Ultramarines Dreadnought and Rhino

[em_en_oh_pee]

I just did these for an online commission. No, he didn't send me the doors, nor was I asked to drill out barrels.

http://grimdark.weebly.com/uploads/3/4/4/9/3449772/9373823_orig.jpg

http://grimdark.weebly.com/uploads/3/4/4/9/3449772/7554874_orig.jpg

http://grimdark.weebly.com/uploads/3/4/4/9/3449772/6077798_orig.jpg

[RagingGriffon]

Not bad, but drill the multimelta!

[Espada Azul]

The Rhino looks great, but while it might be a fault of the camera, it looks like the Dread was lathered rather thickly with paint.

[em_en_oh_pee]

Not bad, but drill the multimelta!

 

As I said, it is a commission. I am paid to paint, not drill out barrels.

 

Also, the Dreadnought paint looks the same as the Rhino, but the pictures seem to always blur on that Dreadnought. That is the second set of pictures I have taken of it, too. I think I just need a new camera, but I am going to do another round of shots tomorrow.

[Capt. Lysander]

I do like the rhino- captures the atmosphere really well.

[Wolf Guard Dansef]

Agreed. The Rhino looks excellent, but the Dreadnought is looking a little 'plain'. Better pics always help, but I think they'll still show it as lacking in detail.

[em_en_oh_pee]

Exactly how much detail would you think suitable for a tabletop quality paintjob? That is all these are, is tabletop.

 

On a side note, I figured out the issue with my camera. Seems it was focusing on the base, which is closer. That blurred out the body. I will take some more pictures later, if I can find a suitable light source.

[Wolf Guard Dansef]

What I meant by detail was maybe a little scroll work on the leg parchment or a different colour to 'frame' the Sarcophagus. It would take very little time and effort but I think would make a big difference :P I think you've done great work, but the Dreadnought just looks a little unfinished/bland to me.

 

I'll look forward to seeing the updated pics :lol:

[Lavaman]

Well... You've gone to the effort of weathing and freehanding the rhino top hatch, why not do something with the scroll? and drill out the barrels & exhausts. The tank also doesn't look very well put together and there are mold lines present all over the place! I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you, tabletop or not.

 

edit: just to add to my comments. Why do you not have a suitable light source for the pictures? Surely, everyone who wants to paint well should own a decent lamp, sort it out.

[em_en_oh_pee]

Well... You've gone to the effort of weathing and freehanding the rhino top hatch, why not do something with the scroll? and drill out the barrels & exhausts. The tank also doesn't look very well put together and there are mold lines present all over the place! I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you, tabletop or not.

 

edit: just to add to my comments. Why do you not have a suitable light source for the pictures? Surely, everyone who wants to paint well should own a decent lamp, sort it out.

 

Are you serious?

 

I did not assemble the models. They were sent to me already put together. Also, I was not asked to drill out holes, file down mold lines, or anything. In fact, they were primed when I received them. I was paid to paint them to a tabletop/gaming quality, which they are.

 

As for light sources, I have suitable lighting and a terrible camera. Considering this is my first online commission and I have sunk not a penny into resources yet, as I have no start-up money, I make do. Not everyone is so critical as yourself, despite the fact these models are obviously suitable tabletop quality for a very, very reasonable price.

 

I don't mind honest criticism at all, since I am a traditional painter by trade, but I expect folks to be a bit reasonable and not make assumptions that lead to comments such as "... I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you..."

[Thantoes]

Well... You've gone to the effort of weathing and freehanding the rhino top hatch, why not do something with the scroll? and drill out the barrels & exhausts. The tank also doesn't look very well put together and there are mold lines present all over the place! I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you, tabletop or not.

 

edit: just to add to my comments. Why do you not have a suitable light source for the pictures? Surely, everyone who wants to paint well should own a decent lamp, sort it out.

 

Dude, no need to get nasty. Constructive criticism this isnt....

 

A good Commision painter, like a good wedding photographer, does exactly what he is asked to do. No more and no less. He does not get creative. He doesnt do the things he wants to do or "thinks" will be what the client wants.

 

These are fine. They are done to exactly what the OP has stated which is a good table top standard. They are better than 99% of minis I see on the table. If there are mold lines etc that was down to the owner. I could understand the comments if the OP had recieved the minis in an unassembled state and then neglected the mold lines etc.

 

With the models and specs given, I think that the paint job is more than adequate. Its also nice to know that an Ultramarine player out somewhere out there will have nice toys to play with :lol:

[greatcrusade08]

Well... You've gone to the effort of weathing and freehanding the rhino top hatch, why not do something with the scroll? and drill out the barrels & exhausts. The tank also doesn't look very well put together and there are mold lines present all over the place! I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you, tabletop or not.

 

edit: just to add to my comments. Why do you not have a suitable light source for the pictures? Surely, everyone who wants to paint well should own a decent lamp, sort it out.

 

Dude, no need to get nasty. Constructive criticism this isnt....

 

A good Commision painter, like a good wedding photographer, does exactly what he is asked to do. No more and no less. He does not get creative. He doesnt do the things he wants to do or "thinks" will be what the client wants.

 

These are fine. They are done to exactly what the OP has stated which is a good table top standard. They are better than 99% of minis I see on the table. If there are mold lines etc that was down to the owner. I could understand the comments if the OP had recieved the minis in an unassembled state and then neglected the mold lines etc.

 

With the models and specs given, I think that the paint job is more than adequate. Its also nice to know that an Ultramarine player out somewhere out there will have nice toys to play with :lol:

 

I second this, id be more than happy to use his services, especially considering how much more difficult vehicles are than single minis to paint.

 

Give the guy a break the painting is good, regardless of mold lines and the such

[ephrael]

Well... You've gone to the effort of weathing and freehanding the rhino top hatch, why not do something with the scroll? and drill out the barrels & exhausts. The tank also doesn't look very well put together and there are mold lines present all over the place! I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you, tabletop or not.

 

edit: just to add to my comments. Why do you not have a suitable light source for the pictures? Surely, everyone who wants to paint well should own a decent lamp, sort it out.

 

Are you serious?

 

I did not assemble the models. They were sent to me already put together. Also, I was not asked to drill out holes, file down mold lines, or anything. In fact, they were primed when I received them. I was paid to paint them to a tabletop/gaming quality, which they are.

 

As for light sources, I have suitable lighting and a terrible camera. Considering this is my first online commission and I have sunk not a penny into resources yet, as I have no start-up money, I make do. Not everyone is so critical as yourself, despite the fact these models are obviously suitable tabletop quality for a very, very reasonable price.

 

I don't mind honest criticism at all, since I am a traditional painter by trade, but I expect folks to be a bit reasonable and not make assumptions that lead to comments such as "... I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you..."

 

If you don't want criticism you may want to let people know that in your first post. It seems to me that your attitude towards this criticism shows that you are just wanting to advertise your painting service here, not get feedback. As for your whole "I just get paid to paint" attitude,, you might want to put in just a little extra effort in your work. I understand not wanting to do anything "extra" for "free" but consider this. These photos represent what people who want to consider hiring you can expect from your work. Obvious mold lines on a painted model generally look terrible. Taking a minute or two to remove them just makes your end result look that much better and doesn't really involve much more work from you. Secondly, painting over someone else's primer doesn't seem very professional to me. You have no idea of the quality of the primer they are using compared to what you would use and that definitely will have an effect on your finished product. In the end the details are between you and your client to work out anyway, we are just trying to give you our opinions here so take them for what you will. This is a very supportive atmosphere and most people really want to help everyone they can. I feel that if you are open to suggestions and all types of criticism you will benefit from it anyway. Good luck with your business.

[nurglespuss]

Great bright looking modles. A nice clean, undetailed paintjob. Itmay be the photo, but the pipes/scroll work on the dread don't look great in that shot.

 

One more thing though, its not permitted to advertise painting services on these forums.

 

Thanks.

[em_en_oh_pee]

Well... You've gone to the effort of weathing and freehanding the rhino top hatch, why not do something with the scroll? and drill out the barrels & exhausts. The tank also doesn't look very well put together and there are mold lines present all over the place! I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you, tabletop or not.

