It does look like a swiming pool, agreed.
Colors do vary but I followed Rob Spanglers mix of acrylics using light tan, black and medium cadmium yellow. I mixed up several different small batches and then applied them, darkest where the water was deepest (middle and near outer banks where scouring action deepens the channel) and lighter shades where shallow.
Once you put simulated water (various choices) it looks pretty realistic.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
It has been sx months since I updated this project of mine... Now it is quite literally under the gun to get it done.
I have a 20 yard roll-off dumpster being delivered on April 6th, and this layout experiment is going to be the first thing loaded into the dumpster, so I have from now until then to get it done... then get it out.
The Mustang is out of the garage, so I can get to it again with no problem.
I have nothing new to update today, but there will be frequent updates over the next few weeks, then it is gone.
I will be starting with re-coloring the river.
Stay tuned.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I don't know, ... That River looks pretty darn good to me Kevin. It's got that murky river water with depth to it.
The surface ripples turned out great and you can see the sandbar in the translucency of the water on the right.
What's wrong with it anyway? Looks impressive to me and I wouldn't just say that. I had some constructive criticism to say about your first sky backdrop color way back in your thread. And you ended up blending it to a lighter blue gradually towards the horizon.
P.S. Don't throw that away, you put a lot of work into it. If you don't have room for it make a neighbor kid happy
TF
Track fiddlerI don't know, ... That River looks pretty darn good to me Kevin. It's got that murky river water with depth to it.
I think you are looking at Rio Grande 5761's river. Mine turned out looking like a well maintained swimming pool!
Oops, ... Sometimes I go a little too quick. I guess I just gave Rio a heck of a compliment and that's okay. The sky looks great Kevin but I would have to agree on redoing the river.
Everything else is looking great so far.
SeeYou190I have a 20 yard roll-off dumpster being delivered on April 6th, and this layout experiment is going to be the first thing loaded into the dumpster, so I have from now until then to get it done... then get it out.
Hi Kevin,
I'll put this as politely as possible - you're crazy!! Seriously, I admire your approach. You have taken the time to find out what works for you and your layout will be all the better for it!
As for the river, if I may be so bold, the surface doesn't look like flowing water to me. IMHO most of the water should be relatively smooth with only a few waves or ripples where there might be some underwater obstacles. The 'smooth' areas should have some slight flow lines running down the river. Doctorwayne has mastered the technique using only a very thin layer of Durobond 90, appropriate paint colours and some varathane over top. Hopefully he will chime in.
I hope you are not offended by my comments. I admire your work. I'm just sharing my impressions of the river scene.
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
It's all in how you paint the river bottom, and the details you ad, BEFORE any resin, or any other gloss coat is applied.
Mike.
My You Tube
SeeYou190 Track fiddler I don't know, ... That River looks pretty darn good to me Kevin. It's got that murky river water with depth to it. I think you are looking at Rio Grande 5761's river. Mine turned out looking like a well maintained swimming pool! -Kevin
Track fiddler I don't know, ... That River looks pretty darn good to me Kevin. It's got that murky river water with depth to it.
IMO, the bottom of a river should be painted dark green/gray.
In FL and the South, I've seen very slow moving rivers have an almost black appearence.
Higher up in the western USA mountains they might have some reflective blue cast to them, but still pretty dark, IMO. Like RIoGrandes effort, clearer water means the banks show through, so the sides of the river can be a little lighter than the center.
In the midwest they are an olive green all over due to the fert runoff.
IN the GA Piedmont, they can be reddish due to the clay runoff after a rain storm.
Not sure where your railroad is going to be located.
- Douglas
DoughlessNot sure where your railroad is going to be located.
I am not sure either.
Previous versions of the STRATTON AND GILLETTE have been in Appalachia, Rugged Western Mountains, and Midwestern Plains.
The final version will be two towns, a waterfront, and hills, so I guess it could be any number of places.
Doobie Brothers - Black Water, talking about the Mississippi: "Ol black water, keep on rollin'"
I was on the Red River in Shreveport, the clays give it a reddish tint. On the Mississippi at Baton Rouge, definitely blackish looking, both rolling past the casino I was working at and when I was actually out on it visiting the USS Kidd museum.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
rrinkerand when I was actually out on it visiting the USS Kidd museum.
That is a pretty neat place to visit. Touring the Kidd gives you an idea of the nightmare in the cramped spaces below deck when a Japanese plane crashed into her. It is well worth the time to see it.
York1 John
I asked my doctor if I gave up delicious food and all alcohol, would I live longer? He said, "No, but it will seem longer."
