1:35th Tamiya Frenchman

[kansas kid]

Down on the Farm hello, to Jamie, geese, goats, etc.

Hello Jamie:

Hummmm, from reading your comments, I suspect a very analytical mind.
I didn't think about the hint at defenses and trenches, when I was mullin'
it all over in what is left of my mind. I was just thinking about composition,
shapes and their sizes and how they might compliment the figure without
overpowering it. I did think about Spring/Summer. . . ah somewhat. But
mostly wanted red poppies to be in colour harmony with the red in the
Tri-Colour name plate.

So you live on a farm? With goats, dogs, chickens, geese, only one cat,
and humans, too? Sounds like a lot of work, but at least you don't get
lonely, right?

Well enough of my poor attempt at humor. Thanks for your kind remarks,
Jamie. I'm wanting to spend a lot more time in 1:35th scale, because of
diorama/vignette ideas I want to build. And in IPMS competition all the
aspects of a diorama, model, terrain, AND figures have to be to the same
high standard. Thus a lot more practice to come in that small 1:35th scale.

Kind regards, Jamie,

Miami Jayhawk

 

[Jamie Stokes]

Jayhawk,
yep, sometimes I can drill down with the analytical part of my brain, other times I can over think stuff.......

Looking forward to some more of your vignettes, your composition and colour use are splendid, and could be used for study pieces for some of us!


Cheers

 

[kansas kid]

What kind words, thank Jamie. . .

Why Jamie:

What kind word. And most appreciated, partner. . . or podna' as we
Heartland Yankees say. My view is that it is 'probably' betta' to error
on the side of over thinking something rather than going full bore
forward without really developing a plan before the start. Oh ma'gosh, re
the Stan with NO plan. . . Whoa, ah been there, done that, and bought the
T-shirt.

Seriously, for a moment. Like you, Jamie, I think a lot of novice
and beginners do pursue this and other sites on model building.
And so I try to go into a certain amount of detail about the
importance of composition and the use of colour harmony.

I'm a long time member of IPMS/USA and have started an outline
for an article with photos of examples to submit for publication in the
society Journal (hard copy that is mailed) that each member receives.

My intent is to discuss the importance of composition in most anything,
especially in art (of which I feel model building is a part) and my ideas
about colour harmony.

Thanks again, for your kind words, Jamie,

rick

 

[Marcel]

Great painted figure Rick!
And very nice groundwork.

Cheers,
Marcel.

 

[kansas kid]

Hello Marcel:

Thanks for the kind remarks, Marcel. I appreciate it. I am sorry to say that
I didn't do so well in school, . . . ah over 50 years ago. . . in Geography.

Would you please tell me just where Enschede is located?

Miami Jayhawker

 

[rheath]

Hi Rick, very nicely done and won't mention the ground work as it speaks for itself as already mentioned - nice subject French forces uniforms as the varied blue and browns are really challenging to do and make look decent or stand out, super job.

 

[kansas kid]

Hello Rob Heath

Hi Rob:

So good of you to chime in here, about my attempts at learning more about
terrain, and small figures in 1:35th scale. I do appreciate you taking the time
to comment. Obviously you understand about colour theory and about the
"colour wheel". It still amazes me that my friends, who are NOT figure
painters but are aircraft modelers and armor modelers, are completely
stumped if the colour they need is NOT commercially available. Yes, figure
painters need to know how to mix colours, but you don't see that so much
with plastic modelers who do aircraft and armor. A real puzzlement to me!


But you're right. The primary colours are so much a part of any
kind of colour we use to paint a figure; i.e. Brown and grey are made
up of so many of the primary and secondary colours. Brown can have
a lot of red, or blue, or yellow. I'm working now on another one of
that set by Tamiya of the French Infantry, with a Hornet head, where
one of the colours in the brown mix is Maroon. It is really looking
neat; well at least IMHO. And so different. We really do learn by doing, by
being willing to fail, by being willing to leave our comfort zone. But I
realize here that I'm preaching to the choir. Thanks again, mate.

Best regards,

rickster

 

[Marcel]

Hello Marcel:

Thanks for the kind remarks, Marcel. I appreciate it. I am sorry to say that
I didn't do so well in school, . . . ah over 50 years ago. . . in Geography.

Would you please tell me just where Enschede is located?

