Samurai Part 15

I guess if you read the last few posts it's no surprise that the samurai has been completed, but I thought I should still share all of my final photos of him.  The main thing missing from the previous WIP posts was the base.  This guy presented a bit of a challenge there as the figure is kneeling with one leg up in the air.  The kit comes with a base that has a big boulder (which the figure is resting his leg on).  I wasn't a huge fan of the boulder sculpt, so I decided to ditch it and come up with something on my own.  I went through a number of ideas.  Most of which ended up being scrapped either due to time (had to finish for the show deadline) or my inability to sculpt anything too complicated.  In the end I kept it simple.  The figure is kneeling on a small hill and the scene is just made up of dirt, grass, and rocks.

The actual base was made using cork to build up the basic volumes.  This was then covered by putty, rocks, sand, and baking soda to create the textures.  I did the initial base painting using an airbrush, then went in with a traditional brush to apply some washes, dry brushing, and some more detailed highlighting and shading.  After that grass was added using woodland scenics field grass.  I took two colors of grass (a dark green and to a lesser extent a light green) and mixed them.  This broke up the color and made it look more realistic (instead of every blade being the exact same shade).  Once these were glued on, I used dry pigments to stain them and create more color variation (plus it ties them into the colors of the dirt).  Those same pigments were used on the dirt sections as well for a bit more color variation.

I had a few more grandiose ideas for the base, but just did not have time to realize them.  I would have loved to have had a small stream running next to the hill (with his foot in the water) or have added a flowing banner behind him.  But, honestly, the figure is complicated enough that a simple base can be a good option.  You can take a look and decide whether you think it's better this way.  Anyhow, the samurai and also the Northumbrian images are up in my gallery, so you can take a look at that final pictures of that one too!

Samurai Part 14 and a few other announcements

With about a week left until Crystal Brush, I've just about finished the samurai... at least the figure itself.  I've still got to paint the shoes and touch up the arrow heads in the quiver, but the figure is essentially finished.  The base is another matter.  It's been built, but the painting is just beginning.  I'm a bit stressed out by how little time there is to finish it, but I'll find some way to get it done to a level I'm happy with.  I'm going to save the truly finished photos for after the Crystal Brush, so these will be the last ones I post for another week and a half.

I've also put the finishing touches on the Northumbrian.  Like the samurai, I'm saving the final pictures for after the show... but I thought I'd still post something.  Here's a look at the figure from the back.  You can see the final weathering on the shield (including the scratches added to the metallic parts) and the snow effects on the base.

In other news, I wanted to remind everyone that there is an online voting component for the Crystal Brush.  Half the score is decided by the onsite judges and half by online votes over at CoolMiniOrNot.  You have to have an account there to vote, but it's free to create one.  Voting will take place Saturday, April 2nd (starting around 3 pm central time) and Sunday, April 3rd (ending at noon central time).  There should be a lot of amazing figures up in the gallery.  Artists like Ben Komets, Kirill Kanaev, Karol Rudyk, Aaron Lovejoy, Jessica Rich, and many others will be submitting entries.  Voting is the normal 1-10 scale, so take a look and rate the pieces what you think they deserve.

Finally, for anyone in or near the Southern California area, our local modeling club is putting on a show next month.  Come check it out!  There are categories for historical as well as sci-fi and fantasy figures.  Judging is on the open or merit system, so you're competing against a standard rather than against each other.  So even if you're not a pro, your work can still be recognized!

Samurai Part 13

I've been getting back to work on the samurai, focusing on some of the small details.  This project has given me a chance to work on painting black armor.  Black is a color I've had trouble with, but I think I've finally figured out an approach that seems to work for me.  Normally I start with the shadows and work up to the highlights.  That hasn't worked well with black.  The wet paint tends to look darker than it is, so as I work lighter the blends look okay when wet, but then the transitions don't work when they dry.  So, this time around I've started to work light to dark.  I begin with a dark base coat to fill in all those cracks.  Then I sketch in the highlights and gradually blend them down to the dark tone.  It's not perfect, I still need to spend some more time getting used to the technique and working on where I place those initial highlights... but in general I'm quite happy with the results.  Here's a close up of the armor on his lower leg so you can see what I've been doing.

