the scrap robot head

[shapemaster]

hmm ... looks like the mechanic has gone for a dump! :p

no, but seriously ... i dont think its such an easy question. it depends on the viewers degree of connection to a particular piece.

there are several things that can tell a story:

-symbols: the viewer needs to know the meaning of a symbol obviously, and therefore might not be the best way to adress a large audience.

-movement

-expression (facial or gestural)

-focal point: what is distinguished in the picture? and again, is the viewer able to connect?

cant think of anything else right now ...

[CybrGfx]

hy
behold ...my new ... aham ... "story"
its a composition allright, its not finished , NO COLOR ! , just B&W, some details are polished for a more "complete" sensation, and I know i left a bunch of mess out there .... like before ... this scrap is telling something or it is not?
Not. You have an evil robot head on a lab mount, with a broken window behind it. The robot head does not look like it was thown through the window, although it is about the only explanation for the broken window.

But there is no broken glass on the workbench, and the head looks to be on a mount...The window is where the confusion comes into the scene, with the picture saying nothing to help the viewer understand.

Nice perspective on the background.

~C

[TrenchcoatPixie]

Is the window broken? I thought those were trees outside.

The 'story' I get from this is "There is a guy, he lives in a pretty nice area in the city. He builds robots in his spare time but he can't afford a flat screen monitor, so who knows."

[q12]

Is the window broken? I thought those were trees outside.

The 'story' I get from this is "There is a guy, he lives in a pretty nice area in the city. He builds robots in his spare time but he can't afford a flat screen monitor, so who knows."

yes there are trees and they are outside.
and the story i had in mind was a normal shot from a room where some guy is ready to brutal deisassamble this very nice head. That's why i place the hamer,and that other stuff usualy not recomanded to work in this case with this nice piece of tech. And like a time story ,is situated somewhere in the 90's where are no flat screens ,but CRT's and ball mouse's. A bit nostalgic I know.
I was thinking in a holywoodian or disneyan concept of telling a image story; I imagine what script they have in mind and then upon that script they make scenes in diferent ways. and this is a humble interpretation of what i understand about making a story from a imaginary script make by my self. Usualy a story is a couple of events who are evolve in TIME , so the best way to tell or show a story is a film or a animated image. But from my point of view i find what you say imposible and SF because is a single static image who cant embrace events.
And I dont see any broken window there, either.
By the way mr. Cyber if you are able so whell to understand a "story" from a single image then be so kind and shoot me with some links who can clarify this aspect. I want to see what you are seeing , to better understand what you think and the other like you.
thanks in advance.
I know is not your business to help but to criticise, but for a while make a constructive critiq and give me a point here.

[CybrGfx]

yes there are trees and they are outside.
and the story i had in mind was a normal shot from a room where some guy is ready to brutal deisassamble this very nice head. That's why i place the hamer,and that other stuff usualy not recomanded to work in this case with this nice piece of tech. And like a time story ,is situated somewhere in the 90's where are no flat screens ,but CRT's and ball mouse's. A bit nostalgic I know.You assume that the viewer will understand that you are being nostalgic, and not think the work inconsistent in tools and technology. If they are not into technology and assembly, the viewer might think the hammer perfectly normal to see.
I was thinking in a holywoodian or disneyan concept of telling a image story; I imagine what script they have in mind and then upon that script they make scenes in diferent ways. and this is a humble interpretation of what i understand about making a story from a imaginary script make by my self.And that is something you are improving upon with each artwork. Your pictures now tell much more of a story than they once did, but they are not telling the story you are imagining, because you expect the viewer to see and understand details that the average viewer will not, when simply facing your creation. But you are still improving.Usualy a story is a couple of events who are evolve in TIME , so the best way to tell or show a story is a film or a animated image. But from my point of view i find what you say imposible and SF because is a single static image who cant embrace events.And that, Teodor, shows how lacking your knowledge is, and why you should not take such an accusatory tone.

