Joining the circus.

[speedgraflex]

Good evening everyone, warm greetings from Los Angeles. It is no secret that I have been feeling depressed in the wake of Photobucket's decision to block forum links. I still think this was, at heart, a decision based upon greed, with apathy towards all those souls who were already aboard their enterprise (Hmmm, I am mixing metaphors as usual). Being a sensitive soul, I took this personally. I felt right at the start of my interest in model building as a hobby and a pursuit, I was being yanked offstage with the large hook (is that what happens to Bugs Bunny or is it someone else in the world of Chuck Jones?).

In short, I felt like this:



My wings were clipped.

I shut down for awhile. I contemplated. I went to the desert and looked at the stars. I did. Maybe it was something else that was bothering me. Maybe. I like to think it was something else, but truthfully, it was a feeling that I was smashed flat and my ambition to be amongst everyone as a builder took a nose dive (Ooo good maybe the metaphors are working).

I finished a website for a model maker / fabricator / designer / producer of a beautiful ship model—a 1/350 scale version of the Normandie no less—and as a bonus the model maker / fabricator / designer / producer sent me some old model kits. He let me pick the kits, so I picked the two Trimaster kits—the 1/48 Ta 152H-1 and the 1/48 190-d9 Langnasen Dora. The Tank, like all things Tank, intimidated me, but the Dora, the Dora did not...

I took some snaps of the kit:





On the advice of John Kim, I purchased some seriously gorgeous After Market. Seriously, this resin is off the charts sharp and tight!



I visited Eagle Editions online and purchased decals:



I think I can, I think I can... at least, I feel less intimidated, more free to make mistakes and learn!

So.

I thought I would post this here so you would know what I am experiencing, maybe you can relate, maybe not, but it was important for me to share with you.

Thanks for reading.

Bruce

[RexCag]

Bruce, glad you thought it over,,,,,,,and found a new photo host.

I was "knocked off my pins" for a bit when PB pulled their stunt, also.

The PB thing happened at about the same time as four other "online modeling events" were unfolding around me. Between those five things, I had just about thrown in the towel as far as being an online modeler was concerned.

I was this close >< to going back to the way I handled modeling back in the 60's and 70's. In other words, just building and working along in solitude, with nothing "public" about my modeling except for a new model in the display cabinets. No more shows, contests, online forums, posting photos to give others info, shred my book series notes, etc, etc.

But, I didn't,,,,,well, except for the thing about the shows,,,,,recent revelations have put me off of those for a while,,,,at least for the rest of this year. As for the photos, I found a way to do it myself, I deleted most of the threads on Hangar Deck that the PB mess destroyed, and I will fix some of the threads that I kept in place.

I've dealt with the "Invision random sudden outages" problem by mirroring everything in a folder on my desktop,,,,,,,and will just blog that info if I have to, and close the Invision forum if they keep doing it.

Great to see what you are putting into your project. About all you didn't mention is what brand or brands of paint you will be using.

Welcome back to the new "normal", in the post-PB world.

[speedgraflex]

Good morning, Rex. Thank you for your supportive response, particularly detailing your reaction to Photobucket... actually, more to the point, I am sympatico with your reaction to pull up public online presence and get back to solitary work. I really feel that pull, too, very strongly.

Come in alone.

That's what we do as modelers. It's a private occupation, conducted to provide ourselves with the most significant personal challenges, combining fields of research in science and historical data, followed by engineering and drafting, capped off by construction and crafting of a final product.... at least as far as I understand modeling for myself.

I actually worry that by writing and documenting the process of building, by sharing progress, I am spending too much time in process and less time in progress, but I temper this worry by knowing I am learning through my vulnerabilities from a supportive and kind group of modelers here. That is one of the principal reasons I chose SPA Modeler.

I also set limits on what tools I use to document and respond to forum activities, which means all of my work is done using my iPhone. This decision allows me to keep a work schedule as well. This is also a form of creative camouflage: hiding within plain sight. I am able to keep tabs on modeling pursuits, respond to posts and create images to document my own work using one device.

