Hello gentlemen,

Here is my last little vignette. It's a german general from Revell's pioneer set and it started after I browsed my figures collection to pic one to paint on my spare-time and because I got "inspired" by this pic:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y107/Valdispert/optic1.jpg

Well, it was painted using humbrol color. Black for the uniform, 153 red and oil color yellow for the waffenfarbe, 186+62+148 for the flesh tone and 86 for the green cap. The base was done by carving a bit of plaster that I cast and it was painted using various tones of gray, followed by some washes using raw-umber for the wall and some points of green, yellow, sienna and raw umber for the roof tiles. The frame was done using balsa wood painted with some wood treatment varnish...

All in all it was a rather fun project, I love to make small vignettes wich allows me to build more models and motivate me to learn more about modelling and german army history.

Here are some photos,















The roof tiles were made according to this method:

http://www.diorama1914.com/Pagina%20definitiva/articulos/chapa%20ondulada.htm

I cut strips of aluminium foil about 7mm tall and 10cm wide, large strips, and burnished them over the pattern with a toothpick to give it the ondulated surface. I them cut them in little sections of five "waves" and mounted them on the roof side-by-side. The paintjob was done using humbrol 153+trainer-yellow. After it dried overnight I applied a wash with raw-umber artist oil and on the next day I applied some filters by putting little spots of yellow, white, raw-umber, burnt-sienna and green all over the surface and spreading them randomly with white spirit on a nº 2 paintbrush. Everything was sealed with a couple of coats of Humbrol matt cote that took off the shiny finish.

Hope this is clear enough, any questions please do so!

Any comments and criticisms would be most appreciated!

Thanks again and happy modelling,

Francisco

That is very cool. I love the variation of having a roof as a base.
The scale is well done and the roof is excallent.
My only critique is the corner where the base and the 'block' meet. Third photo bottom corner. I would personally like to see no gap. I would have run the grain on the side walls the same way.

Overall a great piece.

Hello Francisco:

This 1:72nd project of yours is most interesting and
very eye appealing. A really clever concept. It was hard
to realize it is 1:72nd scale (of course, your subject
title indicates that) as your execution of the design
and skill level displayed with the painting of the subject
give the impression that it is 1:35th. Not an easy thing
to do. It wasn't until I saw one of the close up pix and
saw the thickness of the legs of the optical device that
I could tell it was 1:72nd.

I have only one critical point to make. And actually, it
is a very minor point since you've done such a creative
and interesting scene. I feel that your frame base below
the plaster cast pieces, is too wide! This is only my
opinion you understand. I think that wide frame has a tendency
to take the viewers eye away from the main subject above it. A
wooden frame or box made with just 4 strips of 5 to 7
mm thickness pieces of wood would work better, IMO.

Also, for this particular color scheme, I would suggest
that if you do make a new box frame for the scene, that
you use a dull coat varnish so that the wood base
didn't have a sheen to it. But regardless, a very nice
creative piece, showing some clever thinking. I would
hope that you'd share some other 1:72nd projects with
the group here on the Big A. Good luck.

I love it, Francisco! I always have nothing but admiration for guys who put such a lot of hard work on such small scale figs.

Tend to agree with Rick on the frame. A narrow edge will enhance the feeling of height.

BTW, you can also use corrugated board (what you get inside Pizza Hut boxes) for roof tiles.

First of all thank you for taking the time to post your comment, I appreciate it.



This is one of the mistakes of the base. I have to say I wasn't going to build a frame, I was going to leave it like this:



So when I was sanding it I rounded the corners a bit and I wasn't able to correct it after I decided to put the frame.
The "block" in the pic was supposed to fit inside the frame not over it, but the base of the "block" wasn't perfectly rectangular so it looked kind of "funky". This is why I chose to put a rectangle of wood over the frame and glue the block over it. I'll try different wood-stain product in my upcoming projects, this time I choose to finish it with a glossy look because I had never tried it.

I have three other small projects on my bench: two projects with 1 figure each and another vignette with 5 figures. Here are some pics of 2 of them:

Oh my, Francisco:

I am so glad that you included pix from two other
projects that you are working on. Holy Cow, dude, you
have a very fertile and creative mind. I love your ideas
and am so excited about how you think of different and
creative ways to do these very interesting and eye
appealing scenes in 1:72nd scale. What can I say to
encourage you more? No one else, that I can recall
is doing this, as far as I can remember, with this
much original thought and creative energy. Your work
is so exciting. Just super ideas for what can be
achieved in 1:72nd scale. I tip my hat to you, sir!!!
Whoa Nellie, this is so good. . . . so enlightening!!

I'm humbled by your words, you made my day

Its an extra-motivating to find at least one person who actually has pleasure vewing my little projects, not more than I have doing them but its fantastic anyway!

I'm still quite new to modelling and with university I don't have much spare time so I try to build small projects that allow me to try diferent techniques that I can use on some bigger project I have on the side, and allow me to build little vignettes of subjects that are of special interest (I mostly like the first half of the war, France and Russia..)

Thanks again for you kind words and I'll post my progress as soon as I can!

:-H

Francisco:

You are entirely welcome. I look at your work and again
remember the old saying, "Talent must be served".

It sounds like your college age and in school. Re
modeling, you might keep in mind that as long as you
still have your eyesight, you can enjoy this wonderful
hobby all your life. And if you're doing the kind of work
like I see in your forum pix NOW, what kind of modeler
will you be when you're my age. Wow.

Good luck.