Painting tips?

[Sanguis militis]

I've been in the hobby for about 3 years now but still consider myself an amateur at painting. One of the things id really like to learn how to do is mix paints and layer coats into a model. I hope this was the right forum to go to for help. Can anyone share some pointers with me? Correct methods to mix, tools that help, what surfaces to put the paint onto, even tips for applying the paint onto the models and spreading the paint on evenly. Every time I try to add a layer over another it just completely covers the first in the same way primer gets covered. I've tried dry brushing but that makes thE layer just look like dirt or dried mud.

 

I really want to get started on my pre-heresy raven guard but I want this army to really stand out an not look like I just primed a bunch of guys black, added some detail, and called it a day.

 

Any help would be appreciated even if its a link to an in depth painting tutorial video, blog, forum, etc.

[nurglespuss]

Hi there, the painting advice forum above is the best one.

 

however, as your just starting out. It sounds like you need to incorporate washes and glazes

 

i.e. After undercoat, apply your base range colour, then dry brush your first layer paint, then a second lighter shade. When dry, apply a wash (this will quickly blend your layers) and when this is dry apply a glaze to make it pop.

 

try that,band when you gain confidence, you can incorporate direct highlights, edge highlights, highlighting up to white etc.

 

nowadays, youtube is also a fantastic resource (along with popping into your local gw for a painting lesson :D

 

good luck!

[ephrael]

There are as many ways to paint space marines as there are people that collect them. I think that you definitely came to the right place for advice. Personally I would recommend that you start with a look throgh the painting forum like nurglespuss suggested. You can also try a google search for videos on miniature painting. I use an airbrush to paint my pre-heresy Dark Angels armor black but I also have a wet pallete that I use when I paint with a brush. I can get you some links to a few painting tutorials if you want them in a few days, just let me know.

[Messanger of Death]

I'll get straight to the content...

 

Massive Voodoo - This is a blog run by some of the best European Painters in the world... and they have the painting awards to prove it. Including the latest Slayer Sword. Their tutorial section is extensive with entry level tutorials for the beginner all way to to advance painting techniques and theory. If you like to bookmark hobby related websites this should be near the top of the list.

 

Templars Crusade Youtube Channel - Although his Channel focuses on his Pre-Heresy Imperial Fists, he does have a little Raven Guard side project. If anything it may give you some ideas.

 

Tale of Painters - Another blog with some great tutorials and advice. Unfortunately their tutorials are not collected into a single page like the guys from Massive Voodoo. However, there is a nicely painted squad of Raven Guard by Rev.

 

Orc Painter Nerd Youtube Channel - Although there is little in the way of content that will likely benefit you... unless you already own an airbrush. I first came across AK-Interactive via his channel. And it has really got me excited. Normally white is one of those colours painters dread to use. Not only is it hard to get a nice, even coat. But it is a pain to shade and weather. But these pictures here go to show just how easy it can be. Of course some hobbyists make it seem easy such as award winner Jakob Rune Nielsen.

 

Barbarossa Crusade Army Project - Mad Matt's project has sadly gone quiet of late. However, his tutorial on painting weathered black is definitely worth taking a look at if you want to try something different.

 

From the Warp - Ron has taken a break from blogging. However, his blog is still a treasure trove of useful content. You may find this post useful when it comes to getting the right consistency with your paints.

 

Shadow Force Dragomir - And finally we have SCC's Raven Guard Stroke Force. This army has a focus of not spending more than 5 hours on each miniature. And despite it they still look amazing. He has a tutorial that runs over several posts. It starts here and continues down the page. There was a PDF for it. However, it seems that with the recent crash it has been lost to the warp.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Massive Voodoo.

 

Bookmark it. Read it. Know it. Use it. Love it.

[Sanguis militis]

Thanks a lot to everyone who commented, I just started looking through the links and this will definitely keep me busy. I hear conflicting opinions on painting black: some say its easy, others say it's damn hard... I tend to agree with the latter. I started with blood angels and they were fairly easy to paint and experiment with washes, but when I tested out black I just couldnt get my marines to really pop; the test dummy just looked dark and dull.

 

Going to spend the next couple weeks experimenting with the tutorials in the links above especially massive voodoo. There's some great stuff in there. You'll definitely be seeing my own WIP thread here in the next couple months. Already have a contemptor w/ dual kheres and Korvydae on their way here but I don't want to even attempt painting them until I have a better grasp of these techniques.

 

With that being said, any pointers on how to make the most out of using layers with a black model? Which colors would you use to make the layers pop? And to allow a wash to make a noticable difference? I remember when I used a black wash with my blood angels it filled out all the lines and crevices in the armor and really have the model depth and made the rest of the red pop... But with black I'm at a complete loss. I'm almost tempted to paint Raptors instead of Raven Guard just because of how difficult black has been for me this far!

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

The people who say black is easy to paint are either really good painters being elitist d-bags, or they have no idea what they're doing and think it looks awesome (and it usually looks like crap).