I believe you wrote quite elegantly about a system of backups to be kept at all times, and it is post Photobucket that I began to use a rather ancient stand alone Hackintosh that is completely sealed off from online use as another backup source in case the cloud thins out or disappears one day.

I also believe you wrote quite eloquently about decision making of a modeler's own interests by the cataloguing inventory of decal sheets. This idea is fascinating as a metric for choice and I am grateful you posted this article on the forum.

All the best!

[Thomas_M]

First, I have to say that your previous posts are, how to say?, touching! Valuable posts, IMHO. I guess all people having been hit by Photocrap´s blow had such a reaction, looking and thinking back on all the pictorial value they invested in forums and their hobby. One surely could cry and walk away. I for myself won´t give Photocrap this kind of satisfaction! They also even won´t care!

I spend lot´s of time copying my content frm PB on my HDD. Sadly, I don´t have an old Mac, Bruce! Wished I had one of those so impressive new ones!

I also have copied most of my content up to a new, paid, account on SmugMug. I liked the look of it, their free 14-days trial, the fast and friendly/funny way to reply my questions. Not too far away from now I will begin to post my pictures from SmugMug here on SPAM. My paid account on Photocrap will run out in April, 2019, IIRC. I told them about my disappointment (well, I used more harsh words...), but so far still wait for any reply from them on the cancellation of my account. They may go to hell.

Congrats on the catch of those two TriMaster kits, Bruce! The pictures above may be grainy, but I remember those sprues, from my own kits down in the basement of the house!

[speedgraflex]

Thomas,

My apologies about the grain. I took those shots at magic hour, close to sundown, yesterday. There was a lot more digital hash despite shooting RAW using VSCO-CAM than I expected from the images. Despite advancing the iPhone's cam tech, it is still very much a light dependent sensor. I re-shot these frames at 10:30 am today.

[mostrich]

That's what we do as modelers. It's a private occupation, conducted to provide ourselves with the most significant personal challenges, combining fields of research in science and historical data, followed by engineering and drafting, capped off by construction and crafting of a final product.... at least as far as I understand modeling for myself.

[speedgraflex]

Thank you so much, Torben! I am grateful to you (and perhaps I wrote something that was clear, a rarity for me!). Thank you so much for reading these posts and inspiring with your heroic builds. When I think of relationships between the model and its base or I'm thinking about calling this the platform or stage, I think of your work!



I saw this on the Bandai SW Group FB page and immediately thought of your project! I am very excited to see your take on the jungle!!!!! Cheers!!!!!!!

[Stikpusher]

Bruce, most of us took the PB hit and reacted in different ways. As for me, I'm too stubborn to walk away from something that I have invested so much time and effort into. But it was certainly a wake up call on being dependent upon a single source to host all that work. I am if the mindset now as far as PB is concerned of "millions for defense, but not a penny for tribute" as far as they are concerned. They will not get a cent of my money.

Sometimes I think we all can get the feeling of wondering why we spend time sharing our work, when we could be spending more time working on our projects.

[speedgraflex]

Good afternoon, Stik! Thanks for your words of advice. You are absolutely right about the fragility of storing images in one place. Your words are wise, Stik. I sincerely appreciate your approach to dealing with the kerfuffle that is also known as the Photobucket Affair. I meant to write more, but I dunno, I was tired from driving yesterday and now today running around, but my thoughts are with you, my friend. Your words are right. I hear. I understand. I am also very grateful to you from the first for making me feel welcome here.

[BorgR3mc0]

The whole Photobucket drama definitely ticked me off. I have a decade worth of modelling pictures over there and suddenly my whole online presence was gone. And I couldn't even use my avatar!
But modelling solitary is something I haven't done in years. So I had to "adept and overcome"!

Online sharing of modelling is ideal for me. I have visited a local ipms chapter but those guys where ancient. And more appointments in my agenda are not what I want. So a quick post and response on my iPhone is an ideal way to stay in touch with other modellers. Spam is a small forum but I like that it has modellers of a lot of different nationalities, levels and interests.