Backdrops

[yesterdaysradio1]

I print my Photos on shelf paper cut to 8 1/2 inches. I can only set my inexpensive program and printer to 44 inches. Cut out the mountains and paste them to a painted background. The next set overlaps the first, that way there is no seam. I did a workshop on this and it was well received.

Jerry

[Motley]

Aikidomaster

Where do you go to get the backdrop printed? Can one do this with a regular digital camera? I would love to make my own backdrops of the Blue Ridge Mountains of West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina.

 

Yes I took my own photos using a $200 Canon camera. I used a $20 tri-pod. I took like 4-5 photos rotating the camera left to right making sure to overlap the photos by about 25-30%.

Then I asked for photoshop help on this forum (Hamltnblue) who stitched them together into a single panorama photo.

Then I took a usb drive with the panorama photo on it, to a local print shop. For a 24" x 120" on cheap matte photo paper cost me around $75.

This is the panorama here:

[Aikidomaster]

Where do you go to get the backdrop printed? Can one do this with a regular digital camera? I would love to make my own backdrops of the Blue Ridge Mountains of West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina.

[richhotrain]

Boiler Up !

[Motley]

Creating your own photo backdrop is really easy. Just need a decent camera, and a cheap tripod. Then stitch it together using photoshop, you can get help here for doing this, that's what I did.

Then have it printed on cheap matte finish photo paper.

[cowman]

Welcome to the forums.

A few more questions before the answers start to come in.  Height of yur layout?  Will it curve around corners or be a scenic divider down the middle of table?  Do you favor masonite, vinal or metal?  Will you be attaching to a wall or will it be freestanding?

Enough questions.  MR does have some books on painting your own backgrounds.  Some of their more general scenery books also have a chapter on sky, clouds and some more foreground painting.  A nice blue sky is not hard to do, blending in a lighter low sky, takes just a bit more.  Clouds, a number of methods.to make them.

 Some things to think about, read, then come back with some more questons.

Good luck,

[Hamltnblue]

Welcome aboard

Here's a link of when I did mine:

http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/p/172338/1891830.aspx#1891830

Here's a place that sells them.

http://backdropwarehouse.com/indexbdwh.htm

[G Paine]

As this is your first post , and can we have a little more information.

• How do you feel about doing your own backdrop? By that I mean have you done some scenic painting in the past or would this be something all new to you?
• Would you like a backdrop that is mass produced or something unique to your layout? What kind of scene do you have in mind - rural, farms, mountains,city, industrial??
• How large a space do you have for a backdrop?

This is a start, I am sure others will add their comments and questions

[Purdue1]

What would be the best thing for a backdrop? buy one from a company or make my own? Could anyone describe to me how they did theirs?