area. Only thing missing was the dust floating by in the sun shine.LOL. Your postal box is a winner, just one of those small things that tie it to reality. Your craftsmanship and dedication shows each time you add more eye candy. I spent 6 hours scratch building an old fashion wind up phone for the R/R dio I have going and it measures only 6mmX13mm. A lot of work for something so small but things like that make a difference in the final look. Always a pleasure to see what you come up with. bob d.

Claude,
I have been following all your progress on your blog. Missed seeing your updates here. As always your work is the best and the attension to detail is by far the best. As always I look foward to your posts. Keep of the great work, and have a great Holiday season.
Tom

Claude, I like the sound of that, "my next book". I can hardly wait for Volume 2!
Happy Holidays !
Tom

wow your detail is amazing the whole piece is really a work of art
may i ask how long it has took you to do this?
and what resin have you used for the water?
thanks
Curtis

Bob, Thomas , Tom, thanks guys, glad you like it.
I have some more goodies to show, just need to make some pictures.

Curtis, i suppose you mean this part of my Dio.
I started exactly 2 years and 8 days ago to work on this module.
It takes me longer then the castle build and i still work on it every day.
Of course the whole thing is in it's 7th year.

I used Envirotex for the water.

I just started working on the Harley driver, one who is really driving , not standing near the motorcycle.

Claude

thanks for sharing with me
and wait this is only part of your diorama!!
is there more??

Curtis

Look under my profile, topics started... everything with Clervaux in the header

also look on my webpage (click the banner in my post).


yes, there is more :-)

Claude

"Yes,there is more"
That is the understatement of the year!
J

WOW time well spent the whole diorama has so much charecter and story, it truly is the best diorama i have ever came across

Hello Claude -

I haven't tried it myself, but I've seen the stacking software referenced in model railroad magazines. No reason to use it for WIP images, but definately worthwhile for any potential "cover shot" ;-) Being where you are, and more related to superb (and also inventive) modeling than photography, look for Voie Libre at a newsstand - or, you might need to go to a hobby shop, as it's focused on narrow gauge and is not a mainstream publication.

Perhaps you're focusing manually as you say you're using a tripod, but one thing that I don't always pay attention to with autofocusing cameras, is just what the camera has focused on. In particular, if what I want to be in sharpest focus is not in the center of the frame, most decent cameras will provide "focus lock", so you can focus on what you want, press the "shutter release" half-way to hold focus on that, and then re-frame the shot as you wish. It's usually a learning experience to discover how much pressure is required to just hold the focus and not release the shutter - or the digital equivalent. Definitely less expensive an education than back when I was shooting slides ;-)

Also - I'm not a "rivet-counter", but wanted to commend you on your efforts to get those decorative bridge columns so close to the proto; your pile of detritus speaks for itself! For myself I tend to follow the modeling philosophy of Allen McClelland, one of "good enough", based on the specific element of each scene; some things are more important than others and not all should be treated with the same level of attention.

Charles



Charles





> I also playing around already with stacking software.
That's really cool but takes a hell lot of time and even more organisation to find back the photos belonging together for the stacking process.
I am literally drown already in pictures i need to sift through for my next book.

Thanks Charles for your advices

I am indeed manually focussing, mostly doing a few shots with the main focus point always a bit different.

Most problems are really with all the shoots needing to be sharp over a distance of up to 5 foot but I'm working on it!

The "good enough" philosophy is a problem IMO when you have reached a level where people exactly watch and follow what you are doing. It is also a problem when you intent to publish a book about the work.
In the special case of the columns (or the one i may still build , the fountain-column mix), there is a historical context to consider.
This columns are present on only a handful postcards of old Clervaux. Hardly anyone knew from memory about their existence. Only a descended of the sculptor who made the columns was aware of them.
As i am still hoping to find a home in a Clervaux museum i wanted to provide a correct historical piece for them.

By the way, meantime and after discovery of one more photo with different quality and lightning i must accept that the cover of the tower i made is done wrongly. It is probably not made of a roofing material (pewter or whatever it was) but made out of sandstone. Well, so be it.

Today is the day i want to complete most of the module, so let's stop writing and go down to the hobby room!

