New Orks, Finished Chaplain, Ultramarines

So I stopped by my FLGS today and picked up a few things:

...my Ork in Mega Armor & Painboy that I ordered came in, and while I was there I picked up the Gretchin w/ Runtherd box. I think I might just use the Gretchin entirely as fluff pieces, and convert them so they're hanging off the back of the vehicles, etc.

Here's my finished Chaplain:(Hooray, I finally broke out my good DSLR to take pics, rather than the lousy seven-year-old point & shoot camera). Some thoughts:

-Highlights: Getting better, still not where I want to be. Part of the problem is that the highlights look good on the model, even up close, but since I tend to shoot my photos so close, it looks like I smeared them on with a cotton swab. I'm going to try a 5x0 brush to see if I can get them neater.

-Painting black: As I said in a previous post, I feel dumb for avoiding this model for so long, since I was anxious about painting black - turns out, it's dead easy on smooth, flat surfaces, such as power armor. (I'm sure black robes are a different story altogether). I used Citadel Adeptus Battlegray for the highlights on this model, but I'd like it a shade lighter - I picked up some Vallejo Game Color Ghost Grey tonight, hopefully that'll fit the bill.

-Painting metals: This was the first model where I based the chest emblem with successive layers of flat colors, then painted the Shining Gold on top, rather than putting the Shining Gold directly on the primer and washing - I think it really helps the tone of the metallics look more natural, but I still had to go back to a wash to get the "depth" I wanted in the cracks.

I wanted the handle of the Crozius Arcanum to have a "mottled" look like it was wrapped in burgundy leather, so I applied an intentionally uneven coat of red ink directly to the white primer, then gave it a coat of Vallejo glaze. I think it came out well.

Here's the paint scheme for the model:

Armor:
-Basecoated w/ Citadel Chaos Black
-Highlighted w/ Citadel Foundation Series Adeptus Battlegray

Silver Metallics (rivets, pack vents, skull emblems):
-Basecoated w/ Citadel Mithril Silver

Gold Metallics:
-Basecoated w/ Citadel Bestial Brown
-Built up w/ Citadel Scorched Brown
-Layered w/ Citadel Shining Gold
-Washed w/ Citadel Badab Black
-Drybrushed w/ Citadel Mithril Silver

Handle of Staff:
-Basecoated w/ Series P3 Red Ink
-Glazed w/ Vallejo Game Color Gloss Medium

Purity Seal Wax:
-Basecoated w/ Foundation Series Mechrite Red
-Washed w/ Citadel Devlan Mud
-Highlighted w/ Citadel Blood Red

Purity Seal Ribbons/Bandages:
-Basecoated w/ Citadel Bleached Bone
-Washed w/ Citadel Devlan Mud

Skull/Shoulder Pad:
-Basecoated w/ Citadel Scorched Brown
-Built up w/ Citadel Bleached Bone
-Washed w/ Citadel Badab Black
-Highlighted w/ Citadel Skull White

Eyes:
-Basecoated w/ Chaos Black
-Pupils basecoated w/ Citadel Blood Red

Book:
-Cover: Basecoated w/ Citadel Snakebite Leather, washed w/ Citadel Devlan Mud
-Chains: Basecoated w/ Citadel Mithril Silver, washed w/ Citadel Badab Black
-Pages: Basecoated w/ Citadel Bleached Bone, washed w. Citadel Devlan Mud
-Corners: Basecoated w/ Citadel Shining Gold, washed w/ Gryphonne Sepia

...and I FINALLY got an evening that was suitable to lay down some matte finish, after almost three weeks of record humidity. A whole lot of Ultramarines are now ready to join their comrades in the foam: