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Bringing the Bratwurst

That's quite a dio there Jeremy. Absolutely terrific. Really feels cold too. I like the backdrop in the photo, clever stuff. Must have taken an age to do all this. Cheers Tony

I love your dio, it captures the moment. It looks like they are getting some chow and re-arming for the battle ahead. Keep up the good work. G

Nice work, Jeremy. Alot of action going on. Thats a good amount of figures you incorporated and they all interact well within the scene. Good job and thanks for sharing.

Very nice winter dio, amigo. Loads of action between the figures an dthe AFVs. Nice work on the details and weathering and placement of the figures. I noticed a lot of Tamyia figures. Great painting of the faces and gear laying around. Makes me shiver a bit just looking at those Germans. Ironmike

FANTASTIC DIORAMA. I GOT COLD JUST LOOKING AT IT. VERY REALISTIC!

Jeremy, I like the job you did on your Jadgtiger and your snow effect is very good indeed! I agree with the others... It looks COLD! However, I think the only way that we as modellers improve our craft is to listen to constructive criticism and try to learn from it. The faces on your figures are not all that well done in my opinion. The eyes are too large,and the general shading of the faces doesn't really bring out the detail. Some of this can be blamed on the soft features of the stock plastic figures. I suggest replacing the original heads with some aftermaket items such as Hornet or Warriors. Your painting skills will improve if you have bettere faces to work with. I'd also like to say that your camoflage smocks are completely inaccurate. The troops look more like they are wrapped in painter's dropcloths. A word about basic construction techniques as well... You left mold seams on several of the figure's arms and hands and there are mold seems also on your shell casings on the engine deck of the Jadgtiger. Removing mold seams is fundamental to modelling! I was a a judge just yesterday at Panzerfest 2006 and beleive me, leaving mold seams or not filling seams where parts are joined will definetly affect your score in a contest. I'm sorry for going against the grain of everyone else's comments but honestly, I beleive more experienced modellers are doing a diservice to you if they don't point out your short comings. How can you get better if you don't know what to fix? The composition of your dio is good, the snow and cold effect are great, (better than any winter scene I have done), it looks busy, and every figure interacts well with the others, and it tells a story which is always good. Keep it up and before you know it, your friends will be calling you Verlinden! Good luck!

I agree with Bob. Face painting is so-so. And the decals on the helmets HAVE to go. This would be a late war scene since there is a Jagdtiger, and these helmet insignia are all but gone by this point in the war. In addition, the use of a 250/3 with the large frame aerial in this scene is a bit odd, as this was more of an early war vehicle setup. Not impossible for a scene here, but certainly not playing the averages. I like the overall scene, the snow, the trees, etc. Just a couple of tweaks. Rob

Hi everyone, this is my first published dio and I'm really grateful to all who took the time to reply and give feedback. I have been a long-time viewer and hope my work can give to others the same enjoyment that I have received from this site! Now, for some feedback on your feedback: to Robert- I wasn't sure about the choice of the halftrack, but I needed a small vehicle to fit the space and that was all I had available! Thanks for the tip about the helmet insignia; I didn't know that. to Bob- I know that composition and lay-out are my strengths and face painting is my weakness! I used stock faces because I didn't want to spend $ on so many heads and I didn't think the result would be worth it. How wrong I am! I have used aftermarke heads since and I will do so from now on- they're probably THE most important item for me now! Trying to paint faces on the old Tamiya figures is a nightmare. Mr Potatohead has better features! -painter's dropcloths eh? Hahaha! That's so insulting that it's funny I know- that's a result of bad reference ( ie my memory). I will learn from that mistake. - the visible mold seams are from pure laziness! Thank you again for your feedback- I appreciate it heaps! Keep it coming! Jeremy

Hi Jeremy, I think your dio looks great. The snow is awesome. Like myself, I am struggling with painting my figures. I keep tryin and tryin. It seems that I am a point where Im not getting better or worse. But they look okay. Im happy with my work and that's all that matters. I also use tamiya and dragon figures. There okay, but you can see the difference in the aftermarket stuff. Keep up the great work, you are doing a terrific job. Take care!

Thanks Plasticman and others for your encouragement. I used baking soda for the snow. Not only does it look realistic, it keeps the dio smelling fresh as well! It does tend to 'settle' over time so a repeat application may be needed in a few months to keep it looking fluffy.