Quick Question

[MrPickles]

so the model below is getting 6.9.

View attachment 7885

below is mine @ a 6.2. just wondering what makes it better? i will admit that his base is alot better but personally i think my painting is alot better/cleaner etc. will thrwoing on a bunch of brown blotches and painting sloppy win me higher marks?

View attachment 7886

 

[10 ball]

Blotches, Sloppy painting? - steady on this is someones work, this is not the best way to get advice.

 

[MrPickles]

Blotches, Sloppy painting? - steady on this is someones work, this is not the best way to get advice.

i didnt even say that, his work is great. i just asked a question. im asking if the majority thinks a messier paint job with like "mud" and stuff everywhere looks "better"?

say you were paying money. you would pay more money for the one that looks messy with lots of mud all over the place. i see the ratings so now i wanna see what people say in here.

 

[Arma]

I agree, be careful when criticising! Remember ratings are extremely subjective and you shouldn't even be worrying about .6/.7 of a mark. Whether mud looks better or not depends ENTIRELY on what your painting and for what means.

Saying that, your minis base is what let's it down... also his highlights make his mini pop much more.. your highlights need taking further.

 

[DannyVasquez]

If you look at some of the higher end pieces by the likes of Haley, Ijee, Picster or even Cexwish. They put as much effort in the base as the model itself. So you cannot underestimate the value of a good base.

I think if you re-based your model then you will surely see a jump in your score.

 

[Einion]

Remember above anything else, it's not just the paintjob that's being rated - it's Cool Mini Or Not, not Cool Paintjob Or Not.

Also, some people vote purely with their gut: if they like blue, they're likely to vote something painted blue higher; if they like 40,000K they'll vote a SM higher than a similar figure from another maker, etc. etc.

Einion

 

[airhead]

The top mini has some nice blends and shading - from the sword to the taberd/loincloth.
Your's appears to have a nice wash with no highlights.

The top mini is very matt finished.
Your's has a very glossy look in the front photo.

The top mini has a well planned base that compliments the mini.
You have some model railroad ballast chunked on.
Your base begs a question - why are there no white rocks under his foot?
Why are the rocks all the same size?
Why is there a definite break between the black and white rocks?
Then, wash and highlight your rocks to make them look more 'real'.

I'm not sure what those things are on his knee joints, but I like the way you painted them.

 

[SkelettetS]

i believe the short explenation is that its probably not the same 50+ people that have voted on the minis

 

[PegaZus]

Yeah, I'm going to be reinforcing some of the previous comments. And reading back over what I've written, I'm really rather harsh. It's not intentionally mean, so accept that this is constructive criticism before continuing.

Glossy paint and the base would be a full 1 pt score lower from me to begin with. The base looks like he's jumping into the bottom of an aquarium. The hip joints seem to be not fully painted with some of the red in several places as well, so that would detract. It's also (in my not-40k-fanboy-so-really-don't-know opinion) a plain-jane space marine when compared to the nearly-medieval knight like appearance of the first.

You've also got some bright, slightly garish colors. The orange and red really jump out and seem to clash for me. I'm not sure why I would say so, but it unsettles me a bit. It seems like they're fighting with each other. I also would have made the eyes as bright green as the gems. As they are now, they seem to fade into the OSL and become one, which throws me off a bit.

And one last thing to mention is that the first forward looking pose of the mini is very, very aggressive. OMG!!!11!! He's trying to kill me with his gun! It's not something that I consciously looked for, but did finally notice going back and forth many times. The middle image may have been better to have started off with, and maybe the same view from the other side replacing the front view.

Anyway, that's my thoughts on it, harsh as they may be. Hang in there. It's just people voting without any real consequences.

And to lighten the mood a bit after that drubbing of your mini, the other mini does have a skull on the base. I mean, a skull! What are the odds?! +1 for that, right?

 

[Elric2k]

9 times out of 10 its going to be a preference thing with whoever is voting at that moment. I can say your base falls very short and is hindering the dynamic feeling of your mini. Also, the photo seems bad. The way you present your mini is as important as any painting or basing you do when you present it for voting. Color balance and the right light placement would really help to show any highlighting you've done. I'm not sure if its the picture or the mini but the red looks flat to me, and doesn't work well with the bright orange stuff on his chest.

