Right now, my main project is a courtyard on Batuu. It's meant to be a gathering place for the Followers of the Force, a market area that serves as a hub for the local community.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/487540800071270400/1243319684338552994/PXL_20240523_214417924.jpg?ex=66530570&is=6651b3f0&hm=6b37690695d59f87ad3c846e27c1ee55c3545a42cc87d0e540b63e43d2793a81&

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/710561440984989791/1244028350796664974/PXL_20240523_215025705.jpg?ex=66539f2f&is=66524daf&hm=8b3a383c5cb782bf36dece0c0702ec1ec8ef43a1b0942f241977ac1b70627e7b&

For research, I've naturally been watching and reading a lot about Galaxy's Edge, after I had the privilege to go last December. But I've also been thinking about spaces in general, and noting what I see in real-life examples of spaces like the one I'm trying to build. 

Here's a few of the central features I wanted from the outset:

• The Suggestion of More: I want doorways and staircases that lead off into new spaces, implying more than what the viewer can see, making it all feel more real.
• Lots of Dwellings: I want to suggest that people live here, have personalized it, and have history.
• Purpose: I want all the details to have a reason, even if it's in-fiction decoration. Everything should be explainable, even if the explanation from a character would be "the person who designed this was an idiot".
• Tasks: People have thing they're doing, routines.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/692347120014852157/1235919487673307236/PXL_20240427_232802595.jpg?ex=66532038&is=6651ceb8&hm=311795a9b857f9e1d49a6f0183ede9c40491c85307911c55164a34c0104ec1d1&

Today I went to the St. Louis City Museum, a kind of sprawling playground built in an old industrial tower. It had a lot of examples of the kind of behavior I wanted my build to unconsciously encourage, and the kinds of visuals I wanted to evoke. Examples:

Flow of traffic

People relaxing

Busy-ess, but not clutter

(The City Museum is basically a theme park, so it shares similarities to Galaxy's Edge. But I'm also not designing a space that I want to feel like a Theme Park, so I'm bearing that in mind.)

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/710561440984989791/1244029394989875250/PXL_20240525_170842307.jpg?ex=6653a028&is=66524ea8&hm=53f04b2ab39c02541cfec1a69d1c9d59575dfd3e4da2f396213fd6c904bea3ef&

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/710561440984989791/1244029275733102644/PXL_20240525_181401691.jpg?ex=6653a00c&is=66524e8c&hm=27d3a766581a3b998147e07ecb9c93b1cc0bb1427b5de0048cbc6ef02a571fd6&

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/710561440984989791/1244036305692655789/PXL_20240525_170624523.jpg?ex=6653a698&is=66525518&hm=9793f90c073a9aea64cd5e2e4c13a7ea9f40a3b267d1036ba599f6f20b2e78c7&

Some of my big take-aways:

• Busyness at different heights: having faces and activity at different tiers of height helps create that sense of activity and "more than you can see"
• Shade and Benches: Seating and comfort is essential if you want a space people are going to hang out in. The design of Galaxy's Edge intentional omits benches so they can move more guests through, and it sadly makes it a space people can't just vibe in. Trees and greenery are huge too.

Some changes I'm going to make to my build:

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/710561440984989791/1244037761036451840/Screenshot_20240525-153740.png?ex=6653a7f3&is=66525673&hm=0bd404b04ffa4b7bdffc37aa1eed635b2d4f1dce90d1af5c2f63834197ba59ee&

I want to create an intentional space with awnings and shade coverage, and also benches. It should be a relaxing place. Maybe, if the benches are stone, it was originally meant for meditation and just became a gathering place overtime because it's pleasant.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/710561440984989791/1244037770586886274/Screenshot_20240525-153547.png?ex=6653a7f5&is=66525675&hm=18d23d73fc4f62a46afcebaf1fe19a5fb7a54a4536f67034ecf1f8faade66377&

I'm going to change up this corner to make it a shaded balcony or terrace space, so some characters can be moving along it or looking over the rail, to add that height activity.

That's all for now! I'll keep adding thoughts as they come. Feel free to do the same!

This thread is for discussion, questions, and updates about the Followers of the Force.

