Is handpainting valued anymore????

[bigdawg43]

Since the invention of decals everyone is now a master artist when it comes to preparing a team. Very few handpaint anymore which is why I pose the question is a handpainted team valued anymore. I am guilty and most of the rest of you are guilty of taking the easy way out with decals heck even Al has started to use decal numbers instead of painting them or the old stick ons. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate all of the decal makers out there and the time and effort that went into their work but can we still paint? Is painting like riding a bike or does the skill deterioriate the longer you don't use it? Any thoughts? I am interested to hear what you think.

[jeff]

I prefer hand painted teams. The only problem is I can't hand paint well enough to make a team look close to respectable.

[Reginald Rutledge]

Coach,

I think its still valued by the critical eye. To me, painting is an art. Even in the electric football world. However, one of the things I find flawed in handpainting teams is the uniformity of the players.

It depends on your purpose for painting and who the end user is. I just got through with an order for a customer who wanted 2,000 handpainted custom figures. It took me 1/2 year to just create all the poses he wanted. In the oft-hours, I painted. I was relieved to have the luxury of having decals to use. It gave the players the authentic feel of reality because all the uniforms were very uniformed.

Don't get me wrong. I love the work of Ravenna Al and some legendary painters like two of my best friends, Jay Boy and the late-Dirk Thomas. When you see their work, it was extraordinary "Picasso". However, you could not rush them to do the job. I think you can still do high quality work and the decal allows that.

Guys like Chris Stacey, Terry Popham, Hulie Diggs, Eightball, and Mike Guttman all give you that high quality flawless look which when you are looking for uniformity, is very important.

I want to know every time that every line and every helmet is going to be the same. That's my definition of a uniform. It looks EXACTLY the same every time.

I think beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. I do appreciate the beauty of the freehand painter but technology has allowed us the ability to expedite a process 10-fold. For a guy like me, who never sleeps and is always working on projects/orders, that's of the utmost importance to me.

Just my Opinion,

Reg

Reg raises some good points. I have always preferred painting, probably because when decals were first being generated the colors were not completely opaque plus I didn't have the patience. So at the time I only used them on helmet logos, names and white jerseys. Now I know they (decals) have gotten better but I still prefer painting.

For me the rule is if I can paint it then I do. I use self adhesive vinyl numbers that I either trim by hand or they are cut by a vinyl cutter. I make decals for names but sometimes I use paper and paint around it.

Like Reg said it's in the eye of the beholder. I can deal with stripes that aren't exactly the same especially if it means that their is no dot pattern or transparency.

David C.

[RavennaAl]

Well, you know you hit a sore subject with me, Bigdawg. Sure, decals are uniform and look great. But what skill does it really take to put them on? Paintings not easy. If it was, there wouldn't be a market for decals. And it takes lots and lots of practice, especially if you're like me and can't draw worth a lick. And the thing is, you don't really need alot of talent, just the willingness to be patient, be persistent, and find a technique that works for you.

You mentioned something about skills deteriorating. I think to an extent, if you use decals all the time then you will lose some ability to paint stripes and logos. I know when I don't paint for long periods of time that when I do paint, it's hard to get back into the swing of things. But if I paint a few teams in a row, then I get into a "groove" and the stripes and logos are a lot easier, with less screw ups.


But alas, I do feel like hand painting is becoming a lost art. The worst part is all the pics of decalled teams. They look so good that guys get discouraged, thinking that they'll never be able to paint good enough. I know my teams will never look as good as decalled, but I keep trying. That's why I posted on the other board pics of my old teams, some of which are pretty rough. There are a few new guys who are pretty good painters, and I was hoping that if they saw some of my earlier work that they might think "Hey, my stuff looks just as good as his, maybe I'm better than I thought I was" and be encouraged to keep painting because the more they paint, the better they'll get.

[WolverineFan]

I think hand painting is still valued when done right.When I see some of the paint jobs on this site I think my work looks crappy even though my paint and decal work is very good.

For me I love a combination of the two Decals & hand painting , I love to paint my own Pant stripes and have gotten quite good at it through trail & error. When you see work like J-Boys, Steven Miles, Reg, Don, Ravanna Al,Chris Stacey,Chris R,Terry Popham, Beenutt, D.C ( Da Kid) and so many other great creators it gets you pumped to create, I think really though that it is a marriage of two different entities, The decals and good hand painting skills make a lethal combination when seen on a good looking figure. Maybe one day i may even try do do helemt logos by hand like my man Ravanna Al (GOD willing lol).

[WEIRDWOLF]

For me, I wish I could take the whole man...stick him in one of those laminaters and apply a whole full body decal. Done.

Beware, I am the Anti-Ravenna AL. LOL

[GUTTMANN]

As all of you know, I love creating teams for everyone. Decalling is a break from painting, as painting is a break from decalling. That's how I look at it. I have a few customers who want 95% hand painted, which is very tough to do, especially trying to get all the stripes the same width and straight. The other 5% are the helmets. I use decal emblems on all the teams. I admit, I Suck at doing helmet emblems.
Take another look at the Ducks I did for Raiderman...and the Colts. Those teams are 50% painted and 50% decalled. The stripes on the figures are all hand painted. You need a lot of trust in your steadiness, and your brushes. I go through all 3 types of brushes I use every 4 teams before they get slightly deformed and don't perform the way I want them too.
Just my 2 cents...
Mike

Sometimes I think my painting is ok,then I come here ,get Humbeld immediatly after seeing the Brilliant painting that goes on.Then I think at least there decals, weeeell at 6'3'' my hands are big and I cant work my fingers into small areas,so I use tweezers or a paintbrush and I still suck! Especially those little NFL neck decals and shoe decals. I had to stop doing them cause my tweezers were gettin fat from eating all the decals.And if that isnt bad enough when I use a paintbrush to transfer decals onto the figure they go
MIA ,where do they go?
Erick