The Unrealistic Artist - 40K models

[theunrealisticartist]

Hi guys,

New to BoLS but I've been painting war-game models for a couple of years, especially 40K. In a spot of shameless self promotion (I've just started a new blog) I thought you'd like to see them!

I tend to airbrush and paint using techniques derived from the scale modelling community. I'm not really a big fan of shiny, factory fresh models and much prefer mine to look pretty weathered up, if not down right dilapidated… (see the Ork Bommer : ) ).

Anyway hope you like them. My plan on the blog is to start some free tutorials and guides but until then I'm happy to answer any questions you might have, so please drop me a line whenever you like.

cheers

Paul


Ork Bommer

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7575713342_ecbf57f471_c.jpg
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7575734868_aa94deef88_c.jpg
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7261/7575742248_aa16faa96e_c.jpg

Imperial Guard Valkyrie

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8509/8438185574_a5dd2819b1_c.jpg
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8096/8438194476_02156e3c47_c.jpg
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8086/8438194952_57eba43355_c.jpg

Tau Riptide

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7417/13953793697_3e0f3cfef0_c.jpg
https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2915/13953840150_311933559e_c.jpg
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7298/14137150101_07959b924b_c.jpg

[Brother Chaplain Kage]

The Valk and the Riptide are gorgeous, but for a lot of the paint chipping on the Bommer, I think you went overboard with the sponge and you can clearly make out a pattern in it.

[Andrew Perry]

You sure that's sponged, Kage? Looks like it could be salt- or hairspray-weathered.

[euansmith]

Very nice stuff. That Riptide is especially menacing.

[Wolfshade]

I like them, but I prefer my models shiney fresh into a campaign

[Darren Richardson]

loving that Valky, complete with fully detailed interior with lift off roof, now that's modelling skill and dedication for you....

I just glued my Rhino doors shut because I got fed up with them flapping open all the time :rolleyes:

[Psychosplodge]

I love the flyers. Though ignore Wolfies shiny Ork theory, add MORE DAMAGE!!!

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

I love it personally, I'm a sucker for the hardcore weathered look. The Riptide especially looks great!

[theunrealisticartist]

...for a lot of the paint chipping on the Bommer, I think you went overboard with the sponge and you can clearly make out a pattern in it.

@BC Kage I would accept that criticism, as it's a pretty accurate description of what happened. Great fun to do though! : ) You've got a good eye as most people don't spot that...

The pictures are in chronological order, with the bommer being the first vehicle I ever tackled and the riptide being the most recent, so hopefully you can see some progression.

When I paint up another Orky subject I'll go just as crazy with the rust and overall neglect, but I'll have more knowledge of how to apply the paint chips in a realistic way.

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated.

[theunrealisticartist]

Spot on, it was several tiny sponges endlessly dabbing on paint with some brushwork as well. Took blinkin' ages! : )

[theunrealisticartist]

Thanks eaunsmith! The Riptide is probably my favourite I think, I love 'walkery mechy' stuff

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Thanks Wolfshade, I'm a big fan of the techniques used for military scale modelling, especially in dioramas and the like, so thats probably where that aesthetic comes from for me.

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Cheers Darren, that Valk nearly drove me crazy for a while, there was so much work involved and it all had to be done in a particular order etc… Glad I did it though and if/when I do another I want to incorporate those Forgeworld Elysian drop troops into the model too. Might have to brush up on the figure painting skills a bit first though…

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Cheers Psychosplodge : )

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Thanks Asymmetrical, glad you like it. I'm planning a Tau Broadside or 2 in the same style soon.

[40k_slimez]

One question - why are the big bomz on the Bomma weathered too? Kinda sticks out like a sore thumb.
I like the weathering effect - but I think its a little overboard.

[theunrealisticartist]

One question - why are the big bomz on the Bomma weathered too? Kinda sticks out like a sore thumb.
I like the weathering effect - but I think its a little overboard.

Hi 40k_slimez, that would be my lack of experience sticking out : ) The Bommer was my first vehicle model but oddly one of the ones I'm most proud of and had the most fun with. Not to everyone's taste, admittedly, but it started me down the road to the Valk and the riptide so each piece should be getting better the more experience I get, hopefully...

[Pauly Addams]

Superb, looking forward to updates here

Also, you mentioned tutorials? Are you set up to do videos? I'd be very interested to see your techniques in action, mastering weathering is at the top of my list for this hobby.

