Iron Painter 8 recently started up over at Wyrd Miniatures (http://www.wyrd-games.net/content.php), and I have entered. This is a contest where instead of submitting an entry (it's all online) based on pre-defined categories, you sign up in advance. You are randomly paired with another participant (actually, two participants in the first round, as over 128 people signed up and the contest would run for seven months other wise) each round. You have two weeks to build and paint an entry. A theme is announced at the start of each round- primarily, to keep people from starting early, though the difficulty of some of the themes has become a signature of the contest. At the end of the two weeks, a panel of four judges scores all the entries. If your score beats the score of your randomly assigned opponent, you proceed to the next round. If you are beaten, you are eliminated. The next round generally starts about a week after the previous one ends. This continues until there is only one person left- the Iron Painter. Typically, they run about six rounds, so that's one entry every three weeks for four and a half months. I went all the way to the end of Iron Painter 5, lost (by 1.4 pts!) in the final round of Iron Painter 6, and lost in the semi-final round of Iron Painter 7. (And I might have continued on in IP7, but I wasn't satisfied with my entry, and mentioned on the site's forum that I wasn't finished. All the judges docked me points based on not being finished. Had I kept my fool mouth shut, I likely would have advanced, as I believe I only lost by 2.5 points or so.)
ANYway. The theme for the first round is "Start Your Engine." My plan is a post-apocalyptic father and daughter with a stalled-out motorcycle. The scale is 1/35. I admit to being a overly found of post-apocalyptic stuff. Mostly, because the opportunities for rust and weathering and decay are limitless. (I particularly like the Fallout video games' take on it- 50's future retro blown to bits. Mostly, because it allows the mixing of WW2, sci-fi, and modern kits and accessories.)
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The bike is from Mini Art, and I have to say, it's an incredibly detailed little kit. It even has photo etched wingnuts on the bar that holds the battery in place. Sadly, my build will lack them, as one of them shot out of my tweezers and will likely never be seen again. Regardless, it's something ridiculous like 112 parts for a model that's about 2.5 inches long.
I'm at the point right now where I'm deciding what parts to glue on and which leave off for painting. I'm also probably going to leave off a few of the kit bits, and replace them with strip and rod, so that it looks like it's been fixed up with scrap. One idea I had was to make a new front fender from thin styrene or brass, to look as though it had been hammered out of a traffic sign. A stop sign was my first thought, but a "Ped Xing" sign might be funnier, mounted on the front of a motorcycle.
One of the great pleasures in the online experience is to see how other people approach model building.
Working "outside the box" provides such a great opportunity for expression.
My first thought was to watch Mad Max again but then I realized doing so would tempt me to do what so many people complain about: modeling what we see on TV rather than reality.
Of course the Apocalypse has not happened so that reality is not reality anyway.
It will be interesting to see your progress.
Have fun.
A little more (not as much as I'd like) work done tonight.
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More on the bike. I roughed up some of the frame and the fender a bit. One tail light will be missing, and I plan to put some loose wires hanging from the bracket. I've got a few more bits assembled, but they'll be left off for now to facilitate painting. (The wheel and fender are not yet attached either, but it was easy enough to stick 'em on for the photo.)
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Dad. The torso and legs are from the Mini Art "Germans at Rest" kit, though they are not from the same figure. Initially, I figured my biggest problem would be finding the right arms and then positioning them to be working on the bike. However, a third figure in the kit is reading a book, and I had a flash of inspiration, seeing the book as a repair manual. It would add to the scene if the father appeared to be a bit stumped as to how to fix the bike, and give the daughter even more reason to be exasperated. Plus, it meant the arms wouldn't have to connect to the bike. The other arm is from Verlinden, and will be holding a hand tool. (I haven't yet decided what. Wrench seems obvious, but somehow screwdriver feels right. I don't know, maybe because it adds to the mechanical cluelessness of the dad.) The head is from Hornet, and is from the "bare heads smoking" set. He'll get some hair and a cigarette.
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Daughter. From the Masterbox "Western Region Civilians" kit. I wasn't big on the head, though. The detail isn't so great, and the hair is a bit... funky. I think it was partially miscast. Fortunately, the Bronco "Allied Women at War" set are about the same size, so I'm borrowing a head from one of those figures. I'll have to do a little facial surgery to make her look upset, but I don't think it'll take much. I plan on giving her a helmet of some sort. Probably a WW2 US helmet, since I have a lot of them. I'd prefer a football helmet, or a batter's helmet, to give her a more ramshackle appearance, but I don't have the time to go looking for one, and then wait for it to arrive in the mail. She'll also get a backpack. Not yet sure if it'll be a military style pack, or Hello Kitty. I'm heavily leaning toward the latter. Maybe a military pack with a Hello Kitty patch on it. I'm going to put a few bits of stowage strapped to the bike, and I have some stuffed animals from Reaper Miniatures, so she'll have a toy unicorn in the baggage.
Looks like fun! I think Hello Kitty would be a big part of any post-apoxyclipse scenerio.