 

edit: just to add to my comments. Why do you not have a suitable light source for the pictures? Surely, everyone who wants to paint well should own a decent lamp, sort it out.

 

Are you serious?

 

I did not assemble the models. They were sent to me already put together. Also, I was not asked to drill out holes, file down mold lines, or anything. In fact, they were primed when I received them. I was paid to paint them to a tabletop/gaming quality, which they are.

 

As for light sources, I have suitable lighting and a terrible camera. Considering this is my first online commission and I have sunk not a penny into resources yet, as I have no start-up money, I make do. Not everyone is so critical as yourself, despite the fact these models are obviously suitable tabletop quality for a very, very reasonable price.

 

I don't mind honest criticism at all, since I am a traditional painter by trade, but I expect folks to be a bit reasonable and not make assumptions that lead to comments such as "... I'd be unhappy if i'd have commissioned you..."

 

If you don't want criticism you may want to let people know that in your first post. It seems to me that your attitude towards this criticism shows that you are just wanting to advertise your painting service here, not get feedback. As for your whole "I just get paid to paint" attitude,, you might want to put in just a little extra effort in your work. I understand not wanting to do anything "extra" for "free" but consider this. These photos represent what people who want to consider hiring you can expect from your work. Obvious mold lines on a painted model generally look terrible. Taking a minute or two to remove them just makes your end result look that much better and doesn't really involve much more work from you. Secondly, painting over someone else's primer doesn't seem very professional to me. You have no idea of the quality of the primer they are using compared to what you would use and that definitely will have an effect on your finished product. In the end the details are between you and your client to work out anyway, we are just trying to give you our opinions here so take them for what you will. This is a very supportive atmosphere and most people really want to help everyone they can. I feel that if you are open to suggestions and all types of criticism you will benefit from it anyway. Good luck with your business.

 

When I take commissions, I do exactly as I am asked to do. The models were assembled and primed. I was not asked to do any work on the models beyond painting. If someone does not make clear or obvious that they want me to do any extra modelling, I should not make the assumption. That is not how doing commissions work. As I said, I am a traditional painter, so I suppose I am adopting my basic method from that. If someone gessos a canvas and asks me to paint it and it was suitably applied, why would I go back over it? The priming job on these was very nice, actually, so it would be silly for me to strip and re-apply. Some folks send me unprimed, which I prefer, and I do prime them myself. As for doing "extra" for "free", I try to offer a higher quality level for a reasonable cost, so I think it is fair.

 

Do excuse the pictures of the Dreadnought. I didn't get a chance to get better pictures, because I had to send them off. My camera focused on the base, of all things, blurring out the upper half of the Dreadnought. I have a few more commissions with Dreadnoughts, so I will hopefully have a few better examples. I am really excited because I have a higher quality Venerable to do in the near future.

 

As for the advertising thing, my banner is all I have, which is because that is where my gallery is. I don't specifically advertise here. I just posted some Space Marine-related pictures. I figured they would be more at home here than anywhere else.

[Bartali]

When I take commissions, I do exactly as I am asked to do. The models were assembled and primed. I was not asked to do any work on the models beyond painting. If someone does not make clear or obvious that they want me to do any extra modelling, I should not make the assumption. That is not how doing commissions work.

 

The problem is, everyone who puts photos of commission work onto sites like this is in some way advertising their services. If I did commissions and knew I was going to post these up as an example of my work, I'd have gone the extra mile with the drilling, filing, detailing etc regardless of if the customer payed for it or not. Or just not post them up If I didn't want to do the extra.

[1stCoBattleBro]

Just checked website & gallery ... nice work.

[ShinyRhino]

Looks like some nice, clean, basic paint work here. The lenswork on the Dread's multimelta arm and Rhino hatches are very very good.

 

I think what the folks going on about the barrel-drilling and mold line removal are trying to put forth is that when you're new to the commission scene and trying to make a name for yourself, you should make the attempt to go above and beyond, and stun your initial clients with top-notch work. The little things like "Hey, you sent this model with undrilled multimelta barrels, would you like me to dril them for you?" will go a long way towards your reputation, whereas things like "Ah, this guy didn't clean his mold lines, so I didn't care to fix them for him. Who cares? They're tabletop models painted cheap." will only detract fromone's startup rep.

