I spent hours cranning my neck over some sisters of battle today. I'm painting them in bluey greys on black primer. They are coming along really nicely - as is my blending and layering! I've had to pack them away before I thought to take photos because I'm going to stay at my friends for a couple of weeks tomorrow morning.
When I stopped painting I actually couldn't use my hand properly it was all cramped and stiff, and my neck was killing me! But it was worth it - cloaks look awesome.
Primed some more sisters in white today. Looks like the halfords primer is outclassing the citadel one in everyway; cheaper, easier to spray, and a better, smoother result. I'm going to have to strip the sisters I sprayed with citadel skull white today because they just look awful. Patchy coverage and grainy where it has hit.
I still need to see if I can strip the halfords primer before I spray it on too many of them though.
Gonna do some more work on the blog tomorrow, and get some more pictures up.
Showing posts with label painting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label painting. Show all posts
Saturday, 23 July 2011
Wednesday, 20 July 2011
Colour Sheets!
So what I'm working on at the moment is a set of hand made resources to help people choose colour schemes, primers, and basecoats. Yesterday was my trial run for layering.
The basic ideas are this;
Sheets of paper sprayed with a fine but complete layer of primer, fully dried
Working from left to right progressive layers of colour are added. The paint starts off at typical milky consistency. The first swatch of a colour has one layer, the second has two, and so on.
I'll be doing this over various primers. This set of colour sheets is designed to help people choose what primer to use, or what colours will look like over their primer. Lots of people don't always realise how much that first spray is going to affect their final work - hopefully this will help everyone, and myself, predict better what our final colours are going to look like. I've been surprised by how much better some colours stand out on black than grey or white, for example.
Also it is going to show how many layers it takes paints to become opaque or whether they are opaque to begin with. When painting over darker basecoats knowing just how translucent your paint is can make a huge difference to how you shade and highlight.
So the first set of colour sheets I did had 8 strips, starting off at just below 50:50 paint thinner. Next time I'll probably do about 6 strips with 25:75 paint or 20:80 so the progression is better. While I was painting the layers the differences were much more visible but now it's dried they all look the same from the third or fourth swipe. I'll redo those colours against last though because gooood it got boring after a while.
I made sure I was painting with the same brushes and strokes; red sable, two even strokes next to each other. Each layer was perfectly dry before I applied the next one.
Nowdog is staring at me for a walk so I will have to end here and trot round the fields with el capitan labrador!
The basic ideas are this;
Sheets of paper sprayed with a fine but complete layer of primer, fully dried
Working from left to right progressive layers of colour are added. The paint starts off at typical milky consistency. The first swatch of a colour has one layer, the second has two, and so on.
I'll be doing this over various primers. This set of colour sheets is designed to help people choose what primer to use, or what colours will look like over their primer. Lots of people don't always realise how much that first spray is going to affect their final work - hopefully this will help everyone, and myself, predict better what our final colours are going to look like. I've been surprised by how much better some colours stand out on black than grey or white, for example.
Also it is going to show how many layers it takes paints to become opaque or whether they are opaque to begin with. When painting over darker basecoats knowing just how translucent your paint is can make a huge difference to how you shade and highlight.
So the first set of colour sheets I did had 8 strips, starting off at just below 50:50 paint thinner. Next time I'll probably do about 6 strips with 25:75 paint or 20:80 so the progression is better. While I was painting the layers the differences were much more visible but now it's dried they all look the same from the third or fourth swipe. I'll redo those colours against last though because gooood it got boring after a while.
I made sure I was painting with the same brushes and strokes; red sable, two even strokes next to each other. Each layer was perfectly dry before I applied the next one.
Nowdog is staring at me for a walk so I will have to end here and trot round the fields with el capitan labrador!
Monday, 18 July 2011
Tutorial - Step Two - Priming
Always prime your models in a well ventilated area. Wearing a little face mask is a good idea as well, especially if you're going to do a lot of priming and painting!
Acrylic paints don't 'stick' to bare metal or plastic models very well. You will end up with a patchy, blotchy paint job and it will be difficult to apply and control the paint on the model in the first place. Primers have slightly different formulas to their paint equivalents. They are better designed to adhere to the model (or surface) they are sprayed on, and form a better bind with paints applied to them. Additionally primers can help smooth the surface further.
There are a number of different primers you can use, not just ones labelled for models. The most popular ones I've seen have been;
Games Workshop
Army Painter
Duplicolour Sandable Primer
Krylon Primer
There are lots of primers out there so don't feel limited to just using something from Games Workshop or the like, because they can be unecessarily expensive. But if you don't end up branching out, do a quick google to see if other people have tried it and how they got on with it so you don't end up wasting money unecessarily.
