I want to paint like Professionals

[Einion]

ah lol i suffer from the problem of practising so much and then my minis are still crap. i can paint average armor but if its robes or skin were i need to tone it and what not. then i just get frustrated cause for the life of me i cannot get blending or anything like that down.

Blends (not blending, as in wet blending) aren't inherently that hard, it's simply a matter of layering - using the right colours and applying them the right way.

Seems likely that you're doing something fundamental wrong. Start a new thread and we'll try to give specific advice (pics would help diagnose the cause(s)).

Einion

 

[Tommie Soule]

Having taught many people to paint as well as taught myself to paint from scratch i would say the biggest mistakes are;

aspiring too high too soon e.g. spending loads of money on 'the best' equipment and trying to win a crystal paintbrush. like buying a formula 1 car having just got your licence and expecting to win (let alone survive!) The skill and the equipment is beyond the users ability level.
BASICS BASIC! BASICS! FOUNDATION FOUNDATION FOUNDATION! FUN FUN FUN! are the best ways to start

Practise the wrong things in the wrong ways. this is why some people never progress. they have all the tools and potential but fail to recongnise when their actions are wrong thus carrying on making the same mistakes and reinforcing bad habits with Practice. YES I AM SAYING PRACTICE CAN BE BAD!
Practice the RIGHT things in the RIGHT ways
THIN, NEAT PAINT and A GOOD BRUSH (not nessecarily an expensive one. remember i painted my sanguinary guard with a GW basecoat brush £3.50 ish)

Tommie

 

[ColtheReaver]

With reference to what tommie said about aspiring too high too soon, hes bang on the money. Get the basic stuff right then start trying your hand at more advanced techniques. Throwing money at this game with the hope of finding a quick fix is definatly not the way to go (I speak from personal experience when I say this by the way). When I decided I wanted to take painting more seriously I went out and got the best of what I could afford and it didnt help me one bit...I actually felt worse because I was a couple of hundred pounds down and didnt have anything better than what I had done with my lower quality kit.

 

[BPI]

Tommy, are you using the old GW blue handled brushes, which I thought were okay, or the newer matte black handled ones which I've found absolutely shocking (losing bristles from day one, zero snap, only 1 brush out of 20 on display with a point worth purchasing). I've run three each of the standard & detail black ones and don't intend to buy any more. Think I picked them up roughly a year ago so if they've changed the "recipe" since then I may pick up a couple more for metals?

Cheers, B.

 

[Tommie Soule]

The newest ones. I do have a good root tho. Dave neild (ijee) uses same as well. Tho that is not saying we don't use more expensive brands as well.

Tommie

 

[BPI]

Thanks for the reply Tommy :good: B.

 

[kathrynloch]

Practise the wrong things in the wrong ways. this is why some people never progress. they have all the tools and potential but fail to recongnise when their actions are wrong thus carrying on making the same mistakes and reinforcing bad habits with Practice.

My horse trainer says the exact same thing almost word for word. It doesn't matter how many times you go around the arena, if you practice wrong, you're going to do it wrong in the show ring.

Are you sure you weren't a horse trainer in a previous life, Tommie?

This is a fantastic thread - full of great info!

 

[Crackpot]

If I may add:
Some knowledge on color compositions, effects of contrasts, focus points and oveall harmony of a project might come in handy, too. It's quite annoying if you know all the ins and outs of painting technices but your miniatures still look crappy.

 

[Carlin]

Thank you all for the sharing your thoughts here! Never expected such interaction, great community.

Alright, so the #1 rule is to have fun and start simple. I'll keep that in mind.

I spent the last few days watching Hot Lead videos which are really good. I now understand a lot of the painting process/terms like glazing/washing and dry brushing. What a dry brush is used for (to create the effect of highlights from a light source) then washing/glazing it to blend it with your base color. I now understand blending using 5 shades of a color to create a gradient light effect. I now think I understand what's the required thickness to paint a basecoat, wash/glaze.. and I understood that's probably a common mistake for started (not knowing how much water to add). I understand priming and which priming color I should go for (depending on what colors/feel I want the miniature to be). I think I like the Non Metallic Metal style of painting more than Dry Brushing. Dry brushing tend to give you that grainy effect. I like the gradual gradient effect while keeping in mind the light source I always wanted to do that. But I will practice everything and start simple in my first miniatures.

It all looks good and I can't wait for my painting set to arrive.

I already have hundreds of miniatures (zillion of board games, Descent, Doom, Mansions of Madness, Space Hulk...). So, I think I will be busy practicing on miniatures that I Can afford to mess up (but still enjoy to paint) like Descent's monsters.


