# IAPLC truong thinh's 1st speculation thread



## jpappy789 (Jul 28, 2013)

Glad to see some green in there! Some awesome rockwork.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Yep, good rock work and obviously spent a lot of time with it, at least there's some plants and a fish or two.


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## KH2PO4 (Jul 18, 2009)

From the pics, they look quite traditional but damn powerful looking.


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

plantbrain said:


> Yep, good rock work and obviously spent a lot of time with it, at least there's some plants and a fish or two.


The rock work is amazing and I hope the picture that is released has some plants in it. If a aqua scape with no plants and a single platy wins I need to rethink my tank.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Well, I just saw a small pic on FB, so I doid not know ADA blacked the sucker out.

And I would not put it past ADA to do something like that either.

Doing this is stupid though. Not much real thought was put into it. the lower rankings can be released etc, but the top 20 etc, not till later? As soon as ADA post them, the images will get lifted and traffic will move away from ADA's site.

It does not bring anymore people to their site either way and creates assumptions, like mine, which many people thought when they 1st saw it. 
_If you knew what they did, then that's one thing, but most did not._

Sort of a key point I'd argue.


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

Out of 2,164 applications only 10 were from the U.S. I knew that the participants from the U.S. were far and few between but I had no idea it was this little. 

ADA needs to market their products a little better here.roud:


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## KH2PO4 (Jul 18, 2009)

plantbrain said:


> Well, I just saw a small pic on FB, so I doid not know ADA blacked the sucker out.
> 
> And I would not put it past ADA to do something like that either.
> 
> ...


I don't find that it's stupid. Since it can prolong the interest, ie, until the party. :icon_roll

Are you sure it's ADA that did the black out?


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## bitFUUL (May 14, 2010)

ua hua said:


> ADA needs to market their products a little better here.roud:


Yeah, They've been slipping here in the US....


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## ChadRamsey (Nov 3, 2011)

I think that the simplistic and minimalistic approach he took with just the hardscape, only a couple plants sp. and very few fish are what make this tank AMAZING. BUT, thats just my opinion.

As a side note, i would trade my wife for a pile of those stones:drool:


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

The last pic is probably closer to the finished product. The Platys are in there to 'test' the water so to speak before the last piece the 'real' fish are added.


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## mot (Sep 17, 2011)

ua hua said:


> Out of 2,164 applications only 10 were from the U.S. I knew that the participants from the U.S. were far and few between but I had no idea it was this little.
> 
> ADA needs to market their products a little better here.roud:


The numbers ADA posted on this were 23 USA entries out of 2164. Not much of a difference though still a very small number.


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

mot said:


> The numbers ADA posted on this were 23 USA entries out of 2164. Not much of a difference though still a very small number.


I had started a discussion on this here in case your interested.

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=409218


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

KH2PO4 said:


> I don't find that it's stupid. Since it can prolong the interest, ie, until the party. :icon_roll
> 
> Are you sure it's ADA that did the black out?


This is the web, if it's not up, the public is quickly irritated/annoyed with such games. Annoying ads, videos you have to watch before you see the content, pop ups etc, that pisses people off. You enjoy that?
Most find it highly annoying. Interest quickly wanes and the more games are played, the more annoyed people become.
Amano himself plays this game also, instead of coming out and just telling people. Seen it myself in person.


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

mot said:


> The numbers ADA posted on this were 23 USA entries out of 2164. Not much of a difference though still a very small number.


Yes, I miscounted but still a small #. Where did your scape place? I thought it was really nice.


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## h4n (Jan 4, 2006)

ChadRamsey said:


> I think that the simplistic and minimalistic approach he took with just the hardscape, only a couple plants sp. and very few fish are what make this tank AMAZING. BUT, thats just my opinion.
> 
> *As a side note, i would trade my wife for a pile of those stones*:drool:


i'm telling on you!!! LOL :tongue:

Anyways it is very nice rock work!
I definitely like it better with plants though.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

Where did he get those rocks? In Vietnam?


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## junglefowl (Oct 30, 2012)

You can find a lot kind of usable aquarium stones, rocks in VIetnam. And it is 5 times cheaper than HERE


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## FlyingHellFish (Nov 5, 2011)

^ They have native shrimps as well, they were wild black-brownish (?) I think. They also have some of the most beautiful native aquatic plants. 

Imagine a fish store in your local park with beautiful plants, rocks, woods, fish and shrimp all for free. Still, I think even if I had all his materials, I wouldn't come close to such a beautiful scape. Simply stunning....


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## mot (Sep 17, 2011)

ua hua said:


> Yes, I miscounted but still a small #. Where did your scape place? I thought it was really nice.