The Followers of the Force are an informal group of like-minded believers who prioritize peace, freedom, and harmony with all living things. They are pilgrims, warriors, scholars, and colonists, those who study, respect, and live in balance with the mysterious energy field commonly known as the Force, sharing one familial community all around the galaxy.

Our sub-factions include the Freedom Fighters, Relic Hunters, and the New Jedi Order.

• The Followers of the Force Faction Page
  
  
• All FF Builds

The Followers of the Force were founded by Sam (RocketBoy), originally a member of the CFS, near the end of Factions S1 (June 20th, 2021 to be exact). Its first recruit was TalusMoonbreaker.

With just three members, the Faction tied for 2nd place at the end of the season.

The faction rapidly expanded in Season 2, currently numbering 11 active players. Followers of the Force ranked #1 in Episodes 1, 2, and 3 (Part I).

Thanks for stopping by!

(Page subject to updates)

A Lego Designer once said (and I might be paraphrasing), "The photo you post of your build is the only representation of your build anyone is ever going to see, so you want it to be as good as possible."
The topic comes up a lot. It's true: the quality of your photo can really bolster or hurt your build. I've seen amazing builds ruined by presentation, and simple builds excellently photographed in a way that takes them to another level. To the end of helping each other post the best pictures we can, I wanted to open up the floor for people to share their photo tips and tricks. 

A while back I put together a little guide with everything I'd learned since I jumped back into LEGO in June of 2020. It's by no means comprehensive, and it's due for an update, but hopefully it helps a little bit! I know a lot of other members have knowledge to share too. 

By RocketBoy (Sam)

Hey there. I'm no expert or professional, but I've learned a lot over the last few months about how to shoot MOCs, and I figured someone, somewhere might benefit from some tricks I've picked up.

I think it's important to take care of how your photos look: they're the only thing most people are going to see of what you built. You want them to represent your builds well and not get in the way of your work. But even beyond that, the way you shoot your photos can help tell stories all on their own. 

Building

It all starts during building. Make sure you know what angle (or angles) you're planning to shoot from, and build with that angle in mind. Treat it like a movie set: don't obstruct the camera, make sure the colors and shapes read well, and utilize composition techniques to make sure the audience's focus is where you want it to be. 

Background

Backgrounds are up to you, but I recommend picking up a few big cardstock poster boards in white and black from your local Walmart or equivalent. The ideal is something non-reflective and non-textured so it stays out of the way and doesn't detract from the smooth surface of the LEGO bricks. Background too small for your shot? I use Pixlr (a free editing site) to doctor things and clone white space where the poster board ends. Still getting the hang of doing it in a seamless way, but it works.

What about immersive backgrounds? A good background can add a lot of atmosphere and scale to your build. Personally, I have two big computer monitors for work that I use to project backgrounds, sort of like a tiny version of how they filmed the Mandalorian. You could also use a laptop hooked up to a TV or an iPad/Tablet. I try to give my builds at least one immersive shot, because I think it looks really cool. Maybe you prefer brick built sky? I don't, but we've all got our preferences. 

Hardware

Obviously, it would be nice if you could use a fairly good camera. Some cellphones do a great job (I use a Pixel 3), other times it's best to see if anyone has an old digital camera lying around the house or something else you can borrow that won't make your builds look like mud. 

If your phone camera stinks (like mine used to) and it's all you have, you can still make do: make sure you have really even light and a clean background. Bad cameras have a hard time balancing that stuff, so do whatever you can to make the image cleaner. 

Lighting

Like I just said, it usually helps to have really even, soft lighting, especially if your camera is lower quality. Natural lighting reflecting off your walls is good, as are soft lamps from across the room. You could make a light box by cutting holes in a cardboard box and taping wax paper or tissue paper over the holes, which diffuses the light coming through and makes it softer. Different lighting can give things a different feel, so you can replicate afternoon, morning, or artificial lights in different ways (especially for any immersive shots you do). I've recently discovered that a phone flashlight is a pretty amazing stand-in for sunlight, if you want it pouring in through windows or coming down dappled through leaves. 

Editing

This is more important that some people think. No matter how good your camera is, it's usually focused on capturing as much information as it can, not capturing the image in the way you want it to eventually look. 

"Auto-Fixes": running your shots through an auto-fix filter to adjust the white balance is quick, easy, and has a huge effect on photo quality. This is good to do even if you don't trust yourself to go messing with contrast/exposure/saturation/other variables. 

