Conrail Windsor St Yard (York PA) Engineering Report

[Chris333]

How do you cut out the tops of the trees? All those branches 

[Ed Kapuscinski]

The print quality aside, I think that backdrop behind the yard is damn effective.  Kudos!

DFF

Yeah, that's kinda the problem... the photo is kinda blurry from the panorama stitching (I think).

Or, if you're talking about the missing ink. It just meant I could only do part of the print. It won't print with an empty cartridge.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I like it. Looks just like a strip of trees would be along the tracks.

That's what I'm going for. I'm thinking, add some bushes in front, and blammo, done.

How do you cut out the tops of the trees? All those branches 

I don't! That's the beauty of using a white backdrop. The photo just fades to white. You can see some of the crop marks at the top that I still need to trim off.

[wazzou]

I don't! That's the beauty of using a white backdrop. The photo just fades to white. You can see some of the crop marks at the top that I still need to trim off.

Or, the beauty of over exposed photos.   

[crrcoal]

The scenery/backdrop here reminds me of how the sky looks at dusk on a cold winter day. The combination of bare trees and the way the pink hue is in the backdrop just nails that feeling.
A home run Ed!!!

Well, moving onto more backdrops. Now for along the yard. I'm not quite as happy, and I'm extra annoyed the printer ran out of ink half way through, but I'm looking for feedback here too.

[Philip H]

  I think the backdop tree are too short. 

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I think the backdop tree are too short. 

 :ashat:ery aside, that's actually one of my concerns. I'm hoping that them being "in the distance" works. Not convincing?

[Lemosteam]

:ashat:ery aside, that's actually one of my concerns. I'm hoping that them being "in the distance" works. Not convincing?

Not that I know how to do it or a tool the can do it, but couldn't you separate the trees from the distant background, enlarge them vertically and the reimpose them atop the unchanged background?

[unittrain]

:ashat:ery aside, that's actually one of my concerns. I'm hoping that them being "in the distance" works. Not convincing?

I think that height works for being in the immediate vicinity of a yard most trees are taken down and regular maintenance was probably common in the early 20th century then became more deferred in the1950s on into the 1980s so a tree that's about 20 or 25 years old would be about that height.

[nuno81291]

I think the height is appropriate, it appears as if they are set back from the yard as opposed to being immediately adjacent to the track. The trackside view is particularly nice!

[MK]

I think the backdop tree are too short. 

I was going to say the same.  The way it looks now it appears as if there's a significant drop in elevation after the last (furthest) track.  It's has if the layout is resting on a high mound of landfill.

Could you not raise the backdrop and inch or two and fill in the gap with actual shrubs and what not on the layout?  This will raise your tress a bit so they don't look like they are below your layout.

[SAH]

The focus should be on the railroad, not the backdrop.  I think what you have done is perfect.  Any more and the backdrop starts to compete with the modeling.

A bigger question in my mind:  How will you treat the point at which the overpass meets the backdrop?

[davefoxx]

Although I am an advocate for taller trees (something Ed and I agree on), I have no problem with the trees being shorter in this case, because (1) you can see a river through the trees, justifying a slope towards the river, and (2) you don't want or need the backdrop overpowering the layout.

DFF

EDIT: Looking back at the pictures, those trees appear to be scrub-type trees, so they wouldn't necessarily be that tall anyway.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

The focus should be on the railroad, not the backdrop.  I think what you have done is perfect.  Any more and the backdrop starts to compete with the modeling.

A bigger question in my mind:  How will you treat the point at which the overpass meets the backdrop?

A shot of bourbon.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Not that I know how to do it or a tool the can do it, but couldn't you separate the trees from the distant background, enlarge them vertically and the reimpose them atop the unchanged background?

Not very easily. If they were nice "hard" things like a building, absolutely. But trees are really difficult to isolate, sadly.