Old Marine Posted April 10, 2009 Share #1 Posted April 10, 2009 Here is another of my models. This is a small, 1/35 scale, shadow box diorama depicting 101st Division Paratroopers in Normandy with German war trophies. This box is about 5x7 inches and about 3 inches deep with a glass front. I found these boxes at Ikea, and they work out real well for a small figure vignette like this. As any model builder will tell you, dust is our mortal enemy and these boxes really eliminate the dust accumulation, the drawback is that you are limited on space, but it's all a trade off. I think this one worked out pretty well. The figures are a total mishmash of Verlinden, Airfix, Nemrod, Warriors, DML, Tamiya and any other head, arm or leg I had lying in the parts box. I used that famous group photo of the Paratroopers in Normandy holding the Nazi flag as an inspiration. Of course I can't find my copy of that photo right now, but I am sure you are all probably familiar with it. In that photo the trooper holding the flag is wearing GI glasses and the soldier beside him is holding a machete. If you look at the 4th figure from the left you can see he is a composite of those two. I didn't try to copy the photo exactly, but I think this little Diorama captures the same feel. The building front is a plaster cast piece that I picked up at a model show, and I have no idea who made it. The side panels were hand painted, and the foliage is that model railroad green foam foliage. The signs are just laser prints. The cafe sign was lifted from another period photo of Normandy, I just recreated the sign. Ok I'll stop talking and show more pictures. Thanks Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Marine Posted April 10, 2009 Author Share #2 Posted April 10, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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Old Marine Posted April 10, 2009 Author Share #8 Posted April 10, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Marine Posted April 10, 2009 Author Share #9 Posted April 10, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rrobertscv Posted April 10, 2009 Share #10 Posted April 10, 2009 Very cool, wish I had the talent to do something like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugme Posted April 10, 2009 Share #11 Posted April 10, 2009 I'd have to toss my hat in with rrobertscv. this is very neat, very detailed and way past my patience level. however, I sure do admire the work behind this and your apparent abundance of patience! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgtdorango Posted April 10, 2009 Share #12 Posted April 10, 2009 Oh my god!!....thats the coolest diorama I have ever seen!!....I used to do these in 1/35 awhile ago so I really appreciate the work and detail!!..awesome work... .....mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark M Posted April 10, 2009 Share #13 Posted April 10, 2009 Dennis Well done! Thank you for posting it! Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamski Posted April 10, 2009 Share #14 Posted April 10, 2009 Now that is cool!! A diorama you can hang on the wall. Sweet! -Ski Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Posted April 10, 2009 Share #15 Posted April 10, 2009 wow....very cool! well done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cutiger83 Posted April 10, 2009 Share #16 Posted April 10, 2009 Great diorama! Your painting technique is fantastic. The weathering on the figures looks great. Do you use an airbrush at all or are these totally hand painted? Thanks for posting more of your work....Kat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ww2vault Posted April 11, 2009 Share #17 Posted April 11, 2009 Wow, that is fantastic!! I would pay up to $100 for that piece of work! - Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disneydave Posted April 11, 2009 Share #18 Posted April 11, 2009 Thought I'd chimein on this one too - fantastic work...love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blake_E Posted April 11, 2009 Share #19 Posted April 11, 2009 wow that is awesome, cool details Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proud Kraut Posted April 11, 2009 Share #20 Posted April 11, 2009 One of the finest dioramas I have ever seen, unbelievable! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twhigham Posted April 13, 2009 Share #21 Posted April 13, 2009 Nice work! I really like the way you addressed the window panes. Very good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arclight Posted April 14, 2009 Share #22 Posted April 14, 2009 Absolutely amazing detail, and what a victorious moment to capture! Dick Winters would be envious. I've always wanted to do something like that, but my attempts always look like a child did it. Now I only wish I could find time to devote to it again. This is truly inspiring, though! Thanks for sharing, G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Marine Posted April 14, 2009 Author Share #23 Posted April 14, 2009 Great diorama! Your painting technique is fantastic. The weathering on the figures looks great. Do you use an airbrush at all or are these totally hand painted? Kat, everything in that shadow box is brush painted. I use a base coat of acrylics and then lots if thin washes and dry brushing. Thank you all for your nice comments. I'll keep posting them until you get tired of looking at them. Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Marine Posted April 16, 2009 Author Share #24 Posted April 16, 2009 This is the photo that inspired the diorama. You can see that I didn't try to exactly recreate this photo, more of capturing the feeling of the photo. This photo is really pretty good for the amount of details shown. The soldier on the far right has a German E tool on his belt. The trooper next to him has a machete, not a piece of gear that you see a lot in ETO photos. The soldier in the front row second from the left looks like he still has a white name tape over his left pocket. The man next to him on the far left looks like he has a roll of electrical tape hanging from his suspenders, Demolitions? The man behind the guy with the flag (4th from the right) is holding 2 german grenades over his right shoulder. Plus all the rigger pouches, the shoulder pads, and the canteen hanging in the front. This photo shows the big difference of how troops look in garrison according to the manual, and how they actually look in combat. I could look at photo this for hours, actually I guess I already have. If any one wants a better copy of this photo I can send you one with a bit higher resolution, PM me. Thanks again for all your encouraging comments. Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pmuranyi Posted July 19, 2009 Share #25 Posted July 19, 2009 In a word, Outstanding!!!!!!!!!!! :w00t: Thanks for the photos! Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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