PERSPECTIVES IN MINIATURE

ARTIST STATEMENT

In the words of Wilbur Smith "War is the game played by old men with the lives of the young". The pawn in this game is the combat soldier, represented by the miniature toy soldier; an insignificant being on the battlefield. Combat is the most intense moment of war, where life and death balances on a knife's edge. The results are terrifying and reveal the worst part of our human nature. Conversely, there are moments when it exudes the best of our human spirit. Most of the miniatures you see here are diligently researched from historical sources and handcrafted between scales of 1/35 to 1/16 (approx 50mm to 120mm). The intricate rendition of human expression and fine details not only demonstrates the level of craftsmanship but also serves as a reminder of the fragile nature of human life. I represent no political bias though my miniature creations. My aim is to portray humanity through the chronicles of military history and thus it is my pleasure that I present to you my weblog Perspectives in Miniature.

Calvin Tan

WWII GERMAN UNIFORMS - PERSONAL MIXES BY CALVIN TAN

In conjunction with AK Interactive, this exclusive Gen 3 acrylic paint set is specially composed with the essential colours that I use to render WWII German Uniforms. It contains 18 colours and a small pamphlet with my personal colour mixes. If you are keen to acquire all the colours on my palette to paint a field grey tunic, a splinter pattern zeltbahn, an oak-leaf pattern smock or the Kharkov anorak, look no further, this is the set for you to get started.

CALVIN TAN'S BASIC GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING

I developed this instructional DVD with Model Art magazine to help beginner armor and diorama modelers master the art of the 1/35 scale figure. In this video, I demonstrate easy-to-follow techniques for painting injection-molded plastics—from choosing the right brushes to the 'little tricks' I use for fine details. This is a complete showcase of my personal methods, and I’m confident it will help any modeler take their work to the next level. For your convenience, the DVD is available in both English and Japanese."

CALVIN TAN'S GUIDE TO CONVERTING AND PAINTING FIGURES

In this third instalment, I will share my techniques and materials to customize and detail an inexpensive stock plastic figure. Watch as I take you through the steps on how I modify a pose, model details such as hands, belts and webbing and insignias. Learn about working effectively with epoxy putty as well as plastic styrene and paper. As a continuation from my first two DVDs, I will demonstrate how to model and paint a simple groundwork as well as an alternate approach using a monochromatic underpainting to render both a field grey tunic and the World War 2 German Splinter Camouflage pattern on a helmet cover. If you have enjoyed and benefitted from those previous titles, this edition will be a welcome addition to your journey in scale figure modelling – regardless of your current skill level. It is my sincere hope that this could inspire you to embark on your own creative adventure in this fantastic hobby.

Tuesday, 6 October 2026

Tamiya 1/35 German Infantry Set (MID-WWII) - 35371

I just managed to just get this completed in time for SMC later next week.

Cheers,

Calvin

Monday, 28 September 2026

Tamiya 1/35 German Infantry Set (MID-WWII) - 35371

Moving on to the third figure from this set, precariously perched on a pipe from MiniArt Models.

Cheers,

Calvin

Sunday, 27 September 2026

Tamiya 1/35 German Infantry Set (MID-WWII) - 35371

Labels: Tamiya, Tamiya German Infantry Set (Mid-WWII) Posted by Calvin Tan at 22:26

Moving on to the second figure in this set, applying the exact same painting workflow as the first.

The key distinction here is the stone-grey trousers—a subtle historical detail that pins this figure specifically to the early stages of Operation Barbarossa during the Battle of Kiev, Summer 1941.

Cheers,

Calvin

Saturday, 26 September 2026

Alpine Miniatures - Panzerschütze, LSSAH, Kursk 1943 - 2

Labels: Alpine Miniatures Posted by Calvin Tan at 23:57

All done for this piece.

Cheers,

Calvin

Friday, 25 September 2026

Replicating Brass Metal - Fast, Easy and Effective

Labels: Miniart Posted by Calvin Tan at 22:40

This is a short tutorial on how to replicate a rather convincing "mock" brass metal finish on a plastic injection-moulded brass cartridge. The brass cartridges are from MiniArt 35375 7.5 cm Sprgr., Nbgr. & Pzgr. Patr. Kw.K.40 (Stu.K.40) SHELLS WITH AMMO BOXES.

A deep hole is drilled into the cartridge and plugged into a cocktail stick for easy handling.

AK Interactive RCM032 Gun Metal is applied as an undercoat.

A 2:1 mixture of Tamiya Clear Orange and Clear Blue is prepared and thinned with AK Perfect Clearer and airbrushed over the Gun Metal undercoat. Working in such a manner allows subtle variations of tones to be developed, creating a more random and natural appearance of brass.

The finshed result placed alongside an actual brass rod.

Cheers,

Calvin

Monday, 7 September 2026

Tamiya 1/35 German Infantry Set (MID-WWII) - 35371

Labels: German Infantry Set Mid-WW2, Tamiya Posted by Calvin Tan at 16:58

The completed figure is presented on a scenic groundwork made up of elements found in my scrap box. Some final additions included auxiliary Y-straps and a helmet elastic band, both fashioned from epoxy putty. After reconsidering the timeline, I decided to repaint the trousers in field grey to better fit a late-1942 setting. This was definitely a fun project, and I look forward to painting the next few figures from this set in the near future.