Advanced Painting Tips Sought
Don Knecht
I have been painting miniatures off and on for about ten years, and have only
recently begun painting GW miniatures. I have entered several in local
contests and have won many awards, but I am looking to elevate my level of
painting to something to rival the Golden Demon models in White Dwarf.
Specifically, I am wondering how the color blends are done on these models,
such as Dave Perry's dark elf sorceror's red cloak fading to black, Orion's
muscles, etc. I have been able to duplicate this to some extent, but I am
looking for a better way to recreate the neat feathered edge when fading colors
into each other.
If you have any suggestions, please email them to me and post them to this
newsgroup (for the benefit of others).
Thank you,
Don Knecht
donk...@aol.com
Jennifer & David Violago
Don Knecht wrote:
Hi Don! Hi folks!
One way (not the only way) to obtain subtle blending effects is to use artists' oil
paints. They stay wet for a long time, so you can work them till things look
right. What works for me seems to be to use small amounts of paint in thin glazes,
avoiding a muddy mess.
Start by underpainting the figure in its base colours, which shines through
overlaying layers of oils. You can just block in the colours in acrylics.
[Lately, I've been underpainting the figure in a manner similar to doing an
underpainting on a 2-dimensional painting. I start with a thin black acrylic
primer coat, then airbrush flat actylic white paint in thin coats downwards on the
figure at about a 60 degree angle. This assumes that the light source is coming
from above. What you get is a greyscale figure, with off-white highlights. Thin,
transluscent coats of whatever base colours desired are applied in acrylics or
oils. For rank and file troops, just add some detailing on the face and
uniform/equipment and you're done: the figure has highlights and shadows built
in. I recently did a company of Wargames Foundry WW II Russians (sculpted by the
Perry twins) that way.]
To go the next step, wait for the undercoat to dry, or hit the fig with a thin coat
of clearcoat (Dullcote works) - it seems to dry oil paints when sprayed on top.
Next, work out whatever colours you're going to use and place it on your palette
(plastic picnic plate, sheet of scrap plastic, whatever) and lay them in next to
each other on the figure. That is, have three or four tones from light highlight
to dark shade on the palette, and place the appropriate tones on the figure
according to how you want the light to fall on the figure. Using a well pointed,
clean brush you can stipple adjoining colours together in short jabbing movements,
getting a smooth transition between different colours/tones. Using this method I
have had some success fading red into black (using mixtures of red, crimson and
blue-black as intermediate tones), and other times when subtlety pays off, like
painting a female face.
Oils also allows fine detailing, like checks or trim on clothing. Paint whatever
goes beneath the detail you'll be putting on (for e.g., a light band on the edge of
a robe where the trim pattern will be). Again, overcoat the figure with a light
clear coat. Mixing the oil with a medium like Winsor & Newton Liquin allows you
to draw really thin lines. When you make a mistake, use a clean brush and take off
the offending bit with thinner. The clearcoat saves whatever's been painted
before, just as long as you don't use too much thinner when removing the mistake.
You can often get starter packs of paints in smaller sized (cheaper!) tubes. Also,
Grumbacher markets a line of oils that are soluble in water (Grumbacher MAX
paints).
Using the above techniques I have been fortunate enough to win awards locally in
Winnipeg, in Chicago, and at GENCON in their master's competition - painting for
example the Bretonnian Sorceress in a red-to-black gown, an Eldar Warlock with
similar colours, and a Harlequin Solitaire with a checker pattern.
I have friends who get the same results with acrylics, using a lot of
semi-transparent glazes. Any comments from folks out there?
Happy gaming,
Dave Violago
vio...@pangea.ca
Rob Dean
Jennifer & David Violago <vio...@pangea.ca> wrote:
>One way (not the only way) to obtain subtle blending effects is to use
>artists' oil paints. They stay wet for a long time, so you can work them
>till things look right.
I've been told (though I haven't gone looking for it) that you can buy
acrylic paint "extender" (probably something like glycerin) which causes
your regular acrylic paints to dry almost as slowly as oils.