Quote from: Chuck Doan on February 27, 2012, 07:42:00 AMI think Hello Kitty would be a big part of any post-apoxyclipse scenerio.
Maybe even the
reason for a post apocalyptic scenario.
Oh no, the Hello Kitty Apocalypse! ;D
Bronco head is a nice choice for the girl ... that set does have some nice faces. Speaking of Bronco ... and the lost PE wing nut ... Bronco makes injection-molded plastic wing nuts that look better than PE versions, cuz they have the full 3D detail.
Looks like you've got the dio planned out to be rather interesting ... following along ...
Cheers,
Dallas
Quote from: Malachi Constant on February 27, 2012, 01:57:06 PMSpeaking of Bronco ... and the lost PE wing nut ... Bronco makes injection-molded plastic wing nuts that look better than PE versions, cuz they have the full 3D detail.
Unfortunately, my FLHS doesn't stock them. I have to upload pics by 10pm next Monday, and while I may get them in time via mail order, I'd rather not hold things up for relatively unnecessary parts. (If this were a modelling contest, I likely would, but it's a painting contest. I would bet nobody judging will ever notice they were missing. I will certainly keep that in mind, though.)
Grandt Line has wingnuts too, but I don't know if they are the right size. Just for future ref.
Hm. In HO scale? One of my two local stores carries a huge selection of Grandt Line, but only the HO scale stuff.
(Oh, if only there were some great interconnected network of information with which I could look this up...)
EDIT: Hm. 1:48, it seems. Which might work, but will take several days to get here. Ah, well.
Batteries are dead in the camera, so no photo update tonight. Not a whole lot to show, though. I filled some gaps on the figures, and tattered up the clothing a bit with the Dremel and some putty. I began sculpting the hair on Dad, and got a bit more of the bike assembled.
I also started looking for a helmet for Daughter. I was going to use a modern US Fritz helmet, but I really liked how the WW2 US helmet looked on her head- extra big, which in turn makes her look more childlike. I'll add some brass etched chin straps, hanging unbuckled.
I am going to have to do something with this bike as well!! Glad you are are attempting it. The girl screams Hello Kitty or at least Alice!! ... with some weapons.
You go girl!!!
This should be real interesting and looking great so far. Great idea with the front fender as well. Myself I have just finished a bunch of these bikes for my shop but made civilian versions out of them - lots of cutting etc. will post pics. soon.
Here is your girl in a helmet (from the MIG forum). Maybe you already saw this pic. ???
Anders
Pic. 1 (//img%20width=600%20height=643%5Dhttp://i1081.photobucket.com/albums/j344/fiffistorp/Forum%20pictures/WarsawMig.jpg) ][/img]
Is that supposed to be a kid with that medal? It looks like a midget. Must be Verlinden; all their kids look like midgets.
Or Cotton Hill. I AIN'T GOT NO SHINS! I KILLED FITTY MEN!
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A little more done. Got Dad mostly assembled. He still needs his head, and a screwdriver. (Forgot
to photograph the head.) His hair is all sculpted. I also need to get some very thin rod to make his
cigarette. In this shot, I'm mostly just playing with positioning.
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I AM VERY CROSS.
Daughter is just about finished. The back pack and helmet are only tacked on for the
photo, and will be positioned a bit better. I may need to Dremel her hair down a touch,
so it doesn't appear to be holding the helmet up. I added some putty to her brow to make
her look more angry, then Dremeled off and resculpted the mouth to remove her smile and give
her sort of a pouty/petulent look. I'm pretty happy with it- I've resculpted bits before, or
added simple things, but I've never tried to change an expression, and this came out better
than I'd hoped. She still needs a neck, though. Right now, her head is just superglued to a
nub I added to help determine the right position.
That expression in her face is absolutely perfect! It goes with her whole posture of nervousness and doubt.
Very nice! First thought was "oh no, she needs a neck" ... then read thru and see that's on the list ... expression and all look great ... don't think I'd fiddle with the hair vs helmet thing ... not seeing your concern there. -- Dallas
Well, if you look where the top of her head would be, it's in about the middle of the helmet. I know those things have a liner in them, but it'd be about 3 inches thick the way it sits on her head currently. I want the helmet to sit a bit lower than it is. I think it'll help her look younger, too, as the helmet is supposed to look too big on her.
Nice! I agree, the helmet needs to sit lower on her head.
Really like the rips in the clothing.
Coming along very nicely.
IMO, I do feel the helmet is sitting too far up on her head...might look better if it appeared to bee a bit too big...so almost coming down over her eyes. (A Russian or Polish style helmet might work better for this effect, as they had the highter front and lower sides). Another cool helmet option might be those old tight leather ones with the aviator type goggles...could use a WW2 American tanker helmet, or if you want something wierder/more apocalyptic...the padded Russian Tanker helmets...(there is actually a Russian woman tanker figure with one of those helmets on).
Quote from: marc_reusser on March 02, 2012, 01:50:54 AM
Coming along very nicely.
