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Post by paddy649 on Jun 27, 2019 22:44:37 GMT
Thanks Wyvern - that’s just the way I see painting minis which is for me one of the pleasures in life. It means that I tend to choose a single manufacturer for each army so that I can paint the whole army in a similar style. Indeed I’m very envious of the way someone like Tony Aguilar manages to mix and match figures across an army and achieve a consistent style. It means for me figure choice is very important even before any brush gets wet.
It’s weird that although Xyston are probably the best figures on the market and are my go to manufacturer for book 2 but because they demand such attention when it comes to painting that they are not my favourite. Essex on the other hand I find rather rather uncharasmatic and dull to paint but I can get equally good results but using a different style. So weirdly it is Alternative Armies Medus range that I enjoy painting the most certainly for medievals especially Swiss, Low Countries and HYW or WOTR. Now these are not the worlds best figures and the modelling across the range is variable BUT the better figures take paint ever so well and are simple enough to allow the brush to generate variety across a unit. That said for me the ultimate figures to paint come from AB - so if you are doing Sassinids look no where else plus I have a soft spot for Magister Militum. Also Legio Heroica, Khursan and Forged in Battle are all worthy contenders depending on the army.
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Post by Baldie on Jun 27, 2019 22:52:52 GMT
I’ve tried a few techniques and my observation is that painting style should vary depending on the figure manufacturer and sometimes between figures. Generally I’m not a big fan of inks or washes for 15mm figs as generally speaking the washes just flatten all colours out of existence UNLESS the figure has exaggerated detail then you can get away with washes but even then I’ll block paint, wash and then rehighlight in the original colour. I find this approach does well for Xyston, Khursan and Peter Pig and gives the best results but is time consuming. For figures with less detail (Essex, Alternative Armies or Magister Militum) or with almost no detail at all (Minifigs) then I use a black primer, block paint the colour and then use a 5/0 brush to pick out the detail with black lining and if necessary put a highlight on raised areas. Here you are using black lining to pick out or add in detail in a similar way to a cartoon animator. This can be very effective. I do use drybush on horses manes, tails, chain mail, or long flowing Arab robes etc. It can be a technique that works well. Avoid going over the lines by dry brushing with you old 5/0 brushes. However, where dry brushing does work well is with a black undercoat and a dry brush white. Then block paint with slightly dilute colour. Here the white/blackundercoat will act to highlight or shade as required. This can give passable results requiring minimal black lining very quickly and it is what I’ll do when I want to bash out an army quickly. Baldie, do you use Iraqi sand on the whole figure? Yup, it can give stuff a worn look. Works really well on vehicles as well, no so many in DBA obs. Other than that I am usually a paint, ink and hightlight with base colour kind of guy. |
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Post by Baldie on Jun 27, 2019 22:54:04 GMT
Thanks Wyvern - that’s just the way I see painting minis which is for me one of the pleasures in life. It means that I tend to choose a single manufacturer for each army so that I can paint the whole army in a similar style. Indeed I’m very envious of the way someone like Tony Aguilar manages to mix and match figures across an army and achieve a consistent style. It means for me figure choice is very important even before any brush gets wet. It’s weird that although Xyston are probably the best figures on the market and are my go to manufacturer for book 2 but because they demand such attention when it comes to painting that they are not my favourite. Essex on the other hand I find rather rather uncharasmatic and dull to paint but I can get equally good results but using a different style. So weirdly it is Alternative Armies Medus range that I enjoy painting the most certainly for medievals especially Swiss, Low Countries and HYW or WOTR. Now these are not the worlds best figures and the modelling across the range is variable BUT the better figures take paint ever so well and are simple enough to allow the brush to generate variety across a unit. That said for me the ultimate figures to paint come from AB - so if you are doing Sassinids look no where else plus I have a soft spot for Magister Militum. Also Legio Heroica, Khursan and Forged in Battle are all worthy contenders depending on the army. Love Medus |
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Post by vexillia on Jun 28, 2019 8:00:41 GMT
I endorse the views above that what you do depends on the extent of detail sculpted into the figure. Even so I gave up aiming for realism with 15 mm figures a long long time ago. Instead I aim to delineate parts of the figure with a few creases (highlights) where the base colour shows. As an example see the figure and horse second from the right: This approach uses the uncovered base colour to break up the sections of the figure and adds interest to what would other wise be simple blocks of colour. The extra layer has the added benefit of lightening the figure which helps to make the whole piece "pop". My inspiration is comic art especially Jack Kirby. Simple, dynamic and totally unrealistic:
If you look really closely at the light horsemen you'll see some only have three fingers and a thumb just like the Thing.
