Dioramas and how to make them from fantasy to shadowbox to shoebox dioramas.

Making Dioramas is a wonderful hobby that can exhibit an extraordinary wide range of creativity. You can make a diorama of almost any scene your mind can imagine. Here are tips, tutorials and example dioramas that will help you to make your own dioramas. There is also a tutorial of "The battle for the treasure". It is a wizard battling three skeletons for a treasure and in this tutorial I take you through all the steps of making a really great looking diorama. There are lots of pictures and a clear explanation of everything you need to do from start to finish including wiring it up for lights!

Will has a youtube channel with over 600 videos on projects you can make. Check it out right here

The New Scenery Tips & Techniques (Model Railroader) Looking for a good book on how to make Diorama scenery? This book is not just for railroaders. It is perfect for the diorama maker.

How to Build Dioramas - Looking for a good book on how to build Military dioramas and how to paint the models, tanks, airplanes and other things? This book is terrific. I own it and love it.

Lots of Diorama Projects and Tutorials

Love to Make Dioramas?
Check out my book on how to make fantasy and medieval dioramas. I put all my best techniques and tricks in this book!

How to make Fantasy and Medieval Dioramas

You can make a fun Space diorama where the astronaut is floating in space. I give you all the artwork. And you don't even need a shoebox. I show you how to make one out of cardboard or foamboard. Make a Shoebox Space Diorama

Tatebanko is the ancient japanese art of paper diorama making. And we have lots of them! Many of them you can download, print and make yourself. Paper dioramas

Actually pretty easy to make a great looking waterfall if you know the right tools and techniques. I have it right here: Make a waterfall in a diorama

The French Cafe Diorama Here is a hand made diorama of a street scene in Paris and a neat thing about this diorama is that the street lights actually light up. Check it out here: The French Cafe Diorama

This is another large and wonderful diorama placed in the window of a bookstore. It depicts various scenes from the Jules Verne book and it commemorates 187 years since his birthday. The 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Diorama

A diorama is a moment frozen in time. That is the definition. But, is it possible to make a diorama of something frozen in two different moments of time? It sure is! This is what Glen has done. Check it out here: The Beginning & End Diorama

The next installment of the massive castle siege diorama is done. In this part we add the moat around the castle. Storm The Castle Diorama Part 7

While on a trip to India I was roaming around the Gandhi Museum when I stumbled into a room full of dioramas depicting Gandhi's life. Wow, wonderful find. Learn more and see some pics here. The Gandhi Dioramas

I have put together an image gallery from many of the dioramas on this website. If you are looking for diorama ideas or just looking for interesting dioramas you can quickly look through this gallery of pictures and click on any image to take you to that tutorial. The Diorama Image Gallery

This diorama depicts the British occupation of Williamsburg a week before the battle of Yorktown. The Williamsburg Diorama

Making a diorama is the best thing about it. The second best thing is showing it to people. And getting your diorama into a public place gives a wonderful feeling. Well... Joseph's War of the Worlds diorama is now on display in the window of a bookstore. Check out the pictures here.

This is a spectacular diorama made by a web visitor (Giorgio). He shows us how he made the diorama. Oh and he hand sculpted the dragon too. He shows us step by step how he did that too. The Smaug Diorama

The video game is very mood inducing and spooky. How do you convey this in a diorama? Mirrors are perfect for this Pyramid Head diorama. Check it out here

You just need a few basic supplies and a small computer fan and you are have yourself a nice little spray booth. This terrific project was submitted by a web visitor. How to make a cardboard Spray paint booth.

This is a wonderful little diorama that is actually mounted on a piece of the tree that Eisenhower planted at Musgrove Hospital in the UK. Check it out here.

If you are a Game of Thrones fan you might want to check this project out too. It is a diorama of Castle Black and the Wall. And it has a working Elevator that goes up the wall. I have a video tutorial for this project too. Make a Game of Thrones Diorama

You just need a few supplies and you can make a very realistic looking miniature trees for dioramas, railroads and more. I made a little diorama just to show off the trees! Make Miniature Trees

Yup, we made a diorama inside a regular egg. But how about making one inside a dragon egg? Complete with castle being sieged. I show you how and how to make the egg too. Make a Diorama inside a dragon egg.

All you need is an egg and a few little details and you can make an interesting little project by building a scene inside the egg. The most challenging part is cutting the egg. I show you how: Make a diorama inside an egg.

