Influential Reading - what's yours?

I agree with Jon B.: Biographies and autobiographies, history articles, also 1st person accounts, History Channel. All provide good subject matter. As far as technique: various internet sources, Mike Ashey's Detailing Scale Model Aircraft and Basics of Ship Modeling.

Jim

i am being honest here when i say any book with a lot of pictures does it for me   words don't do much for my building       i have to see an example of something

that's not saying i  don't like to read  books  with just words (war and peace or something)

it's just you asked what influenced my model building 

My current builds are inspired by Clive Cussler novels.

E... 

THE "Bible" for me was Shep Piane's How to Build Dioramas... That one book was my Grail...

Now that there's this World Wide Web thing, I don't buy reference books anymore...  Not to mention that it's pretty rare to find anything nowadays in a book that ain't on the 'net... As long as you kow how to search with the right keywoods, that is... You'll be disappointed if you search under Me-109 interiors" vs Me-109 cockpits...

For entertainment and inspiration though, non-fiction books are still the way for me to get ideas, especially unit histories...

Building models is really an art form, called "miniatures."

The genre of minatures encompasses everything from crude simulations to exquisitly detailed reproductions. For scale modelers, the effort falls anywhere in between these extremes.

I've found that historical accounts, biographies, or autobiographies influence my modeling to a great degree. Often I'll read of a figure in history, and that will really drive a desire to build their aircraft.

I've also found I like Brett Green's material, both printed and online, for inspiration. He makes it seem within grasp, and always has a very positive and encouraging outlook in his style.

Thanks dahut, my pic on the side only shows a few figures in the dio.  It came out ok for someone who had never done a dio before.  I used a combination of Shep Paine's figure painting techniques along with his first edition dio book techniques, Osprey and Europa Militaria for legionary reference.

Dave

I'd say the several Kalmbach books I have have done the most for my modeling skills.  Concord Publications and Squadron/Signal for reference.  Also some of the Osprey books.  The picture below my name is part of a 1/72 scale diorama I did depicting a firefight between Romans and Britons.  If I remember I got the background information from one of Osprey's "Rome's Enemies" books.

Dave

For me are these the references i need for my current project. Here a part of my library :

Thomas

Any of the three Shepard Paine (hope I spelled his name right),books that I have. 2 how to build dios one of them is an updated one and converting armored vehicals. His work is amazing specialy given the time this was done,imagine if he was still building.I also have a few of Velindin's books also amazing...Plus here and FSM of course. Lottsa amazing builders here (Doog, Manstien etc......) and good friends too.

John