Miami Jayhawker

Rick,
I guess I'm not much better than you in geography.
But Enschede is located in the east of the Netherlands, almost touching the German border. If you draw a horizontal line from Amsterdam to the east, you are pretty close.

Cheers,
Marcel.

 

[kansas kid]

Thanks Marcel for the quick response; geography 101

Hey Marcel:

Whoa, mate. . . thanks for the speedy reply. Yes, I understand perfectly. I
think I know exactly where you are. And BTW, my daughter Elizabeth, was in
the EU for over a month a number of years ago, and said one of her favorite
places on the trip was in the Netherlands.

For many years, I hoped to see the art treasures, plus the Military History
sites of the UK and the EU but I fear it is rather late, with all the problems
of health now days. And I don't see that happening. However. . . .

At least I have books, and people like you and the other Planeteers,
to explain these interesting points about the treasures ,and the
historical places of the UK and EU, to me. Thanks again,

The Miami Jayhawk

 

[gothicgeek]

Hi Rick!

Missed this as I was mucking about at some model show

Very nice! I too especially like the terrain, but the figure ( despite its humble roots ) is nice too!

Keep em coming

Mark

 

[housecarl]

Sorry I missed this Rick. It's a very nice piece of work as I said.
Carl.

 

[kansas kid]

Hello to the Gothic Geek. . .

Hey there GothicGeek:

Aw dude, any modeler who quotes Oscar Wilde who was rather "different" bu
toh so talented, is all right in my book!!

I did a H.S. term paper on the British author. . . and learned
the "Importance of Being Ernest".

Hey mate, it is OK to be mucking around with different things. I totally
understand. No prob blem mo, amigo.

Glad you did have a chance to chime in here, Gothic Man. I always
enjoy your SBS/WIP tutorials and photos essays about our wonderful hobby.

Those kinds of efforts help our novice people in so many ways.

Rickster Jayhawk

 

[kansas kid]

Hey Carl:

You da man, Carl. We already discussed this "project" on a number of
occasions via e-mail. But I do appreciate you responding to this thread.

Have a great day my friend,

The Miami Jayhawk

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Rick,

I've just read all the comments on this thread and I can see that you've made a real effort to take on board all the comments made by fellow Planeteers.

For what it's worth mate, I think you've done a great job with a rather ordinary figure and I'd like to add a few comments/observations of my own.

The fact that you've chosen a rather unusual subject (WW2 French) explains why you chose a Tamiya figure, rather than a better one from a better figure manufacturer. Unfortunately,I don't think the figure is worthy of your painting skills.

For me the major feature of this piece is the base and groundwork, which is superb. The problem is that the base and groundwork dominates the figure too much, almost to the point where the figure seems rather lost in the scene. Ideally the base and groundwork exist to showcase the figure, not the other way around. This is largely the result of the base being too large for a single figure. I know you know this, so I wont labor the point!!

The other point, which has already been raised, is that the figure doesn't appear to be doing anything in a specific context. The point about context, which I'm sure you understand instinctively, is that ideally every figure should "tell a story", and it's unlcear to me what his story is. What is he doing? Why is he doing it?? If you can answer these questions, you gain much greater viewer interest and engagement.

It doesn't have to be a long narrative, but even a single figure on a base can tell the viewer something about the story of the figure portrayed - his state of being and morale, his health and energy levels, his proximity to danger, his state of soldierly conduct (or misconduct) etc etc.

To me this figure looks like he's gathering up his stuff and running away from impending danger. If that was the intended context of the scene, perhaps you could add a small German stick grenade on the ground, now that would add some drama and story to the piece.

Anyway mate, enough of my meandering thoughts. Good work Rick, keep at it.

 

[mil-mart]

Rick, It is a bit of a eye-catcher with the striking name plate, which I like by the way. That draws you in and you then notice the great painting and all the work done on the base and groundwork .

Cheers Ken

 

[kansas kid]

Tony: I certainly do appreciate your comments

Tony:

I read your comments with a great deal of interest, and like some of the
others have pointed out, you have hit the nail on the head.

First of all, I want to thank you for taking the time to bring up these
important points about figure modeling. As I've mentioned before on PF, we
have a lot of beginner modelers who peruse this site, but do not post
comments. And your detailed text about the important things to know when
doing a presentation is of definite value to all of us. Even the experienced
can benefit from a reminder of the basics. So thank you again, for your
wise words, and written so clearly.

