Hi guys,

I have a serious problem since 2 months or so...I'd really like to paint my minis, because I want to finish my uruk army and have a few nice minis for some fellowship scenarios. However, every time I try to paint I'm disgusted by the results, often throwing a mini back in acetone after only painting half of it. I'm really not happy with how my minis turn out, which bothers me so much, that I'm really frustrated right now. I tried taking a hobby break (around 3 weeks of not touching a model), I tried looking at pictures of great minis painted by others (which usually works, but leaves me even more frustrated this time) and tried to be less harsh with myself, which isn't working either. I don't know if it's due to doing this hobby for too long, or just a "phase" that might pass at some point. I like the LOTR very much but perhaps 8 years of this hobby is just too long and I need to find something else.... Do you have similar situations? What do you against this kind of frustration? I'd really be glad for any advice or solution!

thanks

Hey Gunslinger,
I've been in this hobby since 2004 and had a similar situation to you a few years ago. I took around a 6 month break and a large hiatus from this site aswell. It helps just to get a 'mental reset' if you know what I mean, especially if the hobby has been taking up as massive part of your life.

A great way to get back into the hobby and get the vibe going again would be to start a new project of some kind. Now for me this ended up being 40k but it can just as easily be something in LOTR. I assume you have a large backlog and you're struggling to get through it all, which is making it worse.
Emotional attachment can make this hard but if its possible get rid of any models you feel you really don't need if you need the spare cash to buy something; if not just look through what you have and see if you have some models from an army/area of middle earth you havent focussed on before. Do a bit of research and hopefully make a project. If you really want to get into it you look at a bit of ME history and try to recreate a very specific force from history or just from a previously little explored area. I've seen some great ideas for a Forodwaith army from Captianofthewolfriders, and I personally have recently focussed on an army of mercenaries from all around Harad who are being paid paid by the richest guy around, the Golden King. I'm painting all my Mahud shields and Corsair Arbalester shields with the scorpion device from the Kings throne and making sure the colours match. Might not be a power army, but it'll certainly be nice and themed on the table.
Don't be worried about your painting, just remember if someone is bothered enought o share it on somewhere like coolminiornot, then they're obviously gonna be in like the top 10% globally, and theres no requirement to match them, just as long as you've tried your best on a mini, i've never seen a gamer slagged off for his painting if he's done it, anything's better than a grey army after all.

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For me I've been in the hobby for around 10+ years. I'm a firm believer in everything in moderation. I have taken two LONG hiatus from it, one time for over a year. I'd take a serious break, get into something else for a bit and come back and enjoy it again fresh. Also just remember its a HOBBY. It's for fun and relaxation, don't let it become more or you lose the joy of it.

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This happens to me quite often if the amount of dettol I get through is any indication. However, I'm better at dealing with it and so rarely go a week without any painting. I normally take a break of a few days and then get back by finding an old model to paint for fun without stressing over how it will turn out. For example I have loads of 2nd edition 40k stuff that I like to paint in the old style of vibrant colours with basic layering. I just keep these ones to myself

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I've started to have the same thoughts but I've only just got back into the hobby so don't want to take a break. If you want to continue i'd suggest picking up sculpting for a bit or doing some terrain work to give a bit of a different focus for a while.

Put simply you and I might just need to learn how to paint better and the only way through getting over the wall is one brick at a time. Otherwise, make sure you have a good balance and another avenue to pour some energy into.

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Speaking as someone who has stopped painting miniatures all together !

Hi, I got into this hobby with the release of the Fellowship of the Ring movie and the release of Issue 1 of Battle Games in Middle-Earth.

I have never been an amazing painter, but with an art background, I was always quite happy with my results.

Having an Art background, I had a basic understanding of Layering up.

By this, I mean, base coating the miniature (usually Black...unless I wanted bright colours to show through, in which case, basecoat White), then the face starting with the eyes and then building on each layer after that...e.g
Eyes, face, hands/arms, hair, inner clothing, mid clothing, outer clothing and lastly weapon.

I always knew what I wanted to achieve, but also knew (and accepted) that I would never achieve anywhere near some of the amazing standards of miniature painting that I had seen....EXAMPLE



Created by a woman called Alexi

I could not get anywhere near that standard of painting.