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #1:
I went and repainted the riverbed today, after a six month delay. I chose a color pallet with a lot less blue that was based around browns and grays.
I mixed up ten diferent variations of these colors in a pair of dispoasable six-well pallets from the dollar store.
The paint mixture and the thinner was all throughly mixed before I went to the garage to begin the painting.
The river base was coated with a new layer of a medium brown color before any of the texture colors were layered on.
I went to town with the blended colors being layered and blended in a slightly haphazard fashion until I was satisfied.
It certainly looks a lot different than it did when I painted it blue.
I am going to let the colors all dry overnight, and then I will put the diffuser overlay into place and see how it looks.
I have a feeling this will be a big improvement.
hon30critterI'll put this as politely as possible - you're crazy!!
I know, and there is no debate about that.
I have put so much planning into this final layout that I need to test everything I have had ideas about before they hit the final product.
SeeYou190I am going to let the colors all dry overnight, and then I will put the diffuser overlay into place and see how it looks.
I think that looks good for a very muddy river, but I would suggest feathering the transitions between the different tones a bit more, and maybe not have as much difference between the lighter and darker areas. If you want the river to look deeper and not quite so muddy then consider adding some dark green down the center, and again, feathering the colours together. I think the trick is to feather the colours so there are no harsh deliniations between them.
hon30critter SeeYou190 I am going to let the colors all dry overnight, and then I will put the diffuser overlay into place and see how it looks. Hi Kevin, I think that looks good for a very muddy river, but I would suggest feathering the transitions between the different tones a bit more, and maybe not have as much difference between the lighter and darker areas. If you want the river to look deeper and not quite so muddy then consider adding some dark green down the center, and again, feathering the colours together. I think the trick is to feather the colours so there are no harsh deliniations between them. Dave
SeeYou190 I am going to let the colors all dry overnight, and then I will put the diffuser overlay into place and see how it looks.
One of the best ways to do that is to simply dab the paint onto the river using a light shade and a dark shade of the same color...just add more white on the pallett. Move from the light shade on the outside to the more darker shade towards the center. Use two colors. As you dab on the wet paint, they will blend as you work them near the center. If it gets to dark, dab in more light shade, and visa versa.
Don't do one color then the other. Just shmere it all together by dabbing.
Bob Ross. Mixed the paint right on the canvas. Keeps the colors blended rather than separated.
Along the banks, Kevin might want to use some of the surrounding earth tone to dab into the wet river paint to make it look like a shallow bank.
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #2:
I installed the printed portions of the backdrop. All four of these backdrop scenes were cut from the Walthers Eastern Foothills To Country Instant Horizons pre-printed backdrop.
I put the continuation of the river at the point where the river bed meets the backdrop.
I put two tree scenes on the left side.
And I put a small tree scene on the right.
I love cutting and using the Walthers Instant Horizons in this way. The backdrops do not look as generic as when they come out of the tube, and I have never been a fan of the hazy sky on the Walthers backdrops.
Pieces from several different backdrops can be used in the same scene, and the Detail Associates backdrops can be intermixed with them for even more variety.
I first used these backdrops on my friend Randy's NORFOLK SOUTHERN N scale layout thirty years ago, and they have held up great.
The backdrop sections are attached with normal wallpaper paste.
OK, this is it, and I am calling it.
This river experiment has been a COMPLETE FAILURE. I WILL NOT be using this technique on my final layout... PERIOD. I will go back to envirotex with ripples added with compressed air as it hardens... like I have done a dozen times before with amazing results.
This garbage river actually looks better in real life than in these photographs, but that is the opposite of what I would accept. I would rather it photograph better but look like cow-pie in actuality.
Here you go... my epic failure...
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #3:
I did get some good work accomplished today. The big rock face is now painted using my standard technique for coloring rocks.
I start by painting the rock face completely black, then go over 95% of it with Delta Ceramcoat Charcoal. I add a few splotches of a rusty color and an earth color.
Then I color about 40% coverage with Delta Ceramcoat Hippo Gray.
The next step is about 15% coverage with Delta Ceramcoat Pewter.
The final step is a dry brush with Delta Ceramcoat Granite Gray.
There you have it, quick and easy rock colors.
This is what the rock face scene looked like when I first glued the rock castings and Mountains In Minutes tunnel portal into place.
SeeYou190There you have it, quick and easy rock colors
Mike
Water Level RouteLooks great Kevin. How much do you thin the paint as you apply it?
Thank you for the comment.
The only paint I thin is the initial black. I thin it with about 2/3 water and a few drops of photo-flow from Kodak. I apply three coats of black so no white dots show up in photos.