Primer needs to be matt - this is the main thing to look for when trying random sprays!
The easiest colour to start with is black for most people, but you can get primers in any colour and finish. One of the great selling points about Army Painted primers, besides being half the price of Games Workshop's, is that they are available in a huge range of colours. As are auto-primers, like dupli-colour and halfords own brand.
No matter how you end up spraying your models the first few steps are going to be the same; make sure the weather and humidity is suitable, shake the hell out of your can, put your minis on something you don't mind getting covered in paint, and do the spraying somewhere well ventilated that you can also cover in paint.
Primers are labeled with conditions they work best in - outside of these you're likely to end up with patchy or chalky lumpy spray. At the very least never spray in the rain, the extreme heat, or much colder than room temperature. You should shake your can for at least a minute, more if it's new or hasn't been used in a while. This mixes up all the substance that has settled in the bottom of the can. Cardboard and newspaper are good for spraying on.
Now for the actual spraying!
The Ideal Way!
Keep your can of primer upright and spray parallel to your models. This means having your models upright too, or spraying paint straight up their butts.
Either spray them in there based, or stuck to masking tape. Double sided masking tape is the easiest for that, or you can use single sided tape stuck sticky side up by more sticky tape!
PHOTO
This is a neat trick to use sometimes regardlss of how you're spraying because some model parts can be so fine and light that they get blown away by the power of the spray.
Prop this against something and spray away!
The Less Ideal Way!
Spray them however the hell you want. Keeping the can parallel to your models will help keep the spray even across them. It's easier to spray with the can away from vertical the more full it is, as you don't have to worry about where the straw is in the paint.
PHOTO
Even if you're spraying your models whilst hung upside by your ankles like a bat make sure you always keep these in mind;
PHOTO of upside bat spraying
Don't spray to close - 6 to 12 inches to start and change as gives you the best results.
Don't spray in one huge, continuous splurge of paint. Use of quick sprays instead. Helps you save paint as well as not drench everything.
Kept the mist fine - don't spray a model so much it starts pooling on it. Unless you're going to have a little nameplate on your Dreadnought saying 'Mr Lumpy'. Do a couple of fine passes over the model - instead of that huge splurge!
PHOTOS OF GOOD AND BAD SPRAYING.
The sound the can makes when you spray should be uniform as well - any popping or spluttering means either you're not holding it at the right angle for how full it is or its not mixed properly and your not getting the right ratio or paint and propellant out.
Try shaking it or changing position. If one doesn't work try the other.
Try and keep your primer layer fine. The thicker it is the less detail on your final model.
Leave the models until they are completely dry, then turn them over. If you've sprayed them in their based you can just spray the whole model in one go.
Sometime you'll only notice mold lines and flash once the models have been primed. Don't worry about this - just remove them as usual and if possible give them a very fine spray to cover up the clear spot. Or go over with a couple of layers of thinned paint.
PHOTO
And don't worry! If you mess up your priming job it is removable from both plastic and metal models. Try, and if it goes wrong you can try again :)
Acrylic paints don't 'stick' to bare metal or plastic models very well. You will end up with a patchy, blotchy paint job and it will be difficult to apply and control the paint on the model in the first place. Primers have slightly different formulas to their paint equivalents. They are better designed to adhere to the model (or surface) they are sprayed on, and form a better bind with paints applied to them. Additionally primers can help smooth the surface further.
There are a number of different primers you can use, not just ones labelled for models. The most popular ones I've seen have been;
Games Workshop
Army Painter
Duplicolour Sandable Primer
Krylon Primer
There are lots of primers out there so don't feel limited to just using something from Games Workshop or the like, because they can be unecessarily expensive. But if you don't end up branching out, do a quick google to see if other people have tried it and how they got on with it so you don't end up wasting money unecessarily.
Primer needs to be matt - this is the main thing to look for when trying random sprays!
The easiest colour to start with is black for most people, but you can get primers in any colour and finish. One of the great selling points about Army Painted primers, besides being half the price of Games Workshop's, is that they are available in a huge range of colours. As are auto-primers, like dupli-colour and halfords own brand.
No matter how you end up spraying your models the first few steps are going to be the same; make sure the weather and humidity is suitable, shake the hell out of your can, put your minis on something you don't mind getting covered in paint, and do the spraying somewhere well ventilated that you can also cover in paint.
Primers are labeled with conditions they work best in - outside of these you're likely to end up with patchy or chalky lumpy spray. At the very least never spray in the rain, the extreme heat, or much colder than room temperature. You should shake your can for at least a minute, more if it's new or hasn't been used in a while. This mixes up all the substance that has settled in the bottom of the can. Cardboard and newspaper are good for spraying on.
