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small dio, my first crack at it! (UPDATED BETTER PICS)

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  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
small dio, my first crack at it! (UPDATED BETTER PICS)
Posted by biffa on Tuesday, February 22, 2005 11:16 PM
these 4 figures were my 3rd modelling project i was so happy with the way they turned out i wanted to give them a home and this was the result i wanted to try use water but the results werent as great as i wanted but im still happy with the whole thing, pics arnt great im still trying to figure that out, comments are welcome good or bad





Ron g.
  • Member since
    October 2003
  • From: Clovis, Calif
Posted by rebelreenactor on Tuesday, February 22, 2005 11:59 PM
dang! its pretty hard to believe that is your first try at a dio. If you do more in the future, they are going to be incredible!!!!! That looks really good, especially for your first time! The figs and that tree are great!

about the water, looks like you used woodland scenics stuff? I have trouble with it too so dont feel bad.

great dio!
John
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Philippines
Posted by Dwight Ta-ala on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 12:10 AM
Wow, that is pretty amazing for a first diorama.

  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 12:43 AM
Very nice job thanks for the pics....
  • Member since
    November 2004
  • From: Canada
Posted by sasd on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 12:53 AM
Stunning work Ron,been taking in everything that you have done on this dio and I love it!
I`m not the greatest at using water myself ,yours is perfect for a creek,very nicely done and executed!
"Battleing Bastards of Bastogne"
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
Posted by biffa on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 1:12 AM
thanks guys that means a lot coming from you all, i enjoyed building this dio as much as the models ive built the hardest thing we calling it finished i kept wanting to add more, seeing all the wonderful dios in this forum amazed me i had to try one.
Ron g.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 2:11 AM
Hmmmmm, First dio you say....Hmmmm. Please forgive me if I sound suspicious. It's just that your ground working techniques are excellent.Thumbs Up [tup] This looks like the 1/35th scale Tamaya figure set, but from the detail and size they really look to be 1/12th scale...Great build.

I plan to do a small water scene similar to this. I have the same woodlands water stuff. Is that what you used for the water, and if so it looks good, what do you not like about it?
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
Posted by biffa on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 2:29 AM
thank you for the kind compliment about the ground work just about all the methods used ive found in and around this forum, i just did a little trial and error to see which i liked best, yes this is the tamiya german front-line infantryman set,
as for the water i a began with a few coats of polyurephane (sp) then seeing that would take 10yrs to do i got some woodlands water effects and used it to create ripples then another light coat of poly the woodlands worked good but i couldnt do with my hands to do what my mind wanted it to look like heh still i was happy satisfied with the way lt looked was good experience woodlands is good stuff but creating the way real water looks and moves is something that will take practice for me, ty
Ron g.
  • Member since
    February 2004
  • From: Green Lantern Corps HQ on Oa
Posted by LemonJello on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 7:23 AM
That's a sharp little dio you've got there. Nice sense of action/movement with the figures and I like the bridge, was it scratchbuilt? Your water looks good, too, in my opinion. Thanks for sharing the photos with us.
A day in the Corps is like a day on the farm; every meal is a banquet, every paycheck a fortune, every formation a parade... The Marine Corps is a department of the Navy? Yeah...The Men's Department.
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Tochigi, Japan
Posted by J-Hulk on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 8:35 AM
Please take the statement "I don't believe this is your first diorama" as a compliment!

Looks great!
You obviously put a great deal of thought into it before you executed it.
~Brian
  • Member since
    August 2003
  • From: PA
Posted by mjohnson on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 8:38 AM
Nice dio. Looks great for your first time. Ground work looks realistic.
  • Member since
    May 2004
  • From: Dallas
Posted by KINGTHAD on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 8:40 AM
Looks great, everything flows nicely

Thad
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: CANADA
Posted by Kelly_Zak on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 9:19 AM
Ron, this kicks ass! Recognised the figs right off the bat, I used the same set in my Marder dio....great action poses! Everything about this dio I love, and if this is your first, we're in for some serious competition! Big Smile [:D] I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to steal your idea, I have a foot bridge at home to do, and this has given me some ideas!
"There you go with those negative waves again!"
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: A Spartan in the Wolverine State
Posted by rjkplasticmod on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 9:42 AM
Excellent work. Very nice Diorama.

Regards, Rick
RICK At My Age, I've Seen It All, Done It All, But I Don't Remember It All...
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Alberta, Canada
Posted by stukabomb88 on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 11:38 AM
That's a very interesting looking model, I like how the bridge runs through the middle of it! The creek looks great to!
"If you live for personal gain, you have lived in vain." -Devon OpdenDries
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
Posted by biffa on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 1:14 PM
again guys thanks for the great response, yes the bridge was scratch as was everything else just stuff from around the house, bridge and shed were made from balsa i got a huge bundle of odd lengths and broken bits from the local craft shop for 2 bucks heh the tree was a dried flower from the dinning room vase the grass was grass rope plugged in and trimmed to length, the mud and ground were baking soda, white glue, and brown paint mixed and spread all over, the figures really dictated the way the dio went, they are really good action poses for this kinda thing, and kelly im really glad to have helped you out with the foot bridge it feels good to give a little back ,
again i thank you all


(edit) p.s. the whole thing is about 4 inches by 11 and i worked on it for about 3 weeks the key for me is covering very small areas at a time heh
Ron g.
  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Massachusetts
Posted by ajlafleche on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 2:16 PM
Nice composition and use of stock figures. Very good ground work. I'd like to see more close ups of the figures. As you practice, you'll surely tighten up on your camo patterns, they seem just a bit simplified for German camo. Still, it gets the poit across.
I like the water, another layer might be a bit better. The only thing that seems out of place is/are the rocks in the gully. I'm not sure if it's the size, color or smoothness, but they look just a bit off.
What I've seen done by the French master dioramist, Christian Petit, to increase the play of sunlight in water is to paint lighter squiggles on the bottom of the creek. This require something of a wide area and you may have had enough area to do this. (I just tried on the Michael Roberts "Moment in Time" vignette (Pictures will be up soon) but the bottom surface was just not receptive due to the narrow space and texture.)