Claude

On the anniversary of the launch of 'Wacht am Rhine' congratulations again on maintaining the highest level of research and execution for this wonderful model. I'm glad to see you're off to the hobby room since that will mean more photos for us to admire in the near future.

Bravo et felicitations
John

It's been seven years! Wow!
I still remember when you first started posting about the castle and saying to myself " HAha another one of us planning on building a huge diorama. He'll never finish it."

So anyway ... as I've said a couple of times in your threads, this is just incredible!
Just the fact that you've continued to build this thing, at a fairly regular pace at that, is amazing. Now when you take into consideration the attention to detail and the level of craftsmanship, it's incredible. I salute you you Sir. And thanks for continuing to post.

BTW, I really like the tiles and woodwork on the upper parts of the farmer's house. Top notch.

John, thank you very much, i'm always happy to see a new poster following my work.

Bill, thanks for the praise and the time spend with the dio and me.

During the final stages of a big dio work or , as in this case, a module, there is so much to do and thik about, that it is really necessary to keep a written list and work that off. I am doing this a nd show you some more pieces who finally got finished

First, the shop signs of the bike shop.
This was the original

and here is the copy.
The lion, (the lion is the official sign of the brand "Peugeot") was photoetched according to my design (photoshopped out of the picture) by a photoetch service
The bike's frame is scratchbuild while the wheel is a photoetched part of a kit.


This is a butter churn (sp?), a exact copy of one i saw in a rural museum near my home. I spotted the metal parts chining through, i will fix it. Hey, don't be to picky on the worn paint. This is thing is about 1.5 cm wide and you will see it at a distance of 1 foor or so. This is defintely "good enough" :-)


This is a horse plough, an exact copy of one i found online

the claws are made very easily with soldering wire and unpainted


To the left of the farm house i placed an exterior toilet. i placed this on the boder of the dio too so you can have an exclusive view into the toilet, in the hole also if you like

The front door is slightly opened to allow some light come in from the other side.

Another picture (colour this time) from the kitchen. Except one or two little details it's basically finished.

The provision shelf may have some logical deficiencies (should be closed eventually, wrong choice of food shown), so let's put this one under the "oh, look, preserving jars" eyecatcher motto.
The jar's are hand made (i did not yet unwrap the lathe i bought 2 months ago)and painted from clear sprue .
The yellow box (powder soup named Krikox)and the blueish jar (mustard) are of a luxembourgish brand sold pre war and both got an decal with the original logo.

That's it for now!

Hopefully someone is going to see this as you all chimed in already for the letterbox.

Ok, order time for my book in time for Christmas is probably now over in respect to all countries out of Europe (at least not at my risk), everyone in Europe has still a day or two to order and get it in time.

Thanks

Claude

Don't you just love the part when you have the big work done on the buildings and you get to make the little details? These are the things that really set off a dio and you have made them,as always,accurately researched and beautifully made.
The pic of the horse plow looks no different than the real thing and could easily fool anyone that does not know that it is a pic of a model. Everything else is just as good.
I have to make a complaint though. The enviromentle protection agency called and wants to know why you placed the outhouse so close to a water source? Pollution? Merde!!
J

Jerry , i wanted also to add the end of a pipe coming out of the river bank a little bit lower and leading straight to the river but figured that anyhow nobody would notice.
I presume that most parts of the world do it like that nowadays.

Thanks for the comments! Looking like real, isn't it the best comment you can get?

Claude

Moien Claude,

what you do is always "good enough" m8!
Apart from that fact I think the chipping on the butter churn is quite convincing as it is!

Cheers
Romain

P.S.: I must agree that there is a pollution issue with the outhouse.

Haal op Romain, op der Musel hunn se haut nach net iwwerall eng Kläranlag

Thanks Romain!

I knew it

Claude, your work is outstanding and is an inspiration. Your book was delivered today and I am eagerly anticipating volume 2.
Andy

Claude, just recently I had another look at your Clervaux book. Your work is still amazing! Looks like the real thing!

Cheers!
Stefan

Yo Claude,

Loving the last photo's you showing here...so real. The room with the three is so cosy...your vegetation is as always spot on...


...it is sure an eye catcher...o god! stunning!

The painting and chipping of the botter box is just fine Claude.

Keep this up!

Greetz Nico