Don't Be So Strict With Your Miniature Painting
Here is a picture of a really bad looking mini to get you started. When was the last time you looked at badly painted miniature? It's one of my first. I didn't have much of an idea of what I was doing, and no experience or muscle memory to help me out.
I know it's impossible to convince a perfectionist who hates painting to worry less about their army painting. Trust me I've tried. But if you are open to it, changing your mindset about painting can help alot. Realizing that "done is better than perfect" can be the first step to a finished project.
First and foremost painting is not something you can learn over night. You also don't become a great painter by studying all the techniques. You become a good painter by getting the reps in. You need to get a feel for the brush, and how to control it. You need to spend some time with your paints, get to know them. How much water do they need to be proberly thinned. When do you need paint to be less thinned. These and many other things are impossible to teach using words.
You won't be good at first and that's okay. You will get better at pushing paint onto miniatures. I promise. You just have to keep at it. It seems hard at first, but it quickly gets easier. Can't pull off a paint scheme you've seen online? Try it a few more times. The next mini will look better. The person who created the recipe probably painted it hundreds of times to get the right feeling for it, so don't be sad if you can't get it right on the first try. You are still learning.
Be realistic about your painting goals. Are you painting for a competition? Is painting miniatures your job? If no, then you shouldn't really worry about perfection. Maybe you even are more of a gamer instead of a painter. Then apply the tried and true "arms length rule": If the mini looks good if you hold it with your arms stretched out, then it's good enough.
Dont paint something good, paint something interesting. The box art is painted by people whose job it is to paint miniatures. Of course they will look better than yours on a technical level. But you have the advantage of this probably not being your job. You are not forced to paint in the 'eavy Metal style. You can do whatever you want with your toy soldiers. In a world full of algorithmic perfection, it's cool to have something human and interesting. Experiment with weird colors. Color choice alone can make a paint scheme look cool, without fancy techniques. Get inspiration by your favourite artists outside of the hobby. You'll easily find cool art to steal a color palette from. Or you could focus on kitbashing and modelling so that it might overshadow your lacking painting skills.
Maybe you can modify your paint scheme in a way, that is great looking, but easier to paint? Figure out if you can paint most of your miniature with dry brushing or sponging.
The content around the miniature painting hobby also warps the perception of what a "good" paintjob really is. Seeing all these perfectly painted miniatures on Instagram will make you feel miserable about your own painting. Here are some content creators, that have a more laid-back approach to miniatures hobby and have inspired some of the contents in this post:
At least I hope you have fun when painting miniatures. It's not that serious. Just paint your silly little guys.