As you indicated, I knew when I was at the craft store trying to find a
circular base that the one I ended up with was too large for the figure.
And of course, you're right, the base does indeed overpower the figure.
Originally, I was just doing this to learn, and wasn't intending it to be a
serious attempt. . . but things just kind of got out of hand, so to speak,
when I found those Noch flower blossoms in a new railroad hobby store
just opened.

Lastly, you're right on the money re the lack of a story. What is the
soldier doing? Where is the story line? You're right, there isn't one even
though I am well aware of how important that is. A good presentation
makes a statement and tells a story. I will keep your comments, along
with the other's comments in mind. As I'm now working on a two
figure vignette in hopes of learning how to apply field grasses
so they look right.

Kind regard to you, Tony

rick brownlee

 

[kansas kid]

Hi Ken:

thanks for your kind words. And glad you got back from EuroMilitaire safely.

Jayhawker

 

[chippy]

Rik, I've read Tony's comments and I'm a little surprised by some of them. He almost infers that unless you spend a lot of money on a figure it's not worth spending time and effort to produce a decent base. But as there are many newcomers to the site who may be put off spending out £20-£40 on one single figure, you have shown that it's possible to create atmosphere for a figure that cost less than £3. Lets not forget firms like Tamiya and Masterbox do some lovely sets of figures and with the same standard of work carried out on them as we use on the likes of Andrea and Pegaso, I think some stunning results could be attained. I know we have chatted about improving groundwork and adding more realism to enhance the figure and I think you have shown just how well this works with this project .
Just out of interest, how many figures were in the box and do you intend to do anymore from thet set?
chippy

 

[kansas kid]

Hello Chippy. . . Most interesting

Hi Chippy:

Wow, my friend, I found your comments so very interesting as well. And I
will say right from the get go, that I think both you and Tony have made
good points. I don't see your view as opposed to Tony's. I think you're both
right. Part of what Tony said, indicated he felt my skill level was now good
enough to pick the better sculpted figures. And I know what 1:35th figures
he is talking about, I have some of them; i.e. Alpine. A couple of
Russian Tankers, from WWII that Alpine released over 3 or 4 yrs. ago.
Oh gee. How time flies.

But I also mentioned in one of my replies about the beginners and novice
modelers who peruse this site. I checked and this one thread has over 1,000
hits. That many people have looked at this thread. And my little effort isn't
even a major effort, or up to our highest standards. But that fact tells me
that we should continue discussing the basics, such as colour harmony,
good composition, etc.

And so your mention of cost and how a person can still grow and learn and
improve their skill level without having to spend a great deal of money, is
a good point to get out there for the beginners, too, as I see it. That is one
reason why I feel you and Tony are both right.

Oh and to answer your question about that 1:35th scale Tamiya WWII
French Infantry set. There are six figures in the set. And again with the
novice in mind, I will say that in this set none of the figures have the head
attached. I ALWAYS sub the Tamiya kit heads with one from my
collections of Hornet Heads in 1:35th. I just drill a hole down into where the
neck would attach to the upper torso and make sure that the new Hornet
Head fits right and looks natural. I also like to add chin straps and rifle
slings made from lead foil with clasps made from solder wire or copper wire.

Thanks again, all of you Planeteers for making this simple little thread,
hopefully of some help to our newer modeler to this wonderful hobby.

Kind regards to you Chippy,

Rickster

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Rick,

I'm sorry Gordon misunderstood the compliment I was trying to pay to you, but I'm glad you got it.

The point I was trying to make Gordon was that I feel Rick's painting skills are sufficiently advanced to tackle a better quality (not necessarily more expensive) figure, but given the relative obscurity of the subject matter, he didn't have much choice but to use the Tamiya figure. I certainly didn't suggest or infer that because it was a Tamiya figure it wasn't worth doing a decent base for it. I'm not sure how you read that into my comments?

Tamiya figures are great. I cut my teeth on them back in the 1970's when I first started modeling, but they are "entry level" figures and in my opinion they are not comparable to the figures produced by Pegaso, Andrea, Bravo-6, Alpine etc etc in terms of their sculpting quality, casting and materials. We can agree to disagree on that point.

I would certainly recommend Tamiya/ Masterbox/ Dragon DML plastic figures to anyone starting out in the hobby as a good way to learn the art and techniques of miniature figure painting, and I have consistently advised novice painters to use these cheaper figures to practice their skills before they tackle some of the better, and usually more expensive, figures.