IMO, I do feel the helmet is sitting too far up on her head...might look better if it appeared to bee a bit too big...so almost coming down over her eyes. (A Russian or Polish style helmet might work better for this effect, as they had the highter front and lower sides). Another cool helmet option might be those old tight leather ones with the aviator type goggles...could use a WW2 American tanker helmet, or if you want something wierder/more apocalyptic...the padded Russian Tanker helmets...(there is actually a Russian woman tanker figure with one of those helmets on).
Actually - "What he said". .........................Marc's summary pretty much reflects my own thinking on this, but I didn't feel qualified enough to say so; but, Yup' - that 'bout covers it!
I like the aviator helmet idea, but with only a little more than three days to finish this up, I'm going to stick with what I've got.
Updates are likely to be sparse (or non existent) until Monday night or Tuesday. It's crunch time to get this thing done. I'll still take photos as I go, I just probably won't get them online until after it's finished.
I stayed late at work Thursday, to use the shop so I could make the base. I drew up three ovals in Adobe Illustrator for the base, and printed them out- one for the outside dimensions, one for the size of an inset styrene slug, and one for the router template to cut an inside pocket. I used the router template oval to cut a hole in a piece of 3/4" MDF, which I then used (with a template bushing) to rout an 1/8" deep oval pocket in a piece of 3/4" thick bocote. (I'd rather have used cocobolo, but I couldn't find a piece 3/4" thick on short notice.) I then used the exterior sized oval to cut out the base itself, which was 1/2" larger all around. This gives me an oval base with a raised 1/2" lip all the way around. I used the remaining printout to cut a 1/8" thick styrene oval, which fits into the rim. I also ran a roundover bit around the whole thing. Though, I only had a 1/2" diameter bit, and I wanted to leave at least a 1/4" of rim, so it has sort of a bullnose profile to it.
The reason for all that work is so that I can sand, seal, and lacquer the base separately from the diorama, which will be built up on the styrene slug. Then, when it's all done, I just drop it into the base with some 5 minute epoxy.
I've got the groundwork about 75% done. I made a sheet of "asphalt" (more or less as in this thread (http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=1001.0), with some minor refinements to the technique) and then cut it with an X-Acto to fit the base. It only covers about 2/3 of the base, so it appears that the scene is taking place on the shoulder of the road. I mixed up some diorama muck (latex paint, dry joint compound, and sand) and spread it onto the styrene slug, smoothed it out, and laid the asphalt over it. I then added some small chunks of broken off asphalt near the shoulder, and some very fine bits I gorund up with a mortar and pestle. Once it's all dry, I'll add some paint washes to the pavement, and some pigments and a few weeds. I'll probably put a white shoulder line on the asphalt as well.
I've finished building the bike. Or, at least, I've finished assembling it as much as I intend to prior to painting. (Actually, I still need to make the stop sign front fender, but that should take only a few minutes. I've already printed out the template.) I also added an extended luggage rack, which has a seat attached for Daughter. I figured it'd be made out of what was handy, so I made a 50's style vinyl chair (the kind that's just bent metal tubing, with a vinyl padded seat and back) with no legs, which is "welded" onto the rack, which is just a piece of diamond plate. To that, I added rolled up blanket, a pack , and an ammo case, which are all tied down with rope made by twisting two lengths of fine wire. I also added two jerry cans, one on each side of the rack, hanging from ropes.
In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have spent so much time writing all this up without posting pictures. Maybe I'll just go back and add pictures where appropriate, once I'm finished. It's 4am and I'm tired.
Thats a hell of a teaser!
Sounds like an amazing little vignette.
I guess having a young daughter has me interested too.
Looking forward to monday.
Good luck!
Marty
I had some time while the primer dries, so I put up the photos from last night.
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The base and the styrene slug.
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The asphalt, cut to fit the slug. It's discolored because I started experimenting with
some washes. It's also lighter on the edges from the torch I used to burn off the
loose strands of cheesecloth that were sticking out after I cut it.
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The slug, covered with diorama muck.
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Muck and asphalt.
Before the primer:
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Bike parts.
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Dad and Daughter.
WOW!
Love the asphalt!!
Love the whole thing!!
Hm. I think I should have angled the repair manual up a bit more. Crap, too late to do much about it now. (Admittedly,, it'll look less like he's offering the book to someone when he's right in front of the bike, but still. It wouldn't be Iron Painter without messing something up when it's too late to fix it.)
Great progress. Go..go..go....
I just made the deadline, with nine minutes to spare. I must be losing my touch, as I'm usually clicking upload with less than a minute.
Some final notes:
1. I will be taking better photos. Running so close to the deadline, I didn't have time to fiddle with things. (The one I'm posting here is my submissioon photo- you're only allowed one photo with a maximum width of 800px, hence the vertical filmstrip.) Also, my first time using a dark background. Colors seem to be glowing, I'm assuming I need to tinker with settings. I got a middle grey backdrop to try out as well. On the plus side, though, my home made softboxes kicked out more than enough light.
