Here are a couple of my initial test shots. Syrian/Arabic infantry (Perry miniatures). Much clearer!
Next up the A&A Sassanid cavalry in the midst of the assembly process. Alas down at the club for many of our Sci-Fi gamers this would actually be table top standard- I kid you not!
Which brings me to one of my pet peeves, playing unpainted miniatures. One thing you'll never catch me doing is playing unpainted figures, ever! My main motivation to paint my figures is so I can field them! To me wargaming is a visual hobby and there is nothing like the sight of decently painted armies on decent terrain. Hell even very averagely painted armies look a damn sight better than unpainted lead! Unfortunately at our club some of the players armies have been in "GW silver" for as long as they have been attending (which can be for several years!). As far as I'm concerned it does absolutely nothing for the hobby but I'm not sure how we can lift the standard.
I have a couple of simple rules when it comes to wargaming.
1. Paint before you play.
2. Don't offended if, after having spent numerous hours painting my miniatures, I refuse to play you because you cannot be bothered painting your figures. IMO life's too short to waste my valuable spare time playing someone who can't be bothered putting the same effort in and putting on the table a painted army. I'd rather spend my time playing someone else or not playing as to me playing the silver hordes is about as appealing as watching paint dry. Some people might get upset but as far as I'm concerned seeing painted figures on the table is half the enjoyment of wargaming.
Luckily though, the guys I game against have similar standards- as is witnessed by Kent's 8 day Roman army mission last week. I had a Roman army for him to sue but he wanted to get his own done, and managed it in 8 days.
Craig
Nice results with the camera. I found using a tripod and reading the manual made a huge difference for me, though I could probably learn more still.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree about unpainted figures. I remember watching a game at a club where someone turned up with a half-painted GW army that he kept in a bag--any paint on them was likely to be scratched off in transit!
The visual aspect of figure gaming is paramount; otherwise, why bother. You could use a computer or play a boardgame. I avoided figure gaming for years as I was put off at the thought of painting, but it's now become one of the most satisfying parts of the hobby for me.
Exactly.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't mind if the local guys made some effort, but week after week, month after month of the same unpainted minis is a bit beyond a joke.
It is a stark contrast to Christchurch Cavs where everytime I go I am impressed by the quality of the painting, with 90%+ forces being fully painted. I can only put it down to peer pressure encouraging people to do the same and lift their game.
As for the camera, I am now starting to read the manual and figure things out- and will continue to experiment and (hopefully) improve!