Friday 15 June 2018

Marble Tutorial

Hi folks!

After receiving numerous requests to share with you my marble recipe I finally decided to write a short tutorial with some picture of how the process is done... It is actually really easy and straightforward so it won't be a long post but hopefully you will find it useful. If you have any comment or question just write a comment and I will do my best to respond.
Ok, let's start!


Stage 1: Basecoat and first shading
After cleaning and assembling the model I gave it a basecoat of Corax White spray, which I subsequently retouched by brush with Ceramite White. Once this base was completely dry I applied the first shade. For this I chose a mix of 50/50 Reikland Fleshshade and Lahmian Medium and generously applied it to the whole model. As you probably know the medium prevents the shade to form stains while it dries creating a more even and smoother finish.


Stage 2: Second shading
Once the Reikland Fleshshade has dried out completely (some 30 mins) I applied a second shade with Drakenhof Nightshade, in the same way as the first wash, diluted with Lahmian medium, this time though the ratio was 25% shade 75% medium (Drakenhof is a very dark and strong shade and you just want it to be very subtle, not make your marble too blue). Wait for this coat to dry and then apply a little bit of extra Drakenhof shade (again 25/75 with LM) to some random areas of the model. This is done to mimic the fact that marble has pretty random and dishomogeneus stains so don't worry too much about some of it drying and leaving a slight stain over some areas, you will be able to make it look like marble natural imperfections later on.


Stage 3: highlights and touching ups 
Nothing special here, just go back with a thin brush over the edges of the armour with a standard edge highlight with pure white (I used Ceramite White).


Stage 4: Pencil marks
Ok, here goes the fun part. With a tiny mechanical pencil (I used a BIC with an HB point) draw very carefully some random lines along the armour. Do not apply too much pressure and try not to exaggerate with the amount of lines you draw. These represents marble veins and will go a really long way simulating the right effect. Take your time with this stage, I find it quite enjoyable as it is one of those rare special effects techniques that really change dramatically the look of the miniature in a few stokes.



Stage 5: final touching ups
It's done! To be honest you can easily skip this passage and stick to stage 4 but I prefer to push it the extra mile and retouch the veins I just drew with fine lines of Reikland Fleshshade and drakenhof Nightshade. Just use a fine brush and take some colour straight form the pot and apply it trying to follow roughly the pencil marks. It's not necessary to be too precise, marble veins are irregular in nature and you can achieve a great result even with a shaky hand.

There you go! It's truly a quick and easy technique which gives great results! It is also great if you want to batch paint a whole army as it mainly consists of shades over a white base coat.

If any of you guys wants to give it a go and share the results please do not be shy and email me, I'd love to look at your models!

Hagen

Tuesday 5 June 2018

Knights from a distant past

Hi!

I was back home in turin this weekend and had some time to take some pictures of my old bretonnians, the last army I completed for WH. These were done in 2013 while living in South America and were my proud and joy for many years afterward until the days of AoS... they never saw the battlefield though, something I am quite sad about.









These are just some of them and although I never got to complete a playable army for 8 ed, they were the closest thing to an army I completed since my teenage days.
To overcome the boredom of painting so many models I came up with an idea that I have to say was quite successful: I divided my army into what I called “Ordonnances” , inspired by medieval military history. Each knight is accompanied by 2 men at arms, 2 archers and a mounted squire, which were all painted together... so instead of having to work my way through 20 men at arms in one go my army greaw esponentialky while allowing me to paint at a more enjoyable pace.
This is an example of two ordonnances: