Some painting tips?

[Iron Sage]

First of all, let me say this: I am not a painter. I do my best to make my models look decent, but I dont have great skill, at all. A month ago I painted a daemon prince a friend of mine converted a year ago, and while it looks decent for being my work, I am not happy about the white cloth. It shines too much. In general I dont really understand how to paint white well.

 

I`ll include some pictures of my work, and as I said, I dont claim to have the skills that many here do, and likely I will never have that, but if there is a neat easy trick or two then please give me a wink!

 

Wait...How do I upload pictures?

 

http://s1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii560/...Ddaemons010.jpg

 

 

 

http://s1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii560/magnukra/?action=view&current=daemons009.jpg

 

http://s1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii560/magnukra/?action=view&current=daemons008.jpg

 

http://s1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii560/magnukra/?action=view&current=daemons003.jpg

 

 

http://http//s1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii560/magnukra/?action=view&current=daemons002.jpg

[HJL]

Cant see anything

[Brother Nathan]

the code you are looking to insert is the img code.

 

as for painting tips, do you have any washes. washes can easily help to give depth and shadows. for a beginner they really help. after that id try highlighting the likes of your metals etc. start small and try things. dont be afraid to look at others work and see what they have done, and try to figure out how tey achieved it. and ask. you may not get the answer you always want but you might get the one you need. bbut for now try washes and look into highlights. if you have a local shop of some kind they would likely have someone willing to show you in person, but failing that theres loads of videos on the net...

[Brother Ambroz]

I'm going to echo Brother Nathan. Washes really help for newer painters. Try youtubing blending and highlighting respectively. That and study other people's work. When going from one color to another, especially on skin, you're going to want to blend it. On metallics not so much. On the plus side though, from the picture it looks like you've got a steady hand and that's one of the hardest parts on its own.

 

To post a picture, just copy the "HTML code" from your picture on your host website. then come here and click the "Insert Image" button. After that just click ok and you're there!

[Iron Sage]

I feel some what stupid now. I have tried to upload pictures for a while now, but cant seem to get it right. First I tried to link from the net, and then whenthat didnt work, I uploaded some pics into an album here on this site, but I cant seem to insert pics into the text even from a gallery here. Obviously doing something wrong, but as I read through the immage posting topic I am not sure what that is...

[Iron Sage]

I'm going to echo Brother Nathan. Washes really help for newer painters. Try youtubing blending and highlighting respectively. That and study other people's work. When going from one color to another, especially on skin, you're going to want to blend it. On metallics not so much. On the plus side though, from the picture it looks like you've got a steady hand and that's one of the hardest parts on its own.

 

To post a picture, just copy the "HTML code" from your picture on your host website. then come here and click the "Insert Image" button. After that just click ok and you're there!

 

Edited to post his picture.

 

http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii560/magnukra/daemons010.jpg">

 

Yeah. I was playing around with some blue ink, but I did use some devlan mud and some badad black on some parts on the model. Mostly just poured ink into the painted fleash though. I am still learning one could say, so with thise model I tried to experiment a bit. Very annoying that I cant seem to post pics though.

[Iron Sage]

Ehem. Pic suddenly popped up, haha.

Very strange.Now I posted two more,but they are not showing. I dont really understand why not.

[Brother Ambroz]

Did you try the method I mentioned?

 

We're all always learning, anyone that says otherwise is just being arrogant. Just peruse through some of the blogs on the WIP forums for example. Some of us just started painting (seriously painting anyway) a few years ago and you can literally see the progress some people make. It's pretty cool. You just have to realize it's a pretty slow process, but keep at it.

[Iron Sage]

Did you try the method I mentioned?

 

We're all always learning, anyone that says otherwise is just being arrogant. Just peruse through some of the blogs on the WIP forums for example. Some of us just started painting (seriously painting anyway) a few years ago and you can literally see the progress some people make. It's pretty cool. You just have to realize it's a pretty slow process, but keep at it.

 

*Nods*

 

I know. I dont aim at painting to a fantastic standard, but I would like my figures to look decent enough so to speak.

 

And yes, thats what I tried to do. To link directly from my gallery that is.

[Brother Ambroz]

Hmm well keep playing around with it. Try the different links. You can also try it in the edit mode too so it wouldn't add a new comment each time.

 

He doesn't look terrible as is either. Try different things though on your minis too.

[Iron Sage]

Hmm well keep playing around with it. Try the different links. You can also try it in the edit mode too so it wouldn't add a new comment each time.

 

He doesn't look terrible as is either. Try different things though on your minis too.

 

It works and thanks;)

 

Nah,I dont think he looks terrible either. I spent quite some time painting him with my meagre skills. But for people who can actually paint, its obvious that he is "basic" in colours and etc., so its obvious I am not a good painter.

 

Anyway, is there a a relativly easy technique that make white easier to paint? I find that it either becomes a shabby form of white best suited for nurgle, or like on this prince, a bit too glossy.

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

As a fellow not-particularly-skilled painter I too recommend washes. As a lazy painter, I do not recommend highlighting. I would paint it Bleached Bone (or whatever it's called now), wash with Ogryn Flesh (owitcn) and then drybrush over top, first with pure Bleached Bone, then a lighter drybrush of 50/50 Bleached Bone/Skull White (owitcn).

 

The end result will end up looking something like this tabard

 

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/res_ipsa1/P1120099.jpg?t=1346624855

 

which isn't amazing by any means but it's effective and quick.

[KingDeath]

Regarding white/ bone coloured tabards, check out Les Bursley's Last Hatred DE tutorial.

[Iron Sage]

As a fellow not-particularly-skilled painter I too recommend washes. As a lazy painter, I do not recommend highlighting. I would paint it Bleached Bone (or whatever it's called now), wash with Ogryn Flesh (owitcn) and then drybrush over top, first with pure Bleached Bone, then a lighter drybrush of 50/50 Bleached Bone/Skull White (owitcn).

 

The end result will end up looking something like this tabard

 

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/res_ipsa1/P1120099.jpg?t=1346624855

 

which isn't amazing by any means but it's effective and quick.

 

 

Absolutely! He looks more than good enough! Thanks for the tip. Is Ogryn Flesh a wash or a skin coloured paint?

[Brother Ambroz]

Yeah his colors are basic but it wouldn't be too hard to improve. He'd look a great deal better with some blending. Try blending the blue and purple colors together and paint between the blue and purple parts of him. That will give it a smooth transition.

 

Edit: forgot, did you thin your paints as well?

[Iron Sage]

Regarding white/ bone coloured tabards, check out Les Bursley's Last Hatred DE tutorial.

 

Cheers! Will do indeed!

[Iron Sage]

Yeah his colors are basic but it wouldn't be too hard to improve. He'd look a great deal better with some blending. Try blending the blue and purple colors together and paint between the blue and purple parts of him. That will give it a smooth transition.

 

Edit: forgot, did you thin your paints as well?

 

No, I didn`t really thin it. Guess I should have. In my humble opinion, the fleash bits are not too shabby on the model. The parts that I am not that happy with are actually the white robe (its very glossy) and the eyes, which seems lifeless. I feel that the blue Ink I smeared on top of the fleash makes it look okay (no doubt could it have been done a thousand time better of course!)

 

Love the model though :)

[Brother Ambroz]

Yeah the conversion itself looks good. I can't really see the eyes. But try Res Ipsa Loquitur's suggestions there and look up the painting Dark Angel robes on youtube. That's a bit tougher than the darker colors to do though I think.

[Rain]

White is tough, I would recommend going for more of a cloth or tanned skin look for tabards though. The way I would do this is actually kind of counterintuitive but it's easy and works well. Undercoat black, then paint the part with a dark brown, you want to water your paint but get full coverage, you want the whole thing to be dark brown, no black showing.

 

Now take a lighter brown and drybrush over the dark brown. Just dab some light brown onto an old brush and then dab most of the paint off on a paper towel and then quickly go back and forth over the cloth, catching the raised folds as well as the flatter parts. If done right the raised parts should be a tad brighter, though you want to do this until the flat parts have a pretty even coverage. Now take a flesh color (elf flesh for'ex) and just lightly highlight across the raised edges and folds. You essentially want to paint lines along the edges but make sure there isn't a ton of paint on the tip of your brush or it will "pop" too much and look garish. Boom, you're done and it looks quite good.

 

If however you find this too dark, you can always drybrush the fleshtone over the light brown and then highlight with pure white. This gives a flayed skin look, the brown highlighted with flesh gives a a more tanned thick leather or cloth look.

[Iron Sage]

Yeah the conversion itself looks good. I can't really see the eyes. But try Res Ipsa Loquitur's suggestions there and look up the painting Dark Angel robes on youtube. That's a bit tougher than the darker colors to do though I think.

 

Unfortunatly, the friend that I bought the Sons from had already converted his head, robe and tentacles, so thats no credit of mine. I just added some wings to it and painted it.

 

Will indeed look at those youtube clips. I doubt I will re-paint this one (to be honest, it needs to be flicked, as there are some spots where the paint has worn off or blended with the wrong parts, and most importantly it needs to be varnished) fully though.

I thankfully dont play with people that demands 100% perfectly painted models, so its more for my own sake to improve my horrid skills.

[Iron Sage]

White is tough, I would recommend going for more of a cloth or tanned skin look for tabards though. The way I would do this is actually kind of counterintuitive but it's easy and works well. Undercoat black, then paint the part with a dark brown, you want to water your paint but get full coverage, you want the whole thing to be dark brown, no black showing.

 

Now take a lighter brown and drybrush over the dark brown. Just dab some light brown onto an old brush and then dab most of the paint off on a paper towel and then quickly go back and forth over the cloth, catching the raised folds as well as the flatter parts. If done right the raised parts should be a tad brighter, though you want to do this until the flat parts have a pretty even coverage. Now take a flesh color (elf flesh for'ex) and just lightly highlight across the raised edges and folds. You essentially want to paint lines along the edges but make sure there isn't a ton of paint on the tip of your brush or it will "pop" too much and look garish. Boom, you're done and it looks quite good.