2. Not my best paintjob. Stuff came up on Sunday, and I ended up not starting until noon 2pm today. I really need to learn to keep the construction to a minimum. It's my usual problem- the idea grows and grows and suddenly "one week to build, one week to paint" becomes "12 days to build, 2 days to paint." (Or twelve hours, in this case.) That said, I think it came out well, though my photos washed out the skin tones a bit.
Either way, I'ma go have a whiskey and sleeeeeeeeep.
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Most adequate.
Keep the black background; it works! Regarding the "glowing" colors, just tone down the saturation a little. You're there.
Russ
Well, the colors are pretty close to how they really are, so I'd rather leave the saturation where it is. I think maybe I'm just tired, as I don't seem to see the glow now. It was sort of halo against the dark background. Not super obvious, though. I think it might just be a trick of the light, due to the bright colors and dark background.
I agree about the colors I see here. But I assumed you were seeing something different on your screen.
So leave the photos alone. I'm certainly not criticizing them.
Russ
Great looking dio with some excellent paint job, story etc. The only thing that bothers me a little bit is the stowage, looks a little plastic like compared to the rest that is very realistic. Maybe some more paint/washes to bring out the details otherwise superb work.
Anders
Well, I'm still really completely distracted by the missing wing-nut ... where ever the heck that was supposed to go! ;D
Fabulous scene ... unbelievable job for a 12-hour paint session ... that alone is unbelievable. Snap below had the gamma turned down to .80 in irfanview and the contrast reduced -10 ... not necessarily ideal, but it maintains the saturation and color tones while killing that glow a bit. Someone more skillful than myself could tweak the pix perfectly. (Okay, I said "unbelievable" twice in the same sentence, but I could have spent 12 hours on either of the figures and not gotten that far!)
Great stuff! -- Dallas
Further reduction of gamma and contrast. Again, wonderful dio that really tells the story!
Well done! Looks great to me!
I second what Dallas said (except whatever that gamma ray stuf was). I could not have done as well in 10 times the amount of time you had. Contrats and good luck.
...now, back to how you made that road surface.
M
I made up a batch of plaster, tinted with Woodland Scenics black pigment. I dipped a piece of cheesecloth into that, then spread it out on a teflon cookie sheet. Once I got it nice and evenly smoothed out, I mixed up another batch of tinted palster, only this time I added sand as well. (Play sand from the hardware store, which I'd sifted through a piece of window screen. I used what went through the screen, not the larger chunks.) I spread this over the still-wet cheesecloth, and used a spatula to get it as thin as I could. Once it had set up (and dried out), I crumbled it up. The cheesecloth keeps it all together, and the sand helps keep the plaster from breaking in straight lines. The sand also gives the edges of the chunks the right texture. I then went at the cracks with a dental pick, to open them up more. I also found that by bending the sheet "up" (um... making breaks by bending in them towards the top surface, if that makes sense) tends to make chips flake off the top surface more, which reduced the amount I needed to use the pick. Then I cut it out with an X-Acto to fit the base. After that, I took a small torch to it, to burn off any exposed strands of the cheesecloth. Once it was glued down, I gave it a bunch of dilute black washes, then drybrushed with a warm dark gray. Then I rubbed in powdered pastels, mixed to match the color of the dirt. (Dry pigments would have worked better, but I didn't have any on hand the same color as the ground on my base.)
Thanks. Will have to give that a go.
Well, after both of my opponents failed to submit anything (about 40 of the 130+ people that signed up didn't finish or submit an entry) I was re-matched with two other entrants who also had opponents fail to enter. Scores were announced today, and even though one of the four judges dogged me for some reason (about five points below the other three judges, out of a possible twenty points per judge) I have passed into the next round. The next theme and pairings will be posted tomorrow.
Congrats! Good Luck!
M
Well, I didn't take photos as I went on this one. I spent one of the two weeks playing with ideas, and the other experimenting with peeling wallpaper, which I couldn't get to look right. So I didn't start this until Friday evening, four days before the deadline. Also, it's a little more cartoony/gamey than the normal fare on this forum- I'm only posting it here to share my progress in the contest. The theme for the round is "The Next Step."
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You are a disturbed individual! But the results of that are fun to watch. :) -- Dallas
I concur with Dallas! Glad you posted this. It's a neat scene. What scale is this, and where did you get the skeleton figure?
My critical comment on it would be, that IMO it might have been even more dramatic if it were cropped a bit more/tighter. Narrowing the scene by shortening the upper landing (so she is almost stepping off the end, and then cropping the wall and ground space past the stairs on the right.
Let us know how you do.
M
Very nice, especially considering how little time you had to put it together.
Marc- 28mm. So, around 1/56. (The figures are actually a bit smaller than that, as they are not intended to represent women who are six feet tall.) Though, I more or less built it to 1/48 scale, which generally looks right, since 28mm figures are usually a bit chunkier for their height. The girls are from Hasslefree Miniatures (http://www.hfminis.co.uk/), and the crawler is from Studio Miniatures (http://www.studiominiatures.com/). I agree with the cropping. (Should have known I'd get called on that here.) I cut the parts for the base and wall at work Friday before going home, but to had guess a bit on the size, as I hadn't yet constructed anything else. Should have gone about an inch shorter in both directions, but didn't have the time to change once I realized this. (It's 5" x 5".)
