I have a Bradley scene with two Brads and a command hummer and misc. soldiers doing a little bit of everything from eating to using the tree line. I know that I have to lay the scene out right so you do not concentrate on just one part and I think that I have it layed out pretty good but I have not done one this large before . Well with more than one veh. and a few soldiers. So I guess I am asking can there be to much?

NEVER only your own limitations on this would rule it out take your time and don't expect to get it done in a week

Hey SGT.Busche

There is NO WAY you can EVER have too much on a dio!...as long as you have everything set out and it dosent look like sardines in a can your OK...

Too much, too little? Mm - depends on layout, size of base etc.

This years champion dio in Brisbane, Australia had at least 7 vehicles that I can recall and countless figures including victorious US. curious civilians, playing children, defeated Germans.

It was magnifiicant. I think it took the modeller 5 years to complete - including building the section of the french village it was set in.

Of course, some dios are just as good with one vehicle - depends on the skills of the modeler and the tastes of the viewer.

Go for it I say.

Cheers
Digger

The question is not whether it is too big but does it all work together. Are all the vehicles and men telling the same story or would they work better as a couple of smaller dio's?
With this many men and vehicles can we expect photos?
Robbo

Like everyone here has stated,too much or too little is relative to your needs.A single soldier on a 6"X6" base will look lost and out of place,unless that is what you want.For example,a British soldier who seperated from his unite in the middle of the African desert. The single soldier treking across a vast sand plan with footsteps trailing far dehind him will portray his hopelessness and loneliness.On the opposite side,i am working on a diorama that is the example of a crowded base.I want to portray the overburden of a makeshift mechanics camp.I want the mechanics to look overloaded with work,so the crowded vehicles will help with the look.Like you said,the eye should carry across the whole diorama and your figures are the way to do it.A figure pointing from you central focal point,i.e.tank,horse,largest group of soldiers,toward another focal point will help you to direct the viewers eye.Don't let this from detering you from slipping in that last figure that is seperate from the rest.Sometimes that one figure "hidden for the initial scan of the eye,helps to make the viewer find something "fresh" when he examines your work closer. Just don't do too much of this or your diorama will lack coherence.

While real life may have a profusion of confusion, what we portray as artists in plastic and resin follows more closely the rules of art. Look at photographs and paintings. They are edited, cropped and enhanced to focus your eyes. It's very easy to get carried away with too much and then lose focus. Too many sub-scenes are visually distracting and can turn your masterpiece into a mishmash, a collection on a fancy base. The bigger it is, the more careful pre-planing you have to do. Draw the plan out, place blocks like Legos as your vehicles, move them around, take notes and digital photos as reference, if possible. Look at it from multiple angles unless you plan to have full control of the perspective. Be ready to adjust you master plan if you see it's not working.
But remember, you are the master of your own universe and despite what we say, have fun with it.

I have seen a lot of fine dioramas that a packed with equipment, vehicles, etc. I have also seen pretty silly looking ones that look like parking lots. I think it is all in the context...

Just my 2 cents.

I agree!!!!!!!!!!! There is no such thing as too much in a dio.
I have just begun a dio that has changed shape and appearence 4 times since I decided the subject. It has gone from 2 aircraft, 5 pieces of gse equip., 35 figures on a 2'x3' flightdeck. Now it has mutated to 8 aircraft, 38 pieces of gse equip.,150+ figures on a 3'x5' deck!!
That might change too!!!

I have to agree with the gentlemen who were so kind to put some money in the bag before me: what's the story?
I a relaxed situation, soldiers tend to scatter more than while on a combat erxercise/war scenario, where 'tactcal behavious' is warranted.
You can also point the guns of the vehicles to the outside of the base, to create a feeling of imminent or possible danger from a enemy yet unseen.

Your diorama is just that, YOUR diorama. The underlying beauty of our hobby is that it is for our pleasure. Sometimes we become too hung up on contests and what our peers may think or say. As long as what you are producing satisfies you, it can never be anything but right. For several years I became a contest builder and began to think of building as "work". I now do not belong to a club and besides the interaction here on Armorama, I do not even come in contact with any modelers on a regular basis. Now building gives me more satisfaction than any trophies ever brought. Build whatever you want and most of all, ENJOY. Sorry for the lecture.

Patrick

:-)

Just two words of advice if you build large dios :

1) always provide places where you can place your feet when you want to walk to the center if your dio.
2) when you use the whole floor space, start modeling in the far corner and work towards the door, unless you want yourself to become a part of the dio.

LOL , just build like you want to build, buddy. Check with your other home members before you want to do a 1/35 copy of the whole assault on Omaha Beach or the USS Roosevelt loading at the dockside...

Well the majority says to just do what I want and go as big or as little as I want and that is what I am going to do . And yes there will deffintly by PIC's!! so I will not reveil the scene yet .