Nige, I prefer the apart one, you could even fill in some of the gaps with lower buildings, or making the gap like an angeled alley. Great work!
Nige - In answer to your question about placement of your structures, much would depend on just what sort of situation/location you are modeling. If it represents a high density, urban industrial area, then butting the buildings one against the other would be logical. However, to justify such a situation, the scene would really call for some photo cutouts of a few more distant, tall buildings, peeking over the tops of your 3-D structures.
If set perhaps in an industrial park near the edge of a major urban center, it would be reasonable to set your 3-D structures spaced appart. But to be convincing it would be necessary to fill in the spaces between them with additional view-blocking detailing, such as you have suggested (3-D trees, fences, etc.). However, just a simple, low, row of trees or fencing alone really won't cut it in creating a believable scene. Rather, the trees/fencing should be backed by some sort of additional landscaping, be it either a photo backdrop of woods, fields, or preferably a photo of an industrial park scene, or semi-populated, transistional region (distant smaller businesses/residences on a hillside, etc.). Such photo backdrops are available commercially. These backdrop scenes should probably extend up to about 1/2 to 2/3's of the 3-D structure's height.
I like the track arrangement that you've done so far.
CNJ831
shayfan84325 AggroJones Great job!!! Very realistic, although it bugs me that realism includes duplicating vandalism. Still, you got it dead on. I hope you don't mind me asking, what's your technique for getting the overall faded look? Also, the rust on the upper portion of the car looks real; how did you do it?
AggroJones
Great job!!! Very realistic, although it bugs me that realism includes duplicating vandalism. Still, you got it dead on.
I hope you don't mind me asking, what's your technique for getting the overall faded look? Also, the rust on the upper portion of the car looks real; how did you do it?
Ditto!
-George
"And the sons of Pullman porters and the sons of engineers ride their father's magic carpet made of steel..."
I am just now getting to the point where I can start thinking scenery. Here is the first pass at the bridge scene I use in my avatar. You will notice that I now have a sky blue backdrop. All I can say is, the "experts" are right - paint your backdrop before building the layout!
Nice work guys!
On Sunday I had ordered a P2K Algoma Central GP7 from Walthers. On Wednesday I picked her up from my LHS. The Algoma Central scheme is one of my favorites. Soon I will patch her to the Wisconsin Central.
Prototype;
http://thomas766.fotopic.net/p2722761.html
Model;
I also worked on my SDL39, which is a unique Road Switcher that was about the length of a GP38, but had lightweight SD type Flexi Coil Trucks. The Conductors side long hood is about half done. Needs to be cleaned up a bit, but it’s getting there.
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/JR7582 My Flickr Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wcfan/
Dawgawn you there Lee! Now I've gone and drooled all over my keyboard!!!!!
From the far, far reaches of the wild, wild west I am: rtpoteet
Wolfgang
Great little switcher, it runs very nicely, your videos are great! I was too busy admiring your craftsmanship too worry with the rail.
Nice Job
"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/
Scenery on the Driline yard & turntable has begun. I need to order some silflor grass yet and add many more details, but here it is so far.
Yes, thats an airconditioner. Soon to be added to another vehicle.
Great pics guys. I have been finishing a John English 0-4-0 in the last two monthes that I started 58 years ago. Here are a couple pics. I intend a separate thread with more details for anyone who is interested.
Got some more scenery work done, I've started adding the fall colors. Again, sorry for the quality, not the best lighting in the attic:
How far I've gotten the basic forest:
The forest by the road:
Finally, here's the clump I've got:
Sawyer Berry
Clemson University c/o 2018
Building a protolanced industrial park layout
Nige
I also agree that the buildings should be spread apart, not only because it looks a bit better, but also because you will cover more ground with fewer buildings, so to speak.
As a side note, I have been away from the forum for many months due to various reasons. With the economy sagging and employment proving elusive, I now find myself at home with more free time on my hands; fortunately also the raw materials (well most of them) to finish the future "train room". Thank goodness for Unemployment insurance.
We now return to the regularly scheduled forum.
