Fishing boats at dawn shadow box SVG
A trawler heading out across the rising sun with gulls overhead, an angler sitting in his small boat with a line in the water, a rowing boat at its mooring and a tackle box and a pelican on the quay. 6 sheets of card, cut and stacked with a gap between each, make the picture. The files are free, and every part of the scene can be moved, swapped or resized below before you download.
6 sheets at 8 × 8 in, zipped, with a note on putting them together.
Free for personal and commercial use, no sign-up. What you can do with it.
The 6 sheets
Sheet 1 is the back and sheet 6 is the front. Each one is a single piece with the same frame round its edge, so they line up when stacked. The colours shown are the “Sunset” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 2, “Gulls and far sea”, the slowest: at 0.8 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 6, “Quay”, fills the most of the view, 28% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Rising sun | A whole sheet with holes for: Plain disc | over 2 mm | 29% |
| 2. Gulls and far sea | Waves, with: Flying bird with raised wings, Swallow in flight and Sailboat silhouette | 0.8 mm | 4% |
| 3. Trawler | Waves, with: Fishing boat silhouette on the water | 1.9 mm | 16% |
| 4. Angler in his boat | Waves, with: Fishing boat with an angler | over 2 mm | 9% |
| 5. Rowing boat | Waves, with: Rowing boat with oars | 1 mm | 7% |
| 6. Quay | Flat ground, with: Fishing tackle box, Pelican standing and Starfish silhouette | 1.1 mm | 28% |
Measured from the files at 8 × 8 in. The narrowest part is the thinnest neck of card that holds anything on; sharp tips are not counted. “Seen from the front” is the share of the picture that sheet fills once the sheets in front of it are in place.
Will it cut at your size?
The download is 8 × 8 in. The scene maker above makes the same scene at any of these sizes; the thinnest part scales with it.
| Frame opening | Each sheet | Narrowest part | Depth needed | Fits a 12 × 12 in mat | Rule of thumb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 × 6 in | 152.4 × 152.4 mm | 0.6 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 20 × 20 cm | 200 × 200 mm | 0.8 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 8 × 8 in | 203.2 × 203.2 mm | 0.8 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 23 × 23 cm | 230 × 230 mm | 0.9 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 25 × 25 cm | 250 × 250 mm | 1 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
Depth needed allows 3 mm of foam between sheets and 5 mm for the card itself and the backing.
Making this one
The trawler crosses the sun, so cut its sheet in a dark card and it stands out in silhouette. The two gulls hang on short threads from the top of the second sheet, and the little sailing boat on that sheet is the finest cutting, at about 0.8 mm at 8 inches. The rod and line of the angler are sturdier than they look, at 2 mm or more.
- Cut all 6 sheets from 160 to 220 gsm card at the same size.
- Lay them out in order, sheet 1 at the back.
- Put strips of 3 mm foam tape round the border of sheet 1 and press sheet 2 onto it with the edges level. Carry on to sheet 6.
- Fit the stack into a deep frame with the front sheet against the glass. For a light box, run a strip of warm white LEDs round the inside of the frame behind the stack.
The zip includes these steps as a text file, each sheet as its own SVG and all 6 side by side in one SVG. More on paper, frames and lights is on the shadow box page.
The parts, on their own
Everything in the scene comes from the free SVG library, where each has its own page and file:
Questions
Can I add the name of a boat?
Not inside the maker yet. Write it on the bow of the trawler by hand, or cut it from the lettering in the library and glue it to the bottom border.
Is this the same as the Fishing lake scene?
No. That one is a lake with a leaping bass and an empty canoe. This one is at sea, with an angler and a trawler. For the lake, see the Fishing lake scene.
Can I sell boxes I make with it?
Yes. Finished pieces are yours to sell. The files themselves may not be sold or shared; send people to this page. See the licence.
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