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Over the weekend I managed to re-do the Farseer. By re-do I mean cut the original in half to use for a Farseer on jetbike conversion and buy a new one to paint!

I'm pleased with the result and the time taken to do it (6hrs all in). Much better than my first effort IMO.

I'm now onto building another Dire Avenger squad but when i paint this one I'm going to use my airbrush to do all the highlights/shadows blending (i've got a primed Guardian squad that'll be getting done at the same time also).

More on that later.....


EDIT: Here's the back view also:

I like it alot! But, IDK, I feel like there's something missing from it. Maybe, the black needs a highlight?

Yeah, I thought about that but I'm not keen on the old grey line technique. I might give it a coat of satin varnish but it looks fine on the tabletop.


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I think I'll also have to do a bit more work on the shrunken pistol. maybe a wee gem and some highlights.

As planned I've started work on another Dire Avenger squad and Guardian squad. I also managed to start painting an Autarch. It made sense to do multiple models at the same time as I was trying something new with the airbrush.

I was watching a video tutorial on speed painting recently and it involved using an airbrush on minis. Most of the things covered I was doing already but there were a couple of things mentioned that i wanted to try. First was doing zenithal highlights but a lot more contrast than I have done before. Then to tone everything down and help blend the shades a wash was applied.

Here's how I did it. Bear in mind it was a bit of a gamble as if it went wrong or i wasn't happy then 2 squads and an Autarch were potentially going to have to be re-done!!

Step 1: I undercoated all the models white using GW white spray. Just a light dusting to help key the following coats and no more (you can see it on the plastic as a drizzle and some plastic shows through slightly).

Step 2: I then applied, using the airbrush, a very dark blue into the shadows. I turned the mini upside down and sprayed up the way making sure i also got the chest etc. It doesn't matter if you do the whole mini but i decided to leave some white through to help the highlights later.

Step 3: I then held each mini and sprayed from above with a lighter blue similar to what i was using as a basecoat on this armies mini previously. I made sure the tops of the calfs, knees and tops of the feet got a light dusting as well.

Step 4: By this point the mins were the same shade of blue as the rest of my army but I continued on spraying using a much brighter blue this time, paying attention to the tops of the arms, shoulders, helmets and leaving the lower body alone.

Step 5: Ok, so now the mins are way too highlighted on top and the shadows are mega deep. I then mixed blue ink (darker than my base colour) with a bit of the brightest highlight to provide a more opaque coating. I also added some Klear floor polish to help the ink flow in a more controlled manner. This mix was then applied twice leaving ample time to dry (with help from a hair dryer) in between coats.

Step 6: I then gave all the minis a coat of 'Ardcoat spray varnish to seal the inks in.


And thats all i got done today but the whole process took about 1.5 hours and I managed to get 21 minis painted with a decent blended blue. The Autarch in the flesh looks stunning under normal daylight and thanks to the ink blending the minis still match my previously painted minis


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Tomorrow I'll be touching up the shadows on the Dire Avengers a bit then getting them finished. I've already pre-painting them with white using the airbrush again for a solid smooth finish. So now i'm off to stick the heads onto the bodies and go and have a beer!

More up soon....

Very nice!

I wish I had the money/space/ambition for an airbrush!

Thanks!

There is a way without the airbrush to do the same technique though.

Black undercoat then dust from above the mini with White spray. Then it's ink plus some paint and glaze on a few coats. After that you're left with a base colour, shadows and the perfect guide to where your highlights and further shadows should go.

Providing of course you like zenithal highlighting!

Fascinating Thread, and one that I'm watching with interest! The last 4 Pages are a perfect example of why each of us should go out, now, and invest in an Airbrush. Great work, can't wait to see more!

Vet Sgt Ezekiel wrote:Thanks!

There is a way without the airbrush to do the same technique though.

Black undercoat then dust from above the mini with White spray. Then it's ink plus some paint and glaze on a few coats. After that you're left with a base colour, shadows and the perfect guide to where your highlights and further shadows should go.

Providing of course you like zenithal highlighting!

Good point, and thanks for reminding me!

I do like that look, and it is a technique I can try out...

But, back to your stuff, which is amazing, and more pics please!

Thanks guys for the kind words.

It didn't go quite as well as i thought though!

Upon checking over my handiwork it seems the dark 1st spray was too thin and just ran into the recesses and left a patchy coat. I reckon its just that i've not shaken the paint up enough to get a good mix

Live and learn!

I'll just go back to that 'phase' and repeat the shading process only. I'll need to be careful not to spray any over my lighter coats though.

Your airbrushing experiments are most interesting...

Unlucky about the paint being too thin! At least you probably won't make the same mistake again, though.

I like following this blog as you seem to just keep it progressing quietly forwards. Keep up the good work!

Fantastic stuff, are you going to be doing anymore/ re-doing the fire dragons with the zenithal highlights? Not that they need them of course.