Thanks! I placed 278th. I posted the final photo on my tank journal thread if your interested.


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

ChadRamsey said:


> As a side note, i would trade my wife for a pile of those stones:drool:


Pls send pictures.


v2


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

OVT said:


> Pls send pictures.
> 
> 
> v2


Too funny :eek5:


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

mot said:


> Thanks! I placed 278th. I posted the final photo on my tank journal thread if your interested.


That's a great effort and a very good placement. I actually made a comment in your thread well before IAPLC that I thought you would do well - Congrats!


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

mot said:


> Thanks! I placed 278th. I posted the final photo on my tank journal thread if your interested.


Congratulations. That's awesome.roud: 

The third best aquascape from the U.S. is a pretty big deal. I have seen some of Malay Biswass' tanks and he has been doing it for awhile and he had the highest ranking from the US at #219. I actually did see your picture in your tank journal I just didn't remember what place you ended up getting. I'm looking forward to see what you do with your new scape. 

Way to represent the aquascapers in the US you should be proud.


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

You could go here and see the Top 27 and see what the 1st place tank really looked like. The top tanks are pretty impressive, but they do push some gimmicks and photographic skills to the next level.

http://peha68.pl/iaplc-2013-top-27/


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## Green_Flash (Apr 15, 2012)

Lot's of nice entries in there, my favorite though is #2.
#1 is a good scape, just not as impressive as previous winners, it didn't extremely amaze me or feel like it was the next level of scaping.


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## IWANNAGOFAST (Jan 14, 2008)

woo.. I placed #1338.

Dang. haha


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## samee (Oct 14, 2011)

Where the pics at? Common guys post the link to the pics if you already know it. IAPLC site seems to be useless in terms of pics.


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## FlyingHellFish (Nov 5, 2011)

There has to be some politics involve, some scapes are ranked way too low and some, way too high. 

Maybe I'm just not experience enough to see the beauty, I really liked some of the lower ranked tanks.


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## DaveFish (Oct 7, 2011)

What kind of rocks did the grand prize winner use? They look like some kind of sandstone??


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## Dantrasy (Sep 9, 2013)

looks like yuan rock


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## junglefowl (Oct 30, 2012)

Here is the link of the top 27 IAPLC 2013 folks!
Ngo Truong Thinh's tank deserves to be #1. Great mountains looking!!! There are driftwood bonsai trees on top of the mountains. There are lot of PLANTS AND MOSS. Everything is in place, detail and really clever.

http://www.aquaa3.com.br/2013/08/Resultado-IAPLC-2013.html?m=1


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## jpappy789 (Jul 28, 2013)

Now THAT is a very very very neat 'scape


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## DaveFish (Oct 7, 2011)

Dantrasy said:


> looks like yuan rock


What is the rocks composition? How inert is it and how is it formed?
And do you know where I can buy some?


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## Luminescent (Sep 13, 2013)

*Question: What are the prizes for the winners?*

Question: What are the prizes for the winners?


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

Luminescent said:


> Question: What are the prizes for the winners?


I believe the top price is 1 million Yen, which is about $10,000. Goes down from there.


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## Luminescent (Sep 13, 2013)

houseofcards said:


> I believe the top price is 1 million Yen, which is about $10,000. Goes down from there.


Thank you.


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## Luminescent (Sep 13, 2013)

Here is what happened to images online- it disqualifies the designer to pre-post or post images online.
Once they enter the contest the design and images belong to ADA by copyright. Then ADA makes calendars and books with the images and sells them.

Here is a post on the site about disqualified designers and image posting: http://peha68.pl/dyskwalifikacje-w-konkursie-iaplc-2013/

You will have to use a translator.




plantbrain said:


> Well, I just saw a small pic on FB, so I doid not know ADA blacked the sucker out.
> 
> And I would not put it past ADA to do something like that either.
> 
> ...


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## samee (Oct 14, 2011)

Anyone got info on 16? That tank looks epic. I love the low and high ground, like a canyon.

Went thru the pics, I dont know, kind of disappointed. The 2011 one wowed me faar more than this one, check the link out

http://en.iaplc.com/results12/top200vote/

I just went nuts checking all the pics out. As for 2013, not so much. Sky by Wang was cool and different, besides that I did see much.


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## larams67 (Jan 24, 2006)

I'm not a big fan of the ones that look like someones front yard.


