French Imperial Grenadier Guard, 90mm - New Pics

[tonydawe]

Greetings Planeteers

Sorry about the last batch of pics. I was so excited about the results I was getting with this figure I couldn't wait to show everyone.

I've managed to take some reasonable pics with a new digital camera, which should enable you to have a closer look at my French Imperial Grenadier.

Comments/ constructive criticism welcome.

Cheers
Tony

 

[vergilius]

Much better.
A tip ; get some big paper or cardboard to put behind the figure so you can take pictures in a better surrounding. Make sharper pics !

 

[tonydawe]

Vergilius

Thanks for the tip. As you can see, I'm a novice when it comes to photographing my models. I'd appreciate any help that fellow Planeteers can offer.
Regards
Tony

 

[eissteban]

Your grenadier is so beautiful Tony
But, it's true, the pictures are very important to have an idea of the result on the net.
The background make me think of a swimming pool

Seb.

 

[tonydawe]

Merci bien Sebastien,

I will try to take more photos this weekend with a large piece of coloured paper behind the figure. Hopefully this will show my figure at his best.

Cheers
Tony

 

[Roc]

Tony,the pictures are much better. You have done a very nice job on this figure, my compliments.


Cheers
Roc

 

[megroot]

Tony,
Excellent figure. But put some paper behind the figure.
Marc

 

[CDNTanker25]

Tony, great figure! Very inspiring to say the least... nice subtle weathering tones on the white parts of the uniform. The braiding looks great too! Can't wait to see more!

 

[tonydawe]

Hi James

Thanks for your kind comments. I think painting white, particularly large areas of white uniform, is one of the hardest painting tasks - that's one of the reasons I bought this figure.

The "white" areas on this figures such as the leggings, the waistcoat and the turnback on the coat are not actually white, but ivory mixed with a little off-white. I wanted to keep the pure white colour for the upper highlights only, and I also assumed that a Grenadier on campaign (even a very neat one) would struggle to keep his whites white!! To blend the white and the ivory colour, I did a series of very thin washes of white along the areas where the shadows and the base colour met, and where the base colour and the highlights meet. The overall effect is white, but up close you can see depth in the white due to the ivory. It's a very pleasing effect, but not easily spotted in my pics.

Tony

 

[darkeye]

thanks for the tip on your technique Tony; will give it a try. ------ tim.

 

[tonydawe]

Cheers Tim, and thanks to others who have posted comments. The Grtenadier is now mounted on a simple round base made from Western Australian jarrah wood. I'm waiting for the second coat of gloss sealer on the wood to dry and then its a simple matter of mounting a suitable plaque on the front. I hope to show you some step-by-step pics of making the base on my vBench shortly.

 

[moore]

Hi Tony,

Very nice figure. Who is the mfg. ?
Also.. the whites are nice.. to do the shadow between his legs,
what mix did you use ? Also.. it looks like from the picture that
you did not do a whole lot of shading in that area.

I have done 2 white Grenadiers... and I did not do well on the
shading between his legs. I ended up almost black. But I want
to keep trying my whites and hopefully get better at it.

I like the colors on your figure.

Dee

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Dee
The manufacturer is Andrea Miniatures. It's one of their best kits in 90mm.
The shading of the white parts of the uniform needed to be kept subtle, as too much black would over-power the white/ ivory colours and leave the highlights looking a bit weak. Where I shaded the white areas I used a mix of Ivory and English Uniform (Vallejo acrylics), with a tiny amount of black for the very deepest shadows. I then applied a few very dilute washes of white over the shadow areas to reduce the contrast and assist with blending. The reduced contrast on the whites make the differences between the shadows and the highlights moe subtle, which was the effect I was aiming for.
I'm glad you like it. I'll have some more shots of this figure soon.
Cheers

 

[CDNTanker25]

Tony, thanks for the tips on the white... I guess the pictures are misleading, as they usually are! I will put your techniques to good use in the future!!

 

[Blind Pew]

Like the figure mate, a job well done on a classic piece. Difficult to critique purely on a photo alone, but the skintones look very well rendered. The uniform very crisp as well. One to be proud of.