Is it just me or.......?

JohnReid · 1 August 2008, 08:57 AM

has the quality of the builds shown here grown in leaps and bounds recently?
I am no expert in this area so maybe I notice it more than you guys who are deeply involved.I really admire those who build in the smaller scales,the detail,the techniques,the painting just gets better and better.
Working in 1/16th I tend to forget just how difficult it is,that is until I opened a long-stored Sopwith Pup and remembered my own stalled first attempt at a WW1 aircraft .And that was 1/48 scale!

MerlinV · 1 August 2008, 05:18 PM

Not just you John. The quality is definitely on the up and up.

Cheers,

Hugh

charlie bucket · 1 August 2008, 06:11 PM

Tons of talent in here, and it's truly great to see it.

Perhaps a contributor to John's question is how daunting that talent is to us mere mortals, to the result that it is all you will be likely to see.

Nothing wrong with that, of course, but I won't post pics of my models here out of a sense of humility because there would be no point - the work just isn't worthy to show off to craftsmen like the people on this board (yet; I'm working on it!). Not sure how many others are like this though...

MerlinV · 1 August 2008, 06:16 PM

Don't be daft Charley!
I too thought I was unworthy to post my Models up here until I actually did so.
We want to see your stuff!

Cheers,

Hugh

charlie bucket · 1 August 2008, 07:07 PM

EDIT: Ya, you're probably right.

Trackpad · 1 August 2008, 10:42 PM

Hi,All,

In the past two years, I've learned much from this forum: ideas and techniques for rigging, streaked camouflage a la Fokker, shading, painting, weathering, decalling, lozenge, panelling...and the list goes on. I'm not in the upper echelons by a long shot, but I think that I've improved noticeably due to the help received here.

Charlie B., get your cotton-pickin' photos on the pages right *** now!

You will be surprised as to what WE can learn from YOU! C'mon: time's awastin'!!

JohnReid · 3 August 2008, 05:40 AM

Charlie,I have been modeling for over 35 years and I still screw up all the time.You never,ever truly arrive in this art form or any other for that matter.Its a process ,a kind of paying your dues that we all go through and all the so-called experts and gods of modeling know that it is true.Nobody just arrived without a lot of effort,some are just a little quicker to learn that's all. If it is the result of your best effort at this stage of your evolution as a modeler show it and be proud of it.It takes a lot of courage for anyone to risk to become a beginner again.Some of the best artists and craftsman that I know have chucked it all when they were at the top of their game and started all over in another medium and then went on to even greater accomplishments.

charlie bucket · 3 August 2008, 06:22 AM

Oh, I agree John. I didn't really want to turn this thread into anything controversial or take it away from the point you were making, which is of course that there is some stunning work on these pages. I was just offering up a conjectural reason why the work is so uniformly high-quality around here. It's easy to be shy about your stuff if it isn't historically accurate down to the micron when you see people around you working so hard at that kind of thing.

It would be interesting to see what the modelers around here were doing at the beginnings of their abilities, or even builds that they consider to have been pivotal in the transition from one level of quality to another and why.

I'll put up some pics later on; maybe inspire those who are like me to do the same. I just finished a build, but again, the historical inaccuracies are pretty profound even if I'm fairly happy with the looks of it in the 'crafty' sense.

JohnReid · 3 August 2008, 07:04 AM

Hey,there is room for everybody .Some like historical accuracy others couldn't care less,most are somewhere in between.Personally if I have to sacrifice some historical accuracy to achieve my main goal of telling an interesting story then so be it.What many experts get so exercised about is usually only of interest to a few.What most people want out of art is to be entertained,I leave history to the historians who usually can't agree anyway.Don't get me wrong I love to study history ,that is what got me going in modeling in the first place.But modeling is so much more than just historical accuracy it is also very much about emotion .To judge a piece totally on historical accuracy is just stupid in my opinion.

Trackpad · 5 August 2008, 08:52 PM

Hello, Charlie, and All,

OK, I'll give you an example of how modellers can improve here by posting their work. The example is me.

Here are two models that I built a few years ago:

They're all right, sort of, but you will note that the paint schemes are "flat:" they don't have any body to them. No texture, no weathering (maybe a smidge on the tank), no real detail. And that's how I modelled for God knows how many years.

Then I hit the Aerodrome. Here's one of my first builds after getting a few ideas:

Now we have a first go at the infamous Fokker streaking: no Roaring Hell, but it's at least a start. But you will note that the yellow is still the "flat" finish that the first two have. And we will NOT discuss the colour of the upper surface of the upper wing!

With further visits, discussions and ideas, I'm now at this:

Here I think that I've achieved better streaking, better toning of the yellow (not to mention getting a better "see through" look to the field-applied yellow: shows up better in person!), and an overall more "believable" finish. Have I arrived? Not by a long shot. But I think that I've progressed over the past two years, thanks to the members of this forum. OK: NOW we can discuss the colour of the upper surface of the upper wing!!

This forum was not the only source of motivation, inspiration and improvement, but it was one of the most important. So don't be afraid to post your work. You'll get constructive criticism, ideas, suggestions, hints and tips, and all in a positive, friendly manner. You can't HELP but improve, in my opinion!