Whoa!..5x5...that really makes it some really spiffy work all around! I thought this was around 12x12.
M
Yeah, that's a lot smaller than I thought it was, too.
Heh. Yeah- remind me to smack Don Railton if I ever see him. That's his brick technique (with a few minor tweaks) and I hope I never become insane enough to try that at 1/48 again.
(Aw, who am I kidding. I know I'll do it again.)
Anyway. I'm glad it went over well. The main reason I haven't posted a lot of work here is that my painting and modeling time has been pretty absorbed by the gaming side of things the last two years, and those subjects are mostly out of place on this forum. But with Iron Painter running, and GenCon Indy approaching, I should have an upswing in more realistic modeling-heavy type projects.
Quote from: Bexley on March 29, 2012, 06:59:54 PM
The main reason I haven't posted a lot of work here is that my painting and modeling time has been pretty absorbed by the gaming side of things the last two years, and those subjects are mostly out of place on this forum.
First, I also mistook the most recent diorama for being at a larger scale -- well played!
Second ... I'm not in charge here and don't make the rules ... but it certainly seems like the effort has been to DIVERSIFY the subject matter and suspect that more samples of your modeling work, regardless of subject, would be entirely welcome.
Cheers,
Dallas
Well, I would concur with Mr. Mallerich. Tis not the subject that is of import here, but rather the process and quality.....or in Mr Fergusons case, the things he might be able to pilfer for his own nefarious ends. ;D
We look to be inspired, awed, amused and educated.....whatever freakishly odd subject provides that is of no consequence. ;D
Marc and Dallas are correct.
The purpose of this forum is to teach modeling techniques and it doesn't matter what kind of model you build. As I keep trying to explain to narrow minded nincompoops, you find the same kind of chipped paint on a gas mechanical loco as on a bulldozer. So if a guy explains how he weathered a bulldozer, it directly applies to a choo-choo.
They'll never comprehend that ... but we, on this forum, do. So nobody be hesitant to show us any kind of model.
Russ
Nefarious :- Latin in origin, relating to crime or transgression. In addition, it means evil or despicable or being very wicked in an underhand or infamous manner. Synonymous that can be used for nefarious include vicious, foul, vile, shameful and heinous.
You can't beat a nice drop of praise ;D
Oh, and the "Mr" was a nice touch
Now more important stuff ................Bexley I was another who obviously had no comprehension as to the real size of this piece ................ great work and as for scribing bricks in 1/48 you are mad , ............. but successful
Well, it's not the subject matter that's the issue. Gaming stuff just doesn't get a lot of effort put into it. "Fragile" techniques like hairspray chipping and pigments don't stand up to the rigors of frequent handling, so they don't get used. And when you're painting up 30+ figures in a go, you don't put much into each one. But I'll be entering a few national-level contests this summer, since my employer is making me work the booth at a number of them. That should give me more "high end modeling and painting" pieces to post. (Though, I will likely be linking to a few work projects in the coming weeks, as Dust Warfare releases very soon. Also, I'm working on a pretty cool project for X-Wing, so once that marketing blitz begins, I'll have some really neat stuff to post.)
Anyway. My point was not that I was afraid to post unusual subjects, but that my hobby time has been put into projects which by nature are of a lesser quality.
I succeeded, and have made it to round three. A particularly sweet victory, as my opponent was the one who knocked me out of the last Iron Painter. (I even got the highest score of the round, 75.5 out of 80.)
And, it occurs that maybe it would be of interest to post the work of my opponents as I go. This (for reference, same scale as my piece) is what I was up against:
(https://www.finescalerr.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wyrd-games.net%2Fphotopost%2Fdata%2F667%2FCordelia_bridal.jpg&hash=f1a03464dbedbdd130f5c47ab8693b450dd9250d)
The next theme and pairings have been announced. The theme is "Only Three Colors." This will be a very interesting round. I think I have a bit of an edge. My all-time highest scoring Iron Painter entry was when the theme was Psycho, and I did my entry only using black and white, in homage to the film. A third color does add some complexity, however. I could go with a sepia-type thing, using black plus white plus a third color, or try doing a full color piece using only magenta, cyan, and yellow.
Hmm.
I think I have my idea sussed out, though it (unfortunately) took the whole week to come up with it. I'd already planned on using a three color palette (essentially ultramarine blue, burnt sienna, and an off-white that leans a bit towards yellow) but I still needed something to paint, preferably that also reflects the theme. I could just use the theme literally and paint any subject using three colors, but I know from past experience that the more twists on the theme you incorporate, the better.
Finally, the idea of somebody eating a bomb pop (those three-color popsicles) popped into my head. As I was looking at figure kits to find a pose I could convert, the further idea hit me of a zombie sneaking up on the guy, the joke being they're both about to enjoy a tasty treat. I might even put them near a wall of some sort, with a bomb pop advertisement on it, with something like "Enjoy one today!" on it, which would then be the title of the piece.