Now for the actual spraying!
The Ideal Way!
Keep your can of primer upright and spray parallel to your models. This means having your models upright too, or spraying paint straight up their butts.
Either spray them in there based, or stuck to masking tape. Double sided masking tape is the easiest for that, or you can use single sided tape stuck sticky side up by more sticky tape!
PHOTO
This is a neat trick to use sometimes regardlss of how you're spraying because some model parts can be so fine and light that they get blown away by the power of the spray.
Prop this against something and spray away!
The Less Ideal Way!
Spray them however the hell you want. Keeping the can parallel to your models will help keep the spray even across them. It's easier to spray with the can away from vertical the more full it is, as you don't have to worry about where the straw is in the paint.
PHOTO
Even if you're spraying your models whilst hung upside by your ankles like a bat make sure you always keep these in mind;
PHOTO of upside bat spraying
Don't spray to close - 6 to 12 inches to start and change as gives you the best results.
Don't spray in one huge, continuous splurge of paint. Use of quick sprays instead. Helps you save paint as well as not drench everything.
Kept the mist fine - don't spray a model so much it starts pooling on it. Unless you're going to have a little nameplate on your Dreadnought saying 'Mr Lumpy'. Do a couple of fine passes over the model - instead of that huge splurge!
PHOTOS OF GOOD AND BAD SPRAYING.
The sound the can makes when you spray should be uniform as well - any popping or spluttering means either you're not holding it at the right angle for how full it is or its not mixed properly and your not getting the right ratio or paint and propellant out.
Try shaking it or changing position. If one doesn't work try the other.
Try and keep your primer layer fine. The thicker it is the less detail on your final model.
Leave the models until they are completely dry, then turn them over. If you've sprayed them in their based you can just spray the whole model in one go.
Sometime you'll only notice mold lines and flash once the models have been primed. Don't worry about this - just remove them as usual and if possible give them a very fine spray to cover up the clear spot. Or go over with a couple of layers of thinned paint.
PHOTO
And don't worry! If you mess up your priming job it is removable from both plastic and metal models. Try, and if it goes wrong you can try again :)
Sunday, 17 July 2011
Blending! (In grey!)
I spent a few hours sat down today filing my metal sisters and removing various flash from their models, and painting a few of the finished and based ones. I started with five, working on their cloth.
I really like bleached bone for cloth at the moment but I've decided to try outside some cooler grey shades on these for now. I started with some shadow grey for the basecoat.
Basecoat: 1:3:1 Paint: 10% flow: matte medium
Two layers
I really like bleached bone for cloth at the moment but I've decided to try outside some cooler grey shades on these for now. I started with some shadow grey for the basecoat.
Basecoat: 1:3:1 Paint: 10% flow: matte medium
Two layers
By the time I'd finished painting the last one, the first had dried so I got onto the first layer of shading.
I used shadow grey and space wolf grey as my two extremes, and for the first layer just used a 50:50 blend of them wedged between my palette.
I did my blending by lining the deepest part with the shadow grey, and the remaining 2/3 with the medium coloured. I blend the line together using very very tiny circles through the two colours. If one colour goes too far over I just get the tiniest bit possible on the brush and push it back abit.
I do this with two paint brushes; one for the light colour one for the dark. The paints are about the consistently of milk, and I have very little in my brush. If I can see the paint in the brush, there's too much and I dab it off on my palette.
As I blend on the model I regularly wipe of the excess paint so I don't just end up with a huge patch of intermediate colour.
I think it went quite well. I'm finding painting very relaxing and engaging at the moment. I'll try and get some better photos up soon, I've started using a proper camera so that's something new to learn as well!
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Quickie
Just thought I'd post a few shots of my work space(s) before I take doggy for a walk. Spent the whole morning scribbling down ideas for diaramas and duels. Ideas I'll be good enough to use in about 5 years - woot!
Now to walk the beast.
Now to walk the beast.
Monday, 11 July 2011
Squeezy Bottles!
I went back to the hobby craft store and spent 20 minutes scouting out all the isles until I FINALLY found some stupid tiny squeezy bottles. Also ordered some off ebay but hey, having more of this stuff isn't a bad thing!
I mixed together my flow and retarder solutions and added sexy labels to my squidgy bottles using paint. I was far more excited about using this stuff than I think a normal person should be, but oh well.
I started on some elves - painting their cloaks bleach white. Basecoat colour went on amazingly with the flow added. About 3/4 coats in total, over black primer.
I love how creamy and smooth the colour looks. The paint was 50:50 flow solution and bleached bone paint.
