Sometimes you benefit from reflecting on where a project started. OK, I'll come clean, I was mildly pleased with the reflections I was getting from the shiny surface of my miniature River Severn, and decided to shoe horn 'reflectiveness' into the post, so lets stick with it...

The two canoeists mark a significant point in the diorama build... the river has been built up over many months, years even, but with the two intrepid navigators firmly stuck in place, I can't pour any more layers of paint, varnish, resin, 'realistic water' or 'unspecific goo'... or they will be submerged! They also do a good job of suggesting the scale of the whole scene.

Did I mention months building into years.. looking back at the genesis of the project, it turns out the beginings were almost four years ago:

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/351/entry-1306-bridge-over-the-river-severn/

Which talks about the plan for the model, something achieveable that while modest in size, scored points in terms of likeliness of success. I'm happy that I have concentrated the intervening time on a small project, rather than spreading my occasional bursts of modelling activity on something more complex.

Serious construction work was another year or more down the line:

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/351/entry-5503-the-trees-in-the-model-are-small-the-real-ones-are-far-away/

So what you see today is the result of a three year burst of practical model making.

Arley bound.

The pictures don't quite do the river justice as the Woodland Scenics realistic water is still a little cloudy. There must be 20 or more layers of assorted stuff building up the depth, and I'm sure the lower half of which are well obscured.

I enjoy modelling over a small area, but evolving the scene with seemingly endless layers of material. I suppose this mirrors nature, which you can't easily represent with a layer or two of carefully selected products and a light drizzle of PVA...

...well you can, I have seen it done on RMWeb! Some clever folks round here.....

These two are now permanently posed wondering if the train rumbling over their heads is something interesting. I guess it pretty much always is, poor guys, terrible timing... I plan to populate the banks of the river with a few more people, suggesting a sunny autumn day, maybe a gala weekend.

I think I have found a way to represent the aeroplane that started the whole idea off, the graceful de Havilland Dragon Rapide, from which I got the inspiration for the scene (see that first post linked above)..

A little Dragon Rapide tie pin. The trick will be to attach it to the sky in the background without casting bizarre shadows across the wide blue yonder!

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I have had news from my friends at Classic Air Force, Newquay (I volunteer there occasionally when I can make it down the M5!) that the Dragon Rapide is back at Halfpenny Green Airport (Wolverhampton) this Sunday afternoon. Understandably the practicalities of the flight and weather conditions can have a bearing on where the aircraft goes (so it is impossible to promise a route), but the pilots know the route of the Severn Valley Railway and the location of Victoria Bridge, so could I'm sure be encouraged to go and see / chase the trains. The event was postponed from a week or two ago, and now co-incides with the SVR gala, which increases the frequency of the trains to gently pursue....

I might be there myself, but unfortunately it will only be a brief flying visit in the afternoon.