Remember, if the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.

  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: Washington
Posted by uproar on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 7:44 PM
Excellent diorama--there is a real sense of "action" in the figures--something not easy to achieve in a diorama. Particularly great for a first try. I might suggest a bit better lighting for the photos--the details look great but are a bit hard to fully appreciate. The diorama itself is outstanding, though. Great job!
Rory
  • Member since
    October 2004
  • From: australia
Posted by gander_demon on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 7:55 PM
wow, dude as others have said for a 1st time dio you should be pretty chuffed. Great work. I only wish mine would turn out half as well.Cool [8D]
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
Posted by biffa on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 8:55 PM
thanks again for the encouraging words here are some better pics of the figures went outside in the sun , much better results, about the rocks i originally wanted the water to cover them but as time went on i realised this was not meant to be so i agree they are a tad off but still the best i could come up with anyway heres some better closeups of the figures,






Ron g.
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Lower Alabama
Posted by saltydog on Wednesday, February 23, 2005 10:06 PM
very cool little dio biffa!Thumbs Up [tup]
Chris The Origins of Murphy's Law: "In the begginning there was nothing, and it exploded."!!! _________ chris
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, February 24, 2005 2:39 AM
Hey call the police theres Germans in the wood behind my house.Big Smile [:D]..Hey I like this dio so much I had to reply to it again.

The added pix with the background looks way cool.

One thing you mentioned about the water. You said you could not get it to look the way you wanted.... I read somewhere in some book sometime ago, (yeah I know I'm a great help with references), that if you use thin string of cotton in the water it give it that moving look. I tryed it in a water dio I did and it looked great for about 4 hours and then the epoxy dried a nice dark brown and then the look faded away. BUT while the "water" is still "wet" or as you lay it down, take thin shreads of cotton and stretch it out in the direction of the flow. Cotton also works good to make the water look foamy or bubbly like in a water fall. I remember now it MIGHT have been a Shep Paine book? MAYBE?
  • Member since
    January 2004
  • From: Philomath, OR, USA
Posted by knight667 on Thursday, February 24, 2005 5:59 PM
Nice job!
John "The only easy day was yesterday." - US Navy SEALs "Improvise. Adapt. Overcome." - US Marine Corp. "I live each day/Like it's my last/...I never look back" - from "I'm A Rocker" by Judas Priest
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
Posted by biffa on Thursday, February 24, 2005 7:13 PM
hey skar, its funny i thought about using cotton at one point but talked myself out of it heh i figured i was being a little magyver'ish but since you said that i bet it would have worked , i may try that in a new one thanks for the reply and thanks to all that have responded its great having you all to share this hobby with
Ron g.
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: Queensland/Australia
Posted by hemble on Thursday, February 24, 2005 11:52 PM
Excellent job for your first dio you have mastered the tecnics down to a tee well done mate.

Ron
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, February 25, 2005 5:41 AM
thats a great dio quick question how did you paint those figures so good ive try number of times to do camo patterns on my figures but never seem to get the look right so any tips would be great
  • Member since
    November 2004
  • From: Canada
Posted by sasd on Friday, February 25, 2005 9:13 AM
Love the new pics Ron, the shack and bridge are excellent,hope to see more soon.
"Battleing Bastards of Bastogne"
  • Member since
    January 2005
  • From: in the tank factory in my basement
Posted by biffa on Friday, February 25, 2005 9:27 AM
thanks guys ,about the camo, i mixed the 3 basic colours to match the autumn camo scheme as close as i could, a light brown, dark brown, and an orangy sandy colour and them lightened them all a little it seemed to me to be dark when painted on small scale,
first i painted the light brown all over for the base colour then did a wash useing the dark brown to bring out the seams and folds.
next useing the orange and dark brown painted some irregular blotches here and there, not too many and not too big,
then useing a tooth pick with the dark brown starting from the dark brown blotches began dotting bigger dots getting smaller as i moved from the blotch also some dots withing the orange blotches also until about 60-70% of the uniform was covered in these dots
then with the orange began putting smaller dots within the bigger dots sometimes the toothpick was too big for this so i had to shave it down a little, once i had most of the dark brown dots with orange dots in side i just added a few here and there as needed
last i lightened up the light brown a little and did a touch of highlights but not much for fear of covering up the camo
anyway it took me a couple of practice runs but in the end i liked the outcome, one thing is the whole thing didnt look quite right till the end (kinda looks odd till the orangy dots go on then it starts to come together)
the helmet cover i did a little different to break things up a bit,
well hope this makes a little sense, like i say it took me a couple of tries to get what i liked but that was basically what i finally did, hope that helps and if theres anything else feel free to ask.
Ron g.
  • Member since
    October 2004
  • From: Northern Virginia
Posted by ygmodeler4 on Friday, February 25, 2005 4:20 PM
Wow that's great.

-Josiah

  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, February 25, 2005 5:32 PM
looks even better outside!! WOW!!! great work!!! AWESOME! that water doesnt look sooo bad! -DJ
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