Creating a digital archive – a 40k photography and painting project
Recommendations: 57
About the Project
My goal with the project is to create a digital archive of some of my Warhammer 40k models and armies. For too long have I taken blurry photos with rubbish lighting and backgrounds, but now I say no more! So this digital archive will be my chance to document 'professional' pictures of my stuff (and learning how to do so along the way). The added bonus will be an aim to improve my painting skills and attention to detail. We all know pictures can make this look brutally rubbish compared to the naked eye. Hopefully others can get some kicks out of this but if nothing else it gives me a space outside of the cabinet in my spare room to so off some of my favourite stuff I've worked on and witter away about tehcniques and things.
Related Game: Warhammer 40,000
Related Company: Games Workshop
Related Genre: Science Fiction
This Project is Active
A pair of Ad Mech vehicles
Notes
Decided to paint these togetehr as the technique would be roughly the same ebcasue of the shared chasis. I usually hate doing blocky vheciles but I have to say these were pretty fun! I’m really keen on crafting some unique elements into each models and with my Ad Mech it’s all about the stripes. They can bea right pain in the arse but I feel like they do add a nice touch to the models. All in all, both took a long time but I think turned out pretty well. THINNER HIGHLIGHTING BAAAAHHH.
Also I really wish I had done some weathering on them at the time. I’ve gone mad on weathering (as some of my upcoming pictures will show).
Aggressors
Notes
Chapter is Storm Wardens so a big silver and blue theme. Love how clean these guys look. I feel like I am still in the process of getting a scheme to determine rank. So far it’s basicaly bronz helm for Sgts and Red Helm if you are super fancy. Silver and Blue helms are for the troops. Fun paint, easy panels and like the blue/silver with snow bases.
I can see I was trying to work out how to highlight silver properly. I’m not happy with the harsh lines on these models – looking to find better techniques for highlighting, particularly metal.
Need to take pictures of whole squad together! Will do next time…
Tech-Priest Manipulus
Notes
God I love the Ad Mech. Fun model to paint and sat there for ages. Used it as a chance to really take my time. Wasn’t overly pleased with the metal highlights but proud of the pruple on the sleeves. Like the glow on the lance weapon too. Would have liked to have done some weathering effects on the bottom of the cloask – dust and dirt kick up and the like. Overall a fun paint.
Setting up a lightbox
First things first – if I want to take better pictures I best make a lightbox.
There’s about a million tutorials on how to make one so won’t bore on here. Basics were 2 lamps with white bulbs, a cardboard box, white paper, some cloth, and a camera.
The setupThings to improve
Fortuntealy thanks to the day job I have a decent camera buit I am lacking in the tripod department (if you know what I mean). The only thing to hand was a DJI Ronin (as I mainly deal in moving images) and forgot to liberate a tripod from the office pre-lockdown. Does the job though but can be a pain.
Need a better white sheet. The creases are guff so could give the one an iron. With a bit of post fiddling on photoshopp it seems to be OK but that’s just a wee thing.
Need to get used to cmaera setting. Can do video no problem but who knew poictrues were so hard?! Going by a handy Warhammer community article on photographing your minatures I realised after my first sesh that there is a thing called F-stop to make the blur less harsh. Worth nothing for next time!
Anyway, time to crack on with some pics…
