​Trees are a vital part to building a realistic diorama and there are good trees but there are also bad trees! Let’s focus on making the good trees!

This tree is a small clip from an upcoming diorama of a countryside scene with a train passing by. There will be a number of these trees that will populate the front of the diorama.

​In the video above has been condensed down from approximately 1 hour of building into just under 1 minute, a tree like this on average will take approximately 20 to 30 minutes to build. The only reason it took over a hour in the video was so that I could film the stop motion sequence at the same time.

Below is another shorter video showing the tree at each stage.

​There are a couple of techniques used on this tree:
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1. I use a natural branch structure, I’m using dried salt bush in this example but any small branch with a good texture will work, sagebrush is another example of a good fine branch structure with nice texture.
   
   
2. I select an appropriate trunk, it doesn’t matter if it has no small off shoots as we will add those in the next step.
   
   
3. To add smaller branches I select twigs with a fine natural looking structure that will simulate a branch in a larger scale. I use twigs from the same material (Dried Salt Bush) and trim them to an appropriate size, to attach them to the trunk I use super glue gel and baking soda.
   
   The superglue gel holds its shape and doesn’t immediately soak into the twigs, with a small blob of gel on the end of the twig I hold it up against the trunk and then sprinkle a small amount of baking soda over the glue. This acts as an activator for the glue and causes it to set almost immediately.
   
   
4. Next with all the main branch structure complete I attach small pieces of sea foam to the ends of the branches using the same method with super glue gel and baking soda.
   
   
   
5. To blend the colors I spray the sea foam portions with a light beige/grey color until they blend in seamlessly with the rest for the branches and trunk.
   
   
6. To apply the foliage I first spray the canopy with spray adhesive and the sparingly apply the Woodland Scenics medium green course turf. Depending on your desired coverage you may need to repeat this step a couple of times.
   
   
7. To add the leaf texture I use Noch medium green leaves applied in the same manner as the course turf.
   
   
8. Finally to seal it in place and help remove the tackiness from the spray adhesive I go over the entire tree with Matte Varnish.

 
This style of tree is quite time consuming but the end result is fantastic, having a few of these trees at the front of the layout where they will be seen more readily is ideal and you can fill up the background with cheaper less time consuming trees.

One of my favorite features to add in any model scene is water. Whenever I see a layout that has a water feature I'm always drawn towards it and from what I've observed on not only my YouTube channel but many others as well is that water effect tutorial videos tend to be much more popular than most others. 

For the next tutorial video I'll be building a small river scene. 

As part of the scene I've been doing a few test printing a small boat to include, so far the results have been fantastic and with a small amount of paint and a figure I think the scene will come out just how I'm planning.

With the boat loosely placed on one of my older dioramas and a figure near by you can get an idea of how the boat will create a much more dynamic look and feel to the scene.

The boat is a model downloaded online from thingiverse and is surprisingly detailed, the model is separated into 35 printable parts however I printed it as an assembled model. 

By importing the parts into TinkerCad I was able to position the components to build the 3D model and export the completed boat. Doing it this way enabled me to assemble and print the main boat as one piece and then assemble and print the motor and paddles as separate pieces.

The model is printed on the Anycubic Photon, I usually prefer using the Anycubic Clear Green resin however for this model I tried using the Monocure Grey resin which worked well. I improved the resolution by lowering the layer height to 0.03mm and set the exposure time to 12 seconds which seemed to work well.
With the green resin I could probably lower the exposure time to about 8 seconds which would improve print times!

And if building a diorama for this boat seems like too much hard work you'll be happy to know the boat actually floats! 

As I progress with the upcoming diorama I'll post updates here so be sure to check back.

In most of my previous videos I've always been striving to create scenes that might be seen in every day life and as realistic as I can get it... However in this next video I'm still using the same techniques to create realistic scenery but the main difference is I'll be creating a scene/diorama that sits atop a pillar of earth with visible sewerage pipes and a subway underneath that overall shows a scene that would be more likely to be in a fantasy or sci-fi type scene.

Overall the scene will encompass a house situated on a pillar of earth with the edges appearing to be breaking away and details typically hidden by soil will be exposed. 
The entire scene will be detailed including lighting effects and interior house details.

Interior house details will also be included, for the most part the interior details will be hidden however if someone decides to take a closer look at the model they will be presently surprised that the interior includes tables, chairs and even a TV.

The 3D printer I use to create the tiny HO scale details including this HO scale garage which will sit beside the house is the Anycubic Photon Resin 3D printer which I have shown in previous videos. I have been using this printer for the past 6 months and every time I take a model off the printer I'm always impressed with the amazing detail it resolves.
Stay tuned for updates, this upcoming tutorial will be full of new tips and tricks!

Have you ever wondered how to model an awesome waterfall on your own layout or diorama? This tutorial will show you exactly what to do!

Building a waterfall can often seem like an impossible task but all the time, effort and preparation it takes to build an amazing waterfall is certainly worth the effort once it's complete. 

For more information related to building this waterfall and to see more high quality photos be sure to check out the additional article here:

Or to see the full list of videos from the 'Realistic Scenery' series you can see them here:

I don't have any solid plans for the next video however I do have some videos I'm working on for future tutorials, I'd love to here what you'd like to see for possible future tutorial videos in the comments below.

One of the hardest things to model when building a diorama is water! Not to mention a waterfall.
I think one of the most scary aspects of working with resin to simulate water is the "Only one chance" dilemma... basically if it doesn't work on the first try the risk of completely ruining your model is very high. 

​The best way to tackle a project like this is with careful planning and also
be prepared to start over.

​We are all only human and we make mistakes, it's a little like learning to ride a bike and falling off, sure it might hurt and given time we heal but the only way to overcome our trepidation is to get back on and have another go.

This project has gone through many stages to get to its current state and in the upcoming video tutorial I'll carefully and slowly step you through every one of those steps so you have a fighting chance at making an awesome waterfall on your first attempt.

It's a slow process but that's just the nature of model building and sometimes we need to take a careful calculated approach to model building.
​I've definitely been guilty of trying to rush and slap a scene together but I'm never entirely happy with the end result because I knew if I just took a bit more time I could have done a much better job.

I'm always amazed at what a little bit of greenery does to change the look of a model, I always start to feel a boost of motivation once I see the model starting to transform with static grass!
​Comment below to let me know what aspect of this upcoming tutorial you're looking forward to the most? Is it the waterfall itself and how it spills over the rocks?, or are you more interested in how I color and pour the resin?
I tried a few new techniques on this diorama that I'm very excited to share in the video.