I am a novice who is trying to make my finished kits look a bit more convincing, so please forgive me if this question is a bit dumb. I have read about what seems to be a fairly standard technique after painting the kit with the base color. That is one mixes a lighter version of the color to paint horizontal surfaces or the center portions of the panels (is this "post-shading?"). I have seen photos of this technique and think that, if well executed, gives the finished model a depth and sense of size. So, I was thinking of giving this a go...

However, I am painting a camouflage scheme over the base olive green (I'm doing a late Panther in the diagonal stripe of red-brown). So, post-shading (if that is what this technique is called) the olive green and then covering a goodly percentage of it with unshaded wide stripes seems like it will look pretty hinky (though I know that the horizontal
surfaces are not "striped").

So, I guess that I am naively fishing for general information on this post-shading technique, but also specific information on combining it with a camouflage scheme (to the amateur like me, it seems better suited for use with an early Panzer gray scheme). Of course, I would also welcome other suggestions for ways to give the painted model some sense
of depth and realism. Thanks for any advice.


Dave

Dave, check out this link to an article on the post shading technique over on ML. Hopefully it will help you out some.

http://www.missing-lynx.com/articles/german/jbpaint/jbpaint.htm

Personally I combine a little of this method along with some of the more traditional ones as well, ie. washes, filters, etc. to achieve the effect I want.

Mike

Mike:

Thanks for the suggestions - your input is appreciated. The glut of information is just a bit overwhelming for newbies. I wish that there were some sort of guide to help me find a foothold. What I mean is I wish that there were a list of what one should do on your first kit (e.g., paint, wash, powders), and then some sort of prioritized list of things to add on each subsequent build as you get a better handle on things (e.g., try dry brushing on the second kit, then add pre-shading on your third kit, then add filters on the fourth, then add oil paints on the fifth, then add...). I know that the list of techniques that people would suggest really boils down to personal preference (so no two accomplished modelers would ever reach concensus on it), but I do wish that there were some sort of roadmap for us novices. Anyway, I really do appreciate the pointer, so thanks for lending a hand.


Dave