[Meph]

Well, your sponging has clearly improved over the three model. Me likes! I really like the subtlety on the Riptide, but I'm especially fond of the colour tones on the Valkyrie, even if the pattern on the Riptide is better. Also, the rust on the pipes of the Bommer is very cool. I'm familiar with weathering techniques but I'm curious to hear how you achieved your effect. :)

[Neil Kay]

great work! as an ork player i particularly love the bommer! :)

[theunrealisticartist]

...Also, you mentioned tutorials? Are you set up to do videos? I'd be very interested to see your techniques in action, mastering weathering is at the top of my list for this hobby.

Thanks Pauly, not sure how the tutorials are going to go yet. Ideally video, but I want it to look as good as possible and I don't really have the setup for that yet. So in the meantime I'm looking at pdf style e-books with a whole bunch of content. They're a little way off but drop me a line if there's anything specific you want to chat about.

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Cheers Meph! It's been a while since I did this one but the rust on the pipes was a base of Matt black (any one will do) then a heavy dry brush of lead belcher (or equivalent) followed by another very light dry brush of mithril silver (or equivalent). Then I went over the joins with Scorched Brown for the old rust and then Vallejo orange brown for the fresher 'orangier' rust.

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Thanks Neil, I definitely want to do more Orky stuff, it's great fun. Very liberating! : )

[40k_slimez]

Hi 40k_slimez, that would be my lack of experience sticking out : ) The Bommer was my first vehicle model but oddly one of the ones I'm most proud of and had the most fun with. Not to everyone's taste, admittedly, but it started me down the road to the Valk and the riptide so each piece should be getting better the more experience I get, hopefully...

Your certainly getting better and beter, and its a squigtillion times better then I can manage ;)
If you added battle damage on top of the weathering on your ork stuff it would rock!

Keep it up :)

[RGilbert26]

Very impressive work, any more Tau to come?

Any Space Marines?

[theunrealisticartist]

...any more Tau to come?

Any Space Marines?


Thanks RG, No Tau lined up at the moment but I am working on a Storm Raven. Should be ready by the end of the week I hope.

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Thanks 40k, I'll do my best : )

[theunrealisticartist]

Here's that Storm Raven.

It was much more of a challenge than I bargained for but finally got it finished late last night:

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5518/14311015635_c17db624ec_c.jpg
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5594/14331214293_1f67d7305d_c.jpg
https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3801/14287871716_c5d370682a_c.jpg
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5114/14124494757_fe6e75eb64_c.jpg
https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3767/14309148482_c01485f545_c.jpg

I'll try and take some more pics this weekend. These didn't come out as well as I wanted, probably because I was so bleary eyed after the build : ) Hope you like!

[Pullo]

That is rather amazing. Looks like you brought a FW book to life!

[Mike Lawler]

This is another one of those cases where I absolutely adore the paintjob but can't stand the model. Amazing job to the artist, this really is brilliant work!

[smurfORnot]

WOW

Simply stuning!

Could you share which colors did you use for storm raven?

[unwashed]

Very nicely done! I would be interested to hear what your thinking was on the process of painting this model.

[theunrealisticartist]

...Looks like you brought a FW book to life!

Thats very kind, thanks Pullo! The 1st Forge World book is a major inspiration for me amongst others, so thats a very flattering description. : )

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... I absolutely adore the paintjob but can't stand the model...

Cheers Mike! I would tend to agree. I was in 2 minds about taking this on as the model is rather 'toy-like'. Interestingly a guy on Facebook mentioned a Chapterhouse conversion kit which might improve things a bit:

http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/TRU_Scale_Conver_4e61449c8527b-500x500_zps35b6cc30.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/SRturrets-500x500_zpse102e17b.jpg

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...Could you share which colors did you use for storm raven?


Very nicely done! I would be interested to hear what your thinking was on the process of painting this model.

Thanks both!

I wanted a very de-saturated blue, a kind of moody, cinematic colour instead of the bright shiny GW ultramarine blue.

I was inspired a while ago by this guy, who is AMAZING:

http://arsiesweb.com/2012/09/ultramarines-sternguard-step-by-step.html

so that pointed me in the right direction but I ended up using different colours.

First of all the whole thing was primed in black, then given a base of Vallejo Dark Sea Blue. For the next layer I mixed in some Vallejo Mediterranean Blue to the Dark Sea Blue (roughly 1 drop Med Blue for every 2 drops Dk Sea Blue). Then for the next layer I added a little Vallejo UK Azure and then the next layer I added some white (I forget the exact ratios) until I got the effect I wanted.

After that I added some lighter shades to the very small panels for variation added a dirty wash and some chipping. All the edges also got a rub-down with graphite to give that metallic feel.

Hope that sheds some light :)

I wish the guys on CMON were as enthusiastic as you lot! At the moment I'm barely scraping a 7!

[Kapsberger]

Wow! Very inspiring! I love the palette. Very minimalistic markings. Clean and clear. Any particular reason you're drawing the highlights from below? More dramatic effect?

[Deadlift]

I really like it, lovely colour modulation. The thing with CMoN is a lot of the critiques don't seem to appreciate airbrush work as much. Don't ask me why, I know it's as much involved in skill and effort as painting by brush.

Is this a stand alone piece or part of a larger project ?

[Meph]

The colour palette is awesome, very awesome. Almost makes me forgive you for not stucturally altering that fugly flying brick. ;)

[theunrealisticartist]

... Any particular reason you're drawing the highlights from below? More dramatic effect?

Thanks Kapsberger! I actually think I should have put more unit markings on now, just to honour the source material as much as anything. Highlights from below, as you say, is for effect. It helps to draw out the contrast between each panel and kind of gives the illusion of more details than this kit actually has… : )

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...The thing with CMoN is a lot of the critiques don't seem to appreciate airbrush work as much. Don't ask me why, I know it's as much involved in skill and effort as painting by brush.

Is this a stand alone piece or part of a larger project ?

Cheers Deadlift, much appreciated. Colour modulation is the funnest thing you can do with an airbrush IMO : )
Yeah, for some reason the majority of the CMON readership doesn't like 'realism' per se. I'm trying not to take it personally…

It was intended as a stand-alone but, it might look good with a Land raider and a few termies in the same scheme perhaps? Have to think on that one.

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The colour palette is awesome, very awesome. Almost makes me forgive you for not stucturally altering that fugly flying brick. ;)

LOL! Cheers Meph : ) I'll convert it next time I promise!

[Darren Richardson]

Lovely work on that bird, You really should do some more in that colour scheme, it looks great...

[theunrealisticartist]

Thanks Darren, I'm eyeing up that new GW Strike Force Ultra...

[Haighus]

I would love to see what you could do with an entire strike force! :) I like the Storm Raven a lot, although I feel like it could do with maybe a couple more unit markings of some sort. Or perhaps a name or battle honour, Ultras do love their names.

[theunrealisticartist]

I would love to see what you could do with an entire strike force! :) I like the Storm Raven a lot, although I feel like it could do with maybe a couple more unit markings of some sort. Or perhaps a name or battle honour, Ultras do love their names.

Cheers Haighus! I would agree with your crit regarding unit markings. It definitely needs something. I did think about it for a while but I wimped out when I realised I didn't know enough about the chapter history and organisation. Some homework to do there I think...

[Meph]

LOL! Cheers Meph : ) I'll convert it next time I promise!

Cool, I'll hold you to that! :D

[theunrealisticartist]

Just wanted to say thank you so much to Larry and the fine people at BoLS for posting pictures of my StormRaven on the showcase feature today. That was a real privilege and honour and after I saw it, I went round the rest of the day with a big smile on my face!

thanks again

Paul

[Krefey]

Some great work here. Loving that storm raven. I do like the more minimal weathering on it. I think the weathering on the ork bomma is fine as it suits their background to just have flying rust buckets :) It's when I see people do the same for Imperial vehicles that I think it's a bit excessive. But that's all personal taste.

[Bigred]

Just wanted to say thank you so much to Larry and the fine people at BoLS for posting pictures of my StormRaven on the showcase feature today. That was a real privilege and honour and after I saw it, I went round the rest of the day with a big smile on my face!

thanks again

Paul

You're welcome Paul - and thank you for sharing your skills with the BoLS community.

We are all waiting with bated breath for your next project :)

[theunrealisticartist]

Cheers Krefey! I agree the paint work should reflect the source material on the subject in most cases. My preference is for a contemporary military style, which 'should' broadly fit within the 40K universe. I like to try and make it bridge that gap between realism and fantasy, Forge World style being the best benchmark IMHO.

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...We are all waiting with bated breath for your next project :)

Blimey! No pressure then! : )

[Azhrarnx]

Amazing painting work! I will need to repaint many of my mini's as my skill slowly improves. This gives me some inspiration of the rusty decay Ork machines have.

[Haighus]

Cheers Haighus! I would agree with your crit regarding unit markings. It definitely needs something. I did think about it for a while but I wimped out when I realised I didn't know enough about the chapter history and organisation. Some homework to do there I think...
If you can get your hands on a copy of Insignium Astartes, it will tell you everything you need to know- great bit of background reading :) Unfortunately GW ignores half of the stuff in it nowadays when painting their models.

[theunrealisticartist]

Amazing painting work! I will need to repaint many of my mini's as my skill slowly improves. This gives me some inspiration of the rusty decay Ork machines have.

