Finding my way back to painting

[StreetBushido]

I've recently been taking a break from the wargame miniature hobby and instead been dipping my toes into Gunpla. It's been a nice change of pace, but I've been haunted by the mildly nagging thought that despite being cool figures, the Gunpla are essentially knick-knacks. Once built (and the building itself is enjoyable), they're pretty much just going to sit there.

Say what you will about wargame miniatures, but you can use them to actually play games with your friends. Sure, you could use bottlecaps and printed tokens, but there's something special about holding a miniature that you've cleaned up, put together and painstakingly painted.

These last few days I've been enjoying putting together the two teams in the Blood Bowl box set, as well as the miniatures in the Malifaux Starter Set. It's been enjoyable and even a bit meditative to put on a podcast and let my hands get to work.

But the next step is to paint these figures. And I dread it.

I think I can honestly say I don't really enjoy painting miniatures anymore. At least, I don't think I do. It takes a lot of time, my back hates me for it and the results end up being decent-to-pretty-good. I'm never going to win any Golden Demon's, and that's fine. But this leaves me in an awkward position that a lot of hobbyists find themselves in: having a big pile of unpainted plastic and no real drive to paint them.

And yet, despite this, I don't want to turn my back on the hobby. I'd rather not field unpainted figures, and I'm far too stingy to pay somebody to paint my figures for me.

But, crucially, I don't want to spend precious spare time on something I don't really enjoy.

I think I need to find my way back to painting. And more importantly, find my way back to enjoying painting. But how?

I've given thought to getting into airbrushing, as it seems it can cut down on the brushwork you need to do. But it's an expensive experiment in case I find out that it won't help me.

Do you have any experiences of finding a way to paint that reignited that fire in you? Have you found a method that just clicked for you? Or maybe just a state of mind that helped?

Can anybody perhaps recommend some form of method that is decently fast and gives decent results? Again, I'm not looking for Golden Demon level results here, but at the same time I've spent too many hours painting figures to be pleased with a slapdash job.

Thanks for reading what turned into a bit of a semi-rant.

[Davout]

i would look into a technique called Dipping, it can a be a good way to finish a large number of figures fast to a decent table top standard. You paint the base colors on your miniature (don't worry about shading or highlights, just the basic colors) and then you dip the figure into a pot of shade (Army Painter makes a specific product for this technique) shake off the excess dip and let dry. When dry the dip has shaded in all the recessed areas and given some deapth to the basic colors. You can then do some quick dry brush highlights or let it be. Hit the model with some matte clear and you are done.

It won't win you any awards but it should allow you to chip away at the pile.

I'd also suggest not trying to finish it all at once. Maybe focus on a skirmish game, set a goal of a squad or two painted for each side. That way you can start gaming with painted figs while working on the larger project.

[cram]

I'd say Davout's suggestion of using Army Painter dip is a very good one! Never used the stuff myself as I really enjoy painting. But I've seen some good results from others using the stuff. Most seem to use the medium shade, and best results seem to come from brushing on the stuff as opposed to dipping the mini's into the tin. Check out Google for more info and examples, here is one to look at: http://z8.invisionfree.com/herdstone/ar/t17959.htm  plenty of handy video's on Youtube on using the stuff too.

Dipping technique aside, I gain inspiration and ideas from Youtube videos on painting figures and this book is very useful: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Painting-Wargaming-Figures-Javier-Valero/dp/1848848226/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1484395300&sr=1-1&keywords=painting+wargames+figures

As also mentioned, skirmish games is a great way to go. You need far fewer figures to get a game started. You can slowly build up that force over time, moving onto larger skirmishing games and finally a full scale battle.

Good luck! Marc.

[StreetBushido]

Thanks for all the input, guys!

I've never even considered dipping because it always struck me as... I don't know, the sweat pants of miniature painting. Like giving up, you know?

But now I'm not so sure! That beastman, for instance, looks surprisingly good.

And while it's true that you should never trust anybody that's trying to sell you something, this comparison is also impressive:



It's definitely something to think about. Just like that linked book is something to look into. To think, that the only books on painting miniatures and miniature terrain I've ever had have come from Games Workshop. Despite realizing many years ago that the hobby is a lot wider than that, I haven't really looked into books from other sources than GW.

So while I'm on the topic: can somebody recommend me some other inspiring books on painting and building miniatures and terrain?

[dbsubashi]

I can recommend the Army Painter spray paints to help get base coats down. Much cheaper and easier than an air brush, and more consistent as well for someone new to air brushing. The cans give nice, smooth thin coats. They also come in at least 20 colors, and are paint and primer in one. Apply some more colors, and then dip. Remember, you can always go back and add highlights to avoid that sweatpants of painting look.

For painting guides, I recommend YouTube. Seeing the technique as it is applied is the winner here. Wargames Soldiers and Strategy magazine usually has 1-2 how to paint guides per issue. Matt Parkes' how-to-paint guide from Wargames Illustrated is my go-to guide for everything. It is the best $9 you will ever spend for painting! For terrain I can heartily recommend Battlefields in Miniature by Paul Davies, the Touching History books by Paul Darnell, and anything by Dampfpanzerwagon.

[cram]

One good youtube site to look at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3MqSyG5HkjKseY5QLhS4dA there are many many more!

If Games Workshop happens to be your thing at all then these are very good: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG2Wj3xRJPqAAOOsJ5Q6ssQ    

Cool thing with youtube is that if you are painting a particular type of model, such as an Ancient Celt for example, you can key in a search 'how to paint ancient celts' and usually you will get one or more videos on the subject. Same with 'how to paint armour on a miniature or 'how to paint tartan on a miniature'. The standard of painting can vary a bit from one video to another.

Painting War Magazine is very useful, but so far limited to a few subjects: http://www.breakingwar.com/store/en/4-paintingwar

Wargames Foundry used to do a couple of very good books on painting, they were specific to their range of paints however. I'm sure they can still be picked up on ebay, but are probably quite pricey, arguably worth paying for if you happen to use the Foundry paint range.

Your miniature painting will be made a lot easier by the standard of brush you use. I use these: http://www.artdiscount.co.uk/winsor-newton-series-7-sable-miniature-brushes.html pricey I know, but worth every penny, they always keep their point and if looked after will last a lot lot longer than most other brushes (my current one are almost a year old and are still going strong).

I own a pair of these: http://www.mageyes.com/Hobby.htm Think I bought mine off Amazon. Nothing wrong with my eyesight , but these make life so much easier, initially bought them for painting my 15mm stuff, but now use them for my 28mm also, they've definitely improved my standard of painting. I'm sure there are cheaper versions out there if you don't like the price.