Then... there are still white dots in some photographs.
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #4:
I worked a bit on scenery today. Specifically I am blending the pirinted backdrop sections into the foreground scenery.
First, some paint was right on hand, so I decided to add a little variation to one of the stone tunnel portals. More detail will be added to this later.
The first part is filling in the empty spaces underneath the backdrop sections. For this I prefer an old product from Woodland Scenics for making foliage. This stuff used to be packaged with their metal tree kits. I never liked the way it looked for foliage, but it does have other uses. It glues to backdrops pretty well.
I do not know if it is still available. I have quite a stockpile on hand.
I simply cut out a few blotchy shapes and glue it to the backdrop.
It does not look like much now, but there will be more layers added in the process.
Then I add a few clumps if lichen and some coarse gorund foam, foliage clusters, and clump foliage along the edge.
I need to wait for the glues to dry on all this before I do anything more or else it will all fall down.
More progress will be made tomorrow.
SeeYou190 OK, this is it, and I am calling it. This river experiment has been a COMPLETE FAILURE. I WILL NOT be using this technique on my final layout... PERIOD. I will go back to envirotex with ripples added with compressed air as it hardens... like I have done a dozen times before with amazing results. This garbage river actually looks better in real life than in these photographs, but that is the opposite of what I would accept. I would rather it photograph better but look like cow-pie in actuality. Here you go... my epic failure... -Kevin
I'm not an expert, but I don't think you're far off. The texture is correct, but the color is too gray, and the white curbs should just be eliminated.
Between the previous swimming pool river and this boulevard looking river, you're simply using too much color.
It needs to be much more earthy, but just a bit grayer than the surrounding greenery. Maybe 3 parts dark olive green and 1 part gray for the center, then 4 parts that color to 1 part white for the banks. If it matches the surrounding hills too much then add 1 part blue to give the water a more bluish hue. Then dab and blend on the river.
I wouldn't worry about matching the lake behind it. Its way off in the distance and the color of the river would be different than the lake, IMO.
Doughlessthe white curbs should just be eliminated.
That is just the adhesive caulk holding the diffuser panel in place. It has since been painted an appropriate color.
The diffuser has lines in it that reflect white, so over the light blue, it look frigid and icy. Over the earthy colors it looks like a road.
I am glad I experimented on this throw-away segment before I frustrated myself with the real harbor scene where I was planning to use this.
Time well spent.
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #5:
I worked on the front wooden double tunnel portal first thing today. I painted it tan, then dry-brushed it with white in downward strokes. Then I finshed with a wash of Citadel Sepia.
Then I experimented with applying the Citadel washes over the pre-painted Faller foam cut stone I used as the bridge abutments.
The one in the rear received an Earthshade wash.
The front one recieved a Black wash.
That is all for today. Hopefully all the scenery will be done in a few days and I can start taking the pictures as intended.
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #6:
Making lemonade out of lemons.
I repainted the river surface again, and applied a coat of gloss medium.
The final result is still far less than what I wanted, but should be good enough in photographs.
I should have just left it as a swimming pool.
Time to move on to another part of this project.
I think that you are trying to hard.
If I can offer my humble opinion, the first thing to do is to scrap all of the colours that you have been using! The edges of the river need to be a very light beige (shallow water) and the center of the river needs to be a dark blue/green, almost black (deep water).
Then you have to figure out how to blend the colours to form the transistion from the shallow water to the deep water. With respect, you have been painting individual stripes of various colours between the shallow and deep parts of the river. As you have already figured out, that doesn't work. You need to use paints that don't dry quickly so that they can be blended together before they dry.
Where is doctorwayne when we need him?!?
Keep trying Kevin! You will figure it out!
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #7:
I finished the last of the tunnel portals. This is the second random stone tunnel portal. The first one was done with reddish colors, this one is grays and browns.
I started by painting the stones a total of ten different colors.
Then I used Citadel Nuln Oil wash to blend all the colors into a harmonized pattern for a nice look with lots of texture.
I am very happy with all four tunnel portals.
Tomorrow I will move on with more scenery.
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #8:
I worked a bit on blending in the Walthers Instant Horizons backdrops today. Some "before and after" shots are shown below as examples.
The Small Woods:
The High Woods:
The River End:
I might post a second update today before I turn in for the evening.
END OF THE LINE UPDATE #8a:
I did a little more scenery work. I hope to get a lot more of of scenery done tomorrow, and hopefully I will be running trains and taking real pictures by the end of the week.
Happy Monday!
For me it is... not working and loving Mondays now!