Thanks Azhranx! PM if you need any help!

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If you can get your hands on a copy of Insignium Astartes, it will tell you everything you need to know- great bit of background reading :) Unfortunately GW ignores half of the stuff in it nowadays when painting their models.

Awesome tip, many thanks Haighus. It would be good to stay true to the source material where possible.

[theunrealisticartist]

Here's the latest from the Unrealistic spray booth. I decided to go for a companion to my Tau Riptide and settled on the deceptively simple looking Devilfish. I went with pretty much the same paint scheme as the Riptide and weathered her up : )

Might have overcooked it with the 'sooty' vents at the front but all in all pretty pleased with result + she sits next to the Riptide really well. Love to hear your thoughts!

http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish1_zps8c6dfb42.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish2_zps178c024a.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish3_zps5f5e1d75.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish5_zpsdbe37e02.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish4_zpsc90e907f.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish6_zps16a8e7bb.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish8_zps47d0793a.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish10_zpsbd9d1e22.jpg
http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish12_zps935bd4a5.jpg

[Darren Richardson]

Oh she looks like a real combat machine, all grungey and muted in colour.

Love it!

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oh and yeah that book will help out a lot, sadly it's a print on demand book only these days, £20 direct from the Black Library (http://www.blacklibrary.com/warhammer-40000/Insignium-Astartes-Print-On-Demand.html) themselves.

[theunrealisticartist]

Oh she looks like a real combat machine, all grungey and muted in colour.

Love it!

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oh and yeah that book will help out a lot, sadly it's a print on demand book only these days, £20 direct from the Black Library (http://www.blacklibrary.com/warhammer-40000/Insignium-Astartes-Print-On-Demand.html) themselves.

Thanks Darren! Glad you like it : )

Cheers for the link as well. Think I'll save up my pennies and get that, or search for copy on eBay maybe?

[LittleMen]

Nice!

[A.j. Heiskell]

Great paint job!! I would love to get my grubby green hands on it and loot it into something useful !!!:D

[Mike Lawler]

Ooh.. shiny (oh wait) It looks like you pre-shaded and hit it with a khaki-ish color..then sponged on some dark brown for the damage? Is that far off from the technique? I would like to emulate this effect so any insight would be helpful :D Great work.

[Harley]

Great work, some of the best I have seen!

Do you have any predominantly white vehicles you have done? I'm curious to see your method with a stark color like that, also a grey knight vehicle would be interesting to see.

[Netsurfer733]

I thought that was a drawing at first...wow.

[theunrealisticartist]

Nice!

Cheers LittleMen!

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Great paint job!! I would love to get my grubby green hands on it and loot it into something useful !!!:D

Thanks Heiskell! A Tau/Ork hybrid. Now there's an idea! <writes down on list of cool stuff to do>

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Ooh.. shiny (oh wait) It looks like you pre-shaded and hit it with a khaki-ish color..then sponged on some dark brown for the damage? Is that far off from the technique? I would like to emulate this effect so any insight would be helpful :D Great work.

Hi Mike, it was 'zenithal priming' which is kind of like pre shading I guess but more like colour or tonal modulation if you're familiar with the technique?

Then it was hit with Vallejo Model Color German Camo Beige, and highlighted with the same colour + white. Flory dark dirt wash for contrast and Vallejo Model Color German Cam Black Brown sponged on for the chipping. Vents and recessed were lightly airbrushed with very thin black for that soot effect.

So you're pretty much spot on! : )
I'll be posting a mini tutorial on my blog over the next few days so keep your eye out for that.

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Great work, some of the best I have seen!

Do you have any predominantly white vehicles you have done? I'm curious to see your method with a stark color like that, also a grey knight vehicle would be interesting to see.

Thanks Harley, I think this is the lightest colour I've done so far… As you no-doubt know white and black are extremely difficult to get right as there's nowhere else to go tonally. Might have a go and then the results will dictate whether or not I show it off… : ) Grey Knights might be an interesting project too.

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I thought that was a drawing at first...wow.

Thanks Netsurfer, I will take that as a compliment : )

[theunrealisticartist]

Hi guys, I've written a tutorial on the techniques I used to paint the Devilfish if you're interested?

http://www.theunrealisticartist.com/devilfish-tutorial

It doesn't go 'too' in-depth but should give a nice broad guide to those that want it.

Essentially it's how I got from this:

http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/IMG_2005_zpsaca08495.jpg

to this:

http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/paulmckayuk/devilfish1_zpsf63276fd.jpg

Let me know what you think!