There are two well-established techniques to accomplish what you are describing. The first, which is what I continuously attempt to help you with, is the art of Visual Storytelling. It is the ability to create an image that tells a story. There are countless examples of this, and countless professionals producing it. Shawn Waite (http://shedwa.blogspot.com/2008/03/nocona-boots-are-bad-ass.html) is one artist whose images do a very good job of telling a visual story.
http://www.adpulp.com/archives/2008/03/06/Nocona_Bat.jpg
Other illustrators, like Howard Pyle,
http://static.flickr.com/64/163666254_d847938442.jpg,
And even Old Masters like Rembrandt could tell a story with an image...
http://www.masterandmargarita.eu/images/03karakters/judaspenningen.jpg

Secondly, the ability to capture an action moment, rather than a static image is called a storyboard, and has long been used to illustrate animations in a static form.
http://www.majorspoilers.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/11/san_fran_destroyed3_final.jpg
And I dont see any broken window there, either.Then you are not looking closely enough.
http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/2152/q12sk2.jpg
By the way mr. Cyber if you are able so whell to understand a "story" from a single image then be so kind and shoot me with some links who can clarify this aspect. I want to see what you are seeing , to better understand what you think and the other like you.
thanks in advance.There are schools (http://www.academyart.edu/animation-school/bfa_program.html), classes (http://www.gnomon3d.com/coursesnew/analog_production/visualstructure.html), groups (http://www.behance.net/Circles/Sequential-Art-the-mechanics-of-visual-story-telling_/37667), websites (http://www.hippasus.com/resources/viscomp/index.html), books (http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0961472820/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new), and DVDs (http://www.thegnomonworkshop.com/dvds/imc01.html)to help you learn Visual Storytelling, Teodor. A web search will point to to some of these. Even here at CGS, a search for Visual Storytelling will provide to links of 2D, 3D and animated art, as well as various discussions about how to tell a story with a single image.
I know is not your business to help but to criticise, but for a while make a constructive critiq and give me a point here.Teodor, I will give poor language translation as the reason behind that rude sounding statement, as my critiques ARE help to those wishing to improve who choose to listen. Part of your problem is you keep starting images without correcting the mistakes of your previous ones. You ARE improving in having a "script" backstory to your images, but you still assume too much symbolism that is just not visually dominant enough to the viewer, and you still have too many confusing elements to your works. Try to simplify your image, drawing only those objects vital to the story, leaving the "accessory" touches of nostalgia aside until after you secure the basic imagery to clearly tell the story.

~C

[lokki]

I'm going to have to agree that I don't really get the stated story out of the visuals... there simply is too little contrast between the robot head and the tools on the bench. It might be a stronger statement to have something that is very obviously fragile and delicate alongside those tools. The value of the head itself is not clear from the setting, so there's no way to know if the tools are appropriate or not, or even if they were used to build it as opposed to being set up to take it apart.

Try stripping down the scene just to those elements that contribute to the exact story you want to tell, and make a clear connection between the head and the tools... maybe some other visual clue that implies some tool has already been used, or one is being prepped for use. And consider how you might show that the head is a fine piece of engineering, to give some context.

[TheGuide]

After I read your story I see the image in a different perspective... but it should be the other way around. So you should make things more obvious. If you want to place a "hint" to the story in the scene and you want it to be subtle but seen by all. Place it in a way that makes you think it will jump you ;)

What I mean is this: exaggerate the hints and parts that are linked to the story, those parts that need to be linked together so that the story is told. Now to do that you also need a composition. What is seen first, what second and what as last? What things will only be seen when someone looks a second time?

for the rest... I thought the broken glass/ trees where smoke... so this was my story:

Setting: a Future War

Story: A mechanic is fixing up parts of the warbots he found outside to build his own warbot, so that the bot can protect him from the war.

Hints & Explanations: Smoke, aggressive looking Robot Head, mechanic tools

And try to listing, everyone here is giving you tips :D

PS: I doubt that everyone that looks at that rembrandt can tell the story as rembrandt meant it to be ;)

[Michael5188]

Hmm, I think what Cyber is noticing with the window is basically the solid pointed out is a door, and the broken pointed out is an intact window, but the trees look like pieces of glass. Simply a product of the rough stage and the choice of value you had for the trees, and easily fixed in the future.

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