Hopefully, I'll have some progress pictures tomorrow evening.
Very sick. I like "black" humor. Be sure to post the photos. -- Russ
Done and submitted. Was lazy about progress photos, but I had a lot going on this last week (buying a
house) and had to rush this one. I pretty much started Saturday afternoon withe the figure conversions,
but didn't get around to painting until this afternoon. (I also had to skip the poster due to time.) Deadline
is in twenty minutes, and my opponent has not yet posted.
The only colors I used were the three in the third photo.
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Very neat. Especially like the modulation/lighting on the wall piece. Great result...especially with the time you had to work on it. I've always wanted to do a B&W/Grey-scale scene or model.
Good luck again, and hope the house purchase went smoothly (congratulations on that).
Marc
Satisfactory. -- Russ
That's fantastic, delightful & funny as hell! Really dig ALL of the carefully selected and placed elements, pose of figures, suggested "action" and emotion, etc ... and the matching base. Killer! ;D -- Dallas
My opponent failed to submit something before the deadline. Since nobody else is unmatched this round (16 participants in 8 pairings, 15 submissions turned in) I get a free pass to the next round. (Had another person failed to submit, I'd have been matched up against the other loose end.) Not the best way to win, but I'll take it. I was a little unhappy with my entry this time. It really needed another day of painting at least.
The theme for round four is "Forbidden." My initial ideas were:
1. A man at a computer, with a 403 (Forbidden) message on the screen. (Rejected, as even at 1/35, painting the words on the screen would be incredibly difficult.)
2. Some sort of evil secret ritual in progress, using this figure (http://www.coolminiornot.com/shop/miniatures/dark-sword-miniatures/parkinson-masterworks/parkinson-masterworks-the-summoner-female-sorceress.html). [Warning: nudity.]
3. A very elaborate tree; with apple, serpent, and woman. (i.e. Forbidden Fruit.)
I was leaning towards number two. I had been challenged by a former winner before the contest to make every entry post-apocalyptic. I made no promises, as theme is important, and a good idea is a good idea. Then, I got the image of a "toxic" tree in my head, and opted to go with number three. I have a figure of a little girl with a gas mask to stand in for Eve. She looks the part, plus she's tiny (28mm figure scale, but since she's a kid, she's only about 5/8" tall) so it'll make the tree look even larger. Not sure yet about the serpent, but I have a few ideas on making one. It'll be some kind of a mutant snake. The tree will be Sculpey over a wire armature, and is going to look as rotten and distended and horrible as I can make it. Not quite sure about the apple. I'm thinking it needs to look normal, so that it's considered "tempting."
For the base, I'm going to use about a 4" section of 4" diameter PVC pipe. I plan to do a cutaway in the middle of it, showing a bunch of barrels of waste buried under the tree, with the tree's roots wrapped around them. I may also do a painted yellow/green glowing effect, as that sort of thing always goes over well.
Cool ... starting to picture it already ... but sure I'll be surprised! Have fun, good luck, godspeed and all that stuff ... Dallas
Sounds like a neat scene. If you needed to hit them over the head with the concept you could always add a sign to the back of the tree...where the girl couldn't see it that says "poison, picking fruit is forbidden"....or or has the skull-and-crossbones symbol and then the "picking fruit forbidden" under that. ::)
Look forward to pics.
Marc
I was kind of thinking of putting a damaged cyclone fence behind them with a sign, indicating a hazmat burial site. I just need to come up with a way of pulling that off in ~1/56 scale. They have kits with a woven fabric to use as the fencing, but I don't know that the fabric would have the rigidity to pull off damaged and bent fencing.
Nice thing about the toxic tree is that I don't need to come up with leaves now.
I've found some wire mesh that might work for the fence. I also got the base roughly cut and the filler pieces made on my lunch break; I'll try to get some photos later.
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I was going to just buy a piece of pipe and cut it to size, but ended up getting a straight coupler
instead. It's about 5" in diameter. I filled it with layers of pink foam- I'll trim the top down to match
the contours of the base, and I'll gouge out the area for the barrels in the side opening. Before I
glue the foam in permanently, I plan to sand out the scratches, prime, and paint the base, either
black or a very dark brown. Then I'll glue in the foam, and mask off the base so I don't ruin the
finish while I work on the rest of it.
This is really going to be cool. I like the whole idea of it!
Well, the mesh was close, as far as the size of the squares, but the thickness of the wires was way off. I'm going to try some fine window screen. I suspect the squares will be too large, though. I got some of the Walthers mesh, too. It's HO, but it must be too big for HO. It's perfect for 1/56, but again, it's a fabric, and getting it to look bent out of shape will be difficult, if not impossible. I'm trying some Mr. Surfacer on it, to see if it will stiffen it any.
I measured the screen in my windows, and it's about the same as the mesh I bought today. Except it's steel (the stuff I bought today was aluminum) so I might be able to dunk it in etchant for a bit and thin it. Looks like I'm off to the hardware store first thing in the morning.
