Planning an urban diorama

When I decided to build diorama’s I tried to find as much information as possible.

With this information I made my one reference card. My reference card (without the pictures) contains the following elements:

Think of the acronym PICS:

• Plausible scenes

• Independent / isolated vignette(s)

• Contours in the scenery

• Staging

Planning ahead

To avoid frustration on your project, plan ahead. Look if you can create your scene with available scenery products.

Make your own unique sign

Don’t place any structure on your diorama without at least making up and printing your own unique sign for the building. That means don’t use the names / decals supplied with the kits you buy.

Scalescenes provided the name Ducketts , I changed it in JOHN GRAMTHAM F.C.A, HIGH CLASS GROCERIES & PROVISIONS

Modify your kit

If you use a kit, at least modify it a bit on your layout.

I like to do some kit bashing with the Scalescenes templates. In this way I create my own buildings. For instance J.H.Pepperell's greengrocers shop.

This was a try out, to see what I could do with the Scalescenes templates and kits.

Look (for scenery items) in other modeling disciplines.

I always keep an open eye for that one. Not only for scenery items. But also for the technique that are used in other disciplines. This area I still have to explore.

Urban ground cover

Building a great looking structure for your diorama is not the end of your work to replicate the real world. You must not leave a gap between the bottom of our structure and your bench work. Real buildings don’t sit on top of the earth but rather rise from it.

That is the most important thing I learned from building Bridge Street. I now let the buildings rise up from the ground.

Street base structure used on Nice Street.

Now I'm still busy creating the Dock Basin for Northall Dock.

Regards,

Job