Painting backdrops; what's the best method?

best way is to paint the sky one vibrant blue color. Then using a cloud stencil apply clouds across the wall increasing density as you go from top to bottom(closest to the layout top.

Thus using the clouds to change the sky color from blue to bluish white.

 Andy,

You will never find a consensus here or anywhere else about backdrop painting whether it be just the sky or the entire backdrop.

Some people prefer highly detailed painted or photo backdrops. Others prefer very basic hill-like shapes to convey a sense of distance without overpowering foreground scenes.

Similarly, some like to include highly detailed clouds using a method such as Alan described, while others feel that clouds can be distracting particularly if they are not very well done.

Sky colors can be blended right on the backdrop using a brush if you work quickly. Paint the darker color at the top and the lighter near the horizon, and immediately begin blending with horizontal brushstrokes. I find spray techniques too difficult to control, but others swear by them.

Others prefer to paint the entire sky all one blue.

My preference is for variety. Where my foreground scenes are highly detailed, I like just a few hills in the distance.I use a 2" brush for these scenes. A few wispy clouds on a solid blue sky are enough for me in these areas.

In other places, particularly city scenes, I print out photos of actual buildings on heavy paper, cut them out and glue them in place on a graduated painted sky using a collage technique of overlapping images. The sky colors are blended using the same 2" brush.

I also suggest a vibrant blue, as Alan suggested, particularly if you will be doing much photography. Blues tend to wash out in some situations when photographed, as I found out from experience.

Hopefully, you'll get some other opinions illustrated with photos to help you decide which techniques look best to you.

Jim

Alan, Jim, thank you for your responses. I'll look around at some other layouts, and see what looks best to me, and then find out what I can actually reproduce . I'll do some experimenting, and hopefully come up with a finished product that looks good in person, and maybe also photographs well.

Thanks,

Andy

Here's mine on the this thread. Malcolm

https://ogrforum.com/d...ent/4949358370367432

Wow! Nice work Malcolm. What is your technique for applying the sky color?

Andy

OK, I'm not saying I am right; just different in my approach. I had a heck-of-a good time doing the exact opposite. That is, I painted the walls white, first; then, used a simple brush one would use to paint a room, took my time, and painted the blue up to where I perceived a cloud/cloud-mass to be, almost how one works in watercolor, feathering into where I imagined the parameters of the clouds to be.

The results are shown here. You can decide for yourself if it was effective.

My wife liked our "sky-walls," as we called them, when she saw the first wall in-progress, which was very motivating for me. Plus, I haven't had the urge to change them, so I am happy with the results.

Frank

In this area, I included the ceiling in the effort...

Watch a Bob Ross episode on YouTube.

Dave

I did something similar although used a smaller set of brushes e.g. a 1", 2", and a 1" pound brush and then used a couple of tubes of tints of various blues that I worked into the base white while still wet on the wall and just unleashed my inner Van Gogh to get a bit of a Starry Night effect.

A common mistake is to over do the clouds by making too many of them. Less is definitely more when it comes to clouds on a backdrop.

Frank, it looks great! I like your results. Dave, I was thinking the same thing! I was trying some of Bob's techniques the other night, and I thought, I've seen this somewhere before . MWB, do you have any pictures to post? Jumijo, I don't think I'll be doing any clouds, I don't think I have the talent. I've tried a few times, and it just doesn't look right. I'll just go with a blue sky, lighter on the bottom, with a deeper blue as I work my way up the wall. Thanks for all of your responses.

Andy

I'm only painting an area about three or four feet at a time, but I find that the paint starts to dry before I'm done blending them together. Has anyone tried Flotrol, or a latex extender, to give themselves more open time while blending the different colors? If so, what's been your experience? 

Andy

Something not mentioned yet Andy is using a flexible board like 1/8" Masonite (cheap) to paint your bcckdrop on which allows a gentle 90 degree curve at the corners. This give a good effect over an abrupt corner. Another advantage is that the boards can always be removed in the future if the space use changes.

Hi Jumijo, I was just on the verge of agreeing w/ you (and still am - "Nothing to excess"... and all,) but then I looked out my study window...

...go figger, huh.

I guess it's a matter of personal taste... and Who is the artist.

Frank

Frank - I have to agree with you. I was thinking about how some of my cloud painting left a lot to be desired and I happened to notice clouds in the actual sky that looked identical. I have come to believe that you eventually will see just about any shape and color of cloud, but the real secret seems to be if it looks realistic to you.

Art

Hi Sam,

Thanks, I will definitely use Masonite or other backdrop material. I also saw something mentioned once about vinyl flashing as a possibility. I realize material like that would need more support though. 

Andy

Good thing I read through this thread before I responded because that is what I was going to suggest.  I LOVE watching that Bob Ross series (PBS also aired a documentary about the artist's life recently).

