First of all, let me show you some progress on the Necron project - or like some like to call them: "Woodcrons". I have finished the first unit of Immortals, which confirmed to me that this could definately start to look cool.
I also started on the Ghost Ark, which is really a big *^&%@ in the ass for painting, since it HAS TO be in parts to be able to reach everything. And in a LOT of parts! I am not done yet with that but it is taking shape.
In the weekend of November 10th & 11th I attended a two-day Painting Masterclass hosted by Mathieu Fontaine. And biy did I learn a lot. I practised a lot more with blending, and with the stern look of Matt over my shoulder I made sure to do my very best. But next to that, I was made far more aware of the importance of the right use of colors, composition and correct shadow placement. I feel that I have grown to a level where I am less concerned with pure painting techniques, and more with presentation of the model.
So naturally I had to work these new insights on other works, and so had to leave the Woodcrons aside for a while. So I took up a commission I hd lying around, that I was not too fond of doing really. Remember that Isabella Von Carstein model? The really ancient one? Well, I went on to do the Vlad on Carstein that came along with it. I put more thought into color use, where to place light, what shadow colors to use, and to be honest, I find this piece far better than Isabella.
I went on to create a base fot it, similiar in theme and style as the Isabella base, but far simpler. Which was not too hard. But then I went on to experiment with Ziterdes Water-Drops for water effects. And oh boy, did I make a mess of things. I spilled a bit over the tiles - but that is acceptable - but obviously I did not tie off the rims well enough to prevent leaking along the sides. And it is still drying (isn't this stuff supposed to dry within minutes?). While this is 'just' the base, which I can do over if need be, I have been a poophead while pouring in the water effect, because I forgot to remove the Vlad model from it, and ...yeah...you guessed right: I spilled a bit on him too.
Luckily I have been able to wipe most of it off, and so I'll need to retouch it a bit. And it has been all on the backside. Pff...a bit of work and it's all gone.
So while my work is fully absorbing my time, I am finally pondering entries for the Golden Daemon, Lage Landen Schildercompetitie, and next year's Scale Model Challenge.
Oh yeah, and one more thing: I decided to absolutely dismiss all incoming requests for armies for commission painting. I do not enjoy doing it, and I hardly have the time do do my own, let alone someone else's. So there you have it!