This is a wonderful little project made by a web visitor. It has a ship being pulled into a whirlpool. Easy and effective technique! How to make a whirlpool in a diorama.

You can pick up some wonderful picture frames from the dollar store or used item store and turn them into some really elegant dioramas. Here glen shows us how to do it with a machine gun and mortar team. Picture frame diorama bases

Road and Ruined Temple - wonderful little diorama with an autumn theme and a pool with a fresco at the bottom. And of course it has the wonderful bricks that Charles makes. The Road and Ruined Temple Diorama

The Moonbase Monorail is is a fantasHere is a fun science fiction diorama on a pretty good scale. It was made by Joseph who has submitted some other wonderful dioramas. Check it out here: The Moonbase Monorail diorama

Iwo Jima This is a fantastic little diorama of an ambush on Iwo Jima. John brilliantly uses Volcanic rock to make an impressive battlefield scene. Check it out here: Black Sand Hell: Ambush on Iwo Jima

Using Volcanic Rock in a battlefield diorama I love using commonly found materials to make a diorama. Here is more of a look at the volcanic rock in the Iwo Jima diorama.

Here is a nice tutorial submitted by a web visitor (Mark) He took an old Revell bus model, built it, weathered it and made it part of an old barnyard. He also shows us how to use salt as rust on vehicles. Great project. See how to do something like this right here: The London Bus Barnyard project

Here is a nice tutorial on water effects submitted by a web visitor (Cristi). He shows us step by step how to make some nice effects and also shows us some experiments and alternate techniques. Water effects tips and techniques

It is easy to make great terrain for dioramas and wargaming. All you need is foam, a rasp and some paint. I show you how right here. Make terrain textures out of foam

Make mountains out of craft paper! Yup, you would be surprised how easy it is to make terrain with thick paper. This tutorial was submitted by a web visitor (Frank) and my thanks go to him for the great tip.

Little Red Riding Hood Diorama - You have got to see this diorama. It was made by a web visitor. And she uses a lot of standard diorama making techniques like trees, terrain, rocks and waterfall. The Little Red Riding Hood Diorama.

A fun little diorama made by a web visitor. It depicts a scene from the hobbit. Check it out here.

Here is a another diorama made by Glen. He captures a moment in time where: Germans are at Rest

Here's a fun project that fuses science with diorama's. In this tutorial we utilize something called Pepper's Ghost Illusion originally created by John Henry Pepper. This illusion which was used in theater, projects a translucent version of a person or object several feet from a glass pane. Pepper's Ghost Box

Here's a fun tutorial based around The Sword in the Stone. It depicts Arthur pulling the sword from the stone. I show you how to make the diorama and how to sculpt the miniature Arthur: The Sword in the Stone Diorama

This is a terrific little diorama made just about all out of foam. Brian shows us pics and tells us some of his techniques for making the medieval ruins diorama..

I love everything medieval and I love everything diorama. So, you can imagine how crazy I am about this medieval diorama. It is the Battle of Grunwald

Auburn Venus This diorama was inspired by the famous Boticelli painting of the Birth of Venus. It's a wonderful and creative idea. Auburn Venus.

War of the Worlds Here is a fun little science fiction diorama. Joseph tells us a little bit about how he made this. War of the Worlds

This is a neat little hobbit diorama that you can make with just a piece of foam. This is Bag End. You can improvise all kinds of terrain features for this. Make a Hobbit Diorama

You can use an electrostatic tool to make tall grass that stands up. Its a great looking way to do grass in a diorama. I have the tutorial right here. Tall Grass Flocking in a diorama

Illusion Diorama A neat little diorama project that uses mirrors to trick the eye. Fun and easy. You look inside the peephole to see a scene that is two feet away. The Illusion Diorama

Dinosaur Diorama in a television set This is a seriously fun diorama project that was submitted by a web vsitior. Make a diorama in a TV. Hows that for recycling!! Dinosaur Diorama in a TV

Japanese Castle Dioramas Here are pictures of two very elaborate dioramas of castles in Japan. I took these pictures while on a trip to Japan. Japanese Castle Dioramas

Diorama of a Dream A web visitor (John) had a dream and decided to build a diorama to show the dream. Pretty cool and this diorama definitely has a dream-like quality about it. Check it out here

3 Succubi Diorama I have This is a desktop sized diorama that you have just got to see. Definitely one of my favorites. If you are looking to do some kind of fantasy diorama you might want to take a look at this one. The 3 Succubi Diorama And Marshall has made some other terrific diorama projects that you also might want to take a look at including: Aerial Battlefield - Dragon on the Bridge - Roman Warship - Rocky Cliff Shadowbox - YOu can see them all here: Marshall's Dioramas