Brad
EMD - Every Model Different
ALCO - Always Leaking Coolant and Oil
CSX - Coal Spilling eXperts
Great stuff as usual folks!I haven't had much time to work on the layout at all this week. Today I finally decided to spend some time down there so all the other projects will have to wait a day longer. I finished putting the final tortoise machine (for the time being at least) in place on the layout. This was another one of those "will not fit" locations. So I resorted to the old rail with piano wire soldered to it for the remote throwbar trick one last time:Here is a closup of where the rail meets the torti:Crude, but it works well. Topside looks like this after the install:I also primed and painted the track bumpers I put together last weekend in Batavia:
Ray Seneca Lake, Ontario, and Western R.R. (S.L.O.&W.) in HO
We'll get there sooner or later!
I see that Aggro is up to his usual standards.
Sue
Anything is possible if you do not know what you are talking about.
Some great work this weekend!
I just finished a little work on the diorama. This is the first road I've made. I think it turned out farily well for a first attempt. Just need to add the thick white lines for the crossing, and do some weathering!
Enjoy!
Nige,
I have those same structures on my layout but not all in the same location. It is my belief that these shallow background structures are far more convincing when they are place against a printed backdrop with two dimensional buildings both above and to the sides of them. When placed directly against a sky backdrop, it is just too obvious that these stuctures are only a few inches deep. The same structures backed by two dimensional background structures are much more convincing. They seem to blend better into the backdrop when there is something other than sky behind them. To me, the ideal situation is when you transition from full width structures to the shallow background structures to building flats to printed backdrop. Everything tends to blend smoothly together. It is not always practical to do that so in some cases it is necessary to skip one of those layers.
If placing backdrop buildings behind your shallow buildings is not a feasible option, I would agree that it is much more convincing to butt these together to eliminate some of the sky surrounding them.
As always - great and awe inspiring work from a lot of posters.
Not even nearly as finished on my layout, but this weekend I've been messing around with the part of my layout I refer to as "Eastside" - a fairly narrow shelf along two walls, trying to make the tracks and industries here work for me.
My original setup was like this:
Taping together a structure to test out "Gopher Distribution", it looked like this:
I felt that my layout was getting a little top-heavy on warehouses, even for a layout called "The Warehouse District"
I had lots of destinations for boxcars, almost no destinations for tank cars or gondolas or open hoppers or anything like that. I thought about doing a fuel distributor as an industry:
Tried a mockup of this industry:
Mmm - would work, but now it feels like I am getting a little tank car heavy. I went back to prototype photos at the Minnesota Historical Society Visual Resources web database for inspiration, and found these very cool photos:
http://collections.mnhs.org/visualresources/image.cfm?imageid=81148
http://collections.mnhs.org/visualresources/image.cfm?imageid=102086
Minneapolis has one major defining characteristic, which is what turned the city into "Mill city" - it is as far up the Mississippi as barges can go - the falls of St. Anthony was the end of the line for barges coming all the up (or going all the way down) the Mississippi.
That's what I'd like to do. A barge terminal - it is a pretty general industry - a lot of things can be brought in on barges and transfered to the railroad, or brought in by railroad and transferred to barges.
New plan for this corner:
Trying out a mockup of this industry (that "barge" is a very crude mockup - the top of two plastic boxes cut off and taped together to get something that is 12.5" long and 4" wide - about a 90 x 30 foot barge)
Looking at the industry from the other direction:
Yep - I think I will go with this one - I can swap out load for the barge (or have a couple of different barges), so I can ship or receive machinery, coal, grain, fuel etc.
Time to dig into the layout (quite literally) and carve out a river bank next to the track there, and get (or probably try to make from scratch) a barge.
Smile, Stein
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
I also found one up at the Lansing Trainshow last weekend. :-) Kevin
Currently on the bench are these Funaro & Camerlengo hoppers.
3 ACF 1790 CuFt hoppers and one National Plate Glass hopper.
All are ready for the paint shop. Maybe I will be able to get to that today.
Dan Pikulski
www.DansResinCasting.com
jeffrey-wimberly
Nice painting and decaling. You have come along way since I first saw your layout several years ago. Now all it needs is a little weathering and you're all set to go!
I have essentially finished this, except for adding a few F1-50s to the road when I can afford them, and any tips on how to enhance the "forest". When I get some more foliage, it'll probably grow in size. Sp here's some random pics:
yes, those are my jeans in the final shot
Here's the whole photobucket album:
http://s253.photobucket.com/albums/hh55/Packers_1/mainline%20diorama/?action=view¤t=IMG_2272.jpg
Packers#1 I have essentially finished this, except for adding a few F1-50s to the road when I can afford them, and any tips on how to enhance the "forest". When I get some more foliage, it'll probably grow in size. Sp here's some random pics: yes, those are my jeans in the final shot Here's the whole photobucket album: http://s253.photobucket.com/albums/hh55/Packers_1/mainline%20diorama/?action=view¤t=IMG_2272.jpg
Well its probably too late now that you've glued your"forest" down, but here's a tip. I bought the same stuff from woodland scenics and I like it a lot. I ended up cutting the clumps into tree's and glued them in place that way. If you're going to lay them in clumps like you did, I would take a pair of scissors and cut off the branches you see sticking out everywhere, so they look more like bushes. Thats my recommendation. Heres my trees from the same package you bought.
Do you see that yellow tree in the background and then the orange one further in? Thats how I used it.
Thanks Driline, first time I ever used this stuff. I'll try that next time.
I think you have generated a very nice scene, Frank. I like your roadway pavement...nice work.
-Crandell
Olav, CNJ831, tecenterprises & jecorbett,
Thanks for your thoughts, I was tending towards a industrial backdrop and I think you are right that it will finish it off better. I'll see what I can find.
Nige.
ARTHILL
You may have more patience than I.
"Being misunderstood is the fate of all true geniuses"
EXPERIMENTATION TO BRING INNOVATION
http://community.webshots.com/album/288541251nntnEK?start=588
jasperofzeal Is this a Genesis version or blue box version (I'm assuming it's an Athearn)? I ask because I would like to know what color you used to touch up if is was a blue box. I have two blue box 50'ers with the same name to which I want to replace the side ladders and stirrups. Awesome weathering on this car (reference to the other two pics I omitted from this post).
Is this a Genesis version or blue box version (I'm assuming it's an Athearn)? I ask because I would like to know what color you used to touch up if is was a blue box. I have two blue box 50'ers with the same name to which I want to replace the side ladders and stirrups. Awesome weathering on this car (reference to the other two pics I omitted from this post).
Its Athearn RTR. Good stuff.
After the initial dullcoting, its given a misting of Polly S dirty white to fade. Phil as for the upper...thats working the gouache and weathering powders.
Hey guys, I have been working on my grain scene for my 4x8. All I have left to do is add the doors and windows, and build the grain dryer, and finish painting them. Enjoy.
Mike
Great work this week, everyone.
Crandell: I love that water tower. Really nice work.
Art: Man, that loco is going to be SPECTACULAR!
Aggro: Everytime I look at one of your weathering jobs, I wonder why I can't get up the courage to try it myself. Spectacular, as always.
Well, I did some work on the railroad this week, but forgot to take the camera out into the garage. HOWEVER, I did have the camera handy yesterday when I recieved this neat gift from the Maine Coon Cat Rescue Society:
It's the latest TrainCat, according to his papers, his name is Remington--either the famous Wild West painter or the rifle, LOL--he's 2 years old, weighs about 16 pounds (he'll probably add another 5 or so before he's fully mature) and right now he's ensconsed in the Music Room while he gets used to the house, and the Music Room also contains my locomotive display case. He's been eyeing my Yellowstones through the glass, absolutely fascinated by them. As a lot of you know, I have another Maine Coon, the infamous Caboose Thief named Spooky, but I think Remington is going to bypass 'mere' cabeese, I think he's heading straight for the articulateds.
He's a big, tall, Stud Muffin with ENORMOUS feet--I think he's going to be a lot of fun.
Next week I'll get back to trains.
Tom
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!