I believe you have to consider,how high is the layout going to be and what you can reach,,26-28'' would be fine for most people..Then consider,what if any will be the tallest building front you'd like to incorporate in your backdrop,then go from there......Have Fun..
Cheers,
Frank
Since I usually stand while operating my ISLs I like my backdrop to be around 30"..Combined with the 48" layout height that works out to be 78" or 14" above my line of sight.
Overkill? Probably but,I'm happy with the results since I see a full "sky" and not part of the wall...
Make sense or is it another one of my lopsided perks?
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
Since I like to be frugal and use all the material I purchase I go with 24". In that way you get 16' of backdrop out of a 4' x 8' sheet of hardboard without any waste. If you paint your backdrop directly on the existing walls the size would not matter.
Santa Fe all the way!Also, I'm using a photo backdrop, so I need it to be a height that a print shop can use one of the available paper sizes.
You should be able to cut the backdrop down. I wouldn't place too much importance on this factor. Position the image at the top of the paper if you need to do this, so you can simply put the top of the backdrop at your 68 inch height and build the layout in front of it. Places that specialize in this understand the problem, and many will print to order anyway.
I've also got the "low roof" problem. The 45-degree roofline starts at 38 inches above the floor, so that's where the top of my layout is. I should have sacrificed a bit more horizontal space to get the layout up higher.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Your topic didn't say "perfect" or "desirable" or "eye-deal" backdrop height, but MINIMUM. What is least that would still be acceptable.
I used an 8inch tall backdrop on a 2 x 3 foot portable N scale layout, shown here on exhibition in Galveston, and I think it was effective. Not perfect, maybe, but acceptable.
And you can print 8 1/2 inch paper on practically any printer.
For my home layout, N scale around the walls in an 10-6 x 11 foot bedroom space, with layout depth 14 to 24 inches, I am using a backdrop that extends 14 inches above my layout surface.
Most of it is painted on sheets 16 inches high by 8 feet long, 3 lengths cut from a 4x8 foot sheet of styrene.
Not ALL the structures will necessarily fit below the top of the backdrop. You can see the top of the scene, and photos usually need to be carefully composed to stay within bounds.
But I think it is a simple mental exercise to ignore that the sky does not keep going up forever.
Just my limited thinking. You will have to "translate" to apply to HO, since I am in N.
TRAIN ROOM OF LION has 12'+ high ceilings. As far as the layout is concerned, there are no ceilings.
Backdrops need to be high enough to hide what you do not want the viewer to see, but they do not need to be much higher than that. LION models CITY, so city buildings make a fine backdrop. Wall is painted to a point about 2' above upper level of layout. Above that I plan to hand photographs of the NYCT system.
Him does need to make some really tall buildings, but fortunately, buildings on Times Square need nothing more than the lighted advertisements that are mounted on the buildings.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
Back ten years ago when I started looking to get back in the hobby, I read an article that said when possible, the backdrop should be as high as the benchwork is deep. This made it more aesthetically appealing to the eye. Now the width of my benchwork is all over the map, however in the few spots where there backdrop height matches the benchwork depth I would have to agree. It does take the look up a few notches.
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Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
The only requirement is that the photo backdrop be on the vertical part of the wall.
If you model the mid-west, a photo backdrop 6 to 8 inches tall will work. If you model a city, the you will need 10 to 14 inches. If you model mountains, then the backdrop will need to be more like 18 to 24 inches tall.
The layout then could be anywhere from 44" above the floor to 62". I find I like viewing layouts in the 48" to 54" range, but you may be taller or shorter or like your trains closer to eye level., so your optimum height might be different.
Above the photo backdrop, you can use the sloping walls for sky scenery. Paint a few clouds and it'll blend right in. I have scene numerous articles in Model Railroader where the photo backdrop has the sky cut out and it is glued over a painted sky backdrop. The sloped walls and sky backdrop may also create a sky "dome" effect, but that depends again on your height.
You might also want to consider coving the joint between wall and roof to eliminate the unsightly line. This would also add to the "dome" effect.
S&S
Modeling the Pennsy and loving it!
Santa Fe,
I can understand and relate to your question/problem.
My layout height is 40 and 45 inches, and in my 1.5 story home my vertical will height is 54 inches. This gives me less that 10 inches for a backdrop. Most of the ones I have see on-line are like 20-24 inches, which means I am losing half the backdrop,
I am also looking to see what others have to add, great question and a big topic. Unless I can find somebody to paint it in place I may just have blus walls.
Aflyer
I have an 11x15 room filling HO layout. The first version of it built in the early '90s had a 24 inch backdrop. It was painted and pretty nice, but hindered the taking of pics without showing the bare walls above the backdrop.
The layout was reincarnated in 2008, and the backdrop was extended 6 inches (30 inch). This works out just fine so far.
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
I know that it is always desirable to try to utilize as much of the space for the benchwork, however if you want your layout to be a sufficient height causing the backdrop to be just too short, remember, the backdrop doesn't necesarily have to be mounted/ placed on the top of that knee wall. By allowing wider benchwork hold/ frame the backdrop inboard even up to 6-8" if nec to gain the desired height. That, or just have to run lowered layout height. Some have done this where that area behind the backdrop is used for staging, of coarse not the most accessible for derailments as it has to be accessed from under the layout or provide removable sections of the backdrop.
Modeling B&O- Chessie Bob K. www.ssmrc.org
Connecticut Valley Railroad A Branch of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford
"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." -- Henry Ford
I ripped 4' x 8' sheets of hardboard in half. After mounting, that left me with about 181/2 inches above the deck. It would be nice to have it higher sometimes for taking pics, but I am able to work around it with various editing tools. I am happy with the height I have and would do the same again, all things being equal. Everyone's circumstance is different and fitting our tiny bits of geography around real life architecture involves a lot of give and take.
Mine run from about 3' high to one just installed that is 14" high, because that's how wide the roll of aluminum flashing I had on hand was. With a blue trim board along two sides, 14" is fine with layout heights that range from 57" to 66" and mountainous terrain features along my Cascade Branch extension under construction right now.
Something else in favor of tall, preferably to the ceiling, backdrops is that this helps manage sound much better. The operator can concentrate on his own train and everyone else can maintain better concentration on theirs. A high backdrop "extends" the perception of distance for our sense of hearing just as the backdrop "extends" our perception of visual distance.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
I extended my backdrops to just above my eye level, and a few inches short of the lowest parts of the ceiling. From experience on a previous layout of mine, and of visiting others, I decided not to have the backdrop touch the ceiling. I noted that doing so can 1) hinder air circulation, 2) emphasize just how flat the ceiling isn't and 3) create a joint that will crack and become unsightly as the layout beneath it moves (either due to exapnsion/contraction or getting bumped). I'm pleased with the visual and noise isolation this approach provides.
Rob Spangler
I made mine 24" high and my layout is 54" high on the upper level, so it works out quite well. Unfortunately I didn't put my background (3/16" Masonite) up until the layout was built, so it was a little more of a challenge.
-Bob
Life is what happens while you are making other plans!