The point I am trying to make, is that because of the internet, whether you search for images, see them in a Games Workshop Mag etc... you can feel deflated by what you see, knowing you will most likely never achieve that standard.

These people are seriously gifted ! They understand where to start, they understand the level of watering down, mixing, shading. blending...using techniques that none of us have even heard of yet.

Practice WILL make you better, but accept your own capabilities.

My advice...DO NOT GIVE UP !

Practice one part of the miniature at a time.

I dont paint anymore because my eyes are simply shot and I can not focus on anything anymore that is up close.
I choose not to use a magnifier, as I do not want my eyes to deteriorate anymore.

Do not concentrate on the entire figure, but one part at a time, once you are happy, move on to the next layer.
Best advice I can give, is DO NOT use paint straight out of the pot, practice watering down to get a silky consistency. When blending between 2 or 3 etc colours, have your paint ready, I.E. in a mixing pallet, and know what you want to achieve and dont let each layer dry before you add the next (1 layer at a time).

I hope I have made some sense and more so hope this will be of some help.

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....gunslinger, you have a great painting style, that's clean, crisp,and controlled looking. I haven't seen a bad mini or conversion from you in your WIP thread. There's nothing wrong with planing out in your skill curve because your already at a higher level then most.
Cheers

It's only a hobby after all, don't let it take over. Realistically I walked away from it in 2004, only really returning this year since my (17 years younger) brother took an interest, and the hobbit range. If youre not in the mood do something else. I only paint when I'm feeling like it, maybe once or twice a month

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HI guys,

thanks for your great answers! There are many constructive pieces of advice in your posts and I 'll try those to find the right solution But there are also many encouraging words, especially by DurinsBane...I think it's exactly what you described...seeing amazing miniatures on the internet and despite trying and practicing very hard (which permitted me to achieve a good standard already), the feeling of never being able to achieve such results remains somewhere in the back of my head.

I think for now I'm going to take a break of the minis, but also a bit of the forums, as I spend a lot of time thinking about the hobby, which might be too much lately. Also I think I'll pick up a sport again, I've been quite lazy these times, also due to me living in a huge city right now (before I often went jogging in the countryside)...so maybe swimming or something...I hope that clears up my mind! Another thing would maybe attending a painting class for miniatures, I heard that's the best way to improve!

Thanks again guys

Don't give up bud - your style is awesome and many including myself aspire to reach the levels you manage to hit with your models. We all hit lulls - push through and keep at it. Durinsbanes advice is paramount. Break each mini into sections and concentrate on one section at a time. Try not to look at the bigger picture until the models finished. A good friend of mine BilboofTheWhiteTower once gave me some excellent advice he said " When painting a miniature and hitting the obligatory rough patch that we all hit once or twice on EVERY single miiature repeat these words to yourself and push through it - "it'll be alright in the end, it'll be alright in the end"

I still do this to this day.

Have confidence buddy - theres no miniature you can't paint to an outstanding level. You sound as tho you much like myself are extremely over critical of your own work. Which of course is not a bad thing as it makes us push ourselves further with every model we paint. Stick with it!

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As with any art my advice is to always finish what you start. Part of your frustration seems to come from not being happy in process, but that is not the point to judge or edit yourself. My projects are always a terrible mess halfway through. What you start you must finish, and then, and only then, ask yourself if you are happy.

hi all,

some time ago I had the same "depression" thingy, I thought not many
people else had it but seeing the responds on this topic.. for me a little break helped. School is also helping me by just only giving me time in the weekends so there is just no time to overdo the hobby. Just take a break, i think that will help you. If the break is long enough you will see the hobby as sort of new so there are new things to discover. that will keep you busy for some time.

martijn

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saruman the white

yeah. I just got hit with another major hit of it after a 5 game WFB tournament I played in a week ago. I took my dwarves that I've been working on for several years. 99% of the models in my WFB dwarf collection are metal. I've been painting them in one scheme for the whole army except for one unit (bugman's rangers, 5th edition vintage). I finally made my first display board ever for this tournament thanks to some spare hard cardboard pieces that were with a table my parents got recently. The army has only 2 converted models in it, 1 gyrocopter since the current sculpt when it was in metal was a nightmare to use without conversion, and a scratch built "bartender of doom" for my anvil. I go 1-3-1 and on battle + sports I should have ended up about 18th place. My paint score however was a 14 of 50 (40 points max counting towards overall). I end up getting a look at the checklist a few days after the tournament and I find that 10 of the points available were for conversions. It's garbage like that that makes me wonder WHY I even play in these things anymore. I find that 95% of the models used look just fine without conversions, especially classic dwarf minis. Why should I be penalized for not converting?

