Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (Cabinet build in progress))

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Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Great pics!! Thanks for the update! And I’m glad you can find a cheap alternative and still have awesome results!

Thanks. Those clasps were indeed cheap — $12.00 and free shipping from Amazon for a box of 20, and all the screws.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Just testing out some overhead lights.

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Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Another lighting test. The two spots to the either side of the Carbonite display will get the grate treatment, I just wanted to make sure I made the cut-outs in the ceiling in the right spot -- and it looks pretty good to me. There's another spot angled over Han, but for some reason it's not really showing up as a spot, as much as just an overall light. Need to figure that one out better.

Now that I look at the Jabba alcove, I realize I need to figure something out for a bit of backlighting. A friend of mine is working on the image of the BBQ pit area, but I'm not sure how I can light back to front without the light showing. I'm almost tempted to cut out the back of the display, and put the graphic image onto a frosted piece of plexiglass, and possibly light that from behind the display. If anyone has any ideas, or suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

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Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Looking good as always Stryker. I like your idea - "cut out the back of the display, and put the graphic image onto a frosted piece of plexiglass, and possibly light that from behind the display" I think that would work nicely.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Looking good as always Stryker. I like your idea - "cut out the back of the display, and put the graphic image onto a frosted piece of plexiglass, and possibly light that from behind the display" I think that would work nicely.

Thanks. I’ll have to test that theory with a throwaway bit before I go crazy, but that’s all I could think of at the moment. I was even thinking of just cutting out the two red “vents” and covering the holes with a red photo gel, and lighting that — but I don’t know if that would be enough.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Another light test with one of the grates done. I'm not entirely happy with the results, mainly because, in order to get the look I want, the light has to be about 10" inches from the grate/hole, and about 8" above the diorama ceiling -- meaning there's going to be an awful lot of dead space above this thing that has to be covered up. I tried using a 500 lumen tactical flashlight, and that can be a lot closer, but I don't know enough about wiring to even be able to attempt adding AC wires to a flashlight instead of going through the batteries. It's hard to capture the lights the way they look in person using my cellphone, but this is pretty close -- though the grid pattern is a little clearer through normal vision. It won't look exactly like the way it did in the movie, as my Carbonite display isn't set back into it's own alcove -- meaning the walls surrounding it aren't in "front" of it, but I can at least mimic a semblance of the skylights that were to either side of it.

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Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Another lighting test. The two spots to the either side of the Carbonite display will get the grate treatment, I just wanted to make sure I made the cut-outs in the ceiling in the right spot -- and it looks pretty good to me. There's another spot angled over Han, but for some reason it's not really showing up as a spot, as much as just an overall light. Need to figure that one out better.

Now that I look at the Jabba alcove, I realize I need to figure something out for a bit of backlighting. A friend of mine is working on the image of the BBQ pit area, but I'm not sure how I can light back to front without the light showing. I'm almost tempted to cut out the back of the display, and put the graphic image onto a frosted piece of plexiglass, and possibly light that from behind the display. If anyone has any ideas, or suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

View attachment 456588

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Dayum! That light is going to hit your figures beautifully![emoji106][emoji106]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Dayum! That light is going to hit your figures beautifully![emoji106][emoji106]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Thanks. I’ve been investigating options for backlighting the graphic for the BBQ pit room, and a friend suggested EL panels. I had to forget that option, which would have been perfect, but to cover an area of 17” x 44” would cost around $700 for just the panels without the power supply. That’s a bit rich for something that isn’t going to be on 24/7.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Wowww!! This is going to look insane! That lighting is so cool, I can only imagine how amazing it’ll be when you get it all painted up 😳
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Don’t get too excited. I could end up ruining it! :wink1:

Haha highly doubtful! Pretty sure even if you lit it on fire it would still look great lol.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

While struggling with the remaining lighting situations all day today (big shoutout to Delanie, a member on another forum, for turning me on to micro-spotlights -- which I think will be a huge help in and around the Carbonite display), I worked on a couple more access panels -- this time in the ceiling panels. Crude, but effective, they just pop in and out like the lid of a pot to give me access to two stems in the main arch for the crevice lights.

I think I may have found a cheap alternative to all the really expensive options out there for the backlit panel behind Jabba's throne. I found a picture-frame forum where the professionals were talking about companies that make backlit photo frames (very expensive -- almost as expensive as the EL Panels), and one of the guys mentioned that a customer of his wanted something along those lines, but couldn't afford the several hundred dollar options; the contractor ended up using LED strip lights, a white photography diffuser panel and a piece of foam core (to mount the strip lights), with a 1" spacer between the lights and the diffuser to get the same evenly distributed light that the $300-400 backlit panels give off. Total cost of that project was $74.00 -- much more reasonable, and hopefully it works. I'll probably wait until I have the backdrop printed out before I proceed with any lighting purchases for it (need to see just what type of color light (Day White, Neutral White, etc.) that would work best before I invest.

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Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

This is really coming together. The lighting you have done so far really makes the diorama pop. Very nice.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

This is really coming together. The lighting you have done so far really makes the diorama pop. Very nice.

Thanks. I’m still working on the carbonite wall— it’s way over lit at the moment. Need to pinpoint the light better, narrow it’s field so it isn’t so washed out.
 
Re: Stryker2011's: JABBA THRONE ROOM CUSTOM DIORAMA (WIP)

Here's a new pic. I ordered a couple micro-spotlights to focus the light better on the carbonite wall. While I like the result better, I'm still a little bummed that I have to mount the light about 6" above the ceiling to make the grating show up even that much I was hoping to get away with having it closer (like 2-3" tops), but despite trying different patterns for the grate -- shapes and spacing -- the only way to get the grate to show up at all is to have the light that far away. Still, a better result than my first attempt, I think.

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