1/24 Garage Photo Backdrop

[Pete75]

I thought I'd document my first diorama build for anyone else thinking of doing something similar, plus I'll be pleased to get feedback/tips from those with more experience. I'm currently past the midway point in the project, so I'll do a couple of quick posts to catch up.

The aim is to build a small garage backdrop for photographing my 1/24 scale kit builds and die-casts. Space restrictions mean that any photo setups have to be temporary/mobile. Until now I've used white paper/vinyl, and also made an A4 size collapsible cardboard dio, neither of which have proved much fun to set up and work with. I need something solid/fixed to drop my models in, illuminate, photograph, then it needs to be portable, durable, and easy to store.

Experience from using my temporary dio showed me that I only need a floor and two walls/one corner - turns out three walls are a hindrance to photo angles and light. I then took some time with my phone camera, cardboard walls & a model car to establish the minimum dimensions that would enable one car to be photographed comfortably: i.e., not having to worry about wall edges yet not using any excess real estate. I calculated the optimal interior dimensions as: 295mm long, 255mm wide, and 155mm high. 

I got some construction ideas from LIFE_in_118_SCALE@YouTube, a channel which has inspired me to start designing a diorama for my 1/18 die-casts, but the project has given way to this smaller one to begin with. I'm already glad!

 

Starting with a solid foundation: the floor is 12mm plywood stuck with wood glue to a mitred baton frame that will help bolster the walls. (After years of my flimsy cardboard walls falling over, I'm making sure this structure isn't going anywhere!) The floor is then painted with primer/undercoat, then some grey floor paint from the shed. (Painting actually caused the cheap, old plywood I'm using to blister, so for future projects I'll be investing in something better - maybe birch ply?)

Whilst trying to repair the blistering plywood, I glued the walls to the base and braced all the joints with stripwood. It is essentially bombproof!

The floor was proving to be a pain, and the blisters kept coming back after being repaired twice. I kind of gave up on the floor paint idea and ordered some printed self-adhesive vinyl from the same source as the brick wall covering I had chosen (walker-model-supplies@ebay.co.uk). However, once I looked at the pictures from my mock-up I found that I preferred the look of the paint, even when all scuffed up from sanding! I returned to the repairs knowing that the finish wouldn't have to perfect; after all, my intention is to build a slightly grimey workshop rather than a showroom.

Thanks for looking. Comments & questions welcome. To be continued, shortly...

[SpeedAndViolence]

I'm basically doing same, but with the exception of using a thick foamboard. I tried to use the much thinner foamboard that was provided in my 'kit' but it is very susceptible to warping depending on the environment. Also in the process of obtaining various shop tool/ equipment. 

I'll be following, so I'm looking forward to your next post. Thanks for sharing. 

[Pete75]

1 hour ago, SpeedAndViolence said:

I'm basically doing same, but with the exception of using a thick foamboard. I tried to use the much thinner foamboard that was provided in my 'kit' but it is very susceptible to warping depending on the environment. Also in the process of obtaining various shop tool/ equipment. 

I'll be following, so I'm looking forward to your next post. Thanks for sharing. 

Thanks Scot. Good to have you along. Any pics of your own project very welcome here!

[Pete75]

Whilst working on the main structure, I simultaneously started on the small bits. The garage will be populated by a 50/50 mix of scratch built items and 3D printed stuff from eBay. The first thing I built was a tyre rack, because it's relatively simple and it will make use of some parts bin wheels!

After researching some designs online and noting their 1:1 dimensions,  I just divided everything by 24 and got busy with the Evergreen styrene. My first furniture effort, like the dio structure itself, is substantial and not likely to blow away in a breeze! Additionally, as with my car builds, I got a little carried away with panel wash & weathering powder, so the end result is quite... industrial!

Next I decided to buy a 3DP single roller door and some oil drums (from scalemodllersg & 3dprinting corner, respectively, @ ebay, uk). My rationale for deciding to purchase items is, if would take too long, and take too much effort to make, then why not just get it cheaply-ready-made and paint it? Anyhow, before overloading my shopping basket, I thought I'd better find something else that I could build without too much stress.

