Extreme Reality Book Review

By Michael Benolkin

Review

Here is an unexpected title from AK Interactive. Titled 'Extreme Reality', this book takes a different approach to replicating reality and not from the usual talented modelers, but from artists. Each of the seven chapters in this book examine how to take something from the real world and replicate it in scale. This sounds familiar enough, but none of these articles cover a popular scale modeling subject and that is on purpose. The idea is to look at wear and weathering on more common items to understand how these same phenomenon would occur on subjects of interest to the reader.

The projects/techniques covered are:

• Cycle of Life (derelict bicycle)
• Bulldozer
• Walls of Decay
• Oil Drum
• Major Refurb (farm tractor)
• Devastator (Remnants of a race car)
• Shore's Cafe and Bar (Vignette)

The subjects are simple enough, but when you look at the well-illustrated step-by-step painting and weathering done by each artist along with some real-world reference photos, you can see how the artists approach a given problem. An oil drum? It is 1/6 scale and the detail is incredible even though it is a vignette about an old oil drum. Imagine applying these techniques to background objects in our own dioramas and vignettes, not to mention the central subject. The Major Refurb is an eye-catching article as well since the artist starts with a common die-cast model of a farm tractor and they transform it into a well-worn example you'd find around any farm today. Very impressive.

While these artistic subjects may not seem to be relevant to an upcoming project, I like the way these artists remove the AMS modeling dimension where you're not critically looking at where and how special effects are being applied to a Tiger tank or an F-4E Phantom II. Instead, you can see how these effects work outside of your normal frame of reference to help you in future projects.

Definitely recommended!

My sincere thanks to AK Interactive for this review copy!