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Post by wyvern on Jun 28, 2019 11:05:08 GMT
Thanks Wyvern - that’s just the way I see painting minis which is for me one of the pleasures in life. It means that I tend to choose a single manufacturer for each army so that I can paint the whole army in a similar style. Indeed I’m very envious of the way someone like Tony Aguilar manages to mix and match figures across an army and achieve a consistent style. It means for me figure choice is very important even before any brush gets wet. It’s weird that although Xyston are probably the best figures on the market and are my go to manufacturer for book 2 but because they demand such attention when it comes to painting that they are not my favourite. Essex on the other hand I find rather rather uncharasmatic and dull to paint but I can get equally good results but using a different style. So weirdly it is Alternative Armies Medus range that I enjoy painting the most certainly for medievals especially Swiss, Low Countries and HYW or WOTR. Now these are not the worlds best figures and the modelling across the range is variable BUT the better figures take paint ever so well and are simple enough to allow the brush to generate variety across a unit. That said for me the ultimate figures to paint come from AB - so if you are doing Sassinids look no where else plus I have a soft spot for Magister Militum. Also Legio Heroica, Khursan and Forged in Battle are all worthy contenders depending on the army. Paddy, I am also envious of the way some guys can paint on this forum, but I intend to learn more and increase my skills whenever I can. I am of a real fan of Legio Heroica too!😀 |
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Post by wyvern on Jun 28, 2019 11:09:41 GMT
Baldie, do you use Iraqi sand on the whole figure? Yup, it can give stuff a worn look. Works really well on vehicles as well, no so many in DBA obs. Other than that I am usually a paint, ink and hightlight with base colour kind of guy. I knew someone who dry brushed in white but only faintly, and it did work even on historical miniatures. They turned out quite well but that was way back before acrylics and washes really took off. Cheers, Paul. |
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Post by wyvern on Jun 28, 2019 11:15:45 GMT
I endorse the views above that what you do depends on the extent of detail sculpted into the figure. Even so I gave up aiming for realism with 15 mm figures a long long time ago. Instead I aim to delineate parts of the figure with a few creases (highlights) where the base colour shows. As an example see the figure and horse second from the right: This approach uses the uncovered base colour to break up the sections of the figure and adds interest to what would other wise be simple blocks of colour. The extra layer has the added benefit of lightening the figure which helps to make the whole piece "pop". My inspiration is comic art especially Jack Kirby. Simple, dynamic and totally unrealistic:
If you look really closely at the light horsemen you'll see some only have three fingers and a thumb just like the Thing.
I really like your work, it looks great! Thanks a lot for sharing your thoughts on the matter, I appreciate it! Cheers, Paul. |
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Post by Simon on Jul 4, 2019 7:21:30 GMT
Does anyone use any of the much cheaper DIY shop (eg in the UK Wickes, B&Q etc) coloured wood varnishes? If so any recommendations for what works best as an all over wash?
Thanks
Simon
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Post by goragrad on Jul 4, 2019 8:16:00 GMT
In the US I was using the Ace Hardware Satin Royal Walnut stain plus varnish - about $8/qt. Unfortunately I didn't get the tin properly sealed and it hardened in storage.
I will be replacing it though.
Used some clear on white shields where I didn't want to give them the light brownish cast and did white socks and blazes on horses after the stain and varnish.
I had tried a penetrating dark stain initially, but it left lighter areas on the figures looking like they had been working in a colliery.
Although the penetrating stain combined with the varnish and stain combo worked rather well on my Midianite Arabs.
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Post by vexillia on Jul 4, 2019 9:01:02 GMT
Ah! Household (and some hobby) wood stain & varnish the gifts that keep on giving. Be warned these will continue to darken over time. The cheaper it is the quicker it will darken.
This is based on the chemistry of the varnish as the ingredients are not light stable. Please don't post saying your product doesn't/hasn't yellowed/darkened with time. Rest assured it has and will continue to do so: you just haven't noticed yet.
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Post by vtsaogames on Jul 14, 2019 16:37:36 GMT
I try to use overly bright colors, then hit it with a dark wash. Once all is well dried (at least 24 hours), dry brush with the original bright colors or just touch up some raised areas.
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