DISCUSSION: Making plans for 2018

Wathammer: Age of Sigmar
Daughters of Khaine: Witch Aelf

It's been a while since I've updated this, and for lots of reasons: some interesting, most not, but none relevant to the subject. Suffice to say, the last year has been somewhat hectic in non-hobby-related areas and my output suffered. In 2017, I finished a grand total of two painted miniatures: one in January, and one in April. So far in 2018, I'm setting no records, but I've matched that total in February alone and look set to add more in March. (Let's not mention January, eh?) I've also regained some enthusiasm for the hobby, and at last have the free time to make use of it. But how?

DISCUSSION: 2016 in review

Horus Heresy: Imperial Fists Phalanx Warder marine

Horus Heresy: Alpha Legion contemptor dreadnought

Age of Sigmar: Orruk Warchanter

2016 was an interesting year for me as a painter. It's safe to say it wasn't the most productive in terms of output, but what I lacked in quantity, I was pleased to make up for in quality. This was the year that saw me finally take a step up in terms of both ability and purpose. Having painted purely for pleasure in the past, 2016 saw me enter my first competition. I was more than happy to come away with a finalist pin for my efforts, and look forward to more opportunities like that in future.

DISCUSSION: Forge World Open Day 2016

Games Workshop's head office in Nottingham. Subtle, guys.

On the 17th of July, I attended the Forge World Open Day 2016. Apparently this is the tenth iteration of this event. It's the first one I've been to, and only the second time I've been to Warhammer World at Games Workshop's headquarters in Nottingham. (The other time, incidentally, was the first ever Black Library Live event way back in 2009.) The Forge World open day is something different to what I'm used to. Having been to several previous Games Workshop events, I had high hopes for this one. It was a good day, but I'm not sure it lived up to them...

DISCUSSION: Golden Demon 2016

Golden Demon 2016: the crowds gather to inspect the entries

We've had a week for the dust to settle now, so I thought it would be nice to revisit last weekend's Golden Demon competition at WarhammerFest. This year it was held in my home city of Coventry. I didn't go to the last one, so it was a nice opportunity to see the changed format (it used to run over a single day at the NEC in Birmingham). I also entered Golden Demon for the very first time...

DISCUSSION: A new toy...

My new toy: an Iwata Eclipse HP-CS airbrush

So I've bought myself an airbrush. It's something I've been interested in doing for a few years now but I've put it off until now. The main reason was cost. To do airbrushing any justice, you really have to be prepared to spend a fair amount of money on the right equipment. A decent airbrush isn't cheap and I wanted to make sure I spent my money wisely. It didn't take a lot of research to find out that Iwata are one of the most respected manufacturers in the field, but it took a little more to decide which of their products would be best for me.

DISCUSSION: Progress review, 2015 Q1

We're now three months into the year so I thought I'd take a quick break from my regular posts to have a look at what I've achieved so far. The purpose of this blog is, after all, to keep the ball rolling on the various projects I'm working on. So how have I done...?

DISCUSSION: photography

Horus Heresy: Imperial Fists praetor

I've wanted to improve the quality of my photographs for this website for a while now. I'm not yet in the market for a new camera. I know which one I'd go for if I had the funds, but as yet it is a little out of my budget. As such, I wanted a way to improve the pictures I take with my current setup. At present I use my Apple iPhone 5S to take all of the pictures for this website. Until now, most have been taken simply by holding the phone and aiming it at the subject. But, thanks to Tale of Painters, things are starting to change...