Speedpainting

 I really want to learn how to speedpaint.

I want to be able to paint more models in a shorter time and still have them look good.

Someone a few years ago was kind enough to create and send me a tutorial on how to speedpaint. And somehow I still don't quite get the techniques involved.

I need more practice, for sure. But I have a tendency to tell myself with each model that it needs more time and care given to it than it really does. I have trouble stopping when it's "good enough". I always want to do my best.

Which isn't terrible, but not every model needs that treatment. When it's a bulk model or a cheap model, that's where speedpainting should be my goal. They tend to not have sharp enough detail for my best attempt makes sense.

So last night I re-read the tutorial that was sent to me the other year and this time things are starting to make more sense. I have a big box of old models set aside just for the purpose of trying new techniques. 

I need to pull it down and start practicing.

 

Titles Are Hard

 Yesterday I worked on a DMC Fury onstream. There are two of them and I had to decide if I wanted to work on them both together or one at a time.

I ended up doing one at a time. Which means I only got one done, but if I had done both together I likely would have only gotten the basecoats finished.

Which, I think would have made for a less engaging stream. I worry about that even though I know most people just listen.

It's also why I don't do model prep on stream. This despite the fact that streamers far more successful than I do it on their streams and nobody seems to mind.

It's quite possible that I worry too much.

Still Going

Been a few days. Last week was stressful, but I did get things done. The War Mammoth is finally ready to be photographed and listed. Just hoping the contact cement attaching it to be the base holds. The super glue sure didn't.

Also got a few Reaper miniatures painted, as well as some DMC. I think they all came out pretty well.

The second Reaper miniature I did was an NPC character. Seems to be some kind of noble. I was going to be "energy efficient" and just leave his boots the basecoat black. I felt it looked good enough.

Then I realized I had missed a few tiny spots, so I broke out the black paint to touch it up. Then I decided the toes of his boots needed highlights. Then I decided it looked strange with just the one highlight on each and did the rest.

One of my issues is I have trouble stopping when it's "Good Enough". I always want to push it further. Which is good as far as developing my skill. But it makes it take longer.

Which, to be quite honest, means I'm working for less than minimum wage. Much less. Sometimes even less than a dollar an hour.

Pricing is so hard, though. Too much and we don't get any sales. Too little and... well it's only worth it right now because I love painting and would be doing it anyway.

I was hoping to go to a painting competition and maybe win something. Something small, to be sure. Like a pin for Golden Demon. Something to up the perceived value of my work so I can charge more.

It's weird. My work has a lot of value to begin with because of the time and skill put into it - skill that took years to develop. But people don't see that. They just see a nobody and a price tag.

I need a reputation.

Nothing

 Sometimes there's just not much to say. I'm on target for my weekly goal of four miniatures painted. Though I need to try for more to make up for last week.

... and I walked away from the computer for hours without finishing this. Forgot it was open.

Oh, well.

Getting it done... or not

Yesterday I didn't get as much done as I had hoped. This is not unusual. It happens almost every day.

I always feel that my goals for the day are reasonable, but I continually fail to meet them. Don't know if I set unrealistic goals, get distracted too much, or am just slow. 

Most likely it's a combination of all three, but I think it's primarily distraction and slowness.

I know speed comes with practice, just like every other kind of improvement. But I've been painting for years. Of course, I have learned that there are other painters, like me, who have been painting for years and are still quite slow. 

I think what I need is more deliberate, focused practice. I need to take some minis and just paint them as fast as I can without being too worried about precision, especially in the early stages.

And that takes us right back to making a mess and fixing it later.      

Fixing it

 Had a little trouble with the War Mammoth because the paint was chipping off while I handled it. 

It's one of the issues with large minis where you can't put it on a holder. Not really much can be done to avoid it sometimes. Especially on a Reaper Bones mini which can't be primed.

But I finished painting it. Ended up having to do a gloss coat over it to stop the chipping after touching it up. Now I just have to hope the matte coat will kill all the gloss. Shiny fur just looks wrong. 

The gloss coat also has a tendency to feel a little tacky. No one wants a sticky miniature. If the matte coat doesn't fix it, I'll have to repaint the whole thing.

Here's hoping...

Relax... or Not

I didn't get the War Mammoth finished again. I think I can finish it today. All I have left to do are the tusks and some touch-ups.

Which is good, but bad. Good because it will finally be done. Bad because this is supposed to be my day to relax. 

Oh, well. I'm bad at relaxing anyway. Wasting time, sure... relaxing, not so much. 

Something else I need to work on.

Maybe I should have called this blog "A journal about miniature painting and self-improvement."