Hi guys-

Thanks for all of your input on my last set of in-progress pictures... I appreciate all the tips that were given out :-) I incorporated some of them into the scene so far, and think that it is looking better thanks to you guys.

I still have to do the flag, finish the German gun pit gear, weather the 88, finish the trees, and dull coat the figures...... oh and give the M-10 an antenna.... other than that..... anything that I missed?

hehe - thanks for the help :-)
Nelson

PS - sorry about the bad pics... it is dark here now and I had to use indoor lighting - I hate doing that.....

Jeff

I really like the pose on the dead Germans. the dio looks really cool can't wait to see the completed peice.

Wolfsix

I really like it a lot. The dead germans are outstanding, where did you get them?The only thing I can see that I would change is the branches on the trees all seem to be going out perpendicular to the trunk, and I feel that they should be angling up a little. In nature most trees branches do tend to reach skyward. but thats all I would change. I can see its a wonderful peice of work, can't wait to see it finished Kevin

J:
Looks great, adding on to the tree comment, you might want to add some smaller twigs to give the trees a little more depth. I'm not sure what would work for that, maybe streches sprue or maybe some stands of steel woll.

J:

Looks really good! The only thing I would add to all that's been said is to show some settling of the 88 and the supply boxes stacked along the edge of the pit. In the real world all of these things have a mass being pulled downward into the ground. They should be pressed down a bit to give them a convincing weight.

Also, signs of the former life of the Germans would also add to the scene. By this I mean footprnts and signs of their movements. They would have been walking back and forth from the ammo supplies to the gun and to a position to site in targets. They would have been sitting or otherwise busying themselves when they were not manning the gun.

If they were killed while returning fire, there should be spent rounds on the ground around them. If they were ambushed, never mind. Additionally, they had presumably been standing before they were felled, so they too would have impacted the ground and probably, in some minute way, "bounced" into their current positions. The violence of a sudden crumbling body would leave its mark on the ground as well.

It's an ambitious Dio and very well carried out! The above are suggestiosn for making the space feel more alive (no pun intended) and more lived in before these guy's widows were able to cash in their life insurance policies.

The dio's great! Stick with it! and let's see some finished pics!

Don't forget to pile a lot of stuff along the top of the trench. Things like cans, bottles and spent shells get in the way of firing the gun inside the pit. I like to add posters and/or pin up girls on walls of crew areas.

Cool its lookin great Jrnelson, lets see it finished soon, cheers

Lord Nelson aka "Da PE god":

As I mentioned in chat, this one is going to be a show stopper.

The 88 is a complex looking little build in itself, your fig placement and painting came out very well, and the concept/balance of this dio is well thought out. A WINNER!

Steve

I like it a lot, you've done a great job.
In these pictures the trees look a bit uni-color. If it's not just the pictures I'd add a bit of hightlight dry brushing with light green (white/cream with a touch of green). Maybe some pastels.

Looks good.

HI!
Nice dio. Dead germans look great, but i would add bullet wounds and dried blood to the figs. The groundwork is really impressive. This is going to be one heck of a dio, good luck!!!

Thanks so much for the comments guys - you have been huge help with this dio.....

I agree that the 88 needs to look "heavier" as it is kinda floating on the dirt now... I'll be sure to add a bit of dirt and leaves around the legs - so it looks like it is sunk into the ground a bit.

I also agree entirely about the trees - this was my first attempt at making them from scratch..... i'm not totally happy with the way they turned out, but I learned alot for next time. I will definately go back and dry brush some grey and mossy greens onto them, they are a bit mono-tone as they are now... I also agree that they look kinda sparse, but I'm really not sure what I can do about that now - so I guess they'll have to do :-) hehehe

Thanks again guys - I'll post some more pics when I get the flag incorporated into this thing..

Later-
Nelson

jeff it looks great. it is your first dio right??
febuary 1st is coming around the corner fast, i really need to finish my dio up!!

Great job in there. i ve watched it from the start. two things to say . In general to add more realism some more weathering on the 88 the fallen soldiers and maybe sume dusting dirting on the tank that has some mud in front but believe that in a phase of continuus fighting should be more warned and dirty . Some more signs of life inside the 88 place would up for sure. Nice work guy