I've been adding the last few pieces to the kit.  The main addition was the left hand with the bow.  I also added the bow string.  This wasn't too difficult, but it helped to do it in several stages.  First I cut a string longer than it should be and glued the center to the inside of the fingers on his right hand.  Once that dried, I pulled each end to the corresponding end of the bow and glued it there (just the first contact point).  Again, I waited until it was dry.  Then I wrapped it around the end of the box and tied it off (adding a little more glue to fix it into place).  I've painted the glove and the end of his sleeve (continuing the pattern that I had created before).  I've also attached the arrows in his quiver, though they are just base coated and still need more work.  The arrow in the bow is just resting in place.  I plan to leave it off while I paint the other parts just to avoid damaging this fragile part.

Samurai Part 12

This will be last update for a couple weeks.  I've finished off the final two armor panels around the back of his waist and started putting on the rest of his equipment.  The quiver is a very different design than the typical European quivers.  It's most of a frame structure with a box that the arrows are stuck in.  I've attached and painted it, but still need to add the arrows.  I also put on the cords that connect the two shoulder panels to his back.  This was a bit tricky bending them all into place.  Probably would have been easier to attach at the same time as the shoulder panels... but that would have required a completely different ordering to my painting which wasn't going to happen.  In the end, I managed to get them on without breaking any (phew!).

Finally I've attached the swords and have almost finished painting them.  There are a few purple details (cords and sash) that need to be completed, but it's almost there.  Only a few pieces left... I may actually finish this piece! =)

Samurai Part 11

I feel like the end is in sight for this figure.  There's still a lot to do, I've got another 11 pieces to add and a base to build.  What can I say, it's a complex figure!  But now that I've started to add the armor around his waist, I feel like I can finally see how the whole figure is going to look.  I've attached the front panel and one on the side (the other two will wait until I've painted the rest of his bent leg).  The colors for the panels around his waist are the same as the ones on his shoulders.

I still have to add the panels around the back.  But it will be a lot easier to paint the rest of his bent leg without those in the way.  I decided to go with white for the cloth around his calf (although right now it's just base coated grey).

Samurai Part 10

I think this is my first project to make it to it's 10th post without being completed.  But I guess that's not too surprising considering how complicated the figure is.  It took some time, but I completed the lace work on the helmet, just like on the shoulder plates.  I then took care of highlighting the black and the rest of the metallic portions for the helmet and shoulder plates.  I attached the remaining pieces for the helmet, a knot on the back and the crest on the front, and painted those too.  That pretty much wrapped up the upper body (with the exception of his left hand), so I moved on to his lower body.

The pants will be done just like his right sleeve, so I began with the main orange color.  This is a bit tricky since there will eventually be more armor plates covering his legs and I need to account for those in the shadows and highlights.  To help me with this, I tacked them on and then sketched in my highlights and shadows.  I used that as a map and then went in to do all of the blending to smooth out the color transitions.  You can see here how it looks before the armor plates are in place and then how it looks with them on (at least temporarily).

Before I add the plates, I still need to do the design work on the pants.  You'll notice some odd white dots on his legs.  Those are my guide dots and mark the center for the circles.  Just like on the sleeve, I measured the spacing between them to keep the look consistent.  Next I'll lay down the main circles (measuring to keep their size the same), and then paint in the leaf/flower image.

I still have one color decision to make.  He's got some more cloth wrapped around his calves, which will show from behind.  I'm still thinking about what color I want to use for these.  At first I was going to go with green... but then I thought, maybe it's better to leave just the single sleeve as the only green (which helps it stand out and draw attention up towards the face).  So the next logical choice would be purple.  That should work, but perhaps, with all the armor, it would be too much purple.  White is another option.  For now I'm just going to hold off.  I figure I can add the front and side armor panels and see how the colors look on the lower body.  As long as I don't put on the back one, I shouldn't have any problem getting to his left leg to paint it.

