My First go at a figure with Vallejo Paints

Hi MM pros<

I have read some great blogs on figures and painting them, I was using Tamiya Acrylics before and was never very happy with the results, I now fallen for figures big time and want to get better with paint. Most of the blogs tlked of Velejo paint so.....spent $60 for some paint for Prussian infantry 1870. her is the first guy I did. Not quite what i wanted but was a start.

The basic body

I got smoother results right off the bat.

The part I am at. I will need help and advice on " wheathering or dirting up the jacket and pants etc. Any advice GREATLEY appriciated

George

Below is the new guy and I took pictures as I went< and lots of notes.

I am here but will go back to the beginning again later

Ill post the mixes I used and issues I had so help will beneeded

Thanx in advance for any comments

George

Hi George . Nice work.

Johnny

ARRRGH did the whole post on the paint and it has dissapeared ..... Too tired to do right now but will do in the morning....1.30 am California time WAY past my bed time

george

Hi

Good start with Vallejo’s, they are a lot better than Tamiya for brush painting.

A couple of quick tips when painting with Vallejo’s or any brush painted paint.

1. I assume you used the paint out of the bottle, because it has that look, sorry if its not, but its best to thin the paint so that you have to give about 3 coats for full coverage, that way you get a natural build up in all the creases giving an impression of shading which will help when you get the highlight & shadow stage.

2. It looks like you have not quite got edge to edge coverage on the leather straps, again sorry if you have and its just the photo that makes it look like primer is showing at the very edge, until you get used to fine brush control you might find it easier to paint the straps first and getting paint into all the nooks and crannies, even though you will get paint onto the uniform, it will be easier to but the uniform paint upto the belt than doing it the other way around, well I find it easier that is.

Other than that you are doing well, to me anyway.

Paul

Hi Paul,

Dont be sorry Im thick skinned ...

Thank you for the tips, On that figure which is not a great figure< i actually scrapped off the belt and straps and made my own. however you are right I need to pay more attention to the finner detail like the unpainted parts. I used a 1:4 ratio prussian blue and water for this figure below. Took about 3 coats. The base I used to cover the model was Tamiya light grey spray from a can as I find it actuall covers quite well. I then tried a P blue and black mix of 2:1:4 and filled in shadow areas in the folds etc. and below the belt and so on. I did the same with high lites Blu?white ( 2:2:4 mix)

Then proceeded to mix P Blue with water at 1:4 and put 2 coats on. The shadow and high lights still came through very strong and not well( very defined). What am I doing wrong here?

I put 2 more coats on and the figure now lokks like its never been shaded >>>>> Help

See pictures below

The lighting on the pictuere is bad but I took some more this morning and will post them. I think I am doing the procees or order wrong? maybe I should block in which is where I am back at and redo the shadow etc. I realize the figures are not the best but I am using for trials< I am experimenting with them alot not just painting but scratch building stuff as well for more detail> see top

Any hooooo, please any comments good or bad greatly appriciated

george

Here are the pictures I took this morning...sorry got the shakes today..

But you get my point on back to starting point after the shadows are now gone ????

sorry forgot to post pics

I tried out some tin foil from the kitchen for the belt and papre for the straps....

Thanks for the help

George

Ok now thinking some more about this....dangerous.

This is the method or proceedure the way I think of it. Is it right or am i missing the boat?

1) base ( I use spray typically tamiya light grey coat)

2)Then start blocking in the different parts ( jacket and pants) with thinned down color typically 1:4 water

3) then do the shadows and high lites ( 2;1 and 4 water)

4)back to block color (with a 1:4 water ratio) which is maybe to thick and need more thinning. it takea about 3 coats but i lose the shadow etc.

5) then the detail stuff boots belts etc. I do the accesorries seperate and add to the figure.

Question, 1)how do you do washes and when?

2)How do i stop losing the shadow . I m doing it either wrong or at the wrong time ?

3) I am starting on faces now to see how that goes ....EEEEEEECK?

any comments welcome

Thanks

george

Hi George,

I would advise that you use a fine brush to outline everything where one colour meets another in black: belt, straps, collars, buttons etc. Then block in your colours leaving a fine black line to separate each colour.

The highlighting and shading mix which you have used is a bit too thick. Try shading with black thinned 1:4 with water (and if you have it a flow improver) the more coats you apply the darker the shadow becomes. For highlighting use a paler blue (either from a bottle or mixed) in the same ratio 1 part paint to 4 parts water, once again the more coats you apply the lighter the highlight becomes.

If you are not happy with the either a highlight or a shadow just give it a thin coat of the base colour thinned 1:4 which will tone it down, further coats will just cover it completely.

If you have a look at Military Modelling, Vol. 40 No.12 October 2011 part 4 of my series "Painting 1/35 Figures with Acrylics" gives a full tutorial on brush painting which a lot of people found helpful.

I hope this helps and makes sense

Regards
Mike

Hi George.

I'm far from being an expert but have been trying to get to grips with acrylics myself since my return to the hobby.

Vallejo are fantastic paints IMO and from your descriptions of your method, I can't see what you're doing wrong. After the basecoat or primer, I'd maybe thin the paint even more than you are doing. I find they work best as a kind of glaze, gradually building up the colour with many very thin (glaze) coats.

From what you say, it was going well, then when you put another coat on, the shade and highlights vanished......I'd suggest just adding them back, then going with the blue again but much thinner....Don't worry about covering details, the paint is so thin it wont obscure anything.

I was used to using oils and enamels in the past and the new paints take a lot of practice to work with. I wouldn't say one was better than the other, people get excellent results from either, some swear by oils, others acrylic.

Keep practicing, I'm sure it will all come good

Richard.