Rob Dean
rob...@access.digex.net
Shalom
> True. Extender is cheap (<$5 a large tube) and readily available at Art
> supplies stores by the Acrilyc paints It is tricky to work with, and works
> best ( well, with my skill level anyway) on larger models. You can get
> some Amazing effects w/ practice, though: Almost an Air-brush effect, and a
> 'crackle' like glaze when you put too much extender in your paint.
Jennifer & David Violago
Shalom wrote:
Hi folks!
I also use a extender/retarder when using acrylics. Up here in Canada, a 16 ounce
(!) bottle of the stuff can be had for around $10 (~$6 U.S.). I have used about a
1 in 6 proportion extender to paint ratio. However, the techniques I've been able
to use are more the wash/successive glaze type of thing. I have been unable to
use my oil painting techniques with extended acrylics. Also, when I use an
extender the drying time, though slower than usual, is not nearly as long as with
oil paints. Am I using the wrong proportion of extender to paint? Do certain of
such additives work better with specific brands of acrylic paints? I have been
using Golden Mediuim extender with Ral Partha, Citadel and Liquitex acrylics.
Today, I talked to a couple of my friends who exclusively use acrylics. One
swears by extenders, and the other won't use them.
Any commments or suggestions?
Happy painting,
Dave Violago
Lane Shutt
Don Knecht wrote:
>
> Specifically, I am wondering how the color blends are done on these models,
> such as Dave Perry's dark elf sorceror's red cloak fading to black, Orion's
> muscles, etc. I have been able to duplicate this to some extent, but I am
> looking for a better way to recreate the neat feathered edge when fading colors
> into each other.
Digs thru the archives
Finds the 'eavy metal painting guide
Blending (p 67) summary
highlight a dry base color, while (highlight) paint is still wet,
fade out the hard edge by drawing out the paint thinly (feathering)
Recomends using three stages, one over the other.
Ex. blending red: red base, red + orange first highlight, red + yellow
second, red (+yellow ?)+ white final stage. Adding white directly to
base color tends to make chalky or faded colors, a red/yellow/white
mix works better for highlights than pink.
Thin the highlight color slightly, allowing more time to blend.
paint highlight color over base. While highlight still wet use a
second brush (clean and slightly moist) to draw out the edge on to
the base till it becomes transparent.
Add final highlights.
Translation:
paint base color
paint first highlight color
(using clean damp brush) lightly brush from highlight color
onto base color. This extends the area of highlight slightly
but also causes a fading of the highlight.
repeat highlighting and blending as many times as desired,
reducing the are covered each time.
obligatory crude ASCII art:
X = base + = first highlight . = second highlight
base base + 1st highlight
blended
XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX++++++++ XXXX+XX++X+++++
XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX++++++++ XXXX+XX++X+++++
XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX++++++++ XXXX+XX++X+++++
XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX++++++++ XXXX+XX++X+++++
XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX++++++++ XXXX+XX++X+++++
XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX++++++++
XXXX+XX++X+++++
blended + 2nd highlight second blending
XXXX+XX++X++++++++........ XXXX+XX++X+++.++..+......
XXXX+XX++X++++++++........ XXXX+XX++X+++.++..+......
XXXX+XX++X++++++++........ XXXX+XX++X+++.++..+......
XXXX+XX++X++++++++........ XXXX+XX++X+++.++..+......
XXXX+XX++X++++++++........ XXXX+XX++X+++.++..+......
XXXX+XX++X++++++++........
XXXX+XX++X+++.++..+......
--
Farseer ToFU <lms...@hiwaay.net>
http://fly.hiwaay.net/~lmshutt/
miyamoto usagi
one version of this is called Matte Medium.
it is made by liquitex i believe, and blends nicely with their paints, and
others.
it is a nice thinning/blending agent for acrylics.
----------------
run along, punk. go and try to pour a ton of steel without rigid
principles, and act on the expediency of the moment.
-atlas shrugged.
haec everriculum machina sterilis.
On 5 Mar 1998, Rob Dean wrote:
> Jennifer & David Violago <vio...@pangea.ca> wrote:
> >One way (not the only way) to obtain subtle blending effects is to use
> >artists' oil paints. They stay wet for a long time, so you can work them
> >till things look right.
>
> I've been told (though I haven't gone looking for it) that you can buy