The Prussians arrive at last...
... just like Waterloo, in dribs and drabs. As if I haven't enough long term projects going on! Here's a WIP shot of some Prussian Infantry. I have been itching to start a Prussian brigade and having recently bought the final mini's to start it, on we go. Am trying to be disciplined and paint 4 minis at a time (we'll see how long that lasts!). Its tough because you can't totally devote all your energy to one at a time, but it does mean you seem to get more done, working on them in production line fashion. I'm really happy with the blue, as I was trying to get it very Prussian and dark. Citadel Regal blue has done the trick, highlighted with Coat d' Arms Shadow Grey.My sample Brigade will be the 2nd Infantry Brigade from I Armee Korps, including IR Nr 6 (1st West Prussian), IR Nr 28 (1st Berg, mostly in their white uniforms), and the 2nd Westphalian Landwehr (Minden-Ravensberg).
I'm also painting up a battalion of IR Nr 10 (1st Silesian), they were not part of this brigade historically, but I do like yellow collars and that's that!
Comments
The blue is hard to capture - I use Vallejo Dark Prussian Blue, Prussian Blue and finally Medium Blue. You can see the results on my blog at http://befreiungskriege.wordpress.com/
All the best,
Martin
Yep, my guys are Foundry figures. I am a Perry man really (it goes back years, some kind of nostalgia trip). I do like the Calpe figures too though, they are impressive and well researched. I will most probably buy some (particularly the Lutzow mob) in the future.
Know what you mean about the old Prussian Blue. Very hard to interpret. I spent a long time scouring the land for a happy medium. I've used Vallejo Dark Prussian Blue before (on my Dutch Belgians), its ok for me but I couldnt get a highlight blend I was totally happy with.
Cheers,
Bren
I like watching progress on your Franco-Prussian War figures. It's a period I've had a soft spot for ever since I saw Detaille's paintings at Les Invalides. Really evocative - you should check out a 54mm scale modeller called Bill Horan - he's sculpted and painted a lot of F-P War figures from scratch.
Back to Prussian Blue - that last highlight can be awkward. Most blues look to garish so I actually apply a highly selective wash of Dark Prussian Blue at the end. I heavily dilute the paint and target it very specifically at the creases and shadows. It's one of the very rare occasions that I use a wash technique and even then I'm really still painting (just with very thin paint) rather than washing, if you see what I mean.
BTW - I've posted a WIP picture of a couple more landwehr figures today (more mud!). They might give you a better feel for how my blues come out except that the flash on the camera always seems to lighten the blue too much.
I can recommend the Calpe figures (but you'd expect me to say that). Peter F's a really nice bloke and if you contact him he'd proably send you a couple of sample figures.
Cheers,
Martin
I'll check out the Bill Horan connection, and stick at painting those landwehr mate. I'll be starting my Wesphalians soon...