I've gone back and forth quite a few times and the one thing that keeps popping out at me is the quality of the photo. My advice is tomake sure you can do your paintjob justice. I still struggle with that, it is not an easy thing.

 

[airhead]

...the one thing that keeps popping out at me is the quality of the photo...

This site may not be "Cool Macro Mode or Not", but your photo skills have to be top notch to break the 7 barrier.

You can have a 9+ mini with a crappy photo and it will do good to score a 5.
You can have a 5 mini with a great photo and it will score a 5.

Hope that helps....

You photos are not bad. Is the mini that glossy or did you pump too much light on the subject? (been there, done that, bought a photo diffuser cube, changed type of lighting, bought a new camera, etc....)

6+ is not bad around here, no matter how you cut it. Breaking 7's requires not only a cool paint job, but a cool mini to start with and a great base all photo'ed well.

 

[MrPickles]

Yeah, I'm going to be reinforcing some of the previous comments. And reading back over what I've written, I'm really rather harsh. It's not intentionally mean, so accept that this is constructive criticism before continuing.

Glossy paint and the base would be a full 1 pt score lower from me to begin with. The base looks like he's jumping into the bottom of an aquarium. The hip joints seem to be not fully painted with some of the red in several places as well, so that would detract. It's also (in my not-40k-fanboy-so-really-don't-know opinion) a plain-jane space marine when compared to the nearly-medieval knight like appearance of the first.

You've also got some bright, slightly garish colors. The orange and red really jump out and seem to clash for me. I'm not sure why I would say so, but it unsettles me a bit. It seems like they're fighting with each other. I also would have made the eyes as bright green as the gems. As they are now, they seem to fade into the OSL and become one, which throws me off a bit.

And one last thing to mention is that the first forward looking pose of the mini is very, very aggressive. OMG!!!11!! He's trying to kill me with his gun! It's not something that I consciously looked for, but did finally notice going back and forth many times. The middle image may have been better to have started off with, and maybe the same view from the other side replacing the front view.

Anyway, that's my thoughts on it, harsh as they may be. Hang in there. It's just people voting without any real consequences.

And to lighten the mood a bit after that drubbing of your mini, the other mini does have a skull on the base. I mean, a skull! What are the odds?! +1 for that, right?

no glossey paint. and no varnish. the top layer is blood red mixed with blazing orange. GW paint isnt totally matte but it's not that glossey either. i guess i pumped too much light onto it like someone already said.

painting the eyes is just a nightmare for me. hardest part of the model by far. maybe i need to buy some better brushes. i'm using GW brushes right now and they prob arnt the best. i dont want to keep putting more and more paint on the eyes when it just seems to not look anybetter or even make things worse. For OSL the center part making the glow need to be the brightest part? painting them a dark green like the gemstones would make an even worse effect.

 

[MrPickles]

The top mini has some nice blends and shading - from the sword to the taberd/loincloth.
Your's appears to have a nice wash with no highlights.

The top mini is very matt finished.
Your's has a very glossy look in the front photo.

The top mini has a well planned base that compliments the mini.
You have some model railroad ballast chunked on.
Your base begs a question - why are there no white rocks under his foot?
Why are the rocks all the same size?
Why is there a definite break between the black and white rocks?
Then, wash and highlight your rocks to make them look more 'real'.

I'm not sure what those things are on his knee joints, but I like the way you painted them.

no highlights on the red? look at the jumppack and tell me there is no highlights. thats as red as it gets without slopping orange all over the place. i actually love the red. it's rich and deep.

 

[Arma]

You asked for C&C then get very defensive. Learning to accept C&C and applying what you've learnt will 100% ABSOLUTELY make you a better painter. I like the red and it's probably the photo but it's not deep enough or highlighted enough.

 

[MrPickles]

View attachment 7908

what's your take on this? the customer wanted a generic librarian that could be used with any space marine army.

maybe i should line in some orange on the red similiar to what i did with this blue to make it pop more..

