Over The Shoulder
1.When I receive an order the first thing I do is scour my photo archive for the appropriate subject mater. I often go to model show museums and air shows and photograph as many aircraft as possible. If I don’t find what I want, I will bite the bullet and build the model. Here I set up a model of a SBD-2 Dauntless. I already know how I want to depict the aircraft, so I photograph it from the proper angle diving on the IJN Akagi during the battle of Midway.
2.Next I transfer the photo to a drawing. . I will t spend the next day tightening the image, adding detail and working out markings and lettering and deciding on the light source direction.
3.Now the fun begins. I know most artists do the background first then the main subject. However I start with the main subject then the background. Using the camo and color patterns that I have researched I select the base color. This is the paint I will be using through out the painting of the aircraft. I then tint the base with either white or blue tinted black, producing the highlights and shadows. I protect from overspray by using frisk, however to save time I will also use 811 magic tape, This is a great shortcut, you can see the image underneath and cut it as if it was frisk. To protect the board while using the magic tape I use painter rolls. This is a self adhesive paper strip that I can make a fence around the area that I am painting. I do this by bending the paper to deflect the direction of the air away from the board. Using the panel lines I proceed to paint the aircraft a section at a time, tinting the individual sections lighter or darker. This simulate how painted metal often weathers differently from panel to panel. When the body of the aircraft is mostly completed I then use white paint and blue black, (pure black will often appear as to chalky) paint to simulate the highlight and shadow.
4.I now take time to re-scribe the panel lines. I use white and black Prisma color pencils and technical pens. To produce the holes in the dive flap I hand painted them being careful to show the ship through the holes.
5.I then frisk out the aircraft and ship and spay a base blue for the water. I grade it on a diagonal lighter to darker from top left corner to bottom right. I then add the propeller arc using a transparent spray and then a white prop tip over sprayed with yellow. The ships wake was done with a paintbrush and sponge. The wave crests are painted with a shim of a sponge and then randomly dabbed.
6.Finally the cockpit, glass and ship detail are added and clean up any mistakes.
Finished! I then send it to a professional photo lab to be scanned and get ready for the printing process.