Picked up some window screen today. Unfortunately (and unknown to me) window screen is aluminum. Which I probably should have figured out beforehand, given that they don't rust out. It looks like it'll work. Probably a bit out of scale, but I think this will be one of those "out of scale but gives the desired effect so nobody really notices" sort of things. Failing that, McMaster-Carr has some mesh that will work a bit better. The wires will still be too thick (.0075", which would be about .42") but the squares (.034", which would be 1.904"- a little undersized, actually) will be closer to the right size.
I have used Tuille fabric (the stuff used for wedding veils....and the Go-Go's had skirts made of it)....quite effectively, IMO, in 1/48 scale and 1/35. It comes in different sized mesh/weave...and a couple of different weaves/patterns (one looks very sim to the old style wire yard fencing from the 20's through the 50's). It is a nylon or some such thing, so a dit harder to paint and shape. I have used an AB and / or pigments to color it.
Insofar as the alum screen is concerned, that shoul be absolutely ideal (scale maybe not withstanding)....being alum it can be easily formed and sshaped, and it can easily be oxidized in a PCB etchtant bath....which will also reduce the diameter of the wire....may take a few tries to get the look/correct piece....but off-hand I can't see why it wouldn't work.
Not to way-lay your thread....but here are two quick camera phone shots of an old dio where I used on e of the Tuille. The figure for scale, is 1/48. HTH
M
Pattern-wise, that seems like it resembles the temporary fencing you see at some construction sites, rather than chain link fencing. I suspect it would have the same issues the Walther's stuff has. It looks dead-on accurate, but is better used for intact fencing. Thanks for the suggestion, though. Not something I would have otherwise though to try.
I don't think I'm going to bother with the etchant. It would thin the wires, but that would also make the squares larger, which I don't want. I put the figure next to a strip of the window screen, and it looks pretty decent. Also, the fence will be a background element, so I think it being off a bit won't detract from anything. Plus, I can distort and damage it, and it'll hold the shape. I'll just toss the Walther's kit into my "HO stuff I will someday turn into awesome Car Wars terrain" box.
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On the left is the window screen, on the right is the Walther's fence material. The figure is about a scale 4' tall. The
screen works pretty well, I think, even if it's a little big.
The stuff in my image is not the standard chain link as we see it today...but it is a pretty good match for some of the wire fencing from the 20's through 50's.......the homes in my neighborhood were mostly built during this period so there is still a fair bit of it around.
I think the screen is better than the walthers. Having the size reduced by the etchtant may not be a bad thing, as any paint and weathering may likely heavy it back up again. The walthers stuff looks like Tuile fabric. If ylu go to a fabric store you will see that it comes in different grades/weaves/sizes....as well as colors. I have seen it in grey and black.
Here it is. I did snap a few WIPs, I'll post them later. It's late, and I'm tired and sober.
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Wow! That looks wonderful, all around. Very cool scene layout/composition, painting and overall sculpting/build. The story definitely comes across. Look forward to the final pics. You should win no problem
Just a thought...if you havent already tought of it.....maybe make the underground part look even more toxic...like leaking barrels, glowing green liquid pooling...or even do a couple of layers of tinted resin, so there is actually a pond/layer of toxic sludge that the barrels are submerged in. Should be possible by tigtly masking the bottom of the opening a bit, so you can pour something like gloss medium, or Vallejo still water behind.
Marc
That was the original plan, actually. I wanted to do some small glowing fungus on the tree too, but just ran out of time. (I could go back and do it, but I've always had the policy of leaving contest pieces as they were when they were entered. Partly because I want to preserve thelook that won or lost, but also because once I've submitted it, I lose a lot of my interest in the piece.)
Wow ... amazing ... fantastic! Don't know what you did to the trunk of that tree, but it has a mostly-real and slightly-bizarre look to it that looks great here. LOVE the fact that the top surface area is NOT flat ... you've got sensational ground contours even on this tiny little patch of earth. Fence breach and girl's posture work perfectly cool stuff. And, looks like a real nice job of lighting it for the photos too.
BTW, I think I have some concerns or ideas about the underground scene ... but can't seem to sort or process them into anything useful ... which really doesn't matter at this point! Maybe this is it: Kinda feel like the top scene tells the whole story by itself and the underground scene is an unnecessary distraction. Top scene has the sickly tree, broken rusty fence with fallout sign, girl wearing gas mask, single apple dangling from that sickly tree ... seems like that's the whole story ... or maybe I want to edit too much! ;D
Anyway ... re-read first paragraph here .... brilliant, inspiring work! Forge on ...
Dallas
I see your point, and sort of agree. I think the image itself is better aesthetically without the underground part. But I think the caution/radiation sign on the fence alone doesn't really tell the whole story as well without the barrels. Unless maybe I really made the point glaringly obvious on the sign, putting something like "caution - buried toxic waste" which would seem a little too much like a caption and not a real sign. Also, it was hard enough painting the sign with just the word caution readable. It's only .300" tall, so it'd be next to impossible to paint all that text and have it be legible.
