Good questions, Matt!
No worries about the photos. There are
three really good sets of photos available that helped ensure the accuracy of these designs.
1) The first set of very highly detailed, high resolution photos were taken by Life Magazine about December 7th, 1941. They show incredible detail. But some of the features in those photos had been removed or changed prior to Coral Sea and Midway. They are available from Getty Images but are very hard to find using their search engine. You have to be patient and persistent on their site, but it's worth it. Example (low-res version to fit on this site):
Attachment:
CA-33 1941.12.07 4698cfd44ed91f3c_small.jpg [ 165.78 KiB | Viewed 2206 times ]
2) photos taken in 7 and 14 June, 1942, just after Midway (Portland was a participant at Midway). These photos show which major features were present in the summer of '42. Link:
http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/033/04033.htm Example:
Attachment:
CA-33 1942.06.07 0403306.jpg [ 108.73 KiB | Viewed 2206 times ]
3) photos taken in November, 1942 and closely later, showing the massive torpedo damage to the stern, and subsequent photos taken of the repairs in progress. They confirm major 1942 features present and some details (e.g., turret bolt location and type). Same link as above. Example:
Attachment:
CA-33 1943.03.03 1537-43.small.jpg [ 199.63 KiB | Viewed 2206 times ]
The major features and details were confirmed present or absent by the "Midway Photos" and the "Torpedo Damage Photos" and carefully cataloged against 2D plans. The "Life Magazine Photos" could then be used to design the details (planking extents, door type, splinter shield shape, 5" service ammo locker details, porthole and vent position, etc.) since they are so good. A word of note about the Life Magazine photos - they are simply fantastic but several of them were reversed when published! Since many features of the ship are asymmetrical, I spent a great deal of time determining which photos were reversed and "flipped" those accordingly.
Several 2D drawings were studied to make the designs. No one set of 2D drawings turned out to be perfect when compared to photos. For example, you may have the Portland '42 Profile Morskie drawings, which are indeed very helpful (the Midway and Torpedo Damage photos show that Profile Morskie drew major features essentially correctly for the summer of '42), but they have some minor accuracy issues as shown by photos and Navy plans (door type, turret dimensions, porthole placement, tripod shape, splinter shielding shape, etc. aren't quite right). They proved very good for cataloging features that then need further research to confirm shape, extents, and details.
You can be sure that these designs are well-researched.
Regarding the boats, I omitted boat cradles for those two boats, primarily because PE is a much better medium for cradles because of its thinness. These two boats (at least the starboard boat) do appear in a June 14, 1942 photo. The cradle type and location can be inferred by the modeler from the position of the boats.
Attachment:
CA-33 1942.06.14 0403302.f.jpg [ 136.16 KiB | Viewed 2206 times ]
Hope all this helps.
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