A backdrop to a model railroad, really brings the scenery to life. Nothing is worse than looking at a (brick) wall that completely destroys the carefully designed landscape. Backgrounds can be homemade or easily ordered ready-made. What should you pay attention to when making a background?
This article is about backgrounds you can buy. And so not about painting a background yourself. For enthusiasts, Peco provides printed backgrounds in a painterly style.
The right proportion
The most important thing is the proportion of the background. Objects that are on a background should be in proper proportion to those on the layout. This is especially true for houses or industrial buildings.
It is best if these objects are “farther away” in the background. So that any discrepancies in the ratio are not immediately visible. True, there are formulas available to calculate a proper ratio. But assume that a house that is 20 centimeters on your layout will soon have to be reduced to 6 or 7 centimeters on a background, for realistic effect.
Depth
To achieve the right effect of depth with the background, a background that almost matches the environment of the model railroad is the best. With an industrial area, it is not appropriate to have a beautiful forest in the background. Especially with trees, this works very well. It is therefore important to think carefully about which objects are still on the layout and from what point the background takes over.
An example: behind a rural house is a row of model railroad trees. Behind it we paste a background of a wooded area. This creates depth.
No perspective in the background
A perspective or 3D view in the background is disastrous for the effect. Because the eyes absorb the objects in on the model railroad from their own perspective, a background can practically never match it. After all, this background does not “move” with the position of the viewer.
Which suppliers?
A background with lots of sky, few buildings and lots of greenery works best. This mostly fits well with the model layout.
Of all the major suppliers, we believe Gaugemaster has the best offering. The backgrounds are cleverly set up. At the front, they always start with a “green strip” making the transition easy. Unfortunately, Gaugemaster lacks a background for a medium-sized city.
For higher-quality backgrounds, Austria’s Atelier Dietrich is an option. They have devoted themselves entirely to making appropriate backgrounds for scale N, among other things, and the lengths of the backgrounds are also impressive. Thus, a continuous background can be created for many layouts.
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