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How To Add Realism To A Backdrop
When you think about it, a backdrop can have just about as much surface area as the model railroad itself. That’s why a backdrop is an integral part for any layout. Having a perpendicular orientation to your line of sight requires special thought.
In real life we view things in 3D, yet when you add anything extra to a backdrop (apart from blue sky), there is always the risk the backdrop will lose the 3D illusion. Painting clouds, mountains, and structures onto the background can look effective when viewed straight on. When viewed from a different angle however, the illusion of 3D can suddenly be lost.
Here are some tips for creating effective backdrops:
Keep the horizon low and make sure anything that is supposed to be vertical is vertical eg. telegraph poles, people, trees, buildings etc. Avoid abrupt horizon lines. Use trees, buildings, hills, or bridges to hide the meeting line where the vertical backdrop meets the horizontal layout. Avoid deep or bright colors for the sky. Light muted shades can work best. Soften and lighten the distant colors.
Although you won’t want everything to look artificially perfect, you also won’t want the eye to be drawn to something that looks out of place e.g. a dark blue sky. Vehicles need to be correctly positioned in the streets and not be cocked at strange angles.
Buildings painted on a background can sometimes look okay when there are other buildings or features in front of them. Otherwise it is best to design the buildings to stand out from the backdrop in low relief with the front and part of a couple of the sides showing. This can help achieve a credible 3D effect.
For more scenery tips http://www.modelrailwayscenery.org/model-railroad-scenery.html
The buildings shown here are low relief buildings made from core flute. Foam core can be used instead. Both materials are very inexpensive to buy and are readily obtainable from Hardware DIY stores.
To get a close-up look at the detailing on the buildings in this town scene http://www.modelbuildings.org/low-relief-buildings.html
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I have never used this construction method before. It worked well and I like the fine details on the buildings. Much better than I could ever dream of doing. Thanks.