Diorama

Do you have a model railway layout project? Building a beautiful diorama is your guarantee of constantly renewed playing pleasure. To customise your bucket, Jura modélisme  offers a wide range of décoration accessories à différentes échelles de réduction. Whether you're amodernistor confidentist, you'll find in the categories opposite all theaccessoriesyou need to build a realistic diorama à good value for money.
Our products are selected by rail modelling enthusiasts. You'll find products from big name brands such as Noch, Faller, Busch and Woodland. All these accessories are specifically designed to solve the problems you encounter when creating a diorama:






























To create a diorama. 1- To create relief, cover our ballast, tunnel entrances, tunnel floors and road and rail bridges. 2- For a more realistic look, explore our collection of foliage, flocking and static grass, as well as miniature trees, bushes and fir trees. 3- To liven up your diorama, we also distribute accessories from Car Faller System, a brand specialising in the production of dynamic vehicles on the 1/87th scale. Our diorama construction kits will enable you to obtain a good level of detail, whatever the reduction coefficient of your réseau (1/87th, 1/160th, 1/43rd, 1/22.5th, and 1/220th).

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Diorama instructions for use

What is a diorama ?

The word diorama means to see à through. Originally, it denotes a painting in three dimensions made in the 19th century by Louis Daguerre, one of the pioneers of photography. Today, this trompe-l'oeil is still on display in the church at Bry-sur-Marne. This method of volume representation was later popularised by naturalists. In natural history museums, the term "diorama" was used to describe the display cases set up to recreate life-size scenes of wildlife. These 3D scenes can also be used to build miniature horns, with or without a display case. These dioramas are made up of a background, objects (trees, houses, vehicles, mountains, etc.) and figurines reproduced on a reduction scale.

Which scale of reproduction to choose?

While model railroading is anexciting hobby, a miniature railroad can quickly take up space.The size of a diorama depends on the space available to the modeler. The choice of scale is crucial and should be made beforehand. There are different reduction coefficients. The higher the coefficient, the smaller the footprint
. The coefficient most commonly used in France is 1/87th - 1 cm on the diorama represents 87 cm in reality. This is also known as the HO scale. There are higher reduction coefficients for smaller horns: N scale (1/160th) or Z scale (1/220th).Conversely, smaller scales produce larger models: 0 scale (1/48th), G scale (1/22.5th) or I scale (1/32nd). Note that the greater the reduction, the lower the level of detail.

How to build a diorama

To create a diorama, you need to be creative, but also methodical. Here's a quick overview of the steps you should follow to produce yourfirst mock-up.

1- Choosing the theme of your diorama
It may seem empty, but to make a model railway layout, you need to have a clear plan. You need to choose a location, a setting and an atmosphere, and the rolling stock at your disposal can help. If you have a Pacific steam locomotive why not recreate the dock at the Gare Saint-Lazare, where express trains set off in the 1930s?

2- Researching 
For our example, historical rreacute;alism is the key. To show finesse, it is préférable to document before starting à build a diorama. You can find postcards, old photos and documents in archives or on the Internet that will help you reconstruct the architecture of buildings, clothing fashions, landscapes, etc. This information will help you recreate an authentic atmosphere.

3- Gather the right accessories
Once your reconstructions are done, the modelling work really begins. To make aprototype, you'll need to collect the modèréduits that match à the world of your model train. You'll need to pick up your brushes to paint, your cutter for décutting work, do some gluing... manual work is essential!! But whether you're building a small or a large model, you certainly won't be able to do everything yourselfêmes. Check out the catalogues of the major accessory brands. They offer figurines,
miniature cars, animals, flocking to the scale of your diorama and good deals, such as Tamiya spray paint. Specialised magazines, forums for collectors and blogs by model enthusiasts are also good sources of information for finding models to build and good advice.

What materials should you use?

There are many materials, many of them economical, that can be used to build a realistic interior. Plywood and balsa wood are perfect for making the base or frame of a large diorama. Thanks to sculpting and moulding, plaster and resin can be used to create beautiful reliefs (mountains, hills, cliffs, etc.). Polystyrene is also a good choice, as it is ultra-light and easy to process. Slate, clay, paper or cardboard can also be used to make miniature desserts.

Slate, clay, paper or cardboard can also be used to make miniature desserts.

Where to find diorama ideas?

When it comes to finding diorama themes, there are many sources of inspiration. Firstly, the internet, where ferrovipaths share their passion widely, particularly on Youtube. You can also find a wealth of information at a model exhibition, a model show or in specialised magazines. The latter regularly feature articles on different themes.

In résumé

Are you building a analog or digital model train layout? There's no ready-made diorama or instructions for making one, but that's what makes this hobby exciting. Please note that a lot of preparatory work is involved, so don't rush into it. Take the time to choose the right scale. Do your research to faithfully reproduce the architectural lines of the historic buildings in the area you are interested in. It's essential to change, to learn new techniques and to find good ideas that will allow you to recreate an original world. This will enhance the storyline of your rail operating game and showcase your rolling stock (diesel locomotive, wagon, etc.).