 

[kathrynloch]

This second mini just jumped head and shoulders above what you first posted. Aside from the aquarium base, (sorry, but the rocks just don't work for me) the blue really kicks some butt. The flesh tones are very nice and I really like the sword blade. The silver and red are the weakest points on the mini. Red is also difficult to highlight but you're right, it needs more pop on the shoulders. The silver is good, I can see the washes that you did to get the shading, but it needs more variation too. Did you use different silvers? Boltgun for shadows, chainmail for mid-tone, mithril for highlight? Also adding a wash or two of blue, green, and/or purple really helps silver metallic as well.

But ultimately, the voting is what it is. My griffon is getting tanked right now at a 5.9, so don't feel bad.

 

[Einion]

i'm using GW brushes right now and they prob arnt the best.

No probably here: they aren't. Again, cost is a factor with these too - it's extremely likely you could get a brush of equal quality for less money, or a better brush for about the same money.

painting the eyes is just a nightmare for me. hardest part of the model by far.... i dont want to keep putting more and more paint on the eyes when it just seems to not look anybetter or even make things worse.

This is something that'll become easier with practice and experience. Paint loadsa stuff; it's hard to do something a lot and not get better at it.

no highlights on the red? look at the jumppack and tell me there is no highlights. thats as red as it gets without slopping orange all over the place.

And that makes it highlighted does it? Remember, taste comes into it here but IRL if you look at a chunk of red plastic for example and see what the upper surfaces look like you'll usually find they're not red red.

Einion

 

[airhead]

Let me give you a bit of advice that was passed down to me a long time ago.

Normally we'll paint shadow/mid-range/highlight:
|---|---|

For the bright lights of the photograph, we have to paint:
|-------|-------|

Think stage makup if you are at all familiar with it.
Yes, red gets highlighted with red-orange, then orange and maybe even yellow in the very hot spots.

I see the bit of orange you've put on top of the jet nozzles. Now, a lesser area of even more orange, followed by an even lesser area of yellow-orange with a bit of yellow for the hottest spots would bring the contrast out. Same with the washes, they should go down to red/brown or red/violet.

You've got a piece that is head and shoulders above what you'll see on 99% of the gaming tables, but it is showing "base-coat, wash, highlight" not 7 or 9 layers of color to get smooth transitions and blends required to be in the top scoring minis.

You asked for comments, and they were given. I'm glad you asked as that is how improvements are made in scoring and painting style.

 

[Elric2k]

This librarian is far better than the 1st mini you posted. Its much cleaner looking overall (no splotches of the wrong color on the back knee joints) and the color pops more for me. The basing is something I think you need to make a decision to work on, I swear i have those exact same rocks in my fish aquarium, the base needs to be on par with the lovely paintjob and photo you've taken of this guy, but as far as what the customer was requesting, i think you did a good job. Even with the rocks you have if you paint them brown, wash it down with some devlan mud and drybrush it will make a big difference

 

[Benihana]

This is, quite simply my untrained opinion, and you're free to take it or leave it. I think you're overdoing the highlights, and don't have unified lighting for the whole model (for both your models).

For the red marine:
The OSL is way overdone. There's no way the light from the eyes would shine on the forehead, and the OSL light looks just as bright as the eyes themselves. You would probably get better results mixing the bronze and green before applying than layering the green over the bronze.

The white joint-things are way too bright. There's no way the joint on the back of the knee would be completely white, in shadow.

The weapons are a bit boring. They don't need to be completely metal! Try doing a few grays for everything except the working bits (barrel, bolts, teeth).

The scripty writing isn't fooling us at all. You don't need to actually write stuff, but I think short vertical lines or more variation in height would be better than long horizontal lines. I believe there is a tutorial around here somewhere.

You're going to hear this until you finally give in. The bases really need to be much better, and you might even be hurting your score over a plain base. Those rocks actually look a bit like gravel (minus the white/black) or coal, and have their place, but not covering the base.

Librarian:
I agree that this mini looks better, but you've still got some of the same things going on. Obviously base. The lighting seems completely random, at times contradictory. I'm not a fan of edge highlighting like that, but to each his own. The tops of the thighs look especially over-highlighted. You could probably go darker with the blues, as it seems to jump from blue to black.

I do think you should be looking at minis which are significantly higher score, rather than close, if you want to improve. Here are a few random ones, which show shading, more interesting weapons, and unified lighting source:

http://www.coolminiornot.com/281165

http://www.coolminiornot.com/281326
http://www.coolminiornot.com/281328