How do I gauge the correct colour for my miniatures?

[Magos Takatus]

Hi all. I've recently started painting a new model project and I am finding that the official colour scheme for the model doesn't appear to match what appears on the box art. Before I put brush to model I would like to find out what the closest colour match to the box art image is. I understand I can use a colour picker in a graphics program to pick the colour from a digital image, but how could I match this up to a paint in the GW paint range?

 

The model I am painting is an Age of Sigmar model so I am trying to make this question more about learning how to match colours rather than just find out which paints I need in this particular case. I am normally okay at working out which colours to use but the eye can be tricked sometimes and I'd like to be sure that I'm going to get a good match.

 

Would anyone be able to help with this pretty weird request? 

[Tyriks]

Is it in the Citadel Paint app? I find a lot of the info there helpful.

[Lord Marshal]

There's the Citadel Paint App, but that's more or less an extension of the back of the box.

 

The issue with a lot of the 'box colours' is that the 'Eavy Metal team doesn't actually use the colours subscribed on the box art and similarly Duncan and Co's Warhammer TV tutorials. Hell, even Duncan contradicts the box advice quite a bit.

 

A good example is how just about every piece of 'official' advice for Death Guard tells you to shade with Agrax Earthshade, when Athonian Camoshade is the one actually in use.

 

Out of curiosity, which model are you trying to paint?

[Arkhanist]

Box advice fits the scheme into the simple base/shade/layer/edge list for novices; it's assumed more experienced painters will come up with their own schemes or use a pre-existing scheme to fit the rest of the army. The 'Eavy Metal team in particular mix paints together to get the shade they want, and even Duncan has been known to do glazing.

 

Before I put brush to model I would like to find out what the closest colour match to the box art image is. I understand I can use a colour picker in a graphics program to pick the colour from a digital image, but how could I match this up to a paint in the GW paint range?

 

This is something I do quite often with the paid version of paintRack on android. It uses the camera to pick a colour, then gives you the closest colour matches from all the paint lines you choose (I use vallejo and army painter in addition to Citadel, and you can limit the search to paints you already have). I tend to pick from a 'flat' bit of the main source colour for the main layer, and a highlight for well, the highlight. It is only an approximation of course, so I will then look for online combos (and previous personal experience) using the main paint layer colour to find a suitable base and wash, and if citadel, the citadel app to confirm other colours that work together well for that particular paint.

 

(If you're sticking purely to citadel, then this feature is also in the free the citadel app - go to 'choose a colour' then the camera icon top right; though it will point you towards a standard combo rather than a specific paint)

 

Given the nature of digital cameras and LCD monitors I get faster results using a physical model or printed item to colour match against under good daylight or a balanced daylight bulb, but it still works with a screen picture as long as you eyeball it and pick again if needed so that the picked colour looks 'right' instead of some fringe artifact colour.

 

Fair warning - not all paints come out quite the colour paintrack suggests either; they use manufacturer specified tones, which I've noticed can be the colour of the wet paint, not necessarily how it looks when dry - for example, I came a cropper when trying to match the armageddon dust/dunes texture paint colour for painting the rest of the base*. Other times though it's been absolutely bang on what I wanted 1st time.

 

Just be prepared to test the paints on the palette first to see if they look right, and accept it will only be an approximation that may need a bit of fine tuning.

 

* for future searchers, vallejo model colour khaki is pretty damn close to the actual dried colour of armageddon dunes, which is way different than the wet colour which paintrack correctly matched to army painter hemp rope.

[Magos Takatus]

Box advice fits the scheme into the simple base/shade/layer/edge list for novices; it's assumed more experienced painters will come up with their own schemes or use a pre-existing scheme to fit the rest of the army. The 'Eavy Metal team in particular mix paints together to get the shade they want, and even Duncan has been known to do glazing.

 

Before I put brush to model I would like to find out what the closest colour match to the box art image is. I understand I can use a colour picker in a graphics program to pick the colour from a digital image, but how could I match this up to a paint in the GW paint range?

 

This is something I do quite often with the paid version of paintRack on android. It uses the camera to pick a colour, then gives you the closest colour matches from all the paint lines you choose (I use vallejo and army painter in addition to Citadel, and you can limit the search to paints you already have). I tend to pick from a 'flat' bit of the main source colour for the main layer, and a highlight for well, the highlight. It is only an approximation of course, so I will then look for online combos (and previous personal experience) using the main paint layer colour to find a suitable base and wash, and if citadel, the citadel app to confirm other colours that work together well for that particular paint.

