How can I make background images?
- Thread starter Craig72
- Start date
BLACKWATCH
Mechanical Engineer
Ray Whiley is your man for these, he's made some great backdrops that really do give your route a proper horizon.
Contact him through http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/raywhiley or catch him on this forum.
Contact him through http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/raywhiley or catch him on this forum.
Last edited:
Hi all. Thanks for replying.
Ray has some great backdrops, but they are not what I am after.
What I would like is something like these:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/nature/galleries/beaches/11
I would like to get some copyright free photo's and make my own backdrops.
Craig.
Ray has some great backdrops, but they are not what I am after.
What I would like is something like these:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/nature/galleries/beaches/11
I would like to get some copyright free photo's and make my own backdrops.
Craig.
The same principle of construction would apply. However remember the backdrop would still have to be a reasonable distance from the track to look realistic. I seem to remember Dave Drake has a tutorial on this on his website. Perhaps somebody can give the link as my Trainz PC is u/s at the moment.
You may get some ideas here:
http://ianztrainz.com/oldsite/tutorial3.htm
Alpha channel treatment has changed in recent Trainz releases. Just use black and white in any alpha channel.
Ian
http://ianztrainz.com/oldsite/tutorial3.htm
Alpha channel treatment has changed in recent Trainz releases. Just use black and white in any alpha channel.
Ian
ray_whiley
Active member
I'm pleased that my backdrops got a mention, and I must say how grateful I am to the tutorial mentioned in the last post and especially to tafweb's tutorial on making trees for TRS2004, which was my main source of guidance in starting to make backdrops,
Provided one has a suitable photograph or photographs, the process is quite simple. My 'trees' backdrops are in fact made from just one photograph; a range of rural backdrops which I'm working on at present is made from four simple panoramic shots across meadows towards distant trees and hills. The photographs were taken with a fairly basic digital camera - it must be fairly basic, since it's now ten years old - but it serves the purpose very well.
I'd be happy to give a brief description of how I work, but it wouldn't add a great deal to the tutorials mentioned above. The two things to remember are a) two images are needed - colour for the backdrop itself, and greyscale/black and white only for the opacity rexture (to leave the Trainz sky showing), and 2) to make sure that in the texture.text file, 'tile=none', otherwise a hard edge will be seen at the top of the backdrop.
Ray
Provided one has a suitable photograph or photographs, the process is quite simple. My 'trees' backdrops are in fact made from just one photograph; a range of rural backdrops which I'm working on at present is made from four simple panoramic shots across meadows towards distant trees and hills. The photographs were taken with a fairly basic digital camera - it must be fairly basic, since it's now ten years old - but it serves the purpose very well.
I'd be happy to give a brief description of how I work, but it wouldn't add a great deal to the tutorials mentioned above. The two things to remember are a) two images are needed - colour for the backdrop itself, and greyscale/black and white only for the opacity rexture (to leave the Trainz sky showing), and 2) to make sure that in the texture.text file, 'tile=none', otherwise a hard edge will be seen at the top of the backdrop.
Ray
Have a look down to "my content". There is a "Do-it-yourself-Backdrop", containing a read-me-file.
Dave Drake backdrop page is at http://www.ttbwrr.com/TTBWRR-TREES-Cityscape-Blended-Backgrounds.htm#Tutorial
Dave suggests a simple way to get backdrop-pictures: Build a Trainz-scenery containing the elements you use in the foreground, and take a screen-shot. Use this screen-shot as background-"photo". Two advantages: 1. You do not have to go out and find a suitable scenery. 2. As the same elements are in the foreground as well as in the background they merge well.
Good luck
jost62
Dave Drake backdrop page is at http://www.ttbwrr.com/TTBWRR-TREES-Cityscape-Blended-Backgrounds.htm#Tutorial
Dave suggests a simple way to get backdrop-pictures: Build a Trainz-scenery containing the elements you use in the foreground, and take a screen-shot. Use this screen-shot as background-"photo". Two advantages: 1. You do not have to go out and find a suitable scenery. 2. As the same elements are in the foreground as well as in the background they merge well.
Good luck
jost62
ray_whiley
Active member
This is another good suggestion. It all depends, of course, on whether one wants to make a backdrop from an original photograph or from a screenshot of Trainz scenery - and whether one wants a backdrop which echoes the foreground scenery. My aim when I began making backdrops was to create something unique.
Incidentally, I wonder what the copyright position would be if one published a backdrop made from a screenshot of assets created by other people? I have experimented with Dave Drake's ideas using buildings I have created in the past - I even made a black background before which to place them to make it easier to created the opacity channel!
Ray
Incidentally, I wonder what the copyright position would be if one published a backdrop made from a screenshot of assets created by other people? I have experimented with Dave Drake's ideas using buildings I have created in the past - I even made a black background before which to place them to make it easier to created the opacity channel!
Ray
ray_whiley
Active member
That's the way to do it!
Ray
Ray
ray_whiley
Active member
Anyone interested can now read my notes describing how I make backdrops - go to http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/raywhiley/backdrops.html
Please note that this is just my way of working and the notes are in no way intended to supplant the excellent tutorials already mentioned.
Ray
Please note that this is just my way of working and the notes are in no way intended to supplant the excellent tutorials already mentioned.
Ray