Moodys Aqua Cube Journal.

[Graeme Edwards]

"SHAKKIE" is a technique of borrowing nature's creation and incorporating it into a miniture representation.

 

[Graeme Edwards]

This is the same tank just re-designed.

Went away and the whole thing was a mess.
Ive learned a phew valuable things with the cube, also Ive been reading my new aqua-journals so I'm trying a second run at it. Ill keeping trying until i get it right.

 

[Themuleous]

That looks great Moody, very ADA. Can I ask where you got the rocks from and what you paid for them? Once everything has filled out it should look even better Whats the plant list? Is that HC at the front?

Nice work Moody

One quick thing, which Im sure you've thought about, but the pics would look really cool if the diffuser was removed, you lose the illusion of size when its in there and its also a bigish one which doesn't help

You going to stock it?

Sam

 

[Graeme Edwards]

Right, well the plant list is

: Sams HC
:Vesicularia dubyana
:Eusteralis stellata (Pogostemon stellata)
:Eleocharis acicularis
:Rotala sp. ''Nanjenshan'' (''Mayaca sellowiana'')
:Riccia fluitans

SAM, about the diffuser, yeah it would look better with it out of the shot but as its only day 1 pic i just took a plain shot, when it fills out about ill take the filter and diffuser out.
I like the fact that you say it looks very ADA, thats what I'm trying to achieve, perhaps not ADA but nature aquarium, hence the name "SHAKKEI".

As for livestock, i dont know, i had a bad time with my inverts last go round NOTHING survived all my MTS and shrimps all died, now I'm not sure why, all stats where fine, i came up with 2 possible theory's and they were that 1 it could of been copper poisoning but i have no way of testing that or 2 they simply didn't have enough food, but i don't think that is it. The shrimps never came out and when i found them dead they always were half in half out of their exoskeleton ( died while shedding) and the snails just didn't move then went moldy, so I'm going to wait first when it comes to stocking it.

Graeme.

 

[Themuleous]

Yeh you're probably right about the nature aquarium rather than ADA now you mention it, which ever it is, it looks great Glad to see the HC is doing well

Shame about the stocking, if only dwarf rasboras were more common, a shoal of 5-6 would look great in this mini tank.

And the rocks?

Sam

 

[Graeme Edwards]

Oh the rocks, i know your not supposed to but i collected quit allot from a south Devon cove

Look good though ay

 

[Themuleous]

Yeh they do, most cool. Just what Im looking for actually! Will have to see what I can find out in the countryside!

S

 

[craynerd]

Moody,

This is one of the most impressive aquascapes i have seen on here by a normal TFF member. The rocks are fantastic where did you find them.

I was so impressed i photoshoped it and put a golden ratio grid on, hope you don`t mind.

These are the things i noticed that personally i would alter and just see how it looks. Only minor adjustments and i may be totally wrong and well of the mark but here is my 2 pence worth....lol i am only constructively criticising because i think it looks awesome and maybe could benefit from a minor tweak, IMO !!!!!

Have a look:

See the two rocks on the left, i think there sides are two parallel, the one slightly more central could be tilted a little more to run alongside the left vertical dividing line, in the position denoted by the pink arrow.

Finally, the two rocks just slightly protrude the horizon line. Maybe it is to do with the photograph dimensions which have scued the golden ratio lines, BUT it may be worth just pushing them a few cm further in the substrate and see what it looks like with them a little lower, somewhere around the horizontal pink line.

In my own personal opinion, i also think it would look cool with a nice stem plant, rotala sp. say, growing against the rocks in the middle left segment.

I may be talking out of my bum, but it may be worth having a play next time u have your hands in the water just to see what it is like...!!

lol

Nice one mate, Very Very Very impressed!

Chris

EDIT: forgot to mention, the arrow heads mean nothing, it was the only tool i could find to get a straight line!!

 

[simonbrown403]

Oooooo!!! golden ratio.... everybody's a critique

No seriously! great job moody.

I agree with Chris about the rocks, the larger one of the two looks like its about to fall over and the front one would look better lower.

Personally i would stick with the HC for the front, it would give you a better feeling of space IMO, the collection of all three seams to section the tank.

Once again top job, i look forward to future posts.

Simon.

 

[craynerd]

As I said, I really like it! I just think the front one needs placing at a different angle so as not to follow the same path as the one behind it.

I also like the collection of rocks.
The whole tank is based upon the simplest principle of the golden ratio, placing one rock off center at 1:1.618 of the distance from either side. The collection of rocks masks the simplicity!

Get a bit more growth in there bud and you have a tank you should be well proud of! I am very critical, i have found very few tanks I truly like and this I very much do.

But each to their own , some you like some you don`t whether it is a truly divine in proportion (lol google the golden ratio!!), well, that`s in the eye of the beholder!!

Chris

 

[Graeme Edwards]

Wow, cheers guys.

I did try and follow the golden ratio and the triadic rule so its nice that some of you have picked up on that.
Iv also tried to follow some of the rules of ZEN rock arranging, theres allot to think about when it comes to placing a rock.
The two main rocks are a little hard to move around because of the tiny size of the tank and the depth of my substrate, but i can see what your saying about their hight, all ill say is when it fill out Little i hope that the plants will bring the rocks into perspective.
I'm going to leave the plants as they are, i think they will look allot better when they fill out, i see no need to add any more at the moment, don't want to get all fussy with it, simplicity is were its at 8)

So Ive had a tweak and taken some of your advice and here it is "SAKKEI" DAY2

This is the front.



And this is a shot from the right hand side.
Personally i think it looks better from this side, theres always two sides to every coin ahy



What ya reckon?

 

[Neal]

It looks nice, but the right side looks a little empty, i'm not sure what you could put there though... Maybe twisted vallis would look nice?

Neal

 

[lljdma06]

That tank looks great Moody. I love it. So simple.

 

[ey2006]

Great looking tank, dont often see too many cube tanks.

 

[craynerd]

Nice one Moody!

Whether you think that tweek has made it look better is your decision, personally, i think so. I am only throwing ideas at you, but maybe a little too angled now? lol , its hard, one of them things only you can decide but certainly better than when it was at the same angle as the one behind.

By the way, i like the negative focus of the empty background in the middle and top right LMOA next time, maybe when u take the piccy remove the diffuser

Whats the plant growing in the far left corner behind the large rock ??

Keep it up mate!

Chris

BTW, i like the original angle from the front with the stones on the left best! choices choices!!