 

The challenge is to give it definition and depth so it doesn't look like a silhouette, but if you go overboard with the highlights it can look like dark grey instead of black. I used to know a guy that had a gorgeous Black Legion army and the way he would do the black paint job was to prime the figures black with several thin coats, making sure to get good coverage and let it dry thoroughly overnight, then he'd airbrush a medium grey color from above in a zenithal style and clean up any spots he missed with a brush. The final step was to come in with very thin black washes, or glazes as they are known, and darken the grey with many layers of black glaze, leaving only the brightest highlights untouched. It took him hours to do, but the gradations were amazing.

 

I've done something similar without needing to go to such lengths.

 

http://i.imgur.com/5KnFLg6.jpg

 

I'd paint a highlight stripe thicker than I normally would then do a couple layers of black glaze to darken it, then re-highlight on top edge of it, leaving the darker highlight visible beneath it. It's not going to win me a Golden Demon, but it looks nice. (Universal Disclaimer: It looks better in person.)

[Sanguis militis]

I love what you did with the black there, that model looks great to me. That's very close to what I want my guys to look like when finished. The only difference is the bluish highlights around the armor edges I would do a different color.. For Raven Guard maybe a grey or white tone.

 

Would you mind elaborating a little more how you managed to get that to stick out so cleanly? After the black primer has been put on you paint those highlights in thick lines then put a layer or two of a black wash over it? That seems easy enough on paper but I'm sure will take a lot of practice to get down to look like that.

 

Again, very nice model mate. Very simple looking yet you make the black stand out great.

[Sanguis militis]

I love what you did with the black there, that model looks great to me. That's very close to what I want my guys to look like when finished. The only difference is the bluish highlights around the armor edges I would do a different color.. For Raven Guard maybe a grey or white tone.

 

Would you mind elaborating a little more how you managed to get that to stick out so cleanly? After the black primer has been put on you paint those highlights in thick lines then put a layer or two of a black wash over it? That seems easy enough on paper but I'm sure will take a lot of practice to get down to look like that.

 

Again, very nice model mate. Very simple looking yet you make the black stand out great.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I love what you did with the black there, that model looks great to me. That's very close to what I want my guys to look like when finished. The only difference is the bluish highlights around the armor edges I would do a different color.. For Raven Guard maybe a grey or white tone.

 

Would you mind elaborating a little more how you managed to get that to stick out so cleanly? After the black primer has been put on you paint those highlights in thick lines then put a layer or two of a black wash over it? That seems easy enough on paper but I'm sure will take a lot of practice to get down to look like that.

 

Again, very nice model mate. Very simple looking yet you make the black stand out great.

 

I'm not at home or I'd whip up a little illustration on Photoshop, but it's almost that simple, yeah. I'd paint a thick highlight stripe and then hit it with a few layers of thinned down black, and make sure it's very thin so you can have better control over how much you darken it, since it's always easier to do another layer or two of wash than have to repaint the whole area you're working on.

 

Once it was to my liking, I'd come back in with the same color and do a smaller highlight on top of the darkened one, covering the upper half of it. To finish it off, I'd use a brighter color to highlight the corners and very edges to make it pop.

 

Edit: After thinking about the previous post, let me say that I do not consider this technique to be easy, thus avoiding being a hypocritical elitist d-bag, as doing all of those edge highlights across the entire marine is nerve wracking and time consuming, but it is easier than some of the other methods I've seen out there. There are definitely other techniques that will fetch better results, but of all the times I have attempted black, this one was the best compromise between appearance and difficulty.

[Sanguis militis]

I've been trying out your method since I got home about a half hour ago and although I figured it wouldn't be easy, I have to admit I didn't expect it to be this hard. But like anything practice will make perfect and I do like this method.. Many thanks Kage. I hadn't banked on learning something new so quickly after making the thread.

 

I'm assuming the same method can be applied to heavier armor like dreads and tanks, maybe even a little easier albeit time consuming?

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

When I first tried it after that guy explained it to me, yeah, it took a little while before I got comfortable with it and nailed down the process. Painting black ain't easy, but if you stick with this method, it'll get easier, faster, and produces pretty nice results.

[The_Chaplain]

As others have stated the PCA subforum directly above this work in progress board is generally where you want to ask questions, but for the record- I want to thank brother Messanger of Deather for providing all of those useful links.  Giving them a quick once over, they contain answers and how to instruction for almost every problem you could face as a raven guard painter, or a hobbyist in general.

 

That said, I wish you the best of luck with your pre-heresy raven guard army, and I'm sure many brothers beside myself are looking forward to seeing the first models roll out from your painting station! 

[Sanguis militis]

Again thanks to everyone for all the pointers/tips and help finding guides to just about everything. I'm too excited for a box from forgeworld so I can get started - I think the first models to show you guys will be the Raven Guard dreadnought and Korvydae.