Industrial Photo-Op Base

[Dr. Cranky]

We've all seen these great jalopies and customs photographed inside abandoned (and not so abandoned) warehouses and industrial looking buildings . . . in magazines. There's something about bright, fresh-painted hot rods set against a background of gunk and decomposing metal. Now that the economy has tanked and all the jobs have gone elsewhere, these places are becoming more prevalent in our cities.

I've always wanted to be able to photograph my models against such a background, so short of shooting on location, I decided to build my own photo-op base and background for the next round of models being build in Dr. Cranky's Laboratory, so join in the journey of this build in progress.

I hope it will turn out to be fun and a worthwhile project.

Edited December 9, 2010 by DamnCranky

[Dr. Cranky]

The first thing I did was run to Home Depot and get a piece of 3/4" plywood cut to 24"x14" dimensions . . .

After sanding and smoothing out the edges (this thing is going to be handled quite a bit so the last thing I want are splinters), I screwed in 3/4" wood screws to give the impending plaster something to hold on to.

I took 2-sided type and built a frame all around the base to hold in the plaster when I poured it . . .

Which looked like this:

In this instance, I am using dentist grade hydrocal with acrylic paint from Woodland Scenes mixed in to get as close to concrete as possible.

Edited December 5, 2010 by DamnCranky

[Dr. Cranky]

When mixing up a batch of plaster or hydrocal I like to use cold water because it slows down the setting, but this stuff sets in about 20 minutes which gives you plenty of time to smooth the surface and get read of all the air bubbles . . . in this case I got everything just right in one try . . ..

With a ruler and a hobby knife I scored some lines on the surface of the plaster (you'll see why later) . . . and brushed the still-soft surface to create a bit of texture.

[Dr. Cranky]

I put the base aside in order for it to cure and dry properly, and turned my attention to the side walls of this photo-op structure . . . and since I am math impaired, I brought out my handy dandy helpers . . . a 1/24th scale figure and a scale card which has seen me through several projects now . . .

The side panels are Gatorboard sections running lengthwise on two sides of the base . . . as you can see I've started to sketch out the dimensions of the door and windows . . . and a few other details . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

I want the place to give me both high angle and low angle shots without having to worry about framing . . . so I made the side walls a bit taller in order to get plenty of room for working with the camera . . .

Later, I can crop out stuff I don't need in the frame . . .

Notice the base of the floor looks weird and striped, that's because I sprayed a bit of dark paint to get the cracks and groves on the plaster a bit darker . . . again, more on the base later . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

Since this is going to be one of those industrial warehouse, I wanted to be able to also get trucks inside . . . so I made the entrance doors taller . . . I don't model big rigs, but you never know . . .

Tommy May (who built the model pictured here) drove by to say hello . . .

Plenty of room indeed . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

Since I am going to be working with lots of styrene, I decided to cover the Gatorboards with thin styrene sheets so that the next elements would stick perfectly with regular styrene glue. I stuck the styrene sheet to the Gatorboard with a bit of epoxy resin.

Next, I applied the styrene siding to the side walls . . .

I moved slowly, measuring twice, cutting once . . . mocking up the elements to make sure the look was right . . .

I decided this industrial structure would have a 3-foot scale skirt of cinder blocks with the metal siding above it . . . just for the different look . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

Here's the Gatorboard covered in styrene sheet and square rod . . . in preparation for the other elements . . .

Both windows and door were cut out . . .

Here's the finished side wall with the cinder skirting, metal siding, and windows framed . . .

Working with styrne--I've always found--is easier than working with wood . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

Next, I finished the front wall with the big entrance door . . .

Then I turned my attention to building the windows . . . I wanted big windows with lots of glass panes (for the impending glass breaking!)

Again, this is all done with styrene!

[Dr. Cranky]

Framing everything is always easy with all the right tools . . .

These windows will stay removeable until after painting . . .