I selected a workbench. For this one, I found one for sale and literally copied the design & dimensions:

With the Evergreen angle strips & some plasticard I had a go at making my own kit:

It took some thought as to how to get it painted and assembled. I decided to pre-paint, then carefully glue. The finish on the "chipboard" gave me particular pleasure because I blended two cans of unused paint I bought ages ago when trying to find the right colour for a leather interior. They were good for something after all!

The finished result ended up being somewhat more "used" than the reference photo, but perhaps less-so than the 3DP sack truck, which I subsequently acquired & painted. The bucket was also bought, but I did make the cloth out of Green Stuff.

I finally got the floor paint to play ball using Polyfilla, rather than wood filler, but probably it had more to do with letting everything completely dry overnight between stages. Anyhow, with the furniture starting to take shape, it was time to start moving pieces around and looking through a camera lens to see if my mental design was going to work. After a couple of tweaks, I settled on the basic layout below. (Note, I also purchased a 3DP rolling tool chest):

Time for a rest now. One more post should bring us up to date. Thanks for looking. More shortly...

[Pete75]

Got the door painted & fixed in place, plus I secured the tyre rack and its contents in position. (I went with double-sided tape). I got some self-adhesive floor markings (allscale.diorama@ebay, uk) for added colour/depth. I checked UK regulations and, allowing for furniture, made sure the perimeter walkway complies (to scale) with the 800mm minimum!  

You can see that I also added some scratch built electrical sockets and a light switch. They were made from plasticard, with electrical wire for the conduits:

More small stuff is being accrued. I painted some 3DP Jerrycans and a fire bucket. For the latter, I added sand by gluing embossing powder to a styrene disc, then spraying them with my newly-purposed tan interior paints! I made the fire extinguisher by cutting a section of a plastic pipette and filling it with Green Stuff; this also allowed me to shape the tapered top section. The handle and nozzle were fashioned from styrene, while the hose is electrical wire. Lastly, I added some random safety-looking decals from the parts bin. The sign (leftover from my collapsible dio setup) is printed on matt vinyl, so I mounted it on thin plasticard and laminated it to make it look more  glossy and "official":

And that's us up to date, for now. Thanks for looking.

Edited Saturday at 03:31 AM by Pete75

[bobss396]

I like it! What was used for the brick walls? I may have missed that somewhere in your write up.

I like the idea of using real wood. I have to see if I have any scrap Luan plywood around.

[Pete75]

8 hours ago, bobss396 said:

I like it! What was used focr the brick walls? I may have missed that somewhere in your write up.

I like the idea of using real wood. I have to see if I have any scrap Luan plywood around.

Thanks! Indeed, after years of messing around with card that wobbles when breathed on, it's nice to feel rigidity! The brick is printed on adhesive-backed vinyl and was bought from walker-model-supplies@ebay, uk.

[Pete75]

Progress continues. The end wall is essentially done: 

The wall adverts/notices were left over from my temporary dio. They all have self-adhesive backing but I’ve learned from experience it’s easier to position them when they are mounted onto something first - I like using 0.25mm plasticard & double-sided tape. I’m weathering stuff as the mood grabs me, so I’ll probably be tinkering with pastels until the end. In this regard, I’m really glad the floor paint worked out as it turns out that water-based washes & pastels simply wipe off when I get a bit heavy handed!

For the side wall, I’ve been trying to fill-up the workbench with stuff. I knew when I built it I’d have to come up with things to put on it, and that it would likely end up needing more than I had imagined - and so it has proved. To this point I I had my water bucket, a Jerry can, plus I got some resin oil/lubricant bottles which I painted up. (I was annoyed that I lost the tiny high-resolution labels that were supplied. I had to get creative with the decals in my parts bin to make something which will hopefully suffice, from a distance at least). The new additions are a scratch built aerosol lubricant (see bottom), torque wrench and a rubber mallet:

(The bucket is 3DP, but I wanted to show my first homemade waterslide decal! It would’ve been easier had I read the instructions, however, as I learnt the hard way that DIY decals require acrylic clear-coating to stop the ink running…)

I've got other plans for the torque wrench, and I feel the bench is still a bit sparsely populated. Now searching for stocking-fillers in PB and eBay...