Samurai Part 9

Although my last two posts have been on other topics, I've been continuing to work on the samurai.  After finishing up his back, I painted the undersides of his shoulder armor plates and attached them.  Painting the other sides of those plates took some time, as it was a lot more of the lacing details.  The color pattern I'd chosen was a gradient pattern, using purple as my main color.  The typical gradient pattern for these armor plates is a white row at the top, a yellow row just below that, and then a light to dark gradient of whatever color you've chosen (purple, red, green, etc).  For the yellow row I did not use a true yellow, instead I used the same orange as his clothing but leaned more towards the highlight side of the mix.

With the shoulder plates almost finished, I decided to add the rest of the helmet.  Like the last pieces, I first had to paint the underside of this one before attaching it to the figure.  Once it was in place, I started working on the upturned flaps on the front.  These are the final sections of his chest design (phew).  The other side will be done just like the laces on the shoulder plates.  As you can see from the rear view, I've just started to base coat this section.  Once all of that is done, I still need to add the crest/horns to the front of the helmet.  I haven't quite decided if I'll do that at this stage or save it until later.  It's a fragile piece sticking up from the model, so there's also the chance I'll not into it while painting and break it off.

Samurai Part 8

Remember the samurai figure?  It's been a little while, but I didn't forget about this project.  I got a little hung up on what I wanted to do with the arm designs, so I took a break.  Unfortunately with the Crystal Brush coming up at the end of March, there's no more time to stall on this project.  I kept the rest of the design on the left arm pretty simple.  I needed something for the right arm and whatever goes there will be repeated on the pants.  I looked through a lot of reference images for ideas.  In the end, I decided to go with the mon (clan crest) for Minamoto.  It's a set of bamboo leaves and gentian flowers.  As with the rest of the design work, I measured the distances between the designs and their diameter to keep things consistent.

From there I did some work on the back.

Once the back is finished, I'll add the shoulder armor plates.  You won't normally see the bottom of these, but you can from certain angles.  So I've got to paint the details on the undersides as well.  It's mostly armor plates and laces connecting them.  But there are also some sections which will get a repeat of the chest pattern.  I've started on the one for his right shoulder.

Samurai Part 7

Just a quick update.  I went in and finished off the orange.  I'm not sure if I shared the mix before, but the orange is Burgundy Wine, Bronzed Shadow, Burnt Orange, and Linen White.  You can see the difference those further highlights make.  Here's a comparison between just the initial highlights and the figure with the final ones...

Aside from the orange I also painted his glove and the purple cord around his wrist.

In other news, Adepticon registration opened up tonight.  The classes filled up pretty quick, all the spots are gone for one of my faces classes and, last I checked, the second section only had two spots left.  I signed up to take a few classes too.  I'm taking Ben's loaded brush course, Kirill's blending with oils, and Angel's airbrushing masterclass.  There are a ton of great classes, I wish I could take them all!

Samurai Part 6

After two weeks on the road, I'm finally back home and got the chance to do some work on my samurai project.  I stepped back from the sleeve design and decided to work on a different portion of the figure.  This is a figure that has a lot of overlapping parts, so he's being done in a number of stages.  Since I've completed the chest design and enough of the sleeve pattern, I decided I could add the flaps on his chest and his other arm.  I painted the armor flaps first and then moved on to the sleeve.  The orange is still a work in progress.  I've done the shadows but I'm just getting started on the highlights.

To give you an idea of where this is headed, here's a look at a cover from one of the Osprey books on the samurai.  I'm using the image on the far right as one of my major inspirations.  I'm shifting the cloth colors to orange and green but I'm keeping the purple for the armor.