Here they are, all the windows finished . . . I will used the cover glass of microscope slides for glass . . . this way it will break like real glass . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

After running to the LHS for more styrene--you'd be amazed how quickly it all goes in a project like this--I decided to build the interior elements as a stand along unit that can be removed in order to capture the feel of an empty abandoned industrial setting, or with it for a variety of reasons . . .

A build like this requires continuous mocking up to make sure everything is lining up just right . . .

This next picture gives a strong sense of the place and its dimensions . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

Here's my favorite shot so far . . . which reminds me I have to get working on the door . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

After much deliberation, I decided to make the doors, hanging rolling doors, two panels that would roll open with casters . . . it took a lot of cutting and planning to get them to look like this:

I ended up raiding my watch-parts spares box again in order to get the right look on the rolling mechanism for these puppies . . .

They actually will roll out of the way, that is if they don't get stuck after I primer and paint them.

Open SESAME . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

Stay tuned for more progress . . . I am just a few details away from primer and paint . . . this one is turning out to be a lot of work, but it's been nothing but pure fun so far . . .

[David G.]

Amazing, as always! I'm gonna be watching this one.

[crazyjim]

Your building is looking great, Cranky. I noticed the cracks in the concrete but no words on how you did them. And a question for you - what the heck is Gatorbaord?

[diymirage]

that looks great

im just gonna go ahead and let you know i put it one on the top of my Christ mass list

you know, i used to work in a place very similar to it, the 3 foot tall cinders were poured concrete but other then that it looked the same

i loved running my 1:1 in there to get those picture you speak off

any word on what you are planning on doing to shield of the light in this scenery ?

(seems like cars pictured in these settings need a very low light background)

[JamesW]

WOW, now that is awesome. I wish I had an LHS that sold the specialty styrene cuz I've always wanted to build something like that.

[Foxer]

You probably don't think so, but this sure seemed to come together fast! I spent my life in various industrial atmospheres and this is looking right on target. Gonna be a great backdrop wearing your weathering ... oh my!

[stepside83]

this thing is lookin awesome, i cant wait to see more, i love all of your builds there always very very detailed, i hope to be able to build have as good as you

[Dr. Cranky]

Thanks, everyone. Your comments help fuel this one forward. Okay, here are some answers to your questions.

The concrete base is not done yet, but I did score some cracks here and there. My daughter, who has seen me pour plaster before into sheets and then crack it, asked me why I didn't pour the plaster, then crack it and then glue it on? Good question. I don't know why other than I wanted this base to be solid. I didn't want to risk having anything out of place, plus working with an unbroken piece of plaster is better than cutting it into smaller pieces and then gluing it on . . . AND I wanted this one to be leveled.

GATORBOARD is two thin sheets of cardboard with foam between, and you can get it in any size you need through the internet. You can cut it, score it, and glue it and it doesn't warp. It's light as a feather and great for foundational work like this . . .

In terms of the lighting for this one, I have my table top studio where this sucker is going to sit under the shadowbox above and two banks of soft lights on each side. When the time comes I will play around with the photos. I am even thinking of using flash lights as spot lights to take photos in the dark. We'll see, but that's part of the fun of working on this . . .

Stay tuned in for more.

Cranky says Happy SUNDAY!

[envious8420]

True Art Virgil.

[crazyjim]

I've always called it foamboard, but I know the stuff you mean. Hobby Lobby and Michaels has it too.

I once sprayed a piece with the stone fleck paint to try and get the look of the paint & chip paint for garage floors. The top layer of paper just curled and buckled on me.

Your concrete floor looks just right.

[juergen]

WHOW !!!!!!

absolutly great what you shown us here.

the windows looks so great and real. also the doors from the great building.

i can´t wait to see more from this!!!

greets juergen

[Dr. Cranky]

Jim, foamboard is NOT Gatorboard. There's a difference, and foamboard does tend to buckle on you. Gatorboard is a different animal, it's about a 1/2" thick, a bit thinner actually, and it stays flat. I like working with it . . . although it's a bit expensive.