May painting Challenge: Light

[Davros sock drawer]

Looks great @Albert Fish - I can almost feel the furnace that's just off camera.

[Oracle]

I've monumentally failed this month.

[Oracle]

Ok looks like we have two entries @Davros sock drawer and @Albert Fish

 

Any others?

 

[Oracle]

Votes are now open!

 

[The Bag]

Only having two makes it seem extra harsh when only one wins .  They’re both very good this month.

[moosegrinder]

I'm out for the foreseeable, real life shit is just getting in the way and I don't have the wherewithal to get down to painting.

 

Given that most people in this folder are way beyond competent skill level it's still worth bearing in mind that some people will see things like this challenge as out of their skill range. It's definitely out of mine. Thought I could be in the minority but it seemed relevant to bring up.

[Davros sock drawer]

51 minutes ago, moosegrinder said:

I'm out for the foreseeable, real life shit is just getting in the way and I don't have the wherewithal to get down to painting.

 

Given that most people in this folder are way beyond competent skill level it's still worth bearing in mind that some people will see things like this challenge as out of their skill range. It's definitely out of mine. Thought I could be in the minority but it seemed relevant to bring up.

 

Sorry to hear about your life shit. 

 

Regarding the skill level thing, I don't agree. I've voted for stuff in the past that wasn't the "best" executed, because I liked the colour choice, or the theme, or whatever. 

 

But equally, it's a (very, very friendly and encouraging) competition. So naturally people are going to try their best - the whole point after all, is betterment. I've pushed myself loads as a result of these challenges, and I've never won. It doesn't matter. It's all about improvement and learning.

 

 

[moosegrinder]

Oh aye I agree with that, and I don't think it's thingy..... detrimental? overall but I just worry it's a barrier for some. Probably just me though 

[Sardan]

They are both very very good. Difficult choice. 

[And]

@moosegrinder

not just you, i’m clearly outclassed and I knew that from the start, which I’m ok with in general and was happy making up the numbers to start with, as there were more painters around my level playing, but nobody else seems to be arsed to make the effort after the first couple so it’s not really conducive to making me want to bother either. 
 

[Oracle]

Technique challenges or more complex ones (e.g. dioramas) will invariably have a smaller amount of entries. A balance needs to be struck between a challenge that is fun for everyone and also interesting to the experts. 

 

We're also exiting lockdown (hopefully) and summer is approaching so we may see reduced participation as a result.

 

One thing that will go miles in helping, is consistency of photographs - I'd love a guide on how to get the best pictures of minis.

 

[And]

Yeah, despite ‘knowing’ how to do it in theory. I’m also shit at taking photos of minis in practice - as in the duels one, i couldn't find a way to get a good angle as the base was too big to really go in the light box, and didn’t even consider photoshopping a background in. 
 

this isn’t a bad starting point: 

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/03/06/the-model-photo-how-to-photograph-models-for-display/

[Davros sock drawer]

The thing about photography is that I know what works for me, in my house, using an iPhone, on a black background. That's it. So any advice I could give would be very, very specific. 

 

Didn't stop me doing a couple of little videos on my Instagram about it, if anyone wants to take a look.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CPSfMHlH9A_/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CPP6-2Yne9n/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

 

Something I've only recently realised though, and this is pertinent to the issues you had regarding getting all of your diorama in shot @And, is that you don't necessarily need to get the whole thing in frame. Of course, if you're going for a GW "studio" shot then you'll want to do just that, but increasingly I'm looking for dramatic shots, and for that it's sometimes better to leave out certain elements, or shoot from below (the opposite of what that GW guide recommends).

 

For example, most of the foreground mini is missing from this shot, but it's far more fun to mess around with them like this, for me anyway.

 

 

[Nicky]

Just remove the theme, let people paint a model they want to paint in the style they want to paint it?

[Davros sock drawer]

3 hours ago, Nicky said:

Just remove the theme, let people paint a model they want to paint in the style they want to paint it?

Isn’t that just what people do on daily basis? 
 

Painting to a theme chosen by someone else is the whole point for me. I’d never have tried a violet colour scheme, or whatever, if not for the theme of the contest. 
 

If it’s “paint a model, most popular wins” then I don’t see the point, and people might be even more put off, if indeed they are.

 

I dunno, I guess I’m mildly surprised such a gentle, benign idea is even remotely off-putting. If folk don’t want to contribute just...don’t? 

[moosegrinder]

Yeah I like having a theme as it's a goal. I'm not saying having a theme is a bad idea.

[Oracle]

Agreed, I think the theme is great (otherwise we have the scale miniatures thread for model of the month). I think for next month we should consider trying a color theme to reset, or vehicles (selfishly as I have a PBC and a Rhino to paint).

[Oracle]

@Albert Fish congrats on the fantastic entry, next months topic is all yours. 

[Albert Fish]

Eeek! Thank's everyone. Due to my terrible topic choice last month, can someone else choose this month's topic

[Oracle]

16 hours ago, Albert Fish said:

Eeek! Thank's everyone. Due to my terrible topic choice last month, can someone else choose this month's topic

 

Ok, lets mix things up and go with vehicles (any size), I'll set up the thread now.

 

[Oracle]

 

[And]

I may be able to utilise something from the pile of shame for this

[Davros sock drawer]

Me too - if I bend the definition of “vehicle” a bit...

[Oracle]

1 hour ago, Davros sock drawer said:

Me too - if I bend the definition of “vehicle” a bit...

 

Feel free, I want to keep this broad as possible this month.