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lizzienewell

Well-Known Member
I'm trying to figure out the best way to display models for a show in an art gallery.

Which display method looks the most professional? The choices are: silver or black frame, round or square or no mirror, paper stand or metal stand. The frames are also in two different sizes.

I'm thinking maybe I should try gray matboard as well.
 

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lizzienewell

Well-Known Member
Here are more of them
 

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thewoodengraver

Active Member
Hi Lizzie,
I'm not a Professional, I'm just using my eyeballs.
Lose the mirror, I know you want them to see ALL the work you put into it, but first impressions are Most important in my opinion. If they like what they see first, they will insist on seeing more.
Image #'s 635 and 632 are good, 628 is too dark, the rest confuse me.
 

lizzienewell

Well-Known Member
Here is another one.
I went with the mirror because this is a ground effect craft that goes right above the water. The closest thing to the reflection off water is a reflection off a mirror.
I've been doing photomontage to put it in real scenery and then fakeing the reflection. I realized that the most realistic reflection is to photograph the model over a mirror and then montage both the image of the craft and the reflection into the background photo. I started looking at mirrors and trying to figure out how to rig the craft over the mirror and put the whole thing on a tripod. I'm still have to work out how to do it.
So I happened to be looking at mirrors at the same time I was looking at frames and decided to try it out for display.
 

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cbg

Member
Lizzie,

I agree with Phil/TWE re: the mirror. I understand your rationale for utilizing it as well, however.

How about a compromise? Do you have a dull piece of tin or aluminum that you could bring the brightness up a bit? Seems to me all water is not necessarily glass smooth. It would give you somewhat of the effect you are wanting while minimizing flash.

I come from the less-is-more school of display. You want to highlight the object, not the window dressing, so to speak. So, I also vote for image 632 as my top choice.

Greets, cbg
 

Amazyah

Senior Member
#632 gets my vote as well.
It seems to compliment the plane and make it stand out more.
All others, especially the mirrored ones, seem to distract from the subject.
By the way Lizzie, Very Nice model!

Russell
 

Willja67

Member
I kinda like the mirror and would echo whoever it was that said that water is not always glasss smooth. I do kinda like your idea of doing something that looks like the reflection though. Do as much as you can to bring the water theme in a little more.

P.S. My instructor in Oil painting never liked my stuff too much cause I didn't know much about graphic design and layout. But non artsie people like my stuff.
 

milenio3

Active Member
I agree with everybody... forget the mirror... use aluminum foil or something to mimic water, but don't use it round.
Go for 632 image.
 

hpept

Member
lizzie,
if your aim is simply to reproduce the reflection of low flying object on a liquid surface and not displaying the underside of your plane, go for the foil.
What about using aluminium foil (the one used for food) just wrinkled a little and tinted blue with glass stained colours? In this way you obtain a slightly reflective surface which can give the idea of water and is not mirror flat.
Another solution that i was thinking about some time ago to display ships, is to use a mirror and spread over it with a knife some transparent silicon to simlate the waves. While it's still soft and sticky, you can use some synthetic white colour to paint the waves creases.
Anyway i'm sure your display will be much appreciated
 

rmks2000

Member
Lizzie,

I'd go with the gray, large rectangular piece as in 632, with the metal stand. I think that perhaps a white frame (or a silver or different shade of gray?) may be better because the black seems to detract from the model. The model itself is predomiinantly black and the frame should highlight the model, not mute it.
 

Gil

Active Member
$0.02 Worth...,

Hi Lizzie,

Hope you don't mind but I did a little Photoshop work on your photo. A water surface was inserted and a copy of the outline of the vehicle was filled with white, made transparent and overlayed on the water to give the appearence of the ships reflection.

A similar effect could be accomplished by printing the water effect on an overhead view foil. You might want to experiment with more than one layer of the water. Place a mirrored surface (shiney side of aluminum foil will probably work well here) below the overhead foils to reflect the bottom of the ship back up again through the water surface. This should come close to accomplishing the desired effect. The ship should be mounted on a shaft strong and stiff enough to support the model, yet be as unobtrusive as possible. I can post a dead on shot of the water if you want.

-Gil

flyingkillerwhale9ry.jpg
 

Bowdenja

Active Member
Lizzie............. I've got a cut and fold base you could overlay Gil's water on and use if you like. It makes a base 6" x 7" with 3/4" sides. Let me know and I'll email you a copy. As far as support for the craft.......... what about stainless steel wire small guage?

john

PS............. I like Gil's idea, it will give a you a close representaion of what you are looking for........just my opinion.
 

milenio3

Active Member
Hey Gil, great job... You just gave me crazy ideas for my projects.
Thanks!
RockPaperScissor: remember to post your final design for all of us to envy.
 
Hi, Lizzie,

I'm really not sure what you are doing here. Are you just displaying the model, or is this to be a diorama of of some sort?

If you are just displaying the ship itself, go with a medium gray background and black frame. If you want people to see the underside, use the mirror.

Based on my experience in plastic model contests, rule number one is:
Don't do anything that distracts the viewer from the model
unless you are trying to hide something.

Water is darned difficult to do. I would avoid it, unless you are really doing a simple diorama.

Good luck!:)

Bob
 

lizzienewell

Well-Known Member
I'm just trying to display it. I don't want to do a diarama since it will be displayed with photomontage work that makes it look real--that is the plan anyway.

The refections are an important part of the montage since they give the relationship between the craft and the water.

Here is one of my photos. I won't be displaying this one though because the resolution is too low. Notice that the reflection isn't quite right since I mirrorly(pun intended) flipped the image and distorted it. On my next photo shoot I'm going to use a mirror under the model so the reflection is real. I will then make the image transparent and add some distortion so that it seems like the reflection is off of the water.

I want to have the images together with the models. They seem to have more impact that way. Sometimes people don't understand the images without the model. And of course when they see the model they want to see it fly.

Using a mirror or other reflective surface would relate to the reflections in the images. Polished steel might be nifty and not as prestine and tacky as a glass mirror but I'm not sure the work would be worth it. The steel parts of the stands don't seem that much nicer than paper but take a bunch of work with a drummel tool. I suppose metalic paper would be another possibility. It would have a more distorted image than the mirror does. Then there is the possibility of setting up the frame as it it had a photo along with the glass on top and then gluing the stand to the glass. The glass would have a refection especially if it had dark paper underneith. I'd try it but I don't have glass in the right size readily available. The reflection would seem accidental. Hmm that might be the best solution since it would stay consistent with the display of the photos. (ti also might be fun because I can put a photo or drawing under the glass--maybe some fish. Whoops getting off the subject)

My intent is to make the distance between the wingtips and the surface important. Most viewers have little knowledge of ground-effect-craft so the distance between the wings and the water(surface) is important.

I suppose that gets back to the reason that I make these things; it's the easiest way to show people what I mean.
 

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thewoodengraver

Active Member
Has anyone else noticed;
You can't type well when your jaw is on the floor?
Lizzie, you are so good, it drives me nuts.
Just a small suggestion, search this forum for my thread "M.T.B. 102".
I displayed my model on water using this incredibly technical (chuckle) display.
 
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