Fill 'er up!

[Deleted member 7181]

I thought I'd have a go at a simple scene with straightforward kits as I don't need any more complications in my life right now!

Obviously don't expect much as I don't have the flair and creativity of the likes of Ron, John, Greg etc, but as long as I'm enjoying myself that's all that matters. Because of that, updates might be sporadic, as I find creating a good blog even more stressful than building sometimes

These are the two main players, but I have something else on the way too. As the subjects and title suggest, it'll be a simple aircraft refuelling scene. I'd love to make it more exciting, but I just don't have it in me.





I built the truck up first, and it's nearly finished. No progress shots I'm afraid, but after a very easy build I've put on various shades of green for some variety (I'm still not bold enough with that!), given it a panel line wash and some drybrushing. I've just started on some oil work and weathering, which will continue.







The eagle eyed might notice that it's missing a towing hook at the front and the rear towing pintle. These have pinged off into oblivion and I really can't be bothered to look for them.

I've also made a start on the cockpit for the P-47. Again, many different greens were used for variety but as always for me they don't come out well on camera. Some washes have helped pop the lovely details out, but I'll be doing a bit more weathering & chipping on it. I've left the (decal) seatbelts off as I'll be adding the pilot figure.

 

[Tim Marlow]

Great stuff Andy. Really nice office on the P47.....

 

[outrunner]

Nice work Andy, good to see that Gecko has not put you off.

Andy.

 

[Deleted member 7181]

Thanks Tim & Andy.

For now I'm planning to stick with kits that are easy to nail together so I can concentrate on the bit I enjoy most - learning new painting techniques - which is the main reason I started this hobby in the first place

 

[spanner570]

Looking good Andy, but what's with all the negative waves?
There will always be people who are better and not as good as others at certain things. That's life, but if you don't try, you will never know your limitations.

Give it a whirl and if it goes tits up, bin it - I do regularly.

Here endeth the lesson.
Please give generously and send your donation to Thick Old joiners 453 & 570 @ Race Towers.co.uk.
Thanks for your support in these troubled times.

 

[Jim R]

Hi Andy
Great plan. I like 1/48 scale. It will be quite a big dio. Figures included - that's good.
Jim

 

[rtfoe]

Hi Andy, you'd have loved being in the Verlinden era when kits were built and painted this way not like today's sometimes over the top weathering whereby you can't tell if its deliberate or just lucky.
Everyone has their favorite part of the build and we can see that painting is where you excel. I guess pacing yourself would be my advice. Having been an ex Adman I have done away with deadlines for my hobby to better enjoy it.

Cheers,
Richard

 

[Mini Me]

I'm with 570 on this Andy.........and by the way absolutely lovely work on that tank truck......wish I could achieve that sort of effect in 1/87 scale. Rick H.

 

[Deleted member 7181]

Looking good Andy, but what's with all the negative waves?

Sorry Ron, I've been on a downer since before Christmas and my head is somewhere that the sun doesn't shine at the minute.


Thanks for the great comments and support everyone. I'm definitely liking the look that can be achieved with some dry brushing. After seeing Peter Days recent kit builds I knew that was the kind of thing I wanted to try out. I know I've a long way to go yet, but if I stick to quick easy builds it'll give me plenty of time to practice

 

[scottie3158]

Andy,
That is a mighty fine looking tanker, beautifully painted and finished. The office also looks good. Looking forward to the next update.

 

[Deleted member 7181]

Thanks Paul.

I've still got a fair bit more work to do on the tanker, but after combining tips from Mr Jones and a figure painter I follow (Marco Frisoni. Awesome painter and owner of the coolest accent in the world lol) I've had a bit of a light bulb moment with oils. Rather than applying blobs of pure oil paint and having a nightmare trying to blend them out, thinning/breaking them down on the palette first has been a revelation.

Probably old news to many of you guys but it had never even crossed my mind

 

[Steve Jones]

Great to hear you are pushing the boundaries of your paintwork mate. It can be a tough road at times but the results are worth waiting for. This is a great project to get you teeth into. Looking forward to seeing where it takes you. Keep it comin my friend

 

[rtfoe]

Good to have another oily painter here. Although acrylics are the rage now, both these mediums churn out good results if applied properly. I'm glad you're having fun after opening Pandora's box on oils. You may not be alone on this but there are many still experimenting on the use of the age old oils.

