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Made in nl
Regular Dakkanaut





I think I’m getting better at painting miniatures, doing everything right - thinned down layers etc. And I’m pretty pleased with the improvement in results. But why is it that whenever I photograph my minis they look 100 times worse than they do in real life? (See a couple of recent examples). I zoom in and the transitions all look really clumsy but even worse the surfaces look rough and lumpy. If I zoom in on photos of well painted miniatures that I admire online they all still look smooth. What am I doing wrong? Is it my painting? My photography? Or both?
[Thumb - F2535B90-43A7-470D-9BE8-3006D9509BA9.jpeg]

[Thumb - 34AB3E5D-BF8D-4BFC-85EC-0BFAB868F56C.jpeg]

   
Made in gb
Dakka Veteran






It's the nature of photography compared to the eye, I'm afraid. A photograph will necessarily be of a higher resolution than looking at the model with the eye, so it will pick up things the eye can't see. Do you use a magnifier/magnifying glasses at all? They will help to a degree (mine certainly did), but you're petty much always going to think it looks better just eyeballing it than taking a photo.

It's probably worth pointing out that layering isn't the be all and end all of painting techniques (though you're also probably well aware of that). Certain other techniques will achieve better transitions (glazing, blending, etc.), or will help improve the transitions of your layering. It doesn't matter how much you paint, there's always more to learn and ways to improve. If you feel like you've hit a plateau (we all do at times), try new things, watch youtube videos on special techniques you've not seen before, and so on.

Nice Batman, btw!
   
Made in fi
Buttons Should Be Brass, Not Gold!






The way I see it, photographs are the true litmus test of how your miniatures are really like. The sad fact is, most miniatures I see have thick crusts of paint, mold lines and ugly witness marks, glue spillage, flaky looking metallics etc. It's quite an accomplishment when you get a model done where things look flawless even in photographs. Not sure I'll ever reach that state myself but it's what I'm striving for, perhaps one day I will get there..? These days, I'm even noticing subpar work in some GW photos (boxart usually being the exception).

One aspect where I'm specifically concentrating at the moment is getting the foundations of modelling to a tight enough standard. More attention paid to cleaning and sanding my parts and surfaces (pieces can have casting artefacts regarless of whether its HIPS, resin or metal), always trying to get every assembly phase executed with no glue spillage, and using an airbrush for the early painting stages so as to get basecoating done as thinly as possible. Lots of small things which all add up in the end. I always take photos of the assemblies before priming, and recheck all the details from the photos, making sure I didn't miss anything before laying on the primer.

Thankfully, all that stuff doesn't look nearly as jarring on the tabletop

This message was edited 6 times. Last update was at 2023/06/13 09:30:00


 
   
Made in us
Deathwing Terminator with Assault Cannon






It's a photography issue.

Judging from your photos, I'd say you're less than 12" from your mini's. At that distance, your digital camera is going to pick up & exaggerate all the minute details like dust specks.

A proper set up would be to set up ~3' to 5' away from the model and zoom in. I recommend setting up a tripod or something to keep the camera steady as stabilization is issue when you're taking a photo of a small object with +10x zoom. Also, you need ample light, preferably diffused natural sunlight.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2023/06/13 16:57:21


 
   
Made in us
Thane of Dol Guldur





Bodt

Use a backdrop. I like a black backdrop.

Are you using a phone or a camera? Are the photos for Instagram or somewhere else?

Heresy World Eaters/Emperors Children

Instagram: nagrakali_love_songs 
   
 
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