Click here for a YouTube Video Trailer of this DVD set!
Please Note: This DVD Set can only be shipped within the USA and Canada at this time.
As you all know, I have been a HUGE fan of any sort of painting tutorial sites or instruction I can get my hands on. And then over the past few years, a couple different DVD painting tutorials came out and I was over the moon. I then kept getting asked if Dark Sword will ever do their own DVD with our own miniatures and some of the painters we work with. It was indeed something I had been thinking about and I do have the extreme privilege to collaborate with some amazing miniature painters so we decided to put our money where our mouth is and film/produce a very comprehensive DVD set on miniature painting.
Jen Haley is the winner of two Golden Demon Slayer Swords, countless Golden Demons and two Privateer Press Grand Master Painter awards. Anne Foerster is the former staff painter at Reaper Miniatures and has won multiple Golden Demons and other painting competition awards. In addition, Anne has designed three (yes 3 !) miniature paint lines – so she knows what she is talking about folks. You put these old friends together across the table from each other and this makes from some very candid and interesting miniature painting stories and instruction!
Please note – this is a DVD set that will take you all the way from basic/new painter to an intermediate/advanced level. This is a jam-packed 3 DVD Set with over 10 hours of instruction! In addition, we have some fun slideshows and inspirational galleries on the DVD for your viewing pleasure.
Learn the basic techniques to sound miniature painting and then build upon these basic techniques from module to module into more advanced techniques under the guidance of multi award-winning miniature painters Jen Haley and Anne Foerster. All demonstrated on award-winning Dark Sword Miniatures over the entire DVD set! From brush and paint selection, assembly, priming, color theory, terminology, and smooth basecoats all the way up to washes, glazes, painting amazing flesh tones, faces, eyes, hair, source lighting, and NMM armor/weapons, this DVD set will bring you up to speed on how to achieve impressive results and take your miniature painting to the next level.
This 3 DVD set has both Jen and Anne working together and demonstrating the various aspects of miniature painting in a conversational approach that will keep you engaged and entertained while imparting their knowledge and experiences. Regardless if you are new to miniature painting or have some solid skills already, this DVD set can help you level up. So pull up a seat to their painting table!
Format: DVD-Video Multi-region DVD (Region 0), NTSC Viewable on PC and Mac computers with DVD players* Viewable on DVD players and televisions that support NTSC* Total Length: 10+ hours English Language Menus in English *Remember to adjust your monitor/TV settings as needed from module to module to make sure colors are popping just right for that module. Color, Brightness, Contrast and Backlighting adjustments can make a huge viewing difference for optimal DVD viewing on something like a miniature painting tutorial.
Testimonials
… I recently received your new Dark Sword Painting 3 DVD set and it is fantastic. More importantly, my wife saw me watching it and took an interest…she is going to paint her first miniature this weekend. I’ve been painting as long as we’ve been married (19 years), but only after seeing your DVD did she have a desire to “jump in”.
… Thank you so much for producing a fantastic DVD tutorial. For me, it has been incredibly informative and instructional.
…I too picked this pack up at Gen Con in order to save 10 bucks. Are there already videos out there that cover the same information? Yes. Is this video informative and entertaining? Yes I think it covers the information as well as other videos out there if not better. I personally think it is better slightly then the Hot Lead video in that you get to see two different takes on how to paint. I felt like I spent my money well with this set.
…That youtube trailer was great. The wet edge trick for base coating is something I never would have thought about. I’ll definitely be adding this to my list.
…All I can say is – thank you very much.
…Disk one is for the basic material. In terms of techniques, new bits, etc…, still watching. the first disk does a very good job of covering the basics. The conversational tone between the two is good and full of witty banter that doesn’t feel forced or out of place. The NMM that they go through is quite interesting and looks, I don’t want to say easy, but perhaps the most simple explanation I’ve ever heard by Anne. The example Jen lays down for gold, doesn’t have a lot to do with actual gold/yellow but works well. Anne’s good at explaining things. her muddy/wet blending technique on Ghost, the winter wolf from Game of Thrones, is quick but easy to follow along with an perfect for certain types of animals and monsters. They cover a few options on shading including layering it down and washing/glazing it down. The thing I enjoyed most was the lack of ‘perfection’ on either painter’s side. They both make mistakes but have fun with it which is a stress reliever for me at least. Looking forward to watching the rest of it.
…I thoroughly enjoyed the DVD. So much so, that I really felt I should write a few words. I’ve been playing D&D for about four years now. I’m very lucky to live about ten minutes away from The Source, and have spent lots of money on your miniatures. The quality is unmatched. I’m involved in two different gaming groups and no one really ever bothers to paint their minis. For some reason, about three weeks ago on a whim I decided to try my hand at it.
…I was really proud at those minis at the time, which was only a couple weeks ago, but I had no real way of knowing what I was doing since none of my friends are into painting. So I just tried to push myself a bit more with each mini. On Saturday I was at the source to buy a new Dark Sword wizard miniature (I was working on one but severely mucked up the paint job) and while I was there I saw the masterwork miniature painting DVD. I purchased it and spent the rest of my weekend watching it.
…I really have to thank Jen and Anne. The amount of information they packed in there is extraordinary. I started painting a new mini yesterday, and the difference between what I did before is like night and day. Before I was just globbing on paint right out of the tube and had no idea how to shadow or highlight, how to do glazes and washes. As soon as I finished the DVDs I went out and purchased some real paintbrushes. I’m never going back to the cheap synthetic ones (well, maybe I’ll still use them for dry brushing). So for the newest miniature I’m working on, I’ve only got a couple articles of clothing painted, but the color is just so consistent and being able to do shadows and highlights and have it come out not looking like an over saturated comic book character; I can only describe it by saying it feels awesome!
