Thread: Samhain is in the details

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I see so many awesome yard sets and talent on this site... it is a great community... I just want to extend some thoughts about putting finishing touches on your displays... the human eye is an amazing organ, it works just as hard on an unconscious level as it does on a conscious level… this is why subliminal messages are an effective tool for ‘selling’ something to the audience. There is a difference in theatrics and the natural world however, those differences should only be subtle in the fact that theatrics (your scene) should push and exaggerate nature… this often comes by “pushing” contrasting colors to create depth … ask a child to paint you a lake and that child will naturally get out the blue paint and start painting…why? Simple, that child is trained by stereotypes, what is assumed, not what is really there… as adults most never care to make that leap into actually studying what is in front of them and they too will pull the blue paint out and go to town. In this example, being the detail nazi, I would smack your hands for pulling that blue from the box… not that it couldn’t eventually come out but not initially… ok, enough with the water analogy… the point is everything in nature is layered and that needs to be the approach when finishing out a prop/scene/haunt. Your unconscious eye is what picks out these layers of colors and sells the product, without the conscious/unconscious eye picking out what it needs to; a message is received by the brain that is not believable. Water has a multitude of colors, water refracts white light splitting it into it’s shades on the color wheel… reflected light that isn’t getting bent is bounced off the surface… rocks are never one color… so why is all the tombstones flat gray? Calcium in rocks is white, there are browns, reds, greens, patina from dirt and the elements … for max believability push the contrast between the darks and lights the most on props that are closest to your audience. Look at www.scarefactory.com for how they faux finish… earthy touches sell the creepiness of a prop… just saw someone’s pictures that did amazing detail on cemetery pillars then garnish a cheesy one dimensional, cartoonish web right next to it…ugh! All that work and one misplaced web makes the whole thing look hooky…

Haunter assignment 101, next time your are in a natural setting… look around, I mean really look at stuff… why does that wall have color variations, look at the particular weeds and grass that grows from neglected areas… look at the marble steps of your local library… they are white, sort of but look at all that rich color variations! Watch a movie, look at the “atmosphere” of a scene… what makes it work, pause the movie and look around… the abandoned, dusty toy knocked on it’s side in the middle of the room for example… it might certainly not have anything to do with the movie per say, but the mind picks it up… why is it there? It puts a human vulnerable aspect into the scene… just an example to make a point…
Spending hard earned money and time carving tombstones only to paint them flat gray and stick them randomly in the yard does not do them justice… the ground cover, flora, abuses of time… all these come together to give the scene weight and really sell it to the audience…

As far as painting goes; take the time to layer your paint, don’t be afraid to push colors to far… don’t be afraid to push contrasts to far… this is a common problem for people just starting out… mottling techniques, washes, dry brushing, faux finishes via sponge, paper towels… etc… there are many things at your disposal, have fun and use them all!

You brought up some good points. Thanks