Rikard's Body Building: Sculpting 101

Rikard's Body Building: Sculpting 101
Submitted by Rikard

Welcome to Rikard's Body Building, an ongoing series of articles about how to make your own conversions using modelling putties such as Greenstuff.

Rikard is a longstanding member of the Vault, and has produced a number of amazing conversions. Check out Rikard's gallery for more great pictures.

Index of articles:
Part 1: Have Putty
Part 2: Layering
Part 3: Pro Armature
Rikard's Advice
Simply follow these 3 steps to really get the most of your time and effort.

1: Patience
No-one starts off creating jaw dropping sculpts from day one it takes time and tons of patience, some things will require massive amounts of layering (weapons are a good example) as you may well have to wait for one part to dry before you move on to another, try and do the two together and it will all go pear shaped meaning that you lose even more time clearing up your mistake.

2: Practice
We've all got to learn to walk before we can run so start off small with your creations and build up from there. It was ages before I did a complete sculpt and one of the reasons why was because I got disheartened when I tried to sculpt a complete mini in one sitting from scratch (and believe me if anyone could do this they would be getting large amounts of money thrown at them from every model making company in the business. Push yourself and the ambition of your projects little by little and you will soon notice a difference.

3: Positive attitude
This ones a deep rooted element to do with the human brain, if you doubt your own abilities before you try (and trying means more than one attempt) then you will simply not put the effort in or worse subconsciously sabotage your efforts even before you begin. While knowing your limits is a good place to start, where is it written that you should not push them?

 

Rikard's Body Building, Part 1: Have Putty
Submitted by Rikard

Thought I'd get the ball rolling with some basics on putties as there is a lot of hearsay about different types of putties and many people constantly argue over "the best" putty.

I have used quite a few different types of putties overall at least 7 or more and it can be easily summed up like this:

THERE IS NO NUMBER ONE PUTTY.

It simply all boils down to personal preference some people simply prefer different putties and find that they get on better than others might as different things such as room temperature, curing time, tools and even the temperature and sweatiness of your hands will affect the overall experience.

Green stuff
You're very basic sculpting material and the most commonly used one too. I first started on this putty way back in the day and is still by far my most preferred and used putty. When it comes to organic shapes whether its flesh, scales, teeth, fur, claws, bones, or fine detail this putty is the winner. It has good memory and responds better to certain techniques and tools depending on the drying time it has been allowed. Many people complain about the severe stickiness of green stuff but I don't have that trouble as my hands are very cold due to poor circulation (mainly because of very low blood pressure) and so can begin working with green stuff as soon as I have mixed it.

If you're just starting off with Green stuff then I will say this, as with all putties don't make the same mistake I did when I first started by trying to make a complete mini, it only ends horribly and gets you exceptionally disheartened. You need to start of slowly with small detail (even filling in gaps in a glued joint is a good way to start)

Procreate
I brought some to this not long ago and to be honest I don't see what all the fuss is about. While it has all the properties of green stuff its not as sticky while many of you may consider this a bonus I don't. There are many looks and techniques that can only (or more easily) be achieved with the stickiness of green stuff.

Milliput
Comes in several different variations and I have used both grey (avoid!) and white which is much better. I use white for making base structures for weapons shields and armour too. It dries rock hard but can be carved and engraved (very handy for battle damage on a sword, armour or shield) However its greatest use IMO is that it can be filed when dry which again makes it very useful for weapon bases. It can also be mixed with other putties too and is handy when mixed with green stuff as you can make good scales and add slash marks to them afterwards similar to the damage on a shield.

Brown stuff
I brought some of this years ago too it’s a bit like green stuff which has been left to dry for an hour or so. Its good for armour and some people use it for weapons too although I personally prefer white milliput.

Apoxysculpt
Quite a good material for stone work as its very sturdy and brittle when dry. It responds to water in a similar fashion as clay but is very difficult for small detail work unlike green stuff. I use it for base armatures for large minis (like Nakai) as it is strong enough that it will not warp when you have extreme poses on a mini (such as an arm holding an massive axe at an angle).

Magisculpt
I brought some to this too recently after seeing some good use in making a large set of wings on Warseer for a scratch build nurgle dragon. However After using some of it I have decided that I much prefer Apoxysculpt.

Overall as I said there is no one or ultimate putty different people simple have different preferences depending on what you find most easy to work with. I prefer and stick with just Green stuff, white milliput and apoxysculpt though I still do have the other putties kicking around.

 

Rikard's Body Building, Part 2: Layering
Submitted by Rikard

Layering is where you build up slowly in detail bit by bit allowing the stage before to dry or even completely harden before you move on to sculpt the next bit. Like I said earlier nothing is sculpted in one go and so knowing what should be paced out is a good place to start as it makes your job as the sculptor SO much easier. Below are just a few examples of layering so you can get a good idea of just what I mean as with each of these stages the putty has been allowed to completely harden so if I touch it the detail will not smudge. Obviously these photos where not taken at every single stage of sculpting but again its simply there to help give you an idea of how to build up. (Click for larger images.)

 

Rikard's Body Building, Part 3: Pro Armature
Submitted by Rikard

Ok some of you may be wondering what exactly is an armature? The simple answer is an armature is a skeleton frame made up of wire with some green stuff lightly spread over it to give it shape, strength and soemthign for your green stuff to cling to. Below is an example from a Strigoi sculpt I am also working on. (Click for larger image)


Referance materials/concept artwork
This is an absolute must for any sculpting,even if you have an exceptionally clear idea in your mind of what you want the mini to look like. I work as a personal trainer and sports massage therapist and enjoy natural bodybuilding too so know a large amount about muscles positions, shapes, movements and size. Even so I still use the referance sheet below when I sculpt to make 100% sure I don't mess up or over exaggerate any muscles. This picture has been invaluable whilst sculpting Nakai and I strongly recommend that you ALWAYS use some form of anatomy chart and concept artwok for your sculpts even if what you are sculpting doesn't have any muscles showing.
(Click for full-size image)

 

Thanks for posting this here N810. Good tips, makes sense.