Make a Dolphin Diorama This is a beautiful diorama made and submitted by a web visitor. It uses some easy yet fantastic water effects. Check out the diorama and see how to make one here: The Dolphin Diorama

A Lord of the Rings Diorama (Battle of the Five Armies) Does it get any better than this! This is a lotr diorama made by a web vistior. Check out the pictures and more. LOTR Diorama

A Railroad Diorama Railroads, trains and tracks are just about the perfect subject for a diorama and this is one that was made by a web visitor (Swapnil) He improvised all the various terrain features. Swapnil's Railroad Diorama

WW1 Diorama I All I can say about this diorama is WOW! It isn't complete but it is coming along amazing. You have got to see the realistic looking terrain and trenches in this diorama. This diorama is being made by a web visitor (Christophe I.) Amazing WW1 Diorama

Vietnam Era Diorama - This is an amazing diorama of a vietnam scene. It has miniature soldiers and a group of excellent vehicles in 1/35 scale. It was made by Ron D. and my thanks go to him for submitting the pictures. Vietnam Diorama

Is it real or is it a diorama? Well, this is a diorama but it looks pretty real. I have more pictures of some amazing diorama buildings.

Colonial Times Diorama - This is an excellent diorama that shows you some great techniques like buildings, variety of landscape, water and more. (This diorama was submitted by Charles B.) The Colonial Times Diorama

Inexpensive way to make water in a diorama These pictures and this tutorial was submitted by a web visitor (Ryan) He gives us some tips on how to inexpensively make water in a diorama. He uses caulk and paint. And in this naval scene diorama he even adds the water spouts for dropped bombs! Water in a naval diorama

Make a Bio-Diorama. This is a living diorama with caterpillars and butterflies.StaIt is an interesting idea where part of the diorama is alive! In the case of this one our adventurer is lost in a cave and stumbles upon some enormous cocoons. They are real butterfly cocoons. The Bio Diorama Project

This is an in depth tutorial with videos on how to make a WW2 diorama. I use 1/72 Scale How to Make a WW2 Diorama

Some wonderful new Diorama buildings. I have discovered a company named Conflix that makes some terrific 1/72 scale stuff for dioramas and wargaming. Here are six different items for Medieval And Renaissance dioramas: Conflix Diorama Buildings I really like these buildings.

Tips on making outstanding Diorama Terrain and adding water effects . I take a look at a battlefield-like terrain and a riverbed terrain and point out some useful tips on getting it realistic looking. Tips on making realistic diorama terrain

How to make snow in a diorama Here is a great tutorial submitted by a web visitor. It shows you how to make realistic (and durable) snow from scratch.

WW2 Diorama Stuff I have started a whole new section on WW2 Models, miniatures and dioramas. This section is currently growing and it will feature a How to make a WW2 tank Battle diorama tutorial. WW2 Models, Miniatures, and Dioramas

Here is a wonderful diorama submitted by a web visitor (Ramya). It depicts an Indian Village Mountain scene. Check it out right here.

Return of the Cursed Legion Diorama This diorama was made and submitted by a web visitor (Jeff). It is a game system and sometimes a game system is terrific just for the diorama! . Return of the cursed legion

Home Made Dinosaur Diorama This diorama was made and submitted by a web visitor. It is a good example of finding materials around the house and being creative! Pozdrav's Dinosaur Diorama

1/72 Diorama stuff You probably have seen that I have some really nice models and tutorials in the 1/72 scale. I do like this scale for several reasons. I have a tutorial that shows you some of the strong points (inexpensive) and some of the weak points of this scale. I also have ideas on dioramas you can make in this scale and resources to where you can buy stuff. About the 1/72 Scale Diorama

Insect Maker Diorama Here is a stunning diorama made by a guest artist (Alberto A.) It is called "Insect Maker" and Alberto calls his work "Visionary Chambers". In this tutorial he lays out how to preserve insects and other natural objects like plants and leaves to use them in your diorama. He also gives us some great tips on making miniature furniture and fabrics: The Insect Maker Diorama

How to make a diorama out of Paper Mache Don't have the materials for a diorama? You can make one out of paper mache which is just flour and water. I show you how in this tutorial where I make a scene from the Lord of the Rings Castle Helms Deep. How to make a paper mache diorama

Make styrofoam diorama landscaping Here are some great pictures and tips on how to make professional looking diorama's using styrofoam. Styrofoam Diorama Making

WW2 is a great subject for diorama making and lots of people make dioramas in this period. Here is a series of pictures of a small WW2 Diorama that a web visitor has made. The visitor also has included some great tips on how he made this unique and creative diorama including a tree, water effects and some great tufts of grass How to Make a WW2 Diorama with tips, tricks and hints

Foam terrain for wargaming or dioramas New Tutorial on how to use foam to make wargaming terrain or a diorama. This tutorial, which includes a video, shows you types of foam, good and bad foam, the tools used, including regular tools and hot wire tools. And it shows you the process for making terrain from foam. The project shown here is completely made out of foam -castle and all. How to use foam to make wargaming terrain and dioramas

An Empty Diorama Box (downloadable) An Empty Diorama box that you can print up and assemble. Half the fun of a shoebox diorama is the shoebox. This is a complete download that you can print and assemble so you have your own fancy box. The Printable Diorama Box This is the box I use in the tatebanko castle diorama shown below.

Tatebanko: The Lost Japanese Art of Paper Dioramas - This is a wonderful way to make dioramas just with paper. I have a complete download of this tatebanko castle, pictures of a professional tatebanko and a download of the empty box if you want to fill it with your own diorama. Tatebanko Paper Dioramas

How to make realistic miniature trees- This tutorial (with a video) shows you how to make great looking miniature trees. The focus here is on using clay to sculpt the trunk. Make realistic Miniature trees

Interested in Miniatures?
Want to make them? Sculpt them? Paint them? I have a whole section devoted to the art of sculpting and painting miniatures. Miniatures -
D & D, Ral Partha and lots more. No diorama is complete unless it has some fantastic miniatures!

Castle inside a lightbulb diorama
This is a creative little diorama that has a castle and a dragon right inside the lightbulb. I also show you how to add a tiny light to the tower of the castle and the easy way to hollow out the light bulb. Lightbulb Diorama

Make a Trench Warfare Diorama
This is a wonderful little trench warfare diorama submitted by a web visitor (Alika). I show you the diorama and also show you a tutorial on how to make trenches for your diorama. If you like Military Dioramas this is for you. Trench Warfare Diorama

How to sculpt fantasy miniatures:
This is an in- depth series of tutorial including videos that shows you how to sculpt fantasy miniatures and gives you the practice, techniques, skills, and tips needed to do a good job of it. How to Sculpt Fantasy Miniatures

Make a foam based diorama with a river
This is a great diorama submitted by a web visitor. It shows all the steps taken to make this wonderful scene from the past on the Mississippi River. The Diorama

How to use cork to make great looking rubble on your diorama
This is terrific for battle scenes, or broken down and run down towns and areas of your diorama. Cork is very useful and looks great. Here is the complete tutorial including painting tips and a video. Rubble Diorama

Make a cemetary Diorama
This is a nice spooky diorama with gravestones, a creepy fence and a small mausoleum. I show lots of tips on using everyday materials like popsicle sticks and toothpicks. I also have a video with this tutorial. Cemetary Diorama

How to make a Dinosaur Diorama - This is an active diorama - The meteor flashes across the sky and the volcano erupts. Easy to make and teaches about the theories of dinosaur extinction. Nice learning shoebox diorama. The Active Dinosaur Diorama

Wizard's Tower Diorama that I also made a video game of! This is a tutorial on using foam to make dioramas. Here is where the tutorial starts and here is the video that also shows about a minute of footage with me playing the video game. I have to get into the tower, get the fire staff, and slay the dragon.! Fun, multi-discipline project.

I used the motor from a ten dollar remote control car to automate the drawbridge. It goes up and down. Neat project and I show you how to do it. I also have a video that shows it in action. Motorizing a Diorama Tutorial

How to make rubber molds for your diorama How to make rubber molds for your diorama. A great way to make rocks, cliffs, cliff formations and castle walls. Easy to do with latex rubber. You just brush it on. How to make rubber molds

Castle Siege Diorama Project This is a terrific diorama project built and submitted by a web visitor (Krzysztof O.) My thanks to him for sending us these terrific pictures. The project includes a big castle with a main gate, a battering ram, a trebuchet and a mantlet. You can see pictures of this project here: The Castle Siege Diorama

How to make miniature trees for dioramas and model railroads How to make miniature trees for dioramas and model railroads. I show you the traditional way to do it and I show you some improvisations so you can make trees with materials found around the house. How to make miniature trees

How to make trenches in your diorama How to make trenches in your diorama. Particularly good for military and battle scene dioramas - Just plan ahead and build the structure around the trench. Video shows how to do it.

