"How to" books on figure painting

[Fokionas]

I like most am at best average at painting and do tend to use acrylics these days for the most part .. and like most already have lots of how to books..and a few DVD's but I agree with Steve, its more about spending time at the bench with brush in hand.. with me its usually a beer. If only procrastination was a sport.

I prefer to buy a book based on the figures used as the canvas.. Especially if I have the figure being painted or in the same scale and regiment.
There havnt been any books that I am aware of showing a large 200mm figure being painted for example, from start to finish.
I have the DVD by Rob HENDON " Painting and finishing military figures " which I thought was very useful.

Just a thought

Warren.

Warren,
Thank you very much for your answer.
As said , there is no better way to improve painting skills other than practice.I am also fond of 200mm figures and I have all DVD’s from Compendium series....
The book -if ever comes to publishing- should present in depth the techniques that are used as well as issues regarding color , mixing theory etc.For example , when you see specific uniform color, how you can reach to this result by mixing.In other words ,when we are mixing the shades what we are expecting to get and how can we apply in figure painting in a practical way?
There is no book that will tell you all of it but at least ,some guidelines and suggestions, I think it would be helpful.
It can be also in the form of high quality videos where you can see the theory be applied in a practical way.
Best Regards
Fokion

 

[Ray Stout]

I was taught by Joe Shaw, way back in the 70s mostly in oils, but the 2 overiding things he said have stuck right up to the present day, and they were, 1. Even if you're using Oil paints, if an enamel or Acrylic paint will do the job best, then use it. I took a 75mm mounted figure to learn on, and, like Joe said,"I'll paint one side, and you can paint the other, and if we can tell the difference, then there's no point in coming next week". We did finish the figure, and, apart from Oils, we also used Enamel and Acrylics too on the same model. 2, We never stop learning in this hobby, and don't be afraid of trying new mediums and techniques. That's one reason this site exists, to pass it on. One thing I've learned is that there's very little "Cross Over"between Modeling Hobbies,e.g. Railway Modelers are hot on building Buildings, but when it comes to painting them, they're not that good. What we need are books that can deal with these cross overs, e.g. Watching AFV modelers using various powders to simulate Rust, when a Real Rust product has been used for years in Railway Modelling etc. Ray

 

[Ray Stout]

The DVDs are a great way of showing different techniques of painting, blending and feathering. I've picked up a lot from watching the Painting Budda videos on line, and there's your biggest problem, because they're free to watch. Ray

 

[Fokionas]

I was taught by Joe Shaw, way back in the 70s mostly in oils, but the 2 overiding things he said have stuck right up to the present day, and they were, 1. Even if you're using Oil paints, if an enamel or Acrylic paint will do the job best, then use it. I took a 75mm mounted figure to learn on, and, like Joe said,"I'll paint one side, and you can paint the other, and if we can tell the difference, then there's no point in coming next week". We did finish the figure, and, apart from Oils, we also used Enamel and Acrylics too on the same model. 2, We never stop learning in this hobby, and don't be afraid of trying new mediums and techniques. That's one reason this site exists, to pass it on. One thing I've learned is that there's very little "Cross Over"between Modeling Hobbies,e.g. Railway Modelers are hot on building Buildings, but when it comes to painting them, they're not that good. What we need are books that can deal with these cross overs, e.g. Watching AFV modelers using various powders to simulate Rust, when a Real Rust product has been used for years in Railway Modelling etc. Ray

Dear Ray,
First of all thank you for your input.
Just to clarify, I am not going to get get involved in any way in publishing such a book.
I am not a master in painting and especially in acylics I am a beginner.
As said there are still a lot of issues that cause frustration especially to the non experienced ones.
Acrylic is a relatively new medium which is becoming more and more popular.
There are a lot of techinques that can be applied and I thought that having them in one book ,it could be useful.
The other issue ,which I constantly see in this site and other forums as well, is the color mixing theory .
Thats why most of the companies that produce colors ,nowadays they are offering sets ......
I know that there are a lot of nice and free videos around ,i am wathching them as well.
A book is a reference , not a bible, that might help to inspire and motivate people in using new techniques.
A book that can be accompanied by videos would be the ideal for me ........
Cost ,in producing such a book, is obviously an issue and there must be a balance between publishing costs and retail price.
It does not make any sense to buy a book that costs 80-100EU , very few can afford it.
The question is whether a reference book like this is worth publishing and what must be included in it?
Once again thank you for your time!
Best regards
Fokion

 

[brian]

I'm always interested in How to books,but only for oils,which are few and far between.I don't like a rylics