As The Hills Line approaches its fifth year of existence, I find myself continuing to develop new approaches and processes for building and operating the layout. Not that I’m unsatisfied with my concept, but because there are always new avenues to explore in prototype modeling.
Those same avenues involve how I document and distribute images and videos of the layout. While I maintain separate YouTube, Flickr, and Instagram accounts for the railroad, it’s very possible to end up repeating the same style of content over and over again on those venues. The challenge becomes how to create content that feels fresh to attract new viewers, but also not alienate your existing base.
A while back I picked up a DJI Pocket Gimbal camera for the sole purpose of finding new vantage points to share from the layout. Already I’ve found different angles and perspectives I can take advantage of when creating content, hopefully in a manner that’s entertaining and engaging for an audience.
It’s also exposed views of the layout that are unflattering or outright embarrassing, mostly due to rushed or overlooked steps in the construction process. I can always alter and adjust still images to hide some less than stellar methods; the unblinking eye of a video camera sees all sins. Ultimately I’ll have to go back to scenes that I felt were complete and work on again until I’m comfortable in sharing.
That’s not a bad thing mind you. It’s simply reinforcing the fact that we are always learning. Especially when a new view comes along.
All the best for a happy and healthy 2024!
The Hills Line 