Removable panels that C. Sam mentioned:

1/8" x 8' Masonite, in my case ripped 13-3/8" to fit on the attic kneewall space from benchwork up to rafter pitch. I use 2" Industrial Velcro to enable removing for placement on easels which is handy for painting, applying photo murals or even building fronts. My room is small and with short kneewall but the same concept will work for a higher reaching application.

Photo shows an 8' section on quilts on benchwork ready to apply to wall.

I painted my sky " Horizon Haze" from Homer Depot Behr paint line. It is flat then used stencils with white flat spray paint in a rattle can. depending how close or far from the background you are with the stencil gives you softer and sharper edges to your clouds. Giving the illusion of farther and closer clouds.

Here is a link to how I did it:

http://token3rail.blogspot.com...-cloud-painting.html

Once again, other than wallpaper, Bob Ross is the best way.

Once set up, the B.D. in the photo was painted in under 30 min.

(Wet on wet with a 4” brush working quickly)

1. Paint white.

2. Start at the top with dark blue along the top and blend in a criss cross pattern all the way down. (Depth illusion = distance) Pick up blue as needed to blend into white.

3. Hipmotise across like painting siding on a house as you work back down the B.D. again.

Boom, done!

4.Trees, buildings, start small in the background using darker colors and work forward partially covering the prior renderings.

5. Last items will be the largest and more colorful.

 Many examples on my link below...

Alan, Bob Ross was the master! Dewey, what a great idea. After seeing yours, I may do something similar. CSXAL, I like the effect you've achieved! Looks great. Steve, thanks for the step by step, I'll go back downstairs and give it a try! Thanks for everyone's input, I'll post pics of my results.

Andy

Allan,

Watching the documentary made me like the guy even more.

Dave

Here is my first attempt with the Bob Ross method, as mentioned by Dave, Allan, and Steve. The strange part is, the blue is much richer in person. I used a glaze mixed in with the white, to give me a little more time to work on blending. What do you think?

I was referring to the amount of clouds represented, not the ratio of clouds to sky. Some people go way overboard and put hundreds of clouds, all of roughly the same size and shape in a small area. It ends up looking like wallpaper one might see in a baby's room. I'm sure you've seen several examples of that in your forum travels. But as you say, it's a matter of personal taste.

April 27, 2012 4:36 PM
 
Originally Posted by Moonson:

A common mistake is to over do the clouds by making too many of them. Less is definitely more when it comes to clouds on a backdrop.

Hi Jumijo, I was just on the verge of agreeing w/ you (and still am - "Nothing to excess"... and all,) but then I looked out my study window...



...go figger, huh.

I guess it's a matter of personal taste... and Who is the artist.

Frank
 
"When you're ready for more than just trains..."
Last edited by Moonson April 27, 2012 4:41 PM

The color of my sky photographs much grayer than it looks to me in person.

Is that because of the lighting Mark?

Andy

Hi There,

I had this problem sometime ago I went down the poster route they were made in Germany. If you want to see how they come out on video click on the link below. You will need to go a good few minutes into the video to see what I mean.

http://youtu.be/pViR_J285l4

Regards Roy.

That's quite a video!   Most cab videos live me cold, even ones taken on great layouts.   This one is a definite exception. You obviously paid great attention to sight lines, scene transitions, etc.  Great work!

Roy, nice work on the layout and video! The backdrop looks great. I enjoyed the ride. I considered the backdrop route, but it's a little too expensive for me. I think a backdrop would wind up costing over two thousand dollars for my layout. I'd just as soon stick with painting it.Thanks for the video.

Andy

It may be the photo and lighting ?

Not sure why I see verticle white lines.

It helps to draw a line where the layout base would be too.

Good first attempt!

Blend should be all the way across.I would try again with a richer color blue across the top area and work it down from there. That will push the depth back even more.

We all have to practice and sometimes a do over is a good thing.

I had one yesterday when painting a pealing paint weathered roof on an old ERIE car.

Work it till you like it!

Andy,

I don't know how large your layout is, but if you do a DIY photo backdrop,  I bet it would be a lot cheaper than that. Places like this:

http://www.dpsbanners.com/Banner-Printing.php

(just a randomly-chosen example) will do "banner printing" at reasonable prices.  For example, that place says that they will print a 3' x 30' banner for $360. (I've seen other places that advertise really big formats for $1 per sq ft) There are lots of nice panoramic images available on the Net for free.  I posted a pic of a backdrop I am doing on the other "cloud" thread:

Panorama

Steve, the vertical lines you're seeing are because I painted the blue too far apart. I'll be marking out when I get going permanently, but for now I'm just playing. The LED lighting is very bright, and is slightly washing out the color. The color looks better in person. Pete, thanks for the info for DIY. I'll give that a look. I know I've seen a tutorial for that on the forum, a two part series I think. 

Andy