And another thing...

I'm considering taking commissions when I've got a wider range of example work up here. Let me know if you're interested. I'm also happy to field suggestions if there's anything in particular you'd like to see me paint.

Furioso Librarian

I would have posted this little puppy sooner, but he was a surprise for a friend. Everyone should get a dreadnought for their wedding present. The force sword is Green Stuff and plasticard, bit of a rush job but it came up pretty well. It's all magnetised for easy transport and posing. The sword arm is a tad heavy but the friction of the paint over the magnets is enough to hold it in position. Next time I paint a Dread I must remember to do all the metallics first... such a pain in the arse after assembly and base coating.

I found the macro button!

And I done painted me a Deathripper. Cryx is fun.

Lessons learned: The sponge weathering trick is cool but needs a little more touching up, with thin paint and a very fine brush. The base was a bit of a rush, might take more time with detailing - some reflections and highlights in the water would have been cool. The Cryx glow is fun, might tone it down next time. Or not. When I get around to painting Gaspy I'll take more time and put down more (and thinner) layers.

Deathripper the first

Also, progress (not much) on the Blood Angel front.

Comments welcome as always. The photos are improving but I'm still experimenting with light levels and diffusion.

Blood Angels

First stage highlighting is done. I started with white primer, then a base coat of Scab Red. I was going for a really deep, rich red so a quick wash of black gives a nice base for deep shadows, before I patched up the Scab Red with two thin, even coats on raised areas.

Lessons learned: I didn't realise how badly I cleaned these guys up until I was painting them and found lots of mould lines, so I need to get some decent files and take more time on that. Jump packs should be painted separately, they're a pain in the ass attached. I'm tempted to do the same for heads.

The big lesson today is learning and adapting to my style. I was trying to apply the base coat as I've seen others do it in videos and tutorials - carefully, with several thin layers. But it's just not me. I hate base coating, I'm too impatient and my hands aren't steady enough. I haven't got the money for an airbrush or spraygun just now, and I only have so much time to spend painting. The thinned paint is a no brainer (about 1:2 water to paint) but instead of carefully laying it down one area at a time I used a big old drybrush and slapped it on fast. It means some clean up later but it lets me get a good, even base coat down quick and get on with the fun stuff.

Apologies for the photos, I'm still learning the quirks of this camera. Any tips on that front would be appreciated.

Let's give this blogging thing a go, shall we?

My story: been gaming since I was a wee lad. No longer so wee, and I'm not playing much but I love painting and converting miniatures and I'm trying to make more time for it in the hopes of improvement. FYI, I'm also a traditional artist, I paint in oils and acrylic, and I sculpt with polymer clay. Still a student, but also working toward improvement...

The idea here is to share my work, learn and improve, and maybe help others to improve along the way. If I can score a few commissions that would be awesome, but one thing at a time. If you should happen to stumble through, and have advice or questions about painting lil plastic dudes (or blogging about it) please drop something in the comments box.

My current project is a small Blood Angel jump pack force. I've also got Tyranids and Nurgle marines on the backburner, and I'm keen to get into some Cryx silliness when time and money permit.

Up soon: Blood Angel assault squad WIP shots.