 

(If you're sticking purely to citadel, then this feature is also in the free the citadel app - go to 'choose a colour' then the camera icon top right; though it will point you towards a standard combo rather than a specific paint)

 

Given the nature of digital cameras and LCD monitors I get faster results using a physical model or printed item to colour match against under good daylight or a balanced daylight bulb, but it still works with a screen picture as long as you eyeball it and pick again if needed so that the picked colour looks 'right' instead of some fringe artifact colour.

 

Fair warning - not all paints come out quite the colour paintrack suggests either; they use manufacturer specified tones, which I've noticed can be the colour of the wet paint, not necessarily how it looks when dry - for example, I came a cropper when trying to match the armageddon dust/dunes texture paint colour for painting the rest of the base*. Other times though it's been absolutely bang on what I wanted 1st time.

 

Just be prepared to test the paints on the palette first to see if they look right, and accept it will only be an approximation that may need a bit of fine tuning.

 

* for future searchers, vallejo model colour khaki is pretty damn close to the actual dried colour of armageddon dunes, which is way different than the wet colour which paintrack correctly matched to army painter hemp rope.

 

Thank you for the advice. I'll give paintRack a go. It sounds really handy.

 

There's the Citadel Paint App, but that's more or less an extension of the back of the box.

 

The issue with a lot of the 'box colours' is that the 'Eavy Metal team doesn't actually use the colours subscribed on the box art and similarly Duncan and Co's Warhammer TV tutorials. Hell, even Duncan contradicts the box advice quite a bit.

 

A good example is how just about every piece of 'official' advice for Death Guard tells you to shade with Agrax Earthshade, when Athonian Camoshade is the one actually in use.

 

Out of curiosity, which model are you trying to paint?

 

I am painting the default colour scheme for the Stardrake. I am getting round to painting the underbelly and the recommended colour scheme is Celestra Grey followed by Coelia Greenshade. To me that would look far too green, to me it looks like a pale blue. I just tried the citadel app a few times and got Sotek Green and Temple Guard Blue which is a lot closer to how I was seeing it. If I highlight that with Baharroth Blue or Ulthuan Grey it should hopefully look about right. I might swap out Sotek for a slightly less green colour though.

 

I know I could simply pick the colour I think looks right, but with some of these showcase models I do like to get as close to the official scheme as possible. It's just a bit more challenging when the box gives advice that doesn't match the finished model! :p

[Arkhanist]

For what it's worth, running paintrack against a picture of the celestant on stardrake belly and wing root comes up with fenrisian grey as best several times for the main colour or temple guard blue for a slightly more distant greener match, with etherium blue/blue horror (same colour) as the highlight; ulthuan grey I think would also work. Picking from the shading, it picked sotek green so you could do a thinned wash with that - or, ironically, coelia greenshade or nighthaunt gloom as not far off; I think the latter looks closest when eyeballing.

 

The best thing about paintrack is simply an inventory of all the paint I already have - with several hundred (including airbrush versions), I sometimes miss I bought a paint years ago for a different project! Then I record what paints for a miniature I use in a set (subsets for each main colour) and note anything custom. Makes it a lot easier to pick up where I left off when I come back - I also can record several variants when doing trial minis so I can remember which was which!

 

In my case, when I came back to the hobby all my previous citadel paints were obsolete so restocking entirely with the 'new' citadel was prohibitive given cost per pot, so I mostly went with army painter and vallejo model colour (much prefer dropper bottles anyway) and I get some cool but random stuff every month from assetdrop. The downside is that most warhammer guide schemes use new citadel, so it's handy in paintrack to check if I already have a close colour from another line - saved me buying a fair few citadel paints at a higher price per ml! Also means I can better match my old paints to currently sold equivalents, though instar's vintage line looks promising in that regard.

 

Some shades though are very unique, so I've ended up with much of the base line and some dry and edge paints, along with several browns - good browns are surprisingly hard to find!

 

Paintrack is I think the 2nd or 3rd most used app on my phone (after browser and messenger app) so I've definitely found it very useful.

[Grotsmasha]

Here's a playlist of 5 videos of Duncan painting the Stardrake details.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEaPE4sLDA7tErYnI7Y9oSiF92a_eBU2N

But, as a AoS discussion, I'll be closing this one up.