But being impatient I proceeded to cock it up from there and not let things dry properly before I tried to highlight and blend. I think I tried to do too much in one evening and now my elves are sat on my desk looking embarassed about the state of their cloaks.
I mixed together my flow and retarder solutions and added sexy labels to my squidgy bottles using paint. I was far more excited about using this stuff than I think a normal person should be, but oh well.
I started on some elves - painting their cloaks bleach white. Basecoat colour went on amazingly with the flow added. About 3/4 coats in total, over black primer.
I love how creamy and smooth the colour looks. The paint was 50:50 flow solution and bleached bone paint.
When it was dry I threw on some layers of Grypphone Sepia wash;
But being impatient I proceeded to cock it up from there and not let things dry properly before I tried to highlight and blend. I think I tried to do too much in one evening and now my elves are sat on my desk looking embarassed about the state of their cloaks.
Tomorrow I'll try again, properly this time, and increase the concentration of the retarder as the paints still dried before I could get to blend them. Didn't stop me trying! And now they are lumpy lumpy models...
Let's get started!
I recently dug out all of my warhammer stuff after a couple of years creative haitus. With the summer off (3 month uni break - whoo!) I've decided I want to get back into everything. I've got quite a substantial army - Witch Hunters - with alot of it completely untouched. Thus far I've found;
Throne of Judgement
Penitent Engine
Exorcist
About 20 base coated sisters
About 30 Painted Sisters
2 St Celestine
2 Inquisitor Retinues
Various HQ models I can't remember the names of
C'tan the Deceiver
10 Seraphim
Box of Skeletons
Vampire's Carriage
Couple of Eldar Avatars
And some High Elf stuff I can't remember because I don't have it with me.
Random Lord of the Rings elves
Box of Galahad elves
In addition to that I discovered that even after 2 years of neglect in a box, my 100+ GW paints are all still usable. I have about 30 brushes, file sets, clippers, basing materials, glues, you name it.
My best mate went out the other day and bought himself the Space Marine and Orks big box set as well, so I've got some lovely ork stuff to paint up.
I started about a week ago by digging up some of the old elves I'd painted terribly and just spraying them over again. They are plastic so I couldn't be bothered to faff about stripping them. I just used them to get back into the swing of things a bit, and as can be expected from someone who hasn't painted for years they look awful!
Not bad for the first thing I've painted in ages I guess. I didn't go the whole hog because a) repainted managed to make lots of the details useless and b) my hands have the artistic control of a buffolo at the moment.
Throne of Judgement
Penitent Engine
Exorcist
About 20 base coated sisters
About 30 Painted Sisters
2 St Celestine
2 Inquisitor Retinues
Various HQ models I can't remember the names of
C'tan the Deceiver
10 Seraphim
Box of Skeletons
Vampire's Carriage
Couple of Eldar Avatars
And some High Elf stuff I can't remember because I don't have it with me.
Random Lord of the Rings elves
Box of Galahad elves
In addition to that I discovered that even after 2 years of neglect in a box, my 100+ GW paints are all still usable. I have about 30 brushes, file sets, clippers, basing materials, glues, you name it.
My best mate went out the other day and bought himself the Space Marine and Orks big box set as well, so I've got some lovely ork stuff to paint up.
I started about a week ago by digging up some of the old elves I'd painted terribly and just spraying them over again. They are plastic so I couldn't be bothered to faff about stripping them. I just used them to get back into the swing of things a bit, and as can be expected from someone who hasn't painted for years they look awful!
Not bad for the first thing I've painted in ages I guess. I didn't go the whole hog because a) repainted managed to make lots of the details useless and b) my hands have the artistic control of a buffolo at the moment.
But it was great fun to get back into it. So much fun, in fact, that I went on a buying rampage at my local hobby craft store! I spent way too much money...
I picked up some flow improver and some fluid retarder (favourite name of the day) and some plastic glue;
Also grabbed some washed and paints I was missing (don't know why I forgot to bring black and white home with me)
And I got two Winsor and Newton brush sets. I have only just noticed that the mahogany set is polyester and not sable... urgh... I'll use them anyway - can never have enough brushes!
And I got myself a giant rainbow-gay chest of drawers to store all my nerdy secrets in;
There was also a sale in JJB next door but until I cover my clothes in paint I'll refrain from posting them here.
Annoyingly I couldnt find any dropper bottles to mix up my retarders/flows in. I'm withholding on painting until I can get those and properly thin my paints. I'm very neurotic about doing everything properly at the moment - I don't want to ruin anything expensive.
So yeah - from now on this blog is going to be my progress as I go from wtf end of this paintbrush do I hold to SUPER PAINTED GOLDEN DEMON extraordinare. With the occasional dog photo thrown in.
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