As for the tree, I pretty much painted it the same colors I'd use painting zombie skin. Maybe a little more grey.
Yeah, it's hard to know where to stop & where to keep going ... and I sure as heck ain't gonna claim to know! ;D
A couple more of the unfinished/not-fully-processed thoughts on the matter:
-- The black surround with the separate cut-out might be what's causing me to see the underground scene as a competing distraction ... one thought there was that the whole base could be done as sort of a "core sample" ... meaning the ground colors would continue throughout ...
-- Which could then, by way of some crumbling earth in the core, could reveal roots of the tree like tentacles wrapped around a clutching maybe even somehow "nursing" from those toxic barrels ...
-- etc. (but realizing the dio is "done" and just thinking here!) ;)
Point here is not so much to criticize ... as I find the work extremely FASCINATING ... and I wanna keep studying it and pick-up on the stuff I like best and "steal" (or adapt/adopt) some of that into my work where possible. One example in that regard is completely unrelated to the "theme" of your dio ... but the simple ground contours there really blow my mind ... they are so fuggin' realistic ... and that is something that is almost always screwed up by those of us who come from the "flat earth" world of model railroading! ::) :o Flat earth ... sudden hill ... sudden valley. Where the blank are all those subtle, little contours that are all around us? You've captured those beautifully ... that part adapts to even non-toxic dios! (And the rest is a load of fun and intrigue too) ;D
PS -- Also like how the girl is wearing a gas mask and combat boots but is otherwise adorned in a "cute little outfit" ... that and the posture really capture the innocence vs temptation bit.
-- Dallas
Heh. "Don't make the ground flat" is a rule (my rule three, actually) I learned early on- in both the macro (the ground is sloped) and the micro (the earth is also lumpy and uneven) sense. It's not only more realistic, it helps a lot compositionally, in that you can put things at different heights to make things more dynamic. It also helps with rule two, which is to think of it as a 2D piece, even though it's 3D.
In retrospect, I agree with the core sample idea. That would have tied the two sections together much better. And I could have had roots sticking out all over, and maybe even a few fossils or other Simpson's-esque buried oddities,
Hey,, I got a tree with a trunk WORSE than that still growing in my garden!!
http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=637.1065
Is it just me, my reaction was, whats that red warning light doing hanging down like that!! ;D
But there I must be a simple soul, the subtlties of "Forbidden" & "Temptation" went completely over my head
I was probably thinking ""Intruder alert""
Not a criticism in any way at all, I love the way youv'e 'got' the tree,
wire armature? clay/filler surfacing??
Wire armature, Aves Apoxie trunk, Vallejo dark earth putty upper limbs, 6mm static grass twigs.
I like the whole diorama and find nothing wrong with the underground bit , mainly because I like those sort of querky scenes . If it becomes a distraction you could always cover it over or turn the model around .
Any chance of a photo from the other side ?
Nick
I may set up and shoot some more in a day or so. I took those right before the deadline, so I didn't have time to go nuts with it.
I don't think the underground part is a distraction as much as it just needs to be tied in to the rest better.
Awesome scene! The best yet, IMHO. The tree is sort of Giger-esque. The girl's pose is perfect.
I went on to the next round. (Also had the highest score of the eight entries.) The new theme is "It's Alive!" I may have to abandon the post apocalyptic meta-theme, as all my ideas are either horror or fantasy in nature. We'll see, though.
Quote from: Bexley on May 19, 2012, 11:21:42 PM
I went on to the next round. (Also had the highest score of the eight entries.)
Excellent. Well-earned. Congrats! Looking forward to the next bit of madness, sanity or whatever it turns out to be.
-- Dallas
And here it is. My opponent failed to finish due to con crud from ReaperCon, so I get a pass into the final
round. One win away from the $500 cash money. (Or, suppose, $50 if I lose.)
28mm figures. (So, about 1/56.)
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I might be rather pleasant to hear that you won. -- Russ
Really nice paint job, especially the facial details.
Last theme has finally been announced. "Last One Standing." Unfortunately, nothing is really popping into my head. A couple half ideas, but nothing solid.
An over-crowded women's restroom?
Winner @ One-legged men in a turtle-stomping contest?
Bunch of 1/35 scale iron painters fallen over after painting their little 1/160 figures ... blood and paint mixing in puddles on the floor ... one left ... the winner? (For extra irony, have the iron painters painting irons.) (Maybe the painters are tiny and the irons are big ... and all but one of the irons have fallen and crushed their respective painters. Splat!)
Guess I'll go stand in the corner now ... but I won't be the last one! ;D
-- Dallas
I did consider a kid playing with toy soldiers, with all but one soldier "dead." I think I still have some old 6mm GW space marines. Still pretty big for 1/35 "toys," but it;s an idea.
I think I have my idea sorted out. I saw two kids this afternoon kicking the heads off of dandelions, and I got the idea of a kid doing the same thing- surrounded by destroyed dandelions, with one intact one remaining, about to meet the same fate as its friends.