Selective reality

My experience has been than most layouts have a couple really impressive spots, and photos taken there have that WOW factor, but the complete layout pales by comparison.  Not many have the level of detail and consistency to make you say "WOW" wherever you look.

Actresses and super models know what their good angles are, and they make sure to show those off if at all possible.  I'm sure that most celebrities would not look half as stunning in person as they do on film.

Some of Each

I've visited a few layouts where the photos online or in a magazine looked good but the actual layout was disappointing, and others where the photos couldn't do justice to the modeling.  Hard to say what the split is.

One good example I recall in particular was the Reid brothers' N scale Cumberland Valley.  The color on the backdrops in photos often seemed like it just didn't match the foreground (which I suspected was an issue in pictures only), but in person the backdrops looked fantastic and the colors were perfect.  The whole layout pulled together visually even better than I expected.

I've seen a few other layouts where the photos disguised such things as haphazard fascia installation, dirty rooms, rickety foam benchwork that cracked through the scenery at every joint, and various other funky stuff.  Also note that photos don't convey odor.

odor?

It sounds like there were some bad experiences leading up to that comment!

Re: Ken

Uh, yeah.  Tobacco and cat whiz can really add that extra olfactory element to a layout visit.  Maybe the print magazines could have some scratch 'n' sniff to convey the experience.

Honestly, in most instances I

Honestly, in most instances I fail to see where model railroad photography has anything to do with reality. IMHO, it is very cool that a fellow with a small layout can have images that would look good on the cover of a magazine. 

Our layout is in an unfinished basement. If I'd have had to make the investment to finish the basement first, the layout would probably have been a long time coming. That hasn't stopped my son and I from having great fun with the trains. The photos don't reflect the reality of the unfinished surroundings... 

Hype

Nearly all of the layouts I've visited don't live up to the photos.  The only layout I went "Wow the photos don't do it justice", was Ken McCorry's.

Nearly all of the layouts

I basically agree with this, but that's because well-done photos of a layout tend to make the layout look larger, and they tend to edit out the unrealistic elements like the ceiling, bare benchwork and the like. Most layout shots are not helicopter shots from a distance, which is what you're getting when you stand and look at a layout. Helicopter angle viewing is not the best viewing angle, yet it's what we will view a layout from when we visit it.

Ken McCorry's layout is one of those rare large layouts that has a sheer jaw dropping scope that has been executed well.

I've seen so many layouts in person that have been published that I've gotten used to the fact that layouts almost never look as impressive from the standing position in person as they do in a magazine article filled with well-done railfan-eye-view images. It's more a reflection of well-executed model photos. The layouts almost always look smaller in person and there's almost always more unfinished areas than you would expect based on the article.

Because I've gotten used to this layout visit dynamic, I now hardly notice it, and instead really enjoy every layout I see in person. I've learned to appreciate the craftsmanship and sweat that's gone into every model railroad, regardless of how small or large it is.

Well Said

As usual you have hit the nail on the head, Joe. I love how having fun with model railroading is the cornerstone of your perspective on layout visits. That is what this hobby is all about. BTW, that same theme permeates the whole website. Bravo!

Best layout I've seen so far...

Visually, the best small layout I've seen so far has been Ron Kykendall's masterpiece, and though it may not be most trainwise - you'll see trains running though a very lush landscae. The landscape and the number of stories he tells through people in places, it's like a where's waldo book, without waldo.  Even an automobile in one place is a historical photograph, being I believe empereor Hirohito's limosine, the one that famously has literally NO photographs taken form the front - al form the rear.  It's on his layout, where all you see from the easy vantage points is the rear!

About Jaw Droppers

Another in that class is George Sellios' layout (Fine Scale Miniatures). The view of the layout as presented in the MRH bonus video shows an awesome layout. Joe Fugate's interview of George was done here in November 2009 and made available to MRH readers as a bonus item in September 2010. Trestles similar to the "John Allen Trestle" have been done on many a layout in beautiful ways, but the one on George's layout is marvelous. The trestle was built as a curved trestle near the end of a peninsula on the layout (the mountain it was built on is named in honor of John: "Mt. Allen"). If you have not viewed this video, I recommend you download it and view it soon.

N-scale looks better in real then on pictures

Although it's dissapointing when seeing a real life layout that is only 1/4 finished and that was the part you saw all the pics of, I also find that pics , especially of N-scale layouts taken up close show all the little faults and oops that you don't see with the naked eye. More then once have I taken pics of exhibition layouts that I found fabulous , to find all sorts of things on pics that made the layout less fabulous. Examples are , small gaps in between bottoms of structures and the ground, small parts of structures where the weathering hadden't gotten to.

Greetz Jan

N scale & reality

Thanks for the interesting insight on the N scale that I never realized it would be different for different scales.

Rick