Photo Magic (The Old-Fashioned Way)

Many things about the Manitoba & Minnesota Subdivision is old-fashioned: I use DC, I still run Athearn Blue Box locomotives, some of my rolling stock is made by Life-Like, Lionel and Pemco.

So why not take photos the old-fashioned way, too? I suppose if I had Photo Shop, I wouldn't have to do this. But I don't. So, like photographers of old, I did the next best thing: I made a photo background for the photos on this page.

Without the photo background.

As you can see from the before and after, it does not a half-bad job. And it is less expensive (and technologically way simpler) than photo software.

To make it, I used a piece of blue Styrofoam I had sitting around, together with photo cutouts of some trees. A bit of masking tape and I was in business.

Pulling back the curtain to reveal the technique.

And another shot.