 

If however you find this too dark, you can always drybrush the fleshtone over the light brown and then highlight with pure white. This gives a flayed skin look, the brown highlighted with flesh gives a a more tanned thick leather or cloth look.

 

Thanks for the tip! I actually wanted his robe to be white and "pure" though on that model. I was just very much struggling to make the white look decent, so perhaps I shouldn`t have. Will definatly try your tip on another model with a cape, tabard or robe.

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

Absolutely! He looks more than good enough! Thanks for the tip. Is Ogryn Flesh a wash or a skin coloured paint?

 

Ogryn Flesh is a wash. It's actually called Reikland Fleshshade now.

[Hellrender]

i am too, a big fan of washes and not highlighting. its fast and easy.

 

The easy method: base colour + proper shade + layer. This already gives a nice look. Make sure to apply that those layers a bit thinly.

What i did for my night lords, is to apply kantor Blue, then Nuln oil, then Kantor Blue again (making sure i leave appropiate previous layers open).

 

Also important is to wash/shade with the right colour shade. Black and brown work for most, (browns for reds, golds, skin) (black for blues, greys, metals), but a purple shade to purple colour gives instant shade effect, very well.

 

For gold, its important that you have atleast 2 layers. Depending on the colour you want, you can start with a dark gold, followed by a lighter gold. Or, if you can do dark brown/flesh (schorched brown) and then the dark gold. Depending what you want. Dont forget to wash after. Normally i use Earthrax Shade, since its simple (leather uses the same, and dark colours do not heavily discolour from this). Which is why i like it.

 

For base, i highly recommend the new texture paint of Citadel, it works nice, and easy, a lot less time consuming then the glue + sand + wash + paint (2 layers) :lol:. I do wash the textured paint once dry, gives some more depth i think.

 

btw, what brushes do you possess? Having atleast a: Detail brush, Standard Brush and a Large/basecoat brush gets you a long way. if you want easy highlights, try out Drybrushing. The interwebz have various nice guides on it. make sure you do this with a drybrush (ruins the others...).

 

And maybe most important. keep it simple. I try to keep as a rule max 3 colours (metal and flesh do not count, but gold, red, blue, green, yellow etc.. do). Dont make it hard either, with giving each detail a different colour, or using hard colours (light colours). Dark colours are easy to do, and look quite good, even with just some basic techniques.

 

Hope this helps a bit. To become better at painting, you should do it a lot. Practice makes perfect.

 

Good luck (and have fun!)

[Iron Sage]

i am too, a big fan of washes and not highlighting. its fast and easy.

 

The easy method: base colour + proper shade + layer. This already gives a nice look. Make sure to apply that those layers a bit thinly.

What i did for my night lords, is to apply kantor Blue, then Nuln oil, then Kantor Blue again (making sure i leave appropiate previous layers open).

 

Also important is to wash/shade with the right colour shade. Black and brown work for most, (browns for reds, golds, skin) (black for blues, greys, metals), but a purple shade to purple colour gives instant shade effect, very well.

 

For gold, its important that you have atleast 2 layers. Depending on the colour you want, you can start with a dark gold, followed by a lighter gold. Or, if you can do dark brown/flesh (schorched brown) and then the dark gold. Depending what you want. Dont forget to wash after. Normally i use Earthrax Shade, since its simple (leather uses the same, and dark colours do not heavily discolour from this). Which is why i like it.

 

For base, i highly recommend the new texture paint of Citadel, it works nice, and easy, a lot less time consuming then the glue + sand + wash + paint (2 layers) :lol:. I do wash the textured paint once dry, gives some more depth i think.

 

btw, what brushes do you possess? Having atleast a: Detail brush, Standard Brush and a Large/basecoat brush gets you a long way. if you want easy highlights, try out Drybrushing. The interwebz have various nice guides on it. make sure you do this with a drybrush (ruins the others...).

 

And maybe most important. keep it simple. I try to keep as a rule max 3 colours (metal and flesh do not count, but gold, red, blue, green, yellow etc.. do). Dont make it hard either, with giving each detail a different colour, or using hard colours (light colours). Dark colours are easy to do, and look quite good, even with just some basic techniques.

 

Hope this helps a bit. To become better at painting, you should do it a lot. Practice makes perfect.

 

Good luck (and have fun!)

 

It does and thanks! These are definatly all tips I will look up later when I am doing a new model.

[Bearingtheword]

Definitely use washes from the get go, but don't ignore highlights altogether. Practice them when you can and when you get comfortable you can always go back and do edge highlighting on older models. I have serious nerve damage in my hands and have had to work really hard at it, but through lots of practice I find I am getting better at it myself. Also, as has been suggested thin your paints. Multiple thin coats looks much much better than one thick one. another things as you progress is to pay attention how different undercoat colors effect the top coats. For ex, metallic golds over brown have a different tone than the same gold over a yellow. I usually have the best luck with whites over a light grey, in thin coats of course. I'm sure this is a lot of info to take in from everyone so I'll stop, other than to say practice practice practice and experiment a bit :P And ask for advice when your stumped. This community is awesome as far as advice goes!

 

~BtW