The Battle of Thermopylae (300) diorama the Battle of Thermopylae where the 300 Spartans made their last stand. I have also transformed it into a tutorial that shows all the basics of how to make a diorama. It is not complete yet but there is quite a bit of great diorama making information there. The Battle of Thermopylae Diorama

Medieval Castle Diorama A Video of my six foot Medieval Castle Diorama - This video shows my diorama which has a working waterfall and lights in both the castle and the evil mountain. Medieval Castle Diorama Video

Ocean Diorama This is a unique little ocean diorama shaped like the porthole of a submarine and made out of a cookie tin. I have full instructions and artwork for you to print and make. Easy and fun project. A new take on the ocean diorama. Imagine looking out the porthole of your submarine and discovering Atlantis! Now you can. Ocean Diorama

Firefly Diorama This is a great little shoebox diorama that uses tiny blinking lights as fireflies. Battery operated and you can make it. See the project tutorial and the video of it in action Firefly Diorama

Here is a seven foot Diorama complete with castle, waterfall and working lights and sound. You can see more pictures of this diorama model here.

This model diorama is part of a free tutorial on how to make dioramas. It is complete from start to finish. It shows you how to design it, create the landscape shell, add the terrain and trees then add the miniatures. This tutorial has all the basic steps to making a model diorama. See the tutorial

Shoebox Diorama of a knight and dragon- See the tutorial on how to make this nice diorama of a knight battling a dragon. The dragon is suspended in mid-air. One of the unique things about this diorama is that the shoebox is in the vertical position. This tutorial has everything you need including all the art work that you can print and color. A fun project.
ShoeBox diorama of knight and dragon battle

ShadowBox diorama of a dungeon scene- This is a nice project that gets framed and hung on the wall. You can show off your miniatures in this shadowbox.
The Shadowbox tutorial

Painting Miniatures Tutorial: If you are making dioramas and you have miniatures, whether it be military miniatures, Dungeon and Dragon Miniatures or just Fantasy Miniatures you know that painting them is one of the most important parts of the process. I have put together a tutorial on how to paint miniatures. Miniature Painting

Here is a scratch built diorama of a covered bridge. This project was built and submitted by a web visitor (David O.) It shows some great uses of popsicle sticks and in particular is the thatched roof and the old fashioned wooden fence. Thanks Dave! See more pics and get tips here: Covered Bridge Diorama

A guest artist has combines his love of painting with the art of Diorama making. He has put together a nice tutorial on how to take a painting and transform it into a shadowbox style diorama. But this isn't as far as he goes. He also shows us some really nice trick of the eye techniques for making the diorama extra special Dioramas from your paintings

Check out these dioramas submitted by a visitor to the website. They are a great example of creative use of materials.

Some tips on building a diorama like this awesome halo diorama. This isn't my diorama. Somebody asked me for tips on how to build one like this. I lay out some solid help that shows how to make the base using sculpting foam. Nice looking diorama and really sets a great scene. Here is the tutorial on how to do something like this

A couple of WW2 Dioramas submitted by a web visitor. Here are two videos with tips on making a WW2 trench like the one shown in the pic and a diorama with a Tiger tank. WW2 Diorama stuff

Here is a beautiful diorama of a christmas Holy land scene. This was submitted by a web visitor (Juanamie P.) Thanks Juanamie! Christmas Holy Land Diorama

A user submitted creative suggestion. Being creative when using materials to make landscapes. This diorama landscape came out superb. I have more pics and suggestions on being creative with your diorama making here. Creative Diorama Making

Here is a beautiful Wildlife diorama made and submitted by Heather D. My thanks to her for this great project. She gives us some great tips on how she made this including what products she used. Wildlife Diorama: Elephant at an Oasis.

MORE DIORAMA PROJECTS HERE

Want to take your diorama making to new heights of realism? I have put together a selection of materials you can buy from amazon.com. These are great materials that hobbyists use to make really life like dioramas. The trees you see here are one of the kits. They look real don't they?

Diorama making is an extremely rewarding hobby and if you are looking for a way to learn even more and expand your skills to new heights here are a couple of books on the art and craft of diorama making.

How To Make Dioramas

Lots of Diorama Projects and Tutorials

MORE DIORAMA PROJECTS HERE