 

Word of mouth is EVERYTHING in the commission business, and I think that's what the critics are trying to hammer home. Always put your best foot forward, as the saying goes.

[Sir Clausel]

I must say that I agree on both parts.

I do not believe that you dont want the critisim here and only did put up the pics for advertisement. Because how esle would you get better?

On the part with the mold lines and drilled/undrilled barrels. For the mold lines I can see why you didnt remove them. You got the mini undercoated so I would asume its how he want the mini to be before paint. Same thing goes for the drilling of barrels and the fact that not all drill them. And I know a lot think that at least an army should look alike. If half the army got drilled barrels and half did not it would look stupid.

Also I must asume he have seen pics of the mini as you went allong with the painting? At that time he could have asked you to do some of the stuff you other guys have seen and talk about.

Maybe he wants mold lines on his minis. Im sure some does. Not all people are the same.

 

Also on another note: Most comments in here are personale preferences guys. People are different :huh:

[Deadlight]

If i was asked to paint for commission, then my customer service skills would kick in and i would contact the client and ask them what they wanted to do about the mould lines and barrel drilling.

 

If you are posting images on internet forums advertising your commission service painting, surely you would only post your best work, for potential new clients. There are lots of people out there who are painting for commisssion, who would ask the client, or use their iniative and drill the barrels and prepare the work surface (scrape the mould lines) as a proffessional practice. If your competitor is doing that as part of the service and you dont, who would you use?

 

Also if you want your customer to come back and use you again, you should go the extra mile and really impress them

 

Unfortunately your negative response to the constructive criticism received here is probably damaging your business. From reading this topic, there is absolutely no chance of me ever using your service. I was so turned off, i never bother following the link to your site, and i never will, which is sad as you might have some awesome stuff on there, but i will never know.

 

Its a pity, considering the actual painting you did do was certainly to table top standard.

 

Good luck with it though, and please understand that the people on this forum generally want to help, and if you take this constructive criticism on board, it will actuall improve your work and business.

[nurglespuss]

As for the advertising thing, my banner is all I have, which is because that is where my gallery is. I don't specifically advertise here. I just posted some Space Marine-related pictures. I figured they would be more at home here than anywhere else.

 

If anyone is looking for painting services, you can always take a look at my website - Grimdark Painting.

 

How is that NOT advertising?

 

If anyone wants to see more, you can always take a look at my website - Grimdark Painting

 

Would be just offering your website....

[Davey80y]

I pretty much only do commission work these days, and I gotta admit I ALWAYS try to get rid of mould lines (although some always seem to still be left I'm sure they grow back) and drill the barrels, even if the models come primed. Its a bit of a no brainer really and if i were you i'd make it part of your basic service.

 

Like has been said here these mini's represent your skills as a painter so putting up bad pic's or unprep'ed minis will make people walk past and chose the next commission painter there a bloody lot of em out there , these are your shop window you need to dress it up properly.....especially as your just starting its all about reputation and the repeat business :-)

 

 

other than that the one's on your website look good as does the rhino I'd give the dread another pass with the highlighting..... table quality or not......

[em_en_oh_pee]

Thanks for those of you who worded your critique a bit better, I appreciate the responses and will take them into consideration on future works.

[Davey80y]

future works

 

 

so whats the next job?? :-)

[em_en_oh_pee]

I have a larger Salamanders project on my workbench. As well as a custom Chapter (Orange/Blue colors), but I am awaiting final confirmation on how the color scheme should be painted - much thanks to B&C for the SM Painter, which leaves little room for error in interpretation. Next after that are some more Marines, done in a tongue-in-cheek pink color scheme. After that, I should hear back from a guy with a huge Space Wolves order who is currently gathering the miniatures and giving me a bit of time to get caught up.

 

If I can find an iota of free time between those projects, I have my own 4000pt Imperial Guard army to paint and a 35pt Retribution army to paint up, as well as a future WoC army I am going to purchase in a few weeks or so.

 

I will try to get some pictures up of the Sallies soon, because the guy invested in some Chapterhouse Studios stuff, which looks awesome and it makes it a lot more fun to paint.