Golden Demon Youngbloods

[DeffWolf]

Hey everyone. Well, this year I'm hoping to compete in the Youngbloods competition at Gamesday 2009 in Birmingham. I was originally hoping to enter a Khazad Guard figure or a Space Marine. I am hoping to do something unique and above what your "good" 14 year old painter usually paints when he's on form. I have some pictures posted further down showing some of my past work and was hoping all you kind folks would share some helpful advice and pointers that I could improve on. Also, what I'm hopefully going to attempt is NMM. Now, I have read some tutorials on B&C and the web but would also like to see some people's work when they started using NMM and see where I can start off and paint something that will at least feature on the podium. Thanks all, and please post as I cant bear it when I get several hundred views and 2-3 posts.

These are the ones that I feel I have done well on, but also that I've improved the most upon compared to other projects I have undertaken. I feel that I am most certainly capable of blening and highlighting to a Golden Demon standard and am willing to do as best as I can in the months coming.

[Berzerker Pezz]

Work on those mold lines, modeling is also a part of Golden Demon standards.

[djkest]

I would add that you should take a stab at overbrushing instead of drybrushing. You get brighter, more bold colors, and more defined lines and boundaries. (overbrushing is with a wet brush, and you more carefully put the brush where you want the paint to go)

[paulson games]

I would try and do your drybrushing a bit more lightly, they are a good start but you want to make it very subtile so that you can see the differant shades and details, right now they look like they only have bright areas from the drybrushing or the darker areas which makes them look a bit flat. There needs to be some more middle ground areas.

 

You might want to experiment with washes which will help not only with the shading but also make it look more 3-d as it'll help define the lines and recessed areas. Don't worry about NMM right now you need to focus and master the basics before you worry about finer details. Focus on washes, shading the armor, and highlighting the details.

 

Also make sure that you clean off all the mold lines and that there's no flash left on the model, otherwise you can be the best painter in the world but they won''t grade you well if you didn't take the time to clean the model correctly.

 

check out BrushThralls they have a lot of really good painting advice that's done by actual studio painters.

 

It's a good start so far, but always keep trying to improve on things. One of the 14 year olds in our area has taken home multiple golden demons when competeing against the adults, and he's only been painting for about 6 months. Age has very little to do with painting talent, what matters is the amount of practice and dedication you put into developing the skills.

[Inquisitor =D=]

Your painting foo is good but it must be sharpened.

 

Don't be afraid of detail work. Rivets, lights, scripture, all of it goes into making a wonderful model. I know people look at my models because they are curious, what little thing did I add to make it stand out. Could be as simple as scripture on the purity seals or multi-colored lights on the auspex. I wish I had an example but all of my hobby is packed for the move.

 

Also, I think you need to brighten up your colors, or some of them anyway. More specifically your reds. Even for a crimson fist that's dark. It may just be the picture but I could hardly tell the champion's hand was red at all. And the eyes, again not sure if its the picture but they seem to blend into non-existence, they should "pop" so to speak.

 

Just take your time and don't stress it. And keep us updated. :D

 

=]D[=

[DeffWolf]

this is really goo feedback guys, i appreciate it. anyways, do you think the High Lords will allow me to post pictures that aren't Space Marine to show my improving talent (well, hopefully)? im soon going to be working on a space marine veteran - and tomorrow, i will hopefully buy a pin vice and a razor saw to sharpen up my models and take away mold lines. If anyone else wants to see, I have several other pics of more crimson fists of the same standard, if a bit worse. Just pm me if you'd like or post on here and I'm sure I can find 'em.

[Karitas]

I use a scalpel to clean mold lines. sometimes a file. the pin vice and saw are generally for much larger jobs:)

 

i would suggest you try to drybrush a little less and look more into washes inititally, then blending to try and smoothen out some of the surfaces and transitions, but then i've only recently got back into doingg this myself, i'm sure there are others around with better words to offer.

 

i think the best advice is always, keep trying and keep striving to improve, which you clearly are doing, so kudos to you.

 

my mini's didnt look that good when i was 14 :)

 

EDIT

 

while i was pondering my words, other have said them :/

[Pig Of Sparta]

The mini's you posted look pretty good, but I agree with djkest, Dry Brushing isn't really the best technique for painting power armour. Don't get me wrong it does give a nice 'worn' effect, but I think you could achieve more using smooth layers of paint to create the same effects. Don't be afraid to thin your paints, and although you might not have time left before Golden Daemon (I forget when it is) it could be worth your while painting a few 'practice' minis using the specific colours you want to use on your entry, which will make it easier when you come to actually paint it. Good luck with your entry, and as Inquisitor =D= said, keep us updated.

 

James

[Bigger-than-Jesus]

Look up the article on glazes in the librarium, it looks like it could help you rediculously lol. And don't underestimate youngblood entries, it's harder than it seems lol(happened me, really knocked me down a peg). If there's a local painting competition, enter it with a random mini. Then compare what the winning mini had that your's didn't and try to at least match it, if not beat it. But TRY IN STAGES! If you try a minis worth of off the wall stuff, chances are you'll be dissappointed, so with every mini you paint, try a little more of a certain technique then you have before. Trust me, you'll notice the difference considerably.

[Polmaymol]

You paint really well to start with but to improve you should try with non-drybrush techniques and try them in more dramatic poses. By the way i'm entering young bloods as well!