Here is another great diorama made by Steve. It depicts the aftermath of a battle scene.

There are a couple of things to note in this scene. First off the damage to the Heavy Armored car is simple and easy to do yet very effective. It looks great.

Secondly the composition of this scene is very important because it uses a variety of height. Let me explain more....

Steve has lots more dioramas on my website. You can check them all out here: Steve's Dioramas

By variety of height I mean exactly that. When I build a diorama, and well, many dioramas tend to be on a flat surface. Or maybe with a little bit of hilly terrain. This diorama actually covers quite a bit of vertical space. And the broken bridge is an excellent way for us to segue our eyes from one height to another height.

It isn't something to do all the time because it can be very dramatic. But remember this the next time you are laying out a diorama! Think about the variation in height that you might want to show.

On this page I have some pictures of the completed diorama. Steve has also included for us some pictures of the diorama as it was being made. For tips on how to make something like this you can check out those pictures here: Fur Elise Diorama Part 2

Here is a pair of pictures showing the damage on the Heavy Armored Car.

Steve tells us how he created the damage:

"The basic battle damage is the singular hole from an armor piercing incendiary shell, small caliber, perhaps a bakooka?. Otherwise the vehicle would be more 'blown apart'. The lhole was make using an xacto blade and texturing it like something I found in a vintage era photo. Other than that, just basic dark wash for the smoke effect on the outer shell."

Continue to Part 2 to see pics of the building of this diorama

Want to explore variation in height a bit more? Here are a couple more dioramas that use it very effectively. And in very different ways.

"Changing of the Guard" A Trestle Bridge Diorama

This is a terrific diorama made by a web visitor (Steve). It depicts the changing of the guard on a trestle bridge and it has some amazing details including natural terrain and soldiers under the bridge. The bridge itself is hand-made from balsa wood. Check it out here:Changing of the Guard Trestle Bridge Diorama

NZ Army Diorama

Glen makes an amazing diorama with layers of terrain. He uses polystyrene and air dry clay to shape the terrain. And he shows us a neat technique for using a hair dryer and air-dry clay to create the terrain shape. The NZ Army Diorama

RESOURCES

Tamiya Models Sd.Kfc.234/1 German Heavy Armored Car

1:35 Scale kit, Photo Etch, decals, Paint or Tools or Glue are not included with kit

The Sd.Kfz. 234 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug 234), was a family of armored cars designed and built in Germany during World War II. The vehicles were lightly armored, armed with a 20, 50 or 75mm main gun and powered by a Tatra V12 diesel engine. 234/1 this design featured an open-topped turret. Kit features engraved detailed exterior, detailed fighting compartment and turret with optional mesh cover open/closed, leaf spring suspension, injection molded wheels and tire assemblies and spare with brace, separate vision ports, separately molded on-vehicle tools and equipment, 2cm KwK 38 L/55 auto cannon, MG 34 machine gun and photo etch parts (turret mesh, ring sight, jerry can straps, rack parts and more). Also includes (2) figures (Commander and Gunner) with separate weapons and equipment, full motorcycle with saddle bags and rider with separate weapons and equipment. Decals and markings for (2) vehicles: Unknown Unit, Eastern Front, winter 1944-1945 and 2nd Panzer Div., Normandy, summer 1944 - also includes decals and markings for motorcycle and figures.