As you may have seen in the 009 News feedback thread, both myself and Steve are keen to make more of a feature of the Heritage Collection in the coming months and years that we are in the editorial hotseat(s) for.
So, to that end I've agreed to whip up a photo plank for use at the Convention to photograph as much of the collection as possible in a scenic setting. These will then be reproduced in the News in due course. I made a start on the photo plank tonight.
The baseboard is made from 5mm white foamboard, all of it came from one A2 sheet for £2.99 from Hobbycraft. The setting is an embankment on a slight curve. This will allow photography of items of stock either side on or at a slight angle.
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A hot glue gun made quick work of fixing the foamboard together. I have designed it so that the embankment is located forward of the join between ground and backscene. This will hopefully lead to more realistic photographs from lower angles.
Overall dimensions are roughly 2'x10".
The scenery will only be grass so as not to distract from the stock being photographed, after all that is the purpose of the thing! Therefore the ground doesn't need to retain trees or other structures, and so can make use of the ancient technique of scrunched up newspaper and paper maché to save weight.
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I left it in this state and then my wife asked if she could do the paper mache, so in one evening after work it's gone from flat sheet to a bare landscape ready to accept colour (once dry).
More soon.
Good idea Tom.
Regards,
BrianT.
Excellent Tom, good job you aren't waiting for mine to appear!! (Tom has been nagging me to make a photo plank for about 2 years now.........). One tiny suggestion if I may: you may like to consider extending the width of the backscene board 6 inches or so either side so that angled photos of posed stock still has something behind it.
Will the backscene be simply "sky" aka blue as per Andrew Burnham's Peco travelling portable studio set up, for the same reasons that you have decided to keep the scenery as simple grass so as not to distract from the photo subject.
And finally (!): As you said that you are making the photo plank in order to provide something to pose heritage collection items on, don't forget that there are 6.5mm. 8mm and 12mm gauge items in the collection as well as 9mm! Another little challenge to overcome?
Mick
As Mick has said, an excellent job Tom, well done.
We were always going to do something like this so we could have a regular 'heritage' feature in the News so the members could see just what the Society actually had - but there were always more pressing issues to be addressed.
Quote from: cornelius on September 11, 2013, 11:42
Multi-gauge can be for version 2!
One way to accomodate this is to make the trackbed removable and construct sufficient alternative trackbeds to accomodate everything that may be "high on the list for coverage in the News", such as the Aire Valley stock at 12mm gauge and Pete Wilson's quarry locos at 8mm gauge.
Mick
Thanks all.
Mick, I have plans for an adjustable gauge for this one. Actually I may cheat and only have the front rail as the idea is for low level photos looking up the slope of the embankment towards the item of stock. If I can hide the rear 'rail' behind the front one then I may get away with it...
Then again, I may just think 'sod it' and end up using flexi track as per the photo :)
And I've had an idea re. the backscene, might be a little drastic, but I think it'll make it more flexible in terms of the images I can produce from using it... More soon.
From memory Pete Wilson's 008 stock will sit quite hapily on 009 track - just don't ask it to run through a point!
I think I balanced the 8mm stock on normal crazy track when I photographed the collection and I know I managed the 12mm gauge stuff with a little out of sight blutack! So all things are achievable, I just thought I would mention the multi-gauge "challenge" in case Tom wants to be his usual self and do it professionally and without horrendous bodges!
Mick
You could have the two rails fixed together like parallel rulers (I think they are called?) Then you can set the gauge to anything within the maximum...
Am I correct in thinking that two parallel lines are merely two concentric circles going off at a tangent? ;D
I thought two parallel straight lines are concentric circles of infinite radius. But on this forum, we all go off on a tangent!
Quite, Tim, look what's happened :)
Mick, expect a bodge. If I achieve better in time for the Convention then brilliant but, looking at how busy I am with other things, a bodge is more likely for now!
This all makes the 9mm/12mm demonstration track I knocked up for the Convention look really naff!
Rod
Rod, if it's any use to you for displaying items of the Heritage Collection on it over the weekend, feel free to borrow it when I'm not photographing!
I'm now thinking of ditching the backscene. Relying on natural backdrops instead will allow me to take photos over a much wider range of angles, and I've been planning on photographing them in natural light (weather depending).
Tom
Will this build stretch to 100 pages?
Alan
If you keep mentioning 100 pages it might, Alan ;)
I've now removed the backscene, this gives more flexibility for photos as I can now photograph from any side. I may buy a sheet of plain blue card to act as a backdrop, but I'd like to try using it outside with a natural backdrop as well.
