All of the major studios in Hollywood (Warner Brothers, Sony, Universal, Paramount) offer tours of their soundstages and backlots. I decided to take the Warner Brothers tour because a friend of mine who works in a Hollywood FX shop told me it was the best. Since the tours are not allowed into "hot sets" where filming is actually taking place, the things you see depend entirely on which sets and soundstages are available at any given moment, so no two tours will be the same. Alas, WB does not allow photography inside any of their soundstages, but here are some photos I took from the areas where it was allowed (mostly storage areas, the backlot exteriors, and the studio museum).
Warner Brothers Studios
The tour groups are greeted by Bugs and Daffy.
Soundstage. Warner Brothers has 30-some soundstages at its studio. Some are used for movies, but most of them are for TV series.
"Elephant doors", used to bring equipment into the soundstage.
The "Central Perk" set from "Friends". That's me on the couch.
Prop storage area
Costumes from "The Last Samurai".
Props used in the movie "Argo".
That's me, on the floor with a "blood spill" prop, made from silicone gel.
A "spaceship interior" prop, made from plywood.
The outside of the "spaceship interior" prop
A greenscreen setup, used for special effects shots
Prop cars in storage
The "General Lee" Dodge Charger from "The Dukes of Hazzard"
The "Mystery Machine" from the "Scooby Doo" movie.
A costume, motorcycle, and car from "The Matrix"
And a costume, motorcycle and car from the "Batman" movies
The flying car from "Harry Potter"
Some of the building exteriors on the backlot. The streets and sidewalks are real--everything else is fake. The "buildings" are just fiberglass facades--most of them don't even have interiors. They are designed so they can be easily modified to look like whatever set is needed--the "New York City" set has been modified to look like 1870's Tokyo, futuristic space ports, Depression-era San Francisco, or whatever else is needed.
The "Jungle" set. This road was used to film the T rex chasing the Jeep in "Jurassic Park"
Stage hands moving plants for filming
The original piano prop from "Casablanca"
The miniature model of a Soviet fighter jet used in the 1982 Clint Eastwood movie "Firefox". Today, miniature models have been almost completely replaced by digital CGI.
Spacesuit costumes used in "Gravity".
Costume from "Man of Steel"
The "bomb" prop from "The Dark Knight Rises"
A prop baby
The Troll costume from "Harry Potter", worn by a stuntperson
Giant Spider prop from "Harry Potter"