Suppose that a X is an unshielded plane continuum (i.e., X coincides with the boundary of the unbounded complementary component of X). Then there exists a finest monotone map m : X → L, where L is a locally connected continuum (i.e., m −1 (y) is connected for each y ∈ L, and any monotone map ϕ : X → L ′ onto a locally connected continuum is a composition ϕ = ϕ ′ • m where ϕ ′ : L → L ′ is monotone). Such finest locally connected model L of X is easier to understand because L is locally connected (in particular it can be described by a picture) and represents the finest but still understandable decomposition of X into possibly complicated but pairwise disjoint fibers (point-preimages) of m. However, in some cases (i.e., in case X is indecomposable) L is a singleton. In this paper we provide sufficient conditions for the existence of a non-degenerate model depending on the existence of certain subcontinua of X and apply these results to the connected Julia sets of polynomials.