TOPIC THIS POST: From blue painted board to sky backdrop
Before I build any scenery, I install and paint the sky backdrop a basic light sky blue. I don't want this blue too light, because one of the tricks that I describe in here really enhances a sky backdrop and adds "snap" to it -- and for that the blue needs to be what I would call a medium light blue.
There are several materials to use for a sky backdrop, from masonite hardboard, to the backside of vinyl linoleum, to sheet aluminum roof flashing, to large sheets of styrene. My purpose here is not to get into all the different materials and ways to install a backdrop.
I use the backside of vinyl linoleum along the walls (a stiff backing already present) and I use masonite hardboard in the middle of the room where the backdrop needs to be freestanding and stiff on it's own. Vinyl linoleum is not stiff, so it doesn't work for benchwork in the middle of the room where the backdrop needs to be freestanding.
I like the back of vinyl linoleum because you can get long runs of it and need fewer seams. I just went to a flooring store and asked them if they had any flooring scraps 2-3 feet wide they would sell me. First, they wanted to know why I needed such narrow stuff. Once I told them I was using it backwards for smooth sky backdrops on a model display, they grinned, and sold me all I wanted at $5 a roll.
I tacked the vinyl to the wall backside out with small roofing nails and painted it a light sky blue. For masonite, I mounted it, patched the seams with white painters caulk (I like it because it's flexible) and smoothed the caulk with a wet sponge, and painted it a light sky blue.
Somewhere around the time you're ready to do your rough scenery terrain, it's time to think about doing more to finish your sky backdrop.
I'll pencil in the terrain contour on the backdrop before I install the cardboard strips, and then get out my airbrush and fade the horizon area on the backdrop with flat white. I use ModelFlex flat white, because it's ready to airbrush right out of the bottle.
Imagine a flat horizontal horizon line on the lower part of your backdrop, as if you were looking at the ocean. Then all along that line where your penciled terrain contour drops down, fade the horizon from blue to almost white. Feather the white into the blue so that there's no stark white line on the backdrop. As you do this, follow your imaginary "ocean horizon", do not follow your penciled terrain contours. The white fading should be about the same distance down on your backdrop everywhere, not up and down with the terrain lines.
Here's a sample photo from my Siskiyou Line to show how effective the white fading can be. Notice how the white horizon fading creates a realistic sense of "vast outside sky" to the confines of my indoor layout.
I also mix some light blue gray and light blue green and paint basic mountains on my backdrop. Nothing fancy for the most part, because we want the layout scenery to get the attention, not the backdrop.
One trick to get good colors for backdrop mountains is to mix up a color that looks good to your for trees or rock mountains, then mix in some of your sky blue paint you used on your backdrop. This will fade the color of your backdrop mountains and make them look like they really belong. The more blue you add, the farther back your mountains will appear to be. Experiment with a scrap of blue painted board until it looks good to you.
Clouds
I tend *not* to paint clouds on my sky because I love the look of a cloudless, sunny August day in southern Oregon. But if you do want to try some clouds, it's best to do them *before* you paint the white fading on the lower part of the sky. Spending some time studying photos with clouds in them will really help you out ... I recommend that unless you have some experience painting landscapes you do your backdrop scenery painting with photo references at hand.
We could do a whole forum clinic just on painting clouds, but let me pass on a few tricks.
The closer to the horizon the cloud is, the smaller it should be. Clouds are objects too and just like you would expect with an airplane, so goes a cloud. An airplane directly overhead is larger than an airplane off at a distance near the horizon.
Take your white you intend to use for your clouds, and mix some of the sky blue color in first. This will make the cloud look more like it belongs in your sky and will make it look less like a stark white cotton ball. The closer the cloud is to be to the horizon, the more blue you add.
Clouds are objects, so they generally have a shadow on their underside unless they are high altitude clouds or thin and very wispy. To get a good cloud shadow color, mix just some gray and more of your sky color together with some of your white, and use that to shade the underside of your cloud. Ideally, add the shading while the white is still wet so you can blend the white and the gray to create a gradual shadow effect.
It's best to mix all of your cloud paint ahead of time, paint a few clouds with white, then go back and add the shading color while the white is still wet. If you plan to add more than a few clouds, paint your clouds in layers ... starting near the horizon with lots of sky blue color in your white and gray paint.
Move up to the next layer, and put less blue in the white and gray.
Finally do the uppermost clouds, and use just a smidgen of blue in the white and gray.
Next, we'll look at how to get realistic looking track.
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