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Dirt, Details & Dioramas... Karl. A
"" I see your picture of the plain dio base, do you have any from that point to finish????
Or sometime can you or someone do a thread on diorama base construction? ""
Some time ago I was asked about diorama bases and the steps that I use to bring everything together.
In answer to those questions I am starting this thread to document the steps and processes I use for diorama
construction, the vast majority of these phases are also detailed within Brett's all encompassing manuals.
Unfortunately this is not actually a SierraWest kit, however it is detailed with purely SWSM details.. (Why
use anything other than the best, right ? )
The structure is a scratchbuild of a building found in Colorado. It is re-named for
my good friend and fellow modeller Kevin O'Niell. The structure is 99% complete, all of the details
have been painted and initially weathered, so, now it is time to bring it all together and start the
dirt work !!
This thread is definately not intended to be a "show and tell" thread, it will be awesome to hear
from all the forum members that are following along.
If you have a question please ask it.... if something doesnt look quite right please point it out...
If you do something differently please offer up that alternative..... If you have a suggestion on how
to make something look better, please say so... We are all here to learn and build better models.
(Of course, if you think it looks great as it is then I would also like to read those comments.)
I am currently clearing the work area and hunting down my scenery supplies in preparation of
starting tomorrow, at which point photo's will be posted and I look forward to plenty of
input into the thread.
Karl.A
Or sometime can you or someone do a thread on diorama base construction? ""
Some time ago I was asked about diorama bases and the steps that I use to bring everything together.
In answer to those questions I am starting this thread to document the steps and processes I use for diorama
construction, the vast majority of these phases are also detailed within Brett's all encompassing manuals.
Unfortunately this is not actually a SierraWest kit, however it is detailed with purely SWSM details.. (Why
use anything other than the best, right ? )
The structure is a scratchbuild of a building found in Colorado. It is re-named for
my good friend and fellow modeller Kevin O'Niell. The structure is 99% complete, all of the details
have been painted and initially weathered, so, now it is time to bring it all together and start the
dirt work !!
This thread is definately not intended to be a "show and tell" thread, it will be awesome to hear
from all the forum members that are following along.
If you have a question please ask it.... if something doesnt look quite right please point it out...
If you do something differently please offer up that alternative..... If you have a suggestion on how
to make something look better, please say so... We are all here to learn and build better models.
(Of course, if you think it looks great as it is then I would also like to read those comments.)
I am currently clearing the work area and hunting down my scenery supplies in preparation of
starting tomorrow, at which point photo's will be posted and I look forward to plenty of
input into the thread.
Karl.A
Comments
My number 1 scenery problem is dirt roads. Will there be any on the diorama?
Karl.A
OM
What a great idea... scenery has always been a challenge for me. Will be following along.
Cheers,
Paul
I finally got things kinda organised, I forgot how much scenery stuff I had tucked away in drawers, boxes, shelves.
Now to get some pictures taken and posted. From the ground up , literally.
Karl.A
For this diorama I needed some elevation so I glued two pieces of foam together.
The way I do this is to smear painters caulk between the layers and then insert toothpicks through the layers at a 45degree angle from several different positions.
The reason for the toothpicks is to hold the two pieces firmly together with no movement while the caulk dries.
Note:- As there is no air permeating the foam any glue used will take a long time to dry (2-3 days dependant on glue used, sometimes longer).
Using the toothpicks allows work to continue immediately after placing the pieces together.
The foam base then had contours formed where needed and was finally ready for scenery to begin.
The structure foundation was glued directly to the foam, once this had dried the entire base was painted with a light tan latex house paint.
Immediately after painting a liberal base layer of dirt was sprinkled into the wet paint. This was then left to dry and the excess shaken off into a container several hours later.
Here is where the first photo comes in......
A good starting point for things to come............
Karl.A
Once the base layer is dry I will sit the structure in place and check that things are working out as planned, again taking pictures from several angles, if this stage works out OK I can move on to the fun stuff of placing the details, building the story and adding the scenery.....
