Crit on my first try at blending

[Lord Maggot]

Hi all,

I've tried to do some blending for the first time and wanted some critisim on the painting. I know it's not great but some advice may help me improve quicker. The photos aren't the best but they are just quick ones on my camera phone.

I'd also like some advice on the belly. I just wasn't sure where to put the highlight gradient as it was so flat!

I know I need to go more layers and smoother blending but it's my first go and I get impatient very easily.

Thanks in advance

 

[cassar]

im not that great at the paint myself but what you are doing seems okay to me, perhaps a wider blend width would show up more though.

 

[Necroghast]

I'd say it's pretty good. My recommendation would be that you enlarge the transition as now it looks like the skin is mostly the light green and then quickly blends into the dark on the edges. try to extend the blends I guess.

 

[SkelettetS]

ooh im just so excited to see this imo really cool miniature, so totally crazy, love it!
not a bad beginning id say, but to get more diehard blendings i guess you must have patience, its not built in one day lol.
for example in the knees, the brushstrokes should go from the groin to the knee, most of the paint then stays at the brightest point (at the edge of the knee, hopefully!). and dont be afraid to use more contrast, i usually end up with almost white at the very end of all my blendings, but thats a matter of taste i suppose.

 

[Lord Maggot]

Thanks very much for the advice.

@ cassar: What is a wider blend width sorry?

@necroghast: Yes it did change very quickly. I was adding small amounts of paints but it did jump quite suddenly when I went from dark angels green to snot green. I'm wondering if I should have darkened the snot green a lot more.

@SkelettetS: I have the JBT DVD and saw it mentioned a great deal. I did try in places but as I said I'm an impatient sod and quite often forgot. I'm looking foward to doing this on the elephant head at least!

 

[Einion]

I'd say this is pretty good (and the photos aren't bad at all, v. impressive for being taken with a camera phone!) but I think it needs a touch more contrast here and there, but not everywhere - just basically where you'd like to focus attention.

So a little stronger highlights* on the face, with touches on the upper body (like the edge below the navel, which will naturally tend to form a focussed highlight). I think the legs might be fine as-is; if you highlight the knees more for example it could draw more attention to the lower portion of the figure.

If you'll be doing any kind of blacklining that will tend to help things pop out anyway, so you might want to do that first before committing to fully highlighting the skin so you can judge. It can be a good idea to come back later and adjust when the other colours are in place, where you get a better read on how the thing looks overall, rather than painting each area to completion one at a time.

*Try mixing in a little white and yellow.

I'd also like some advice on the belly. I just wasn't sure where to put the highlight gradient as it was so flat!

Hold the mini directly under a lamp, see where it catches the light most. This doesn't have to be religiously followed, but it's a good starting point at least.

I know I need to go more layers and smoother blending but it's my first go and I get impatient very easily.

Conquering impatience is actually one of the hardest aspects of this! Even later on it's very easy to be impatient without realising it, and when you spot it you have to take a breath, say to yourself, "Slow down; it'll be finished when it's finished."

Einion

 

[cassar]

basically what necronghast, said make your blend transition between dark to light a lot wider

 

[Lord Maggot]

@Einion: The phone is a Satio Sony Ericson so it's 12mega pixels. More than my main camera! Thanks for the advice it's very useful. I'll try a bit of yellow and white for the face.

I'm also thinking maybe a green glaze to bring it together. Very very thin of course. What does everyone reckon or leave as is.

When highlighting after blending do people tend to use a thicker paint for more control or stay with the watered down stuff?

@cassar: Thank you that makes sense. I'm thinking about trying a bit or scorpion green for some highlights that may work after i've tried the yellow and white.

 

[Tagamoga]

Hello Lord Maggot

I was so free and edited a little bit your picture. The belly is a litte more that "type" that I would like more. BUt this is only my personal taste.

You blendings itsself seems ok. But I think you can save your save much time and messing araound, when you follow the following adive: Blend your blending (move your brush) only in direction of the gradient. It is much easier. For example the right white arrow I have added. Here is the blending good. But the left white arrow marks a blending, whre I think you tried to blend parallel to the gradient.

For wider blendings: It is better, that you try to manage, that your blendings does not stop at the half of the belly, but at the final highlight. When you have "big" places with the exactly the same color, the mini has a "flat" effect.

And yes a little more depth in the face would suits this mini very good.

Greetings, Taggi

 

[Lord Maggot]

@Tagamoga: All very good advice thank you! Did you for the belly darken the lower edge and left side and put a largish highlight around the top of the belly button? I'm colour blind with green and brown so must admit sometimes I can't see much of a change even though it's just greens.

 

[Tagamoga]

Your description is right. I have done exactly, what you described. But, if you have got problems with color blindness, you can do some nice stuff with adobe photoshop or Gimp. In both programs you can filter the colors, that are disturbing you. perhaps you dont see the right color, but you can exactly see, where highlights and shadows are.

Or let the program show only the monochrom versa of the photo, so you can see highlights and shadows the best.

Greetings, Taggi