My latest half arsed attempts at painting

http://lasthussar.wordpress.com/2010/09/01/prussians/

Well I like em - Close-ups are a mugs game, they are as good as anything I do and sure to fight well.

Last Hussar- not bad jobs mate - but you use gloss after - spoils what seems not a bad paint job!! crack on pal.
Lentus - how Very dare you suggest that poorly painted figures fight just as well !!- I wont have it sir!!

That isn't gloss - the can says matt!.  They are less glossy in real life - possibly flash issues.

I wish I could work out how to phot 10mm - close ups and macros have such a short focal range - thoe bases are 20mm square, and so you can appreciatre how quickly the focus is lost!

Lentuilus- I've seen your work, and I've seen my dice rolls - you understate your acheivements, and overstate mine! 

However they are fine at 3 feet, which is what you want on the table!

Try taking photos from further away to get more depth of field, you can always crop the resulting image afterwards rather than trying to fill the frame.  Also use a high f stop on your camera, this will increase the depth of field but will increase the exposure time so you will need a tripod or some other way of securing the camera.

Super close ups nearly always look bad. Hold a figure next to the screen to see how much bigger the photos are!

Quote from: Last Hussar on 01 September 2010, 08:54:51 PM
That isn't gloss - the can says matt!.  They are less glossy in real life - possibly flash issues.

Inexperience may have let you down a bit. Take mat coats. Some of them are actually quite glossy. Tamiya mat coat for instance - I once used that on a tank and it ended up shining like a whorehouse in Vegas.

Besides, you learn from every round of mistakes you make. I know I did. I've been painting 8mm Adlers for a while to sharpen my skills and it taught me quite a bit. Patience, for instance. Don't believe websites that recommend 'industrial painting' or 'assembly line painting', just take your time and practice, practice, practice.

You wouldn't want to see some of my first trials either, mate. Or maybe you would, because you would take heart from it. So cheer up, and do keep in mind that your Prussians will fight just as well as anyone else's!

Cheers,
Aart

I've been painting 25 years!  I think that can is coming to the end of it's life, so that may be the problem. I've found varnish to be highly variable over the years - the same can gives different finishes - I think the weather has something to do with it.  However on the Churchills I did it did give the sort of finish that you see in the museum models - they appear to have used gloss in WW2!

  nowt wrong with that lad!

Quote from: Last Hussar on 01 September 2010, 11:22:12 PM
I've been painting 25 years!

I hear you!  

In that case, this is as good as it's going to be. And in that case, welcome to the club. Because all of us are dissatisfied with our work in some ways, for this reason or that. And all of us forget that as soon as we start playing a game with our models. Have fun.

Cheers,
Aart

P.S. As I thought about this, it occurred to me that most of us derive pleasure from both playing and painting. Your pleasure in a game will not be spoilt by your little painting defects, but maybe your painting fun is. That's what happened to me. I can only recommend what someone else recommended to me: try painting Adlers for a time. They are very fine casts and they literally force you into a different pace, a different use of paint and shades, the use of smaller brushes. It benefited my own painting enormously, and it great fun to paint 10mm's again after that. I don't know, give it a try if you care. Or else, just concentrate on the gaming side of things; those Prusskis of yours are clearly going to produce one hell of a volley on the table.

I can't stand painting - I will never understand those who prefer painting to gaming!

Quote from: Last Hussar on 02 September 2010, 07:57:15 PM
I can't stand painting - I will never understand those who prefer painting to gaming!

My, you are a bit grumpy..  

Well, as stated above, as long as your Prussians look and fight like Prussians on the table you're going to be fine.

Leave it to others to waste their youth, eyesight and money on painting projects. 

Cheers,
Aart

Quote from: Last Hussar on 02 September 2010, 07:57:15 PM
I can't stand painting - I will never understand those who prefer painting to gaming!

For me, it's an active stress-releaser. Once I've decided to paint, it makes me sit down, relax (you can't paint well if your body is tense), and focus on something tangible...it's satisfying because it's progressive and you get an end result - which isn't always the case in my work!

Quote from: 17-21l on 01 September 2010, 08:18:46 PM
Lentus (sic) - how Very dare you suggest that poorly painted figures fight just as well !!- I wont have it sir!!

Outnumbering the superbly painted figures three to one does not hurt.

Quote from: Last Hussar on 01 September 2010, 08:54:51 PM
That isn't gloss - the can says matt!.  They are less glossy in real life - possibly flash issues.

The only know substance I have used that gives a truly matt finish is Testors Dullcoat available anywhere in the States-don't know about elsewhere.  It is a lacquer in spray can or bottle form.
I use a good wet coat of acrylic art spray to protect, followed by Testors Dullcoat.

Quote from: lentulus on 03 September 2010, 11:51:30 AM
Outnumbering the superbly painted figures three to one does not hurt.

Are you telling him that he should paint even more?     

Cheers,
Aart