Ernest
A Fixture
This project is Huge!
Amazing! I wonder when you finish it?
Amazing! I wonder when you finish it?
"Memories of Flight School"
- Thread starter JohnReid
- Start date
Help Support planetFigure:
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
I hope to finish it this year.Cheers! John.
Airchallenged
Member
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2007
- Messages
- 11
Nice to see an update albeit a small one. I just found the HMS Victory thread in the archives and I was wondering if you had a finally picture of it since I never saw the finished product.
JohnReid
A Fixture
I think that I am pretty much on track to finish the diorama by mid-year.Once the Camel/Ford is finished, I have the horse and it's rest area to do ,and a few more figures to modify and paint.The rest is just installing what is already made.Hooking up all the lighting should be a lot of fun and of course taking a lot of pictures of the finished diorama.
I have some minor stuff to do on the Albatros and Nieuport dioramas .After that it will be coordinating with the museum staff as to how they want to display them.
__________________
It has been said that the difference between a "pilot" and an "aviator" is that a pilot is a technician,and an aviator is an artist in love with flight.
JohnReid (Aviator)
I have some minor stuff to do on the Albatros and Nieuport dioramas .After that it will be coordinating with the museum staff as to how they want to display them.
__________________
It has been said that the difference between a "pilot" and an "aviator" is that a pilot is a technician,and an aviator is an artist in love with flight.
JohnReid (Aviator)
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
Hi Matt! I will try to dig up a pic for you.Cheers! John.
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
Seated figures parts and pieces.A small xacto blade with a #11 blade and a sanding stick is about all I use for this operation.
The resin carves like a hard wood except it is much easier to work with as there is no grain or tendency to split.If using power tools watch out for the toxic resin dust.
The resin carves like a hard wood except it is much easier to work with as there is no grain or tendency to split.If using power tools watch out for the toxic resin dust.
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
Thanks je touche ,I am glad that you are enjoying it.
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
OK now that takes a little of the arrogance out of him.He now looks like he really did lose the war.The positioning of the arms still needs to be worked on but I like the slumped over body and the head position.I toned down the buttons on the shirt a bit and will get rid of the belt when I glue the body together with exopy.
I won't finish him until I can find a coffee cup for his hand.
I won't finish him until I can find a coffee cup for his hand.
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
Tea time guy #2.
The arms are already in a good relaxed,tea mug holding position.The boots will have to be supported in some way or repositioned.I will slump over the body to make him appear more relaxed and change the head position a bit.
The arms are already in a good relaxed,tea mug holding position.The boots will have to be supported in some way or repositioned.I will slump over the body to make him appear more relaxed and change the head position a bit.
JohnReid
A Fixture
JohnReid
A Fixture
Rather than trying to explain how to modify figures ,my friend Ken Hamilton has OK'd me to use this chart from his now out of print book, "How to Build Creative Dioramas".
bonehead
A Fixture
Hello John,
Okay, while Ken Hamilton's frankenstein "cut and paste" techiniques will work reasonably well if you don't want to be bothered with sculpting and anatomy, they are also a compromise. They will not necessarily result in accuracy. And, if the base figure you are working from has inherent anatomy problems, it will not alter these. In fact, in cases such as your seated figure above, it will exacerbate them.
This ancient Verlinden figure is a case in point. In addition to the odd looking "stovepipe" arms (which lack form or wrinkles inside the elbow where they are most called for) the collar and neck of this figure are misplaced. Your attempt to give him the hang dog body language has perhaps helped expression, but it has turned the figure into a truly frightening malformity apparently caused by a broken and elongated neck.
The problem here is a common one. Many sculptors make the mistake of placing the collar "on top" of the shoulders. While you can almost get away with this if the figure's head is upright, once you attempt to tilt it forward, the absurdity of this positioning makes itself felt.
In truth, the highest point of the shoulders is not some imaginary line midway between chest and back. It is properly, toward the backside, in alignment with the spine, which at this point is at the very back of the neck. The trapezius muscles, which form the crown of the shoulders, join together and form the back neck muscles. They tumble forward at a steep angle toward the collar bone.
This configuration means that the collar should be high at the back, The neck tilts forward from this point, EVEN when the head is held upright. You can see that the collar of this figure droops at the back and that the neck is stock upright. This is anatomically incorrect.
I have photoshopped this photo to show you how the neck should tilt forward from the back of the spine. This then drops the chin close to the collar bone. The figure's chin should be about even with the very bottom points of the collar on the original figure. This is how it should work and you can check this by observing yourself in a mirror. Of course, the collar will have to be eliminated and replaced with a new one.
I hope this helps!
Mike
Okay, while Ken Hamilton's frankenstein "cut and paste" techiniques will work reasonably well if you don't want to be bothered with sculpting and anatomy, they are also a compromise. They will not necessarily result in accuracy. And, if the base figure you are working from has inherent anatomy problems, it will not alter these. In fact, in cases such as your seated figure above, it will exacerbate them.
This ancient Verlinden figure is a case in point. In addition to the odd looking "stovepipe" arms (which lack form or wrinkles inside the elbow where they are most called for) the collar and neck of this figure are misplaced. Your attempt to give him the hang dog body language has perhaps helped expression, but it has turned the figure into a truly frightening malformity apparently caused by a broken and elongated neck.
The problem here is a common one. Many sculptors make the mistake of placing the collar "on top" of the shoulders. While you can almost get away with this if the figure's head is upright, once you attempt to tilt it forward, the absurdity of this positioning makes itself felt.
In truth, the highest point of the shoulders is not some imaginary line midway between chest and back. It is properly, toward the backside, in alignment with the spine, which at this point is at the very back of the neck. The trapezius muscles, which form the crown of the shoulders, join together and form the back neck muscles. They tumble forward at a steep angle toward the collar bone.
This configuration means that the collar should be high at the back, The neck tilts forward from this point, EVEN when the head is held upright. You can see that the collar of this figure droops at the back and that the neck is stock upright. This is anatomically incorrect.
I have photoshopped this photo to show you how the neck should tilt forward from the back of the spine. This then drops the chin close to the collar bone. The figure's chin should be about even with the very bottom points of the collar on the original figure. This is how it should work and you can check this by observing yourself in a mirror. Of course, the collar will have to be eliminated and replaced with a new one.
I hope this helps!
Mike
JohnReid
A Fixture
Thanks Mike for the info!The pic was in no way meant to be the finished product.I just slapped it together to show how body position can change the whole mood of your piece.Arrogant vs Defeated.I will work on the anatomy when I determine the final body positioning.I find that Ken's chart is very helpful to beginners that have no idea where to start when modifying a figure. Thanks again,Cheers! John.