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## John Simpson (Mar 14, 2013)

everything is changing so fast in this world, I'm starting to appreciate Tom Barrs style a lot more when I see these contrived front yards placing so well and the miniature train set dioramas, it's great work but there's something so nice about the older style from a few years ago where the scapes were more about a feeling and less a miniature copy of some terrestrial image, like the Amano tanks from 10 years ago that just gave you a feeling does anyone get what I'm saying or is that too abstract


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## Luminescent (Sep 13, 2013)

John Simpson said:


> everything is changing so fast in this world, I'm starting to appreciate Tom Barrs style a lot more when I see these contrived front yards placing so well and the miniature train set dioramas, it's great work but there's something so nice about the older style from a few years ago where the scapes were more about a feeling and less a miniature copy of some terrestrial image, like the Amano tanks from 10 years ago that just gave you a feeling does anyone get what I'm saying or is that too abstract


I absolutely agree. The attempt to exactly replicate a landscape photo is well nigh past boring. It kind of appears that everyone is afraid to do anything different as that is what is winning.


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

John Simpson said:


> everything is changing so fast in this world, I'm starting to appreciate Tom Barrs style a lot more when I see these contrived front yards placing so well and the miniature train set dioramas, it's great work but there's something so nice about the older style from a few years ago where the scapes were more about a feeling and less a miniature copy of some terrestrial image, like the Amano tanks from 10 years ago that just gave you a feeling does anyone get what I'm saying or is that too abstract


I completely agree with what your saying but maybe that's because I'm older and I appreciate a planted tank to look like a planted tank rather than... how did you say it miniature train dioramas. A lot of these tanks while they are cool concepts for a photo op just don't do it for me. Some of the first planted tank influences for me where from Dutch aquascapes that I saw in books and magazines quite some time before Amanos tanks became mainstream and changed the direction of the hobby for most. I would much rather see a tank full of color and true horticultural skills that it takes to master a tank with several different kinds of plants.


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## Green_Flash (Apr 15, 2012)

John Simpson said:


> everything is changing so fast in this world, I'm starting to appreciate Tom Barrs style a lot more when I see these contrived front yards placing so well and the miniature train set dioramas, it's great work but there's something so nice about the older style from a few years ago where the scapes were more about a feeling and less a miniature copy of some terrestrial image, like the Amano tanks from 10 years ago that just gave you a feeling does anyone get what I'm saying or is that too abstract


I actually prefer the opposite, the landscape/nature from a distance aquascapes are my favorite, so many amazing details are packed into each one. They are definitely more impressive (to me) than say a dutch with rows of plants (I like dutch/traditional as well). I like to think the progression of scaping is once you have tried everything, then it is time to change the game. The winners of IAPLC have all done an amazing job with their scapes. Scaping is an interpretation of Nature I believe. And an open one.


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## ThatGuyWithTheFish (Apr 29, 2012)

ua hua said:


> I would much rather see a tank full of color and true horticultural skills that it takes to master a tank with several different kinds of plants.


Why do people keep on saying this? 7 out of the top 27 featured colorful plants. Most of them feature "several different kinds of plants." And they do require plant-growing skills, the plants are not simply placed there, or torn down after being photographed.


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

ThatGuyWithTheFish said:


> Why do people keep on saying this? 7 out of the top 27 featured colorful plants. Most of them feature "several different kinds of plants." And they do require plant-growing skills, the plants are not simply placed there, or torn down after being photographed.


Because that's my opinion that's why. And after looking at the top 10 scapes almost everyone of them used strictly mosses and ferns. And you don't need to have great plant growing skills to grow any of those plants pictured. If that is what you like then good for you but I was stating my opinion that it just doesn't do it for me. And what firsthand knowledge do you have that these tanks are kept running for an extended period of time and not torn down after being photographed?


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## samee (Oct 14, 2011)

Surprised not much interest and discussion on this.

Im bumping this because I want to know more about "16 タナカカツキ JAPAN". ctrl f that on the site. I searched and found a guy but his post is of the 2012 competition. Anyone with better searching skills could help, that would be great.


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## dbot (May 29, 2012)

we really need some high def pics here. What's going on with these small photos


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

I think it's fair to say the contest has gone from an Aquatic Plant Layout to more of a Design Layout with some plants in it. The picture that can capture the most dynamic effects of that design will do very well. If you look at the Bronze winner, that's just a two foot tank but it looks very large, very deep in the photo. 

Many of the tanks are setup just for the contest and then torn down, some are done by groups and having professional photo equipment will up your tremendously of doing well in order to exploit the design effects. 

Having easy access to hardscape materials, fish, plants, etc is in favor of those from Asia (Amano even alluded to that in an article I read) In fact, (and someone correct me) the only really high ranked U.S. entries over the year are those of the ADA distributors themselves, having not only talent, but access to materials and having undergone training in Nature Aquarium techniques.


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

I tend to think ADA has created a style and a market for that style and after all this is their contest. I cant say that bothers me at all. One thing to wonder about is whether or not the AGA contest is going to continue down this same path.


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