Cheers,
Richard

 

[Deleted member 7181]

Thanks Steve & Richard.

Don't hold your breath for seeing the completed article though, it might end up sat on the shelf like my last two attempts awaiting inspiration for finishing touches lol.

Great practice for paint effects though

 

[JR]

Andy don't sell your self short, that painting of the fuel truck is top notch. Look at the WV camper van you did before, your a great modeler with paint skills many of us would love to have.

I hide all my crap painting with buildings to confuse the person looking in.

My dear colleague 570 is spot on in his reply.

 

[Deleted member 7181]

Thanks John, such lovely compliments. I do seem to be making a right royal hash of explaining my predicament though.

I'm really happy with my painting at the moment. Of course there's room for improvement, isn't there always, but I can work on that.

However, as I don't need to tell you, it takes more than a couple of reasonably well painted kits thrown onto a slab of plywood to make an interesting diorama. And that's where I struggle.

Being able to imagine or evolve a scene, knowing what to add, or what not to add to create something cohesive and engaging.

A bush here, a rusty pipe there, a guy tying his shoelace in the background. All of these things I could recreate to a point, but is that what the scene needs?

I can do a reasonable job of recreating someone else's idea, as I'd like to think I did with the Supacat / casualty scene, which was pretty much copied from the box art. Give me that vehicle, those figures and accessories, with nothing to follow, and I'd be floundering around.


I'm hoping that goes some way to explaining the situation, even though it makes absolutely no sense to me when reading it back lol. I may be very practical in a monkey see monkey do way, but I struggle with creativity.

I think a good move for the future would be to find an image or two I like and recreate them. Not as fulfilling as creating something from scratch, but probably more achievable for me

And at least you won't have to put up with me moaning about what to do next

 

[Tim Marlow]

Hi Andy. What you describe there is me to a T. I can copy or build almost anything, but I cannot come up with original ideas. It is one of the reasons I don’t do dioramas......Doesn’t make me a bad modeller though, and it certainly won’t make you one.. Your painting and finishing are top rate, for example, and you’ve already shown that your scratch skills are excellent as well.
I think it is the difference between an artisan and an artist. Both approaches are valid, and both generate different, but no less interesting, results.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with recreating a 2d image in 3d. You could even take a scene and recreate it with items from a different nationality or era....it is a great way to widen the scope of your modelling as well as improving your observational skills.
It is worth finding out a bit about colour use and object composition and applying them to your models. I’ve done that and found it does lift my work, especially my finished model photography. I do have to actively think about applying the concepts though. Artists just do it naturally......
In closing this ramble, just remember not to lock yourself into a mindset of “inferiority”. You may not be able to make dioramas as you want, but I bet other modellers look at your work and wish they could build and finish like you.

 

[Neil Merryweather]

You may not be able to make dioramas as you want, but I bet other modellers look at your work and wish they could build and finish like you.

Abso*******lutely!

 

[rtfoe]

Andy, there's no harm in copying when starting out 'cos that's a form of learning. As soon as you realize why each piece was composed that way you will get the hang of it. Also good compositions are most likely everyday experiences executed as detailed as possible and most of the time the poses have to be scratched or modified. You're lucky if you find a ready made pose. The hardest part is facial expressions to complete the emotion, mood and action of the scene. Don't let everyone assume what you're thinking, just show it as plain as possible.
I have always wanted to do a GI kneeling and giving a kid a piece of gum. It's obviously done before but I'd still want to do it and perhaps create a different expression and put it in a different scene.

Besides the ground crew doing the mundane of refueling and perhaps painting a mascot and the pilot admiring the work done or the crew playing a game of baseball or cards under the wing or lined up and getting a shellacking from their sergeant just for being themselves.

Cheers,
Richard

 

[scottie3158]

Andy,
I have exactly the same problem I sit and think for ages on how I would like to display my builds. I normally end up using someone else's idea. I look at peoples builds and think why can't I come up with that.