Track is now fixed down, and after spraying it with Railmatch sleeper grime aerosol paint I had an idea... I then sprayed the paper mache with the aerosol, and whilst wet (well, damp) I sieved some plaster dust onto the surface. Then I gave another coat of sleeper grime. It's worked as a relatively effective texture for soil and was a quick and easy way of doing it. Admittedly it may be a bit pricey, but I have no need for the aerosol in the immediate future, and I find that the Railmatch ones prone to clogging if left for a prolonged period.
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I've included one small section of wall. This is a small piece of plaster casting from those I've used on Isle Ornsay. They are from moulds by an American company named Bragdon Enterprise.
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This has had several coatings applied to it from some Derwent pastel pencils. These are great and really useful for applying colour to scenic items. The photo above was taken after the first coating, the colours have become a little more intense since as the subsequent layers have been built up.
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I had a spare bit of 'crazy' track, so this was glued in place with some cyano. After the railmatch sleeper grime had dried I dry brushed the sleepers with some with acrylic paint. Both these applications of paint have helped make them look less 'plasticy' and more like wood.
Since these photos were taken I've also used some chinchilla dust for ballast. This is quite pale straight from the packet, so it's been toned down with a small amount of black poster paint. It has had a liberal amount of 'wet water' applied to it to fix it in place.
More soon (potentially static grass tomorrow if everything dries out ok).
Looking good Tom, but I think you must have some sort of backscene at the back and sides - particularly as the view of a vehicle posed above the rock part will include a good portion of the right side as you look at it. A plain pale blue or grey card will be perfectly fine - Andrew Burnham uses a plain pale blue card around A3 size or perhaps a little larger to mask unwanted clutter and tummies behind the scene when he takes photos for RM.
Mick
How about a separate backdrop or infinity backdrop that can be placed where needed, whatever the angle of view? It would increase the number of possible "scenes".
Light tents, canopies or whatever they are called seem to be popular these days. There was one at the last MR exhibition I went to. It might even have been a "documentation day" for one of the scale/gauge societies. I'm not sure what the benefits are. Lack of hard shadows perhaps?
I'm thinking along the lines of a separate moveable bit of pale blue card which I can put wherever required depending on the angle of the photo.
Light tents sound far too complicated for what I'm aiming for at the moment, but it would give full control over the lighting so I can see the appeal.
Quote from: invercloy on September 16, 2013, 18:05
I'm thinking along the lines of a separate moveable bit of pale blue card which I can put wherever required depending on the angle of the photo.
That's the way to go I reckon! I suggest that something reasonably large eg A3 would be a good safeguard and will not confine all photo attempts to macro shots
Can you "green screen" like they do in the cinema (it used to be "blue screen" in the early days of colour TV)
Then you can put the background in later...
:)
So long as the locomotive ain't the same green or you could get some interesting effects!
A separate piece of card is a good idea. As well as being able to place in the appropriate place directly behind the subject it means you can put it a little way away so that it will be out of focus.
I would give the infinity backdrop a try. All you need is a largish sheet of thin blue card or stiff paper, something to hold the back up and (if the card is rolled to keep it clean) something to hold the front down and stop it curling. If there is a convenient wall to hand all it needs is some BluTak. When the card gets grubby just replace it. Carry the backdrop around in a mailing tube.
If you want to get all fancy with your own portable wall then clip the card to it with bulldog or drawing board/easel clips.
Edit: I've not tried it but pale blue cloth might do it too, but avoid creases.
Green screen!? :o
A bit of blue card will do for me.
I've now painted the fascia panels and will hopefully be adding some static grass to it this evening.
Well, that didn't take long...
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm3.staticflickr.com%2F2866%2F9788698713_010650c854_c.jpg&hash=5b64eb802c1e2c7165d9398e3af0af779cef5009) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/16967289@N02/9788698713/)
Pretty much done now, if I do more it'll distract from the stock being photographed so I'm tempted to leave it as is.
Very nice. Just crying out for a stream... maybe a halt... a quarry... some cows... shagging couple in the bushes... bushes...?
Only joking, like you say simple is best so the rolling stock is the picture.
John W
Quote from: Isle of Stoner on September 20, 2013, 14:03
Very nice. Just crying out for a stream... maybe a halt... a quarry... some cows... shagging couple in the bushes... bushes...?
Yeah - it would be a bit bad if it won "Best Layout" wherever it appeared!!! ;D
much ado about not a lot; asume it will have a back board. Nothing more annoying in these pics than heads,arms,layouts,walls in the background
OK now back into the bushes
Peter Smith
Thanks John, yes simple is best for this purpose :)
Peter, see previous comments re backscenes in this thread.