Layouts and layout building

I know this has been discussed before, but are some of the best methods for doing this believably in N-Scale?

Irv

Clouds are clouds regardless of scale.  No matter what size you make they will be fine.  The way I do it is part traditional part non traditional.  Paint a 2' wide area with horizontal brush strokes (4" brush) with sky blue from the top and antique white from the bottom and blend them so each color goes from 100% to 0%.  Don't overbursh it.  While still wet take the brush with just a little white and scrub in a cloud with circular motions.  Then scrub in a little gray on the bottom to represent the shadow caused by the cloud blocking the sun.  Brush the gray side to side to create the flat bottom on he cloud.  It takes about the same amount of time to do a 2' area as it did to type this.  Develop your techniques on the side of cardboard boxes.  Within two or three youwill be ready to tackle your backdrop.  

Someone just bumped this thread the other day:

http://cs.trains.com/forums/1/1530405/ShowPost.aspx#1530405

It shows a backdrop with some of the best looking clouds I have ever seen before. I usually do not like clouds on a painted backdrop because they usually seem to not be quite right, and they seem to be way beyond my ability. However, after looking at that thread, I am going to give it a shot (after lots of practice first on scrap Masonite!). Jamie

This was my first attempt. I just did them freehand with krylon and I am happy with the way they turned out. The only suggestion I can make is paint them small as it is easier to make small clouds larger than it is to make big clouds smaller. The blue sky is Horizon Haze from Home Depot.

Brent

 These were done with acrylics and brushes.  I like to keep the edges really soft so the clouds don't distract. With fast-drying acrylics it's important to have a very fine misting sprayer to keep the paint wet so you can blend edges. For clouds I often use my fingers to blend them into the sky.[not that you want paint all over you - wash off ASAP]

 You'll get better blended edges if you hold the brush perpendicular to the surface of the board, and use just the end of the bristles. A light touch and soft brush required. Try to brush  to the paint surface rather than through it.

 I did these  backscenes for my Dad's layout

 

 and placed on my layout to see how it works.  

Broke my chimneys getting it in there.

 

 Mike

I downloaded a bunch of cloud pictures off the web and printed them out in the appropriate size. (fast B&W printing to save ink.) Printed them on some card stock and cut them out with an Xacto to make templates. Used $1/can flat white and grey spray paint. A little grey along the bottom of the template and rest with shots of white.

I have ZERO artistic talent. This method is real EZ to use. I need to practice blending them together though. I WISH I had the art talent that Jacon12 and Mikelhh have! Their's are GREAT!

Loathar, Your clouds also look superb! Can anyone sher the basic technique for using the template method? I always thought you cutout the template, held it about 1/2" in front of the backdrop and then shot the spray paint through it. But I have also read sometimes you want to shoot at an upwards angle, sometimes downwards--any clarification on this? Good thing is I have beaucoup spare pieces of Masonite to practice on. Jamie

About a 1/2" away worked out well for me. Spraying at up and down angles helps keep from getting a sharp edge on your clouds too.(watch for unwanted over spray) Just practice on some scrap card board or something. You'll be amazed at how EZ it really is. An airbrush with craft paint works too if you don't want all the fumes and over spray. You can even draw your own cloud templates free hand if you want. I DO recommend using card stock instead of copy paper.

It may sound obvious but practicing on cardboard or paper before attacking your backdrop makes sense.  I think the big thing to avoid is a making your cloud with sharp hard edges; I have seen clouds that looks like bird splat on a blue rug and it just is not realistic. 

 

The various examples given above are much superior to that.

For my own sky I wanted clouds but not puffy clouds, rather the streaky kind of sky known as cirrus clouds.  I find them easier to make believable although I may have to change my mind after seeing how nice the clouds other guys have done can look.

Here is a prototype photo:

 http://www.cruising.sailingcourse.com/weather.htm

Dave Nelson

 

 

I wish I had read this last week.

This past Sunday I got ambitious and decided to paint some clouds on the walls of the train room. I used Glidden white ceiling paint and a 1 1/2 inch sponge brush to stiple the wall while turning the brush itself in circles. It worked in some places but but not in others. It also trid to darken the bottoms of the clouds the show th shadows. Some of the clouds came out nicely but on two walls I need to do more work to ake them look better. I'll the same stipling technigue I used on Sunday but with a bristle brush this time. I'll also try using some of my Tamiya hobby accrylics to see waht I can do about imroving the clouds I've already put on the wall.

I am not interested in producing perfect clouds because I don't want the sky attracting attention away from my trains. I just want them to suggest to the viewers imaginations that the trains are running in the real world.

Irv

You guys have done some great work with your clouds, very impressive !!! For the new guys, Home Depot has a Cloud kit, it comes with a video to show you how to do it, it sells for about $25, and comes with brushed, and supplies except for paint. It is in the paint isle ( surprise ).

This is slightly, but not totally, off topic.  My dentist has in his office the usual flourescent light fixtures in a suspended ceiling.  But the plastic sheet panel covering the light tubes is, instead of clear or frosted, painted to look like a light blue sky with nice clouds.  It may even be a silk screened photograph.  The effect is fairly relaxing as you sit back and stare at a sunny blue sky.  The sound of drilling in the next room somewhat ruins the effect but that cannot be helped. 

The thought strucke me that not only could this idea be used for the ceiling of a train room, but I wonder about a backdrop of these sheets with lighting behind them so you would have a luminescent sky as a backdrop. 

They come in 2x4 foot and 2x2 foot panels.   

This website has the kind of plastic panels I am talking about:

http://www.fluorescentgallery.com/page/skies

Dave Nelson

I tried the method I read about in David Popp's book where I used sprayed a line of gray then sprayed little puffs of white above and over it. It makes a reasonable effect although on my next backdrop I will have smaller clouds lower to the horizon and more into the haze. The haze was just white airbrushed on, heavier on the bottom and fading out about 2/3 the way up.

You can take this photo as evidence for or against the method!

Chris

Mike,

Those background paintings are breathtaking! Truly wonderful!

Jim

 

 

mikelhh wrote:

These were done with acrylics and brushes.  I like to keep the edges really soft so the clouds don't distract. With fast-drying acrylics it's important to have a very fine misting sprayer to keep the paint wet so you can blend edges. For clouds I often use my fingers to blend them into the sky.[not that you want paint all over you - wash off ASAP]  You'll get better blended edges if you hold the brush perpendicular to the surface of the board, and use just the end of the bristles. A light touch and soft brush required. Try to brush  to the paint surface rather than through it.  I did these  backscenes for my Dad's layout    and placed on my layout to see how it works.   Broke my chimneys getting it in there.    Mike

Some really nice work here, and also in the other thread.

Luckily, my wife has taken interest and agreed to do my backdrops. She has some artistic talent IMO, and I think she's best at landscape painting, fortunately. Way better than I am, for sure.

The simpler backdrops are nice, and still quite effective, but artist's work, like mikelhh's for example, take it to another level! Beautiful work.

Please keep posting examples, guys.