Tanks look ace as well, I really should get my airbrush out soon, I've had it for almost three months but I'm still not playing with it, terrible isn't it

The Fire Dragons were done with the zenithal shading/highlighting but I had some difficulty getting a decent photo. In the flesh they have a lot more contrast.

Still working on the Dire Avenger squad at the mo which seems to be taking forever for some reason.

Thanks guys, more soon.

Very, very nice.

Well I've been working away on my army as usual since my last post and have managed the following in between home improvements and family duties:

Built and primed 1x Wave Serpent with Bright Lances.

Built and primed 1x Fire Prism

Built (adding detail with FW bits and some minor tweaking) 1x Ultramarines Rhino APC


I've also done my 2nd Dire Avengers squad to about 90% completion. I paused for now as i'm going to re-visit the first squad I did and add some more details to all 20. Oh, and i'm building up another 5 of them too. With the freshly added 5 DA I'm going to tweak my zenithal airbrushing technique prior to doing a similar thing in grey tones for a squad of Howling Banshees.


So..

This weekend if I can't get time enough to airbrush the vehicles i'll paint the DA's, prep the HB's, add more detail to the Farseer and keep working on some custom transfers on the Mac.

I like your details on the farseer's robe edge. If you dont mind my asking what do you use to get lines that crisp? Because i'm going to need to do that eventually.

The black eldar symbols were copied out of a wee side net in the codex using a technical drawing pen. The borders themselves were done by applying thin layers of colour as they're easier to correct.

thanks for that ill have to check out my codex for sybol ideas and such.

Airbrushed goodness..

Your Eldar look amazing!

Wish my Maugen Ra would end up looking as good as yours but hes not hes gonna look like crap.

Thanks guys

I'm pleased how things have gone barring some minor mishaps but thats part of the learning experience.

The thing i'm exited about right now is that the army can be improved on and I will be going back to previously painted units and perfecting them to the best quality i can do. Once I've built enough options for 2000pts plus lists I'll start going back over stuff. The redux work will probably begin around Xmas time and I'm looking forward to it as there'll be no pressure to get units finished for army list reasons.

Looking good man!

Very nice! Can't wait to see the avatar done up.

A quick WIP on what I'm on right now:

Thats 1x WSerpent and 1x Fire prism at the final stages. I should get them finished by the end of the week. I'm pleased with them so far and i reckon the blending is better on these two than on the previous Grav-Tanks.

Also pictured is a WIP Ultra Marines Rhino that i've added some extra detail to liven it up a bit. I'm planning on airbrushing some different tones onto some spare platicard this week to get the blue i'm looking for. Its not going to be as vibrant as the Alaitoc thats for sure.



Next weekend though its Howling Banshees which i'm adding to my army list for anti-MEQ close combat. I found the Striking Scorpions to be average against Vanilla Marines considering the amount of hits they can deliver on the charge. So for all you fans of grey shading you'll like the next WIP !

That is perhaps the single greatest description for a Ultramarine rhino I have ever heard.

Is the Rhino yours or is it for a commission?

lol bus... You really like your blues eh?

Nice work Vet Sgt Ezekiel.

I'm looking forward to seeing your Eldar in the flesh one day.

I also run Alaitoc Eldar and am a member of the 40k for Glaswegians group on FB.

Lennysmash wrote:That is perhaps the single greatest description for a Ultramarine rhino I have ever heard.

Is the Rhino yours or is it for a commission?

Commission? No, I'm a way off making money painting skills wise. My 2nd army is going to be a UM 3rd company theme. Lots of realism and converting. All the units will look like they are fighting in an ongoing urban campaign.


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Trilobite wrote:lol bus... You really like your blues eh?

Indeed I've painted loads of reds, metals,black and green in the past though. I think with the UM scheme I'll learn a lot with tone variation. You'll see what i mean when it's a wip.



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Brother Bartius wrote:Nice work Vet Sgt Ezekiel.

I'm looking forward to seeing your Eldar in the flesh one day.

I also run Alaitoc Eldar and am a member of the 40k for Glaswegians group on FB.

Cool. Once my daughters in her own room I'll be able to paint and game in a given week rather than sacrificing one for the other due to time. We should maybe arrange a doubles match against some non Eldar scum.

Vet Sgt Ezekiel wrote:We should maybe arrange a doubles match against some non Eldar scum.

Don't forget you're half Mon-keigh yourself now you've picked up the marine bug.

Lennysmash wrote:

Vet Sgt Ezekiel wrote:We should maybe arrange a doubles match against some non Eldar scum.

Don't forget you're half Mon-keigh yourself now you've picked up the marine bug.

I prefer to think of it as a 'know thine enemy' style experiment

Haha, fair enough. Just be careful, unlike a lot of new people to the hobby though I began on the noble path of the Eldar Warrior, then one day I began to paint my SM from my starter kit, and now my Eldar are relegated to cupboards, carrier bags and carry cases. Be warned the SM army is a heady drug my friend,