Would love some help with my city......

MSP,  Don't be afraid of change, if you change your mind about where a structure could be go ahead and move it.  Rural areas seem easier to bring together if you place the tall and larger buildings first.  You may not need an entire building or kit in one place.  A four side building cut diagonally will make two triangle buildings against a wall.  Or with a second roof, two sides and a roof will fill a corner.  Foam board may be used for the sides or backs of buildings which won't be seen from the visitors viewing area.  John in Lansing, ILL

The first thing I decided was whether to have the buildings and streets situated in ways that allowed guests to the trainroom to be able to look directly down streets, or to have all the elements of my city positioned so a viewer had to crane his neck and move around to see details and the fronts, sides, and backs of buildings.

I decided to have both. In some places, a visitor got smacked right in the imagination straight-on, right in front, facing him.

In other places, I made the visitor work for full-featured views.

Lastly, I developed the city to have an urban center which blended down the roadways into a more "outskirts" sort of neighborhood, with a gradual shift, like in real-life, into more suburban and even more rural-like areas....even to the point of including an industrial-type neighborhood, too...

Let me know, if you wish, if this has been pertinent to your request and helpful, . There is more to this story, if you are interested.

FrankM

NICE!!!

Ok ... lets get started here....

1) I would extend the plywood over the two track loop to be flush with the front of the layout. Utilize All the space you can. You can make scenes lift out for access.

2) In order to provide more depth to your city - use false front buildings, or facades to create a larger city - don't be afraid to extend them to the top of the scene.

3) Remove / move the lighted fixture and use it for LED flood lamps at the top of your layout. paint your ceiling light blue.

4) Make your streets on angles to  the front of the layout to project a bigger space.

5) I would focus on buildings in the front with smaller foot prints to create more eye detail.

6) the eye quickly processes simple squares and large building as being small. If you trick it with angles and buildings  at different heights, it will make it appear larger and more complex.

7) Put the most detail in the buildings up front... you want to create depth as much as possible

8) Use of neon signs help keep the scene busy too. I would not over do it... but 3 or 4 look great.

9) Use 1 inch foam and cut a stone wall to hide trains under the layout

10) Again extend key streets with bridges on angles over the trains.

11) Place taller buildings in the back- and add interiors to the visible buildings as much as possible.

12) street scenes make things come alive too. vehicle lights, accidents, construction, all kind of people details will keep the eye moving ...

Hope this helps!

BTW can you cover the other wall with 1 inch foam and paint it light blue?

you can extend your city on both planes... creating a larger depth of view....

Frank - the pics are great.   That is exactly the feel and look I would like to try to get

jdaddy - a lot of good tips and advice - great idea to cover up the shelf with blue foam board opens up a lot  - also agree with the angled roads    Just didn’t like it straight up the middle like I had 

combination of pics and words helps ........

msp posted:

Frank - the pics are great.   That is exactly the feel and look I would like to try to get

Thank you so much for the reach-back, msp. I'm glad you may have found something useful in what I offered you. Have fun!

FrankM

Ok I have made some changes and have increased the space.  Labeled the space where I will have certain bldgs.

   I am going to use some Korber fronts down the right side and some Ameri-Towne buildings.    But I do like a couple of the menards buildings.    My question.  .....the Menards bldg  (police station and Tampa towers) have a much larger footprint.  Do you think these will mix well with the others.   I know this is in large part personal preference but just curious what you think 

Only a suggestion.

Adding an ELevated Bridge System could add some additional excitement to your city.

Just for grins, while your playing around with the setup of your city, try putting a mirror in the alcove under the right hand wall.  If it looks promising then remember the back of the buildings can be different colors than the front and when you print signs for them they need to be inverted.  Fun to play with and man will you get some depth.  It will match up really well with the angled streets you are now playing with.  Russ