I have been in the hobby twelve years now and I've been floating in and out. Sometimes I've been busy with other things, sometimes simply more interested in doing something else. Here are a few things that have helped me keep up my innterest, or helped me return after a long break:

- lower my own standards: if I want to play, I can do it with just neatly basecoated miniatures. If I feel like it, I can later add shades and highlights, but even just basecoats are enough for playing.

- paint something completely different once in a while. I have painted some space marines, Klingon Bird of Prey, old board game miniatures (Heroquest), different scale miniatures (up to 90 mm), generic fantasy miniatures from Dark Sword (really fun to paint), ...

- dabbling with other forms of "traditional" arts, drawing, photography, watercolour painting, they also help miniature painting because everything I've learned about colours and light has been useful for all of them

Hope you got some ideas, and remember, it's a hobby and if you feel like doing something else, don't force yourself.

-- Pasi

My advice would be to try something new for a while. I'm thinking of scenery or diorama building. Something to tax the mind in a different direction. I spend more time on research than I do painting as I can pick up my iPad very easy and spend 10 mins looking around. My paint gear is packed away so I have to know I've got the time before it comes out.
So what I'm saying is look around and pick a subject, then do your research into materials and techniques you will need to use.
As for your painting, lets face it you are good. Will you ever be excellent is another question. I'm a good golfer but I will never be a Rory or a Tiger and that's what you must remember when you see some of the stuff we see on the Internet. These figures are done by Rory's and Tigers, the best in the world and they set a standard we can only hope to aspire to.
So relax, sit back, have a look around, try a different line for a while and you will get going again. But most important, remember a hobby is for happiness, enjoy what you do and be thankful you can.

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What ever you decide to do, I hope it goes well, I have always found your painting inspirational.
Personally I am taking a mini break by building a 1/32nd scale ww2 aeroplane & some lots scenery, change is as good as a rest, as they say.

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Indeed! You sum up my thoughts too! No matter what the subject is, in the internet you can always find something better or better only in your eyes.

By checking your gallery also, you simply can't tell that you can't paint well enough! You are mocking other worse painters than me!

I suffered from this badly, several years ago, and quit the hobby altogether as a result. I still regret it, because my completed minis are precious to me - not all of them, but the ones I think turned out alright.

I got into the board game hobby afterwards and now I sometimes paint the figures from the games. Just today I primed the 4 gladiators from the Spartacus board game, but am now dreading painting them, for the reasons you mentioned. If they come out unsatisfactorily, I will wish I had left them alone. The grey plastic looks better to me than a botched job.

I know that I am perversely preventing myself from enjoying the hobby by doing so, but I am as yet unable to lower my expectations. I hope you are able to shrug it off. The one thing I have found is that, as with many things for me, if I can just get started, pick up that brush, I tend to get into it and see it through. The trick is making that start.

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"Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best."

I only get fed up with not having enough time, space or talent for this and other hobbies, but I get a lot of enjoyment from seeing what others can achieve, even with a run-of-the-mill basic sculpt, or even better, what the talented sculptors can do either from scratch or in adapting an existing sculpt into something new.
It helps to have other distractions. I have written of lot of technical and fictional material, and I am a very harsh critic of my own work. I find the best personal review is to leave it alone for a few weeks at least before returning to it.
So, like the exhausted but dertermined and faithful Samwise Gamgee slogging up the slopes of Oroduin carrying Master Frodo, don't give in. Maybe take a slightly different route. I find it easier to set many little goals and see them achieved gradually rather than one biggie that may take too much time and can be impacted by circumstances totally outside your control.

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don't fret. i've been in and out of the hobby since the first issue of the magzine they brought out around the time of the fellowship film. And there and then i never taught a good amount of years later i'd be were i am now concerning the hobby sure i'd be considered a "poor" painter but i myself am at ease with my figures sure i used to always say why don't my dwarves look like that but now i just see it as me giving my models there own style. so wheather or not you take a break from the hobby the models will always be there waiting to be painted and loved.

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