Hi all.

If I've managed to work out the photo upload for the site, there should be three shots of a W.I.P. in the very early stages, just getting an idea of the layout at the moment. Set "somewhere in Vietnam", this is my first serious attempt at an all figure vignette, although I've started one or two practice pieces in the past.

Intended mainly as a painting exercise, all the figures except the "Blooper" gunner have had minor conversion work and are shown unfinished for comment and critique. Although not in the "Brutal Honesty" forum, I don't take offence to constructive critique, it's how we learn and improve I.M.H.O. so if you think it's crap go ahead and tell me but tell me why you think that way

Richard

Cheers for that Carl
The overall composition is about how I want it, the ruin and fallen log will be tied together with the groundwork and vegetation.
I take your point about the arm, I'll have another look at that. It will be easy enough to correct at this stage, which is a very good reason for getting critique on a W.I.P.
Richard.

Looks like a great start. I like the contrast of the action to the right and the care of the wounded soldier to the left.

One suggestion I might give is to use a smaller base. The best vignettes we've seen are those with a really tight composition. You could get away with a base almost half as small as the one shown.

Steven Brown
Scale Model Soup

Carl.
checked and re-checked the arm length on the M16 dude and it's good, so unless I'm missing something it must be down to camera angle

Steve.
Good call about the base size. To be fair I'm only at the composition planning stage and was having the same thought. Another danger was it looking like two scenes on one base (one of my pet hates) which is why I've got the medic looking toward the point of action and need to keep it all tight. Having an even number of figures was also a doubt but seems to work OK in this case.

Richard.

looking good so far mate.

Hi again guys and thanks for all the input.
Work has been going on in the background with this piece and I think I've got the composition finalised. Pics will follow once the basic ground work dries enough for me to start touching it again.
A new and smaller base has been made (Thanks Steve) which improves the look a lot. The figure positioning is the same as the original photos but it's all much tighter and draws the focus far more.....

Richard.

Here is the piece with the figures posed on the new base. As can be seen it's very much like the original, just a lot more compact.
The base isn't quite square although it's close and would have looked better with maybe another 1/4 inch off the front edge. I wanted to keep enough base behind the figures to show a banking or steep slope, which will in time be covered in vegetation but will not be described in any detail here on a figure site, except to say that when finished it wont look like a patch of bare earth!



More of a close-up. I notice that the two guys to the right have shifted slightly before I took the shots ...... They do sit "Into" the ground, not hover above it!



That's all for now folks.

I've done a little more on this. The base is starting to look better but plenty of vegetation to add yet.



Iv'e also made a start on painting the upper half of the wounded trooper whose legs are set into the base. I'm happy to post the photos in the hope of getting some much needed advice, I'm not really satisfied with the way it's looking but am unsure of where to go next .... It may be a case of stripping it and starting over, which is OK if it's for the best.



Scale is 1/35 and all paint is Vallejo acrylic... All advice, help and critique welcomed.

Richard.

Looking good so far. keep digging in.
I think the palid skintone of the wounded Grunt is appropriate... he looks in pain and quite distressed. Once he;s dirtied up you'll feel better about the over all look I'm sure. Make sure the rest of the guys have that "in country" tropical tone with lots of battle dirt.

Following closely

Colin

Nice work Richard,

If I could suggest one slight change; I'd change the firing angle of the grunt holding the M79 Wombat Gun so he's furing across the line of fire of the M16. This creates the impression that these men are taking fire from multiple targets in different directions, and this increases the urgency of the situation and the level of tension. Such scenes would have been common at fire bases when they were overwhelmed by waves of attackers on several flanks.

I'd also add a few clickers and wires for claymore anti-personnel mines on the log in front of the men, which they would blow in the event of being over-run. Scattering a load of empty brass rounds on the ground would also add a touch of authenticity.

The goal is not necessarily to create a scene that is totally realistic, but to create a scene that tells a story. In my opinion, the best diorams and vignettes are one's that capture the emotion of a scene.

Hi Colin.
Many thanks for the advice, the palid look is pure accident I realised earlier today what I'd done wrong, I primed the figures in my usual dark grey Tamiya acrylic and cellulose/laquer mix through the airbrush but for some reason forgot to spray the skin areas with a coat of Tamiya flesh as I've done before, so I'm covering the dark grey base with very diluted glazes of flrsh tones and wondering why he's looking ill (grey palour)....... Boy do I feel silly now! Appropriate it my be but I'm not going to pretend it's intentional.

Tony.
You've provided a shed load of good suggestions there my friend, thanks for them all ..... All the little details like that add to the whole and I'm sure they'll be included as the base progresses. When finished I intend to have the up slope area in front of the log and wall covered in thick vegetation but not so much primary jungle. I keep consulting references for it because I think it would be very easy to make it look too European..... Maybe modellers from tropical countries have the same problem in reverse ....... A natural tendency to model your usual landscape

Richard.