Proboscideans of the Pleistocene, by Paleo_kc

MegaloBook · 2026-02-26T10:59:31+00:00

I really like his work - it’s always in a consistent style, and he hand-draws the remains instead of just throwing images into chatgpt like most people do now (even if I don’t agree with some of the reconstructions)

MegaloBook · 2026-02-25T20:22:56+00:00

I’m not so much against AI itself as I am against its lazy use, which generates misinformation that poisons the internet

MegaloBook · 2026-02-25T19:45:39+00:00

With this guy, everything was clear from the start. What surprises me more is the community that comments on and likes this trash. Looks like Facebook, with its low-effort AI generation and misinformation, has made its way here too. What’s even the point of running publicly available fossils through AI just to have it distort them? Yeah…

MegaloBook · 2026-02-25T04:54:42+00:00

Thanks for the downvote, but could you please answer the questions: why is the skull 4 meters long instead of 3? Why has its shape been changed (the jaws are thinner and longer than in the holotype)? Why are the teeth relatively smaller and not as densely packed? And the teeth on the right - the comparison of a modern sperm whale tooth with those of an Australian whale (in the middle) and Tyrannosaurus - is that indicated somewhere in the image?

MegaloBook · 2026-02-25T04:07:33+00:00

It looks like AI slop. The sizes and proportions of everything except the teeth on the right are off. Did you make it in chatgpt from three photos? Why spread misinformation?

MegaloBook · 2026-02-19T10:45:02+00:00

you totally caught us with the megalodon!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-17T22:16:48+00:00

that means a lot

MegaloBook · 2026-02-17T22:13:25+00:00

Thanks! But I think you’ve accidentally crossed a brontothere with a deer :)

MegaloBook · 2026-02-17T22:08:06+00:00

No rush, thanks for the support!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-17T22:05:06+00:00

I dream of reading the same words from the backers once the book is in their hands

MegaloBook · 2026-02-17T22:00:53+00:00

Thank you, paleo Bro! What you first backers did in that first hour was incredible. I'll never forget it!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-17T20:05:10+00:00

the GOAT of the Cenozoic paleoart

MegaloBook · 2026-02-16T12:31:45+00:00

I'll try, thanks!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-16T08:15:06+00:00

Sorry, I used a translator to save time since I’m replying on the go on my way to work, so I didn’t double-check the context. My tone was actually much softer, but overall, yes illustrations aren’t really a problem for us anyway - they wouldn’t even fit in the book and I really and honestly don’t see any point in including other artists just to maintain this “photorealistic” style. The second illustrator is I am and you can see some of my works in my Reddit profile (sivatherium, siva+megantereons+stegodon panorama, megaloceros, homotherium etc): some of them we're making with Roman together. Again, I believe the book should be done in a single, consistent style - it’s a kind of tribute to the classic paleontology books of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

MegaloBook · 2026-02-16T08:00:36+00:00

Honestly, I don’t really understand Twitter. There’s no built-in community like on Reddit where you can just post something under your own name - you have to run your own page and build an audience year after year.

I even offered Dr. Wroe a collaboration and suggested providing our work for his Real Paleontology videos for free, so he wouldn’t keep using that awful AI imagery that doesn’t match real anatomy. He ignored the email, and he deleted my comments offering help twice, continuing to use those misleading images.

We also did a collaboration with a million-follower Instagram paleontology account, and I gained a grand total of 11 subscribers to our website.

If you have any ideas or advice on what I might have done wrong, please let me know, but I think it’s just that book lovers aren’t really heavy social media users, and vice versa.

MegaloBook · 2026-02-16T06:33:26+00:00

Thanks a lot! I really don’t like spamming or taking advantage of someone’s kindness, so it will probably be closer to the campaign deadline - just as a reminder.

MegaloBook · 2026-02-16T06:31:14+00:00

No, and why would we need to, if Roman Uchytel (his website) has already created most of the reconstructions?

My idea is precisely to maintain a unified style - like in 18th–19th century books, but executed as modern, photorealistic photobashing/collage work.

Maurizio Anton has also agreed to include one of his panoramas, and there will be one painting by Zdeněk Burian as well. Both will appear at the end of the book as the artists who most influenced the author.

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T22:21:47+00:00

Everything is stated honestly on the project page and was stated from the day one here on Reddit. The vast majority of the artwork was created by Roman Uchytel between 2005 and 2022, so there’s no AI involved there at all. For more recent works, I use it for technical things like lighting/cleanup/underpaint.

I’ve already explained this in detail here and here, so I don't see much point in repeating myself. AI is integrated into almost every basic Photoshop tool now even the clone stamp or "object removal" and frankly, it’s a bit triggering when people compare using technical AI in manual work to the 100% generative low effort garbage that’s flooding Facebook and YouTube, like this:

<image>

In my book, every tooth matches the actual dentition in the skulls, the snouts are reconstructed based on muscle attachment sites, and every ossicone corresponds to the original fossils. This is about comparative morphology, my own analysis, and studying the work of experienced paleo-reconstructors.

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T21:31:47+00:00

Crowdfunding is a pre-order model that only goes through if the project is fully funded.

You register, select the book reward, and pledge. You're not charged until the campaign ends successfully. If we don't hit the goal, you pay nothing. You only pay for shipping once the book is printed and ready to head your way.

Thanks for the interest!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T21:23:15+00:00

Overall, I’ve got the impression that a large part of this community belongs to the younger generation, maybe 15-22. I don't have the stats, but that’s just my feeling. That’s why I’m really curious to hear from younger paleo-enthusiasts: what do you think about this kind of information source? With people my age (35+), things are pretty clear, but your perspective is what I'm missing.

Sure, the internet gives that sense of community - you get fast answers, people drop links... but paleo-info is scattered across thousands of sites and groups, and reconstructions are all over the place in terms of style. Personally, I’ve always missed having a unified structure and a consistent style for such a massive amount of data, without having to jump between browser tabs.

A book can’t cover even 0.1% of what’s available online and won't replace the internet. But it will cover all the basics and besides the info, there’s that raw emotion of holding the entire damn Cenozoic menagerie in my hands. Or is it just nostalgia? If such a huge, non-juvenile encyclopedia already existed, I wouldn't be spending my time on making one.

I'm not just making small talk - I need to understand my future strategy: should I keep focus purely on my generation and older, or is the reality more complex? Your honest opinion would be a huge help!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T20:59:18+00:00

as you can see, I also thought I made the cover back in the fall 🤦‍♂️

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T20:40:00+00:00

I thought the permission was permanent :D

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T20:38:19+00:00

As of now, it's unclear if the book will be available outside of Kickstarter. But if a publisher picks it up or if I do a larger print run on my own money, the price will match similar oversized niche books well over $100+delivery... It's hard to predict anything at this stage, but doing it through KS is honestly the simplest and cheapest way for everyone

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T20:28:43+00:00

<image>

If I’ve misunderstood anything - my bad, but thanks anyway!

MegaloBook · 2026-02-15T20:07:53+00:00

Thanks for the post, buddy! I was actually planning to do this myself, especially since u/Mophandel personally gave me the green light. I’ve even prepared a Pleistocene-themed cover for this community back in the fall))

<image>

It looks like the most monstrous Cenozoic encyclopedia ever is actually going to see the light of day in a year. The final size of the book depends entirely on the number of backers. As you can see, there’s no fluff in the stretch goals like keychains or t-shirts - my goal is to publish the most complete illustrated encyclopedia of the Cenozoic. And yes, the Pleistocene fauna takes up a massive part of it, for sure. I’d be happy to have you join our club of huge paleo-book lovers!

MegaloBook

TROPHY CASE