I am a fan of the skyscraper and have always been amazed by them. I have decided to to build a model of a city in a large area of my house and am wondering if there are any individuals out there that may be able to offer their opinnion on the construction of the buidlings. It will be a scale model with an operating railroad and subway system. The buildings will be made up of some replicas and some of my own design. I am stuck as to how I can illuminate these structures, some reaching 5-6 feet tall. I plan on building them out of wood, cardboard and glass (unless you may have any suggestions). If there is anybody out there that works or knows of anyone that works with model building and can offer some assistance I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you very much.
Stumbled across your inquiry, though it is nearly 2-Yr.s ago, if you have not had any success let me offer the following. To accurately depict a city or portion thereof in scale, "forced perspective" is a necessity. Utilize your largest scale (ex:HO 1/87th) in the foreground w/structures, details, streets, vehicles, and lighting (grain of wheat bulbs). Avoid angles (streets & lines of sight) that are at right angles to the depthes of your display. Much like a theatrical stage, the display base should incline upward as it progresses rearward. If your display is viewable from 360 degrees, the center should have rise. This forces the viewer to see distance. Adjacent to your Lg. scale/foreground models, your next layering of scenary (structures,etc) should be the next nearest smaller scale and so on...(HO to N to Z). Depth, distance, and realism CAN be accurately portrayed. To sufficiently light any sized structure, you must remember to blacken (obstruct) many windows, unless your miniature residents and workers are working helter-skelter 24-hour shifts. Look at the real world, and you'll see that many Hi-rises are NOT lit on every floor or even whole floors. For HO 1/87th scale and smaller HI-Rise office buildings I use the small 4"-12" flour- escent light units sold at Kmart, Walmart, etc. These provide the "floure- scent light used in real high-rises, do not cause high heat (which could warp/damage your models or worse! Keep at least 1-5# ABC fire extinguisher w/in reach of your display at all times!). In addition to blacken your windows, I use "Testors Dull-Coat" on the interior side of the window glass to obscure sight into a detailess structure, and it subdues the glare emitting from the interior lights. Keep in mind, that the distant (ie:smaller scale) structures need not be overly detailed. You want to convey distance and depth of field, basic structural shapes should be main- tained to control the illussion, but you do NOT want your viewer line of sight to be drawn from the foreground (the real details & sweat of your work) to the distant objects, thus skipping the "big picture". Also, remember to use "tiny" LEDs or fiber-optic lighting for the tops of your HI-Rises to warn aircraft. Further, I use fiber-optics for foreground sign, marquee, traffic lights, etc. Good luck, and have fun!
On a related note - if anyone can help me find a nice material for use
in modeling good skyscraper windows, I'd be much obliged. Looking for
a "dimensionally sturdy" plastic film that is tinted dark (but not opaque,
as I intend to implement internal lighting), and has a somewhat mirror-like
reflective appearance on one side. Plastruct makes this stuff, but it's
hysterically expensive (over $200 a building if you're talking 1/48th
dimensions like I am).
Thanks in advance if anyone can respond!
John
[email protected]