…So yeah, I wanted to say thank you to Jen and Anne – I don’t have the time at the moment to figure out their emails, but I hope you can pass the word along to them on just how much I appreciated all their advice.
…I love the DVD. I’ve been watching a lesson and painting a few minis to perfect what was discussed and I can tell a huge difference in my painting. I would love to meet Jen and Anne just to thank them for their willingness to share their secrets.
…Great DVD, you two are just great together. Would love to see you both in another set sometime. Thanks for all the help and suggestions.
…I purchased the video to add to my collection of DVDs. I have the Hot Lead with Laszlo, I felt that the way Jen and Anne showed the techniques was better and allowed those not new to the concept to understand. I would love to see more videos with either Jen or Anne or both doing advanced things such as (painting liquids in bottles/glasses, OSL lighting on magical swords, etc).
…Just finished watching the video. I enjoyed it much more than I expected from the reviews. The main thing I was worried about was the number of references to them bantering back and forth. In my mind they just had a light hearted discussion during the DVD and did not take away from the quality of the information. Anne has a great sense of humor and keeps the material interesting. I also appreciated the constant tips on colors and reminders on how to apply the color theory. Overall the DVD was great and I have already improved my painting. it was money and time well spent.
…I’m a bit late to the party but after meeting both Jen and Anne at ReaperCon 2012 this year I knew I HAD to get this vid! I have a couple instruction vids – one other by Jen and then some other professional painters and I was concerned this might be redundant. Not at all! Every mini is different and I learned even more techniques to add to my painter’s toolbox. Even if a certain technique was the “same” on another vid, seeing it again, on a different mini, a different angle, etc. improved my understanding. Anne was great too although my first thought was “this is going to be more than I ever wanted or need to know about paint, especially the manufacturing process.” But it was very interesting and Anne did not beat the subject into the ground. Now I find myself using that knowledge more and more when I never thought I would need it.
And finally I pulled this very comprehensive review off of the Reaper Forums (Dark Sword and Reaper have tons of mutual love for each other):
… Recently I saw the trailer to Dark Sword Miniatures “Masterworks Miniature Painting With Jen Haley and Anne Foerster” and it caught my interest. I ordered the DVD set directly from Dark Sword and it arrived just a couple of days later. Now I have been a fan of Jen Haley’s work for a few years now but I wasn’t as familiar with Anne(shame on me!). To be straight to the point, it’s an EXCELLENT DVD set for painters of any level and I can’t recommend it strongly enough. I will break down my review to a quick areas of interest/concern:
Cost: The DVD set retails for $50. It is a very fair price given that you are getting 3 DVD’s that are fairly comprehensive and include many hours of advice and on-screen painting tutorials. There are many painting tutorial DVD’s I have eyed over the internet but have been reluctant to purchase, knowing that the $30-$100 cost could easily buy me a bunch of minis instead! However, having taken the plunge on this, I am so happy that I did…it definitely delivers everything that it promises.
Presentation: The DVD menus are easy to navigate and broken into various topics that you can select to see a tutorial one particular aspect of the hobby. The actual video consists of panoramic shots of Jen and Anne discussing theory and technique, and high resolution close-ups of minis that they are working on. The lighting, audio and editing are all high quality. Problematic quirks of miniature painting DVD’s like painter’s hair in the shot and focus problems are nearly non-existent. Every technique was clearly presented on the video so that what the artists are trying to convey are clear and crisp.
Contents: The wide array of topics covered in the DVD’s is impressive. Many times painting DVD’s will be too ambitious and try to cover too many techniques with limited time commitment …this 3 DVD set allows the painters to be comprehensive and giving reasonable time and explanation to the myriad of methods they employ. You have the whole gambit of pertinent topics here including(to name just a few): Brush & Paint Selection, Shading, Highlighting, Washes & Glazes, NMM(Non-Metallic Metals), Cloth Texture, Color Theory, Problem Colors(White, Yellow, Black, Red), Prepping, Finishing and MANY, MANY MORE! There is definitely much to chew on here for both novice and veteran painters.
Style: I love the approach of this DVD. Instead of just one artist talking you through their approach, there is a great “give and take” between Anne and Jen; this really sets these painting DVD’s apart from the rest of the crowd. The painters convey many times that there is “more than one way” to get nice results…and often they show their different approaches to certain methods. If you are relative beginner I highly recommend popping in the third DVD and going right to the “Conclusion” chapter where Jen and Anne offer solid advice on one’s mindset and approach to the hobby in general.
Closing Thoughts: This DVD will be a great resource to me for years to come I am sure. I am someone who has been painting minis for many years, but often feels like he’s stalled in his progress and techniques…not quite being able to take things to the next level. Well, as they say in the video there is no “magic pill” to make one a better painter, or any real shortcuts, but with this tool at my disposal I definitely have no excuses not to improve. I look forward to re-thinking many methods I use in painting and trying both the conventional, and unconventional, techniques that Anne and Jen teach in the DVD’s.
On a side note, my wife and I have been married for 19 years(this Sunday) and we both have hobbies…none of which are in common. Though she’s always been very supportive of my mini painting(which I appreciate!), it was her sitting next to me as I watched these DVD’s that made her decide to give the hobby a try…if that’s not an endorsement for the Dark Sword DVD set I don’t know what is.
Maybe you are looking for me to rate this DVD…well, the text above make it clear how I feel so the usual clichés all apply: Five Stars, 10/10, “Perfect”, etc. Thanks for reading/viewing…if you have any questions about the DVD set feel free to post them.