Proportions all look good,
Trial placement and selection of details is next on the list. This is usually what takes me the most time, however, for this diorama I already spent last week working it all out and getting things 'almost' how I want them.
So, all I need to do now is post the pics and keep moving forward.... but that will have to wait untill tomorrow.
Karl.A
Will that porch be overhanging the diorama base like that when its done?
there is a cobbled street section that will be added to the porch side of the diorama thereby eliminating the slight over hang.
It is just easier to work on the scenery with this section removed.
I'll post a picture of it in place shortly.
Karl.A
Jerry
Jerry the 'dirt' is actually tile grout, a blend of two colours I like, cheap and easily reproduceable.
After the base is dry detail placement planning can begin. This takes me alot of time, it's so much easier to just follow the pictures in the manual, but, unfortunately on a scratchbuild there is no manual so trial and error ensues.
Once I am happy with the layout and placement I will take a bunch of pics for reference so that I can get things back in position when scenery starts.
Alot of the details still arent finished, and some of them arent even started at this point, but planning out the placement means that I will know exactly which details will be used and I can then concentrate on finishing them all up.
Now that I am essentially happy with most of the layout all the details can be removed and any necessary finishing can be done.
There are a couple of areas that I am not 100% happy with right now but after the rest is done and scenery added I can come back and rework them.
Karl.A
(unfinished) cobblestone street carved directly into the foam base...
I thought it much better to have this section removed and away from all that dilute white glue and soon to be flying scenery 'dust'.
It will get tied back in and blended near the end of the project.
Karl.A
That cobblestone road is fantastic.
That cobble stone street excellent.
Jerry
Wayne Woodland
Wayne,
the corrugated was embossed over some evergreen styrene sheet to get the ridges.
A quick dip in echant to give it some tooth.
Spray painted black
Brushed with thinned grey craft paint allowing some black to show through. Great galvanised effect.
Raw sienna craft paint stippled on in a pattern to my taste.
Burnt umber craft paint stippled randomly over the sienna to give variation and depth.
Quick dust with rust coloured chalk where appropriate.
Karl.A
This makes it really easy to put them back as I am working on scenery and final placement.
Karl.A
Thanks for the comments.
Karl.A
I usually work on a small area at a time laying in the major componants. The first thing to do is wet the area to be worked on. I do this with some "wet water" in an eye dropper.
The two large containers below are my basic grout mix. I use one part dark to two parts light for my main base layer of dirt as seen previously. The three smaller containers are variuos textures of ground up floral moss and leaves.
As the area now being worked on is a low traffic area I start by sprinkling on some of the darker grout and some of the finer moss blend to give the area texture and a darker colour.
I will then use a separate eye dropper to apply some diluted glue. Now is the time to start installing the main details which will be sitting on on the ground.
Apply a small drop of pure wite glue to the bottom of the detail and put it in position. Be sure to give these items a little wiggle and work them slightly into the wet dirt. This makes them part of the scene, the worst thing to look at is a 'floater'.
Carry on placing the larger details into the wet dirt, if the area starts to dry out simply add a little more water with the eye dropper.
Karl.A
I then continued adding in the main details for the small area, adding a little water or dilute glue as required.
A few more medium sized details were added and now this area will be left to dry before moving forward with the smaller details and added scenery.
Karl.A
Questions ?
Karl.A
After the innitial scenery and detail placement has dried in this area I then move on to adding a next layer of scenery, some small bushes, a slightly taller grass and some differentiation of the traffic areas, still needs working but the layering is starting to have effect.
Likewise the second layer of detail is temporarily put in place, lots of playing and moving around but I think I've found a pretty good set up. These items need to be removed again and finish weathered and then a third level can be added on top.
It takes some time, but, layering adds all important depth and realism, and it is so easy to do, as long as you have a little patience, which I dont.
Brett's manuals taught me all about layering, texture, and how to achieve these results. I'm still waiting on the chapter for patience.... or maybe I skipped over that one.
Karl.A
The most subtle way ever devised to teach patience...