Final version of a project
I am back, after a 2 years break due to other priorities. Hopefully I will be able to paint more regularly... So, this is an old figurine by Pegaso Models named "Templar Knight", 54mm scale. This is also the first time I am using a mixed acrylic-oil technique which I dedided to start adopting. Oil colors are really great to paint nice shades and colors look more natural, at least to me...
This is the last figurine for 2018 and I can say it's been really challenging both from the painting and assembling perspectives. The figurine is a 90mm one and represents a Trumpeter 2nd Rgt. Lancers of the Guard (ref [1]). This is my first figure of this type and as I said it's quite difficult. The first challenge was the face. Sometimes I want to test different brands of colours (I typically use Vallejo and Andrea) and this time I tried the Scale 75 but found they are too sticky for me, so I decided to use oil colours for the first time (I mean, not for the armour as I did in the past). I tried the Oilbrusher by…
This is really a big bust! The scale is a standard 1:10 but the overall posture and the the pole arm take a lot of space in my showcase. The bust is manufactured by Altores Studio and represents a infantry footman in the medieval age (ref. [1]). I really love this bust especially for the shouting facial expression which is pretty much unique. I tried to reproduce a tired soldier after a tough battle, hence the long beard and the dirt over all the surfaces. I hope I have been able to do a decent job, but overall I am happy with the final result. [ngg src="galleries" ids="19" display="pro_mosaic"] References[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infantry_in_the_Middle_Ages
This is a medium (scale 1:12) bust from Heroes and Villains Miniatures (ref. [1]) that portraits a Jacobite Highlander (ref. [2]). I am not fey happy with the face, I think I did the same mistake as the previous bust and used too many layers of colour, although they are thin. The real challenge here has been, of course, the tartan and the texture. It's really a nightmare painting so many line and squares and their shadows and lights, but overall I am happy the way it ended up! [ngg src="galleries" ids="18" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"] References[1] - http://www.heroesvillainsminiatures.com/product/jacobite-highlander-culloden-moor/[2] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobite_rising_of_1745
This is a small bust (1:16 scale) by FER Miniatures who represents a Saxun Huscarl (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housecarl) during the Battle of Hastings in 1066 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hastings) This bust is nice and quick to paint as it's rather small. I just want to highlight the texture of the cape which I tried to reproduce by using a technique similar to the dry brush, but with more colour and using a simple stippling. [ngg src="galleries" ids="16" display="masonry"]
This is one of my favorite figurines, and portraits Frederick II of Swabia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor). This is an old 90mm miniature from Pegaso Models, but this is undoubtedly a classic. I think I improved a bit my technique about painting shades and lights for both white and red hues. The chain mail is not painted, that is I leveraged on the white metal and oil colours to paint the shadows. The red cross and the eagle on the shield are bass-relief, so they are easier to paint and the 3D effect is nice. The shadows over the eagle are painted with oil colours. The gloves have been painted using the Quickshade colours by Army Painter, starting from a beige surface and…
"The Defeat" is a representation of a scene where a Polish Knight takes possession of the flag of an unhorsed Teutonic knight in the context of the "Battle of Tannenberg" (1410) also known as "Battle of Grunwald" (https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battaglia_di_Grunwald). This is my first "mini diorama" where I had to fit two figures. I painted the metal parts by polishing the white metal of the miniatures and painting them with oil colours. The flag is scratch build out of a think sheet of white metal. [ngg src="galleries" ids="14" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"]
This is an old 90mm figurine from Andrea Miniatures that portraits "Edward the Black Prince" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_the_Black_Prince) The surcoat has a nice heraldry (fleur de lis) bass-relief, so they are easier to paint. As there is a wide surface area which is metallic, I decided to leverage on the real metal and painted the lights/shadows using the oil colours. The white band around the waist is a bit controversial, as I have not been able to find any illustration about it in the historical sources, but removing it would have been a nightmare, so I kept it. [ngg src="galleries" ids="13" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"]
This is my first 90mm scale figurine and it's been definitely challenging! The biggest challenges have been the blue color over wide areas and the heraldry which is all hand made. The outcome is not optimal, but it's my first time painting this stuff! Also the flag is hand made, built out of a think sheet of while metal. [ngg src="galleries" ids="22" display="masonry"]
This is another "tutorial figurine" I decide to paint to make practice. This miniature is part of the Metal Modeles introductory package available here http://www.metal-modeles.com/en/metal-models-soldiers-of-lead/coffret-initiation-a-la-figurine/coffret-initiation-a-la-figurine-detail This package is quite nice as it includes some tools to clean up the model parts as well as the colours and paint brushes to paint the figurine. I am not very happy with the final results, but the way to learn is quite long... [ngg src="galleries" ids="23" display="pro_mosaic"]
Another big bust. This is a 1:8 scale (slightly bigger than the typical 1:9) and created by Andra Miniatures. To continue the learning process, I chose this bust as it is sold in a nice box that includes a nice DVD with the video tutorial that shows most of the painting process. I still have a lot to learn of course, but I am very proud of the outcome as I think I started learning doing the glazings. Doing glazes is, in principle, a simple thing, but in practice it is not at all as this requires controlling the amount of water/paint mix. What I learnt is the "the less, the better! [ngg src="galleries" ids="21" display="pro_film" frame_size="2" border_color="#dd9933" frame_color="#dd9933" order_by="filename"]
My first "big bust", that is a bust with a scale about 1:9 (200mm). This is not exactly the typical "military miniature character" and similarly to the previous pieces, I decided to paint this due to the availability of an outstanding and extremely detailed video tutorial by Ben Komets. I strongly suggest you to give a look at the whole series available here https://www.youtube.com/user/paintingbuddha/ This series includes many other tutorials, although most of them are about fantasy miniatures. Learning by watching is an extremely effective way of learning, and in this case I really learnt a lot, so... kudos to Ben to provide such good explanations. And if you want to know more about Ben's painting style, I also suggest…
My first bust! This piece has been manufactured by Masterclass, but it has never been sold. This is actually a "mini bust" , that is its scale is about 1:24 [ngg src="galleries" ids="8" display="masonry"]
This is a nice 75mm figurine from Masterclass. The base is scratch-built, including the bag which I modelled using a standard putty. [ngg src="galleries" ids="7" display="pro_mosaic"]
This is my very first figurine! This is not a famous one as it was manufactured by a now dead Spanish company name Ttfxmedia. The reason I started with this model is that the kit was accompanied with a CDROM with the painting process videos and some explanations. This figurine is also one of the very first kits I bought, several years ago. [ngg src="galleries" ids="6" display="pro_mosaic"]