I'm just glad there's a supportive community here I'll come here screaming for help if I need something. I just was wondering how many paint-bottles should I order? since delivering process takes a week or more sometimes I don't want to wait a week then to realize I didn't order that FleshTone paint or that PureBlack paint. If there's a "must have" paint options i'd like to know them. It feels overwhelming going through an online store looking at the hundreds of paint options but have no clue which ones to pick. Also, do I need an additive?

I also think I might need some lenses to enhance my view for the miniatures is there a good online store you can help me with? Somewhere where I can find every tool I might need. I would appreciate it.

 

[Tommie Soule]

You need paint, paint brush, pallet, water pot and water.
There is no difference between nmm and metallics, Other than the ingredients of the paint pot contents.
Also there are many ways and reasons to drybrush not just the one you mentioned. In fact this applies to all methods and techniques.

I would say your cup is already too full grasshopper.

Tho having said all that, if you are having fun why care what i or anybody says. It's a hobby for fun after all.

 

[gohkm]

You need paint, paint brush, pallet, water pot and water.
There is no difference between nmm and metallics, Other than the ingredients of the paint pot contents.

Words of wisdom here. First time I tried blending metallics and non-metallics, it blew my mind. Looked like absolute crap, but I learnt something, and had plenty of fun trying it out.

 

[Carlin]

Okay I'm confused.. I thought NMM style is using Acrylic Paint with lights in mind (using around 5 shades of a color) with white/highlights painted on where the light source strikes and shadows painted on where the shadow is. While Metallic paint is a shiny paint that gives your miniature a "metallic" feel but based on actual room light?

Also, first help request!

I bought a primer from Ace Hardware and I'm not sure if I got the stuff that I can use for miniatures!

It is "Ace Stain Halt" - "Stain Blocking Primer & Sealer"

Solvent-Based Bonding Primer.

Is this a primer?

 

[TrystanGST]

NMM is using normal colors to simulate a metallic look. (Courtesy Yellow One)

Metallics are paints with metal flakes (or other stuff, like mica) to give the color a metallic look.
TMM (true metallic metal) is using metallics in the same method as NMM to go even a step further than NMM. (Courtesy Solof)

 

[Carlin]

Thank you TrystanGST for the explanation supported by excellent illustration.


Any idea if what I bought is a primer?

It says this on the bottle:

"Ace Stain Halt" - "Stain Blocking Primer & Sealer"

Solvent-Based Bonding Primer.

I'm not sure if this is the primer I want to use. It's white.

 

[TrystanGST]

That's primer. Whether or not it is suitable for minis, well you'll have to experiment.

 

[Ordo Septenarius]

Thank you TrystanGST for the explanation supported by excellent illustration.


Any idea if what I bought is a primer?

It says this on the bottle:

"Ace Stain Halt" - "Stain Blocking Primer & Sealer"

Solvent-Based Bonding Primer.

I'm not sure if this is the primer I want to use. It's white.

If you're in the states, I'd forgo bonding primer for something cheaper, quicker and smoother — Krylon Matte Black, Gray, or White. You mentioned that you'd starting on some of the Descent minis and other, cheaper stuff, so Krylon would be ideal.

Where possible, I still prime by hand!

 

[kathrynloch]

NMM is using normal colors to simulate a metallic look. (Courtesy Yellow One)

Metallics are paints with metal flakes (or other stuff, like mica) to give the color a metallic look.
TMM (true metallic metal) is using metallics in the same method as NMM to go even a step further than NMM. (Courtesy Solof)

And don't forget dry metallic pigments. You can use those too.

Thank you TrystanGST for the explanation supported by excellent illustration.


Any idea if what I bought is a primer?

It says this on the bottle:

"Ace Stain Halt" - "Stain Blocking Primer & Sealer"

Solvent-Based Bonding Primer.

I'm not sure if this is the primer I want to use. It's white.

I don't think you'll get the best results with that. Someone who has never primed a mini before has a tendency to apply it to heavy and it will fill in detail. Krylon should work or see if you can get a primer made to paint miniatures. If you search the forums, you'll come up with some good threads on the subject.

 

[Carlin]

I found a Krylon Matte spray can but the salesperson didn't say it was a primer (nothing on the can mentions that too) but there's a MATTE written on it and they also mention it's for Acrylic Colors and other things. I can't remember everything written on the spraycan I didn't buy it I thought it was a Matte Varnish of some sort. Is there a picture of primer cans that I can look at?

 

[kathrynloch]

That's a matte sealer also called varnish. Primer will say primer on the can AFAIK.

 

[Beamo]

The primer will say PRIMER on the front in bold caps. Makes it easy for people like me who will miss it if the can doesn't yell it at me.

Also, you don't need additives. Just water. if you have hard water, maybe pick up a brita filter and keep it filled, and use that water.

Don't need lenses either. You might find them useful for doing more complicated and small free hand, but that's an advanced technique you need to build up to anyway. I've never used them for my own freehand.