Google Photos has an auto-fix, as does free online editor Pixlr. 

If you do feel comfortable editing the various balances, get in there and mess around. Upping contrast and exposure/brightness in tandem can help you bring out colors and edges and wash out your background so you get a clean image. Certain filters can make things pop, but can also look like too much. A lot of TV shows and movies have vignette (darkened edges/corners of the frame) that you never notice, but bringing a bit into your image can enhance the "cinematic" feel. And again, this is all down to preference. Make your stuff look the way you want.

SOME TIPS FROM OTHER MEMBERS

Pombe: "My photo advice:

1) Lighting.  Period. This is the most important thing and the thing that if you must spend money on, it's this. Buy some cheap $5 lamps if you have to.

2) Tripod.  Build one out of lego if you have to. Stop using your shaky hands.

3) Timer.  No point to using a tripod if you are still going to touch your camera when you shoot. Stop using your shaky hands. Use your shaky hands for other things."

Denal31: "Using a tripod and a timer has done wonders for my photos."

Darth_Bjorn: "I always have a layer, where I adjust Brightness and Contrast to make the MOC pop more...Lego colors are very vibrant, and it rarely comes through unless you have excellent lighting or full daylight, so increased Brightness and Contrast makes up for that…

Sometimes I add another layer to adjust the color curve... By having it curve slightly above average you eliminate dirty whites and blacks... That also makes the bricks stand out more clearly…

I could write a ton about the golden ratio and composition/layout, but the importance is balance in the photo…"

The best way to learn is to mess around with your options and see what looks best for what you have available. We build with LEGO, we know all about working inside our limitations, right?

Thanks for reading!

(ALSO: Please post links to images rather than uploading the images to the website. This place of ours only has so much storage and that would quickly fill it up. Thanks!)

I'll go first: for whatever reason I got really into the Mandalorian figbashing thing a few weeks ago, and turned out a few I liked. I'm a huge fan of the idea of the Mando'ade; all these different clans with different philosophies and perspectives coming together to try and build something for the good of all Mandalorians. 

Mandalorian Matron

Clan Eldar Supercommando

Castor Astarix, Bounty Hunter

And then I've got all the ones I did for the CMF Challenge at the beginning of Season 2. Went wild with these.

I know I'm not the only one passionate about the art of Minifig crafting. Looking forward to seeing what cool figs you guys have got. Share away, share away. 

Before I commit to a faction and the game, I was wondering if I would have to use flesh and brown skin colored heads or could I use the classic (1975 - 2002 I believe) simplistic yellow heads, for my figures? It makes no difference really to me but I do find the simple heads to be more up my alley.

Thank You,

Comrade

Legitimately though, I just love any and all aliens, and I'd kill for a $20 battle pack style set of Aqualish, Quarrens, Weequay, and anything else.

There's still a host of aliens I'd love. Ello Asty, some of the denizens of the Canto Bight casino, etc.

https://alienanthology.files.wordpress.com/2018/03/tljspecies1a.jpg?w=616

One of these!

https://lumiere-a.akamaihd.net/v1/images/creature-cantina_3fdabe24.jpeg?region=289%2C151%2C1595%2C799&width=960

I could probably just name aliens all day! There's also a ton of extra characters in the new Lego Star Wars I'd like to see made into real figs (including Babu Frik). We're overdue for a Crimson Corsair, too!

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/i63mo5l2ZhU/maxresdefault.jpg

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/lvfwTrfw9WQ/maxresdefault.jpg

There are a few we know we'll get soon I'm excited about. The new Ahsoka, particularly. I hope they go with dark orange for her skin tone, personally.

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/fA6iwtEp6bo/maxresdefault.jpg

- Imperial Consortium's fleet - ship numbers and types, places of deployment. 

- Ground vehicles and armor - what does TIC use for it's ground operations? Are many AT-AT's still in use, or is older equipment leveraged more due to dwindling supplies? Which worlds provide the means to build and repair TIC's arsenal of destruction?

- Troops - how do Imperial remnants deploy their infantry? Are there more stormtroopers or regular troopers from the imperial army? How effective is their armor? Which special weapons do they take to the field? How do commanders deal with a lack of supplies and support?