I was pleased with how a foamboard backdrop turned out for a 4 foot diorama I used in a NMRA division clinic on making background trees. I started with white foamboard, brush painted the top half or 2/3s with a flat sky blue that I wanted for the top-of-the backdrop blue, then used a spray can of white paint on the lower half. Using the spray paint allowed for great control of how quickly or gradually I faded from rich blue to pale blue to white. On some of the background tree flats, I used various colors and textures of ground foam to simulate distant trees. I used the same shade of white spray paint to very lightly "haze" the ground foam in an effort to fool the eye into thinking the trees were farther in the distance.
nice work i got done with "SOME" painting and i hope i can get some shots up later and yes i found some paint it was on the top shelf all the way in the back (had to use a ladder to get to it)
There certainly has been a lot of progress from all over the past weeks. We are coming to the beginning of the final week of the Layout Party which will end Next Friday March 21, 2008. I encourage you all, me included to post some final pictures of your progress over the past few weeks even if you have not posted on a regular basis.
Ok, I think I have completed about half what I set out to accomplish in the seven weeks of the layout party. I have all of helix one and the upper level as far as the bridges covered with basic scenic plaster. Detailing and painting still yet to happen. I have three background panels up. Anyway here are some pics. Added more plaster after the tunnel section that goes into the corner and around to the bridges. I plan to make the slopes into the corner scree slopes rather than cliff faces to add a little variety. It looks a little messy at the moment, but the blue cardboard is there just to create a gap that I can slide my stiff card painted backgrounds into. Once all the messy stuff is finished, the blue cardboard is outa there. Helix one with backdrop in place. Missing trees at the moment and I need lots of them. The view across helix one.
The layout is reassembled! I also built walls around it to keep cats and kids out when I'm not around.
Yesterday, I ordered a split decoder to replace the one I fried while installing it in my RS-1. It should arrive in time for my spring break which starts this Friday. Yesterday and this evening, I set up some more routes on my DS64s. Still have to install Tortoises for Sw44 and Sw29A, plus hook Switches 50, 51, 52, 53, and 54 to stationary decoders instead of just to toggle switches in the fascia. I expect to set up 8 more routes for tracks in Keystone's North Yard and Luria Shredding in the next few days...should be relatively straight forward since I already have the decoders working and just need to key in the routes. I'm considering some additional routes at the other end of Keystone to simplify some of switching action there, too. This afternoon I took my camera down to Peoria and shot some pics of the Tazewell and Peoria RR's (former P&PU) East Peoria Yard. I'll be using them to guide my scenicing efforts all along the back half of the Yard area...about 35 feet of shelving. I got some adequate ones showing: 1. placement of buildings around the yard, 2. the skyline looking toward Peoria 1/2 mile away across the Illinois River, 3. the materials yard and MOW equipment, 4. the T&P/P&PU engine shops, main office, and freight house, and 5. some Caterpillar equipment on flat cars. I was disappointed with the quality of the pics...most were taken from the edge of RR property and, without a telephoto lens, every item of interest only takes up a small portion of the picture frame. I also stopped at Michael's, an arts and crafts supplies retail chain, and picked up some foamboard and markers/pencils I plan to use to make roads. All in all, I've continued to make some headway on my Spring Layout Party objectives, even though I'll not finish any of my 3 original goals at 100% by the 1st day of Spring.
That's impressive all right. If it had all the scenery it would be a lot harder? I suppose you will just fit new track into the spaces or did you save the old track? I must say that when you moved, I thought you were a goner for the layout party. You have recovered nicely! :thumbs_up:
I have a ton of cheapo Atlas snap track that I can fit in those spaces. I think I'll install 5" standard track, and cut them in to fit nicely. Might as well do it now, where there's little/no scenery in the way! Next time, dis/reassembly will be quicker. I thought so, too, Flash!
Hemi: nice new house for the layout. I take it the rest of the family has some rooms to live in too? Cleggie: looking good; having a backdrop makes a bit of difference, no? A little progress this week despite work going completely crazy; mowed the lawn, weeded the garden and the concrete.. Also found some time to repaint the main deck backdrop. | | (click to enlarge) Or, up a bit closer: | (click to enlarge) Last week, so by Friday 21 March I should revisit my original party todo list and achieve one or more of: no helix to run a train on no staging deck, I could run a train on it, but that would be cheating finish the main deck backdrop To achieve the latter, I can either try to touch up the few mistakes remaining (risking making a bigger mess!), or just tear down the drop-cloths and call it 'finished'. I guess which I choose will depend on just how bad the rest of the week is...
I think that back drop looks excellent! :thumbs_up: It has that Pete Nolan (and others) effect of an amorphous sky view. Indistinct. Hazy. In general, I have been looking at some of the backdrops we have here on TB. You can also see this in prototype pictures. The main point of the photo (or the layout) is the subject and not the background. A prototype photo with an engine front filling 20 percent of the picture is just not as effective as a photograph with the same engine filling 80 percent of the picture. It is the same way with backdrops: We are looking at the trains and not the backdrop. This brings me to clouds. I'm no longer sure there should be any distinct clouds although I have some on my layout backdrop. I like haze or high, cirrus type clouds for a backdrop. It is difficult to effectively include a thunderstorm in the mix. My two cents.
A. ATSF A.: Like the backdrops, looking good. Flash: You asked a question about my tunnel earlier, yes it is plaster over syrofoam so it's not too heavy although I did give it a reasonably thick shell of plaster. I have lifted all the masking tape from the rail lines and can run trains again. The backdrops are in place but I have yet to glue them flush. I am still playing around tring to get a nice fade effect on the backdrops.
Time flies - and the party is nearly over. I will have to take pictures from my work. Last week I was away to the show at Sinsheim, next week I will be at the annual FREMO meeting with my Diamond Valley. Then I will take more pics. Wolfgang
Final update Well, it's now 10pm on Friday 21 March; at least in New Zealand. Today I ripped down the drop cloths and cleaned the room and took some 'closing' photos. And today it looks like | | (click to enlarge)
Final update plus one A month before the party started I had.. nothing; just a computer table and some books on/around shelves. When the party started, I had some framing for the staging and some for the backdrop. No wiring, no helix, no fascia, no modules, no backdrops, nothing painted. Today I have a sky-blue backdrop on both decks :thumbs_up: staging deck framing .. with fascia staging deck modules, all set for sub-road-bed and thus track staging deck framing all wired for DCC .. (but no module wiring yet) main deck lights workbench lights a foam pad under the helix so I stop hitting my head on the timber! In the past seven-odd weeks, I feel I've achieved quite a bit toward the goal of the clitter clatter of little wheels; and I look forward to everyone else's pictures of how much they achieved | .. For more progress on my layout in the years to come, feel free to check out the Building the Duck River Sub thread; and I'll see everyone again at Next Year's Party!
I still need to weather the parking lot (and one of the streets) and put down the parking curbs, but the hot water heater quit so I have to correct that matter today. I will just have to stop slightly short of a complete structure, but I did do a lot. I went from this: To this: Trackside: I think the real help was the initial impetus. Once I began placing the walls and seeing it come together, I was eager to finish the structure. It was a good party for me. Back to the water heater.
I had fun, too. I managed to almost get final scenery on one section. Then the teardown came. My design for portability came to a big test. For the most part, it passed with flying colors. In some aspects, I didn't plan it as well as I'd liked; in others, it went better than I'd imagined. I have some tracks reconnected, but no other goals met this time. Crud. Oh well!
