Sunday 4 December 2022

LEVEL UP

Recently on Brian's blog ( if you like D&D, Blood Bowl and Sci-Fi check out his blog doubledowndice ) he asked if I'd show how I would teach someone to paint, now as many of you know I'm always happy to answer questions, now when I teach I always try and tailor it to the individual, so for this instance I'm going with someone who can do neat base layers, and knows what a wash is, but would like to know more. This is currently how I approach all my gaming figures.

STEP 1 base layer, I approach all my models as layers, so any skin would be the base layer, as it's the lowest point on a model

A) first I lay down a layer of the darker shade of skin tone I'm going to use, in this instance it was GW Kislev Flesh


B) Next I gave a even coverage of GW Reikland Fleshade as a wash.


C) At this point I do the eyes, why ? as they are recessed and you clip the cheekbones with the paint, it can be rectified in later steps, so first is the white, then dots of black for the eyes.


D) now I go back in with the base flesh colour, leaving areas of the fleshwash showing to give shade.


E) Finally I add a lighter shade of flesh tone, as a highlight, now unlike some tutorials, I don't say highlight all the flesh, only where the light w3ould hit if shinning directly above the model, this will add more shadow to the model, and a sense of realism.


STEP 2 Clothing, is the next level, now on this model I wanted black undersuit, now if I want a pure black look I won't highlight it, as higlighting can often look chalky on black.


STEP 3 Armour is the next layer as it sits on top of the clothing.

A) first I did a layer of GW Mournfang Brown as the base layer to the armour.


B) The next layer I left an edge of the previous layer showing between any ridges and armour plates of GW XV-88, any areas that would be in shadow I left bigger gaps.


C) Finally I highlighted all the armour with GW Ushabti Bone leaving areas of both the previous two layers showing, and larger in areas that would be in shadow.


STEP 4 Details, there are many little details that may be on your model that need to be picked out.

A) The lips, this was just a single colour following the shape of the lips to make them look like they have lipstick on.


B) Pipes, this model has lots of pipes on it delivering the Wych drugs, I used Vallejo Livery Green as a base, then used a green glaze to add some subtle shading.

STEP 5 Weapons, on this model the weapon is easy to get to, and was done last, on other models you may need to do this earlier.

A) over the base layer of black I applied a layer of GW Caliban green, leaving black showing in all the creases, with larger areas on the underside as it would be in shadow.


B) a thick highlighting of Vallejo Scurf Green was then added over the top half, and a thin highlight on the underside.


C) A fine highlight of Vallejo Jade Green was then added to the top half of the weapon only.


Now obviously when approaching a model you need to asses where you need to do these steps, as I mentioned above, sometimes you may need to do the weapon earlier as it could have cloth over it, hope you find this useful.

Until next time stay safe and have fun !

Cheers Dave

17 comments:

  1. Wonderful blow by blow account of how you paint your Dark Eldar, Dave. Always enjoy seeing how people do this - especially when it's so different to my 'feet up' approach. Must have taken an eternity to stop and take all those pics for the posting, so your time in doing so is greatly appreciated.

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    1. Thank you Simon, the same process can be applied to any model swopping the relevant colours to what you want, if you were doing a space marine with a bare head though, you'd need to do the undersuit base layer and armour base layer early as the head can be close to the neck guard.

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  2. I do much the same but I tend to add other steps too after each stage.
    1. Re-paint what you've managed to go over in the previous stage.
    2. Paint in details you've missed in the previous stages.
    3. Remove mold lines you missed originally (most stages).
    4. Repaint areas where you missed the mold lines
    5. Go to step two.
    Great tutorial btw.

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    1. Thank you Joe, have been there on more than one occasion ! LOL and was very lucky on this SBS not to have to do any of those, I guess every dog has it's day ! LOL

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  3. Great tutorial Dave.
    Everyone has their own approach and that's part of it, finding what works for you - there's always something to be learnt by seeing how others do it that can help develop your own style. I basecoat everything before I highlight up and rarely use a wash. I usually leave the flesh until last and spend the most time on it, unless it's only a tiny bit or difficult to access.

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    1. Thank you Justin, your exactly right, find what works for you, and take what techniques work for you, I've been on several courses with renowned painters Banshee, and Sprocket, and I use what I learned from then when the model calls for it, or I want to experiment, but I don't use it all the time, these guys are competition and display level painters and their techniques would take an eternity to paint a army ! LOL

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  4. Always fun to see how others approach mini-painting. When I have more time I might put together a post like this myself in the future.

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    1. Thank you Dai, always interesting to see what everyone else does, so look forward to seeing your post when you get more time mate.

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  5. Interesting stuff mate, and funnily enough almost the complete opposite to how I paint, I start from the outside in as I prefer to paint up to ridges rather than along the opt of them, I also nearly always faint the face near the end and the weapons first. Would I be wrong in saying that your style is very like the "Eavy' metal" one GW promote? but as you say there is no right or wrong way to do it, just your own way.

    Cheers Roger.

    Cheers Roger.

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    1. Thank you Roger, Eavy metal are very much all about edge highlights, which I only use occasionally, the bone armour would all need edge highlights on them to fit their style, but I'd rather add shadows, more towards an OSL type of style. But your absolutely right everyone needs to find what works for them, if you spot something you like use it, if not do what's right for you.

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  6. Thanks for the shoutout and awesome to see your tutorial! You cranked that out pretty quickly! Depending on my mood, I tend to use some different processes. I really should document some of them some time. I think my Orktober Orc posts give a good idea of how I usually paint. All the base layers, clothing, skin, and weapons. Sometimes a wash, sometimes not. Then on to highlighting, metal bits, glow bits, and the eyes. I leave the eyes for last because they can be the most challenging. Though a lot of really good painters start with the eyes, as they are very important. I tend to leave the metal bits last, as I don't like to use my good brushes with metal paints. I used to paint every single layer very neatly, but I'm learning I don't have to do that as much anymore. On 3B you mentioned leaving a layer exposed, and that's a nice trick that I've been trying to use more. I used to paint right up to each bit, but it works better to leave some shadow in there. Awesome post all around! Like I said, it's always fun to see how people paint and looks like others feel the same! :D

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    1. Thank you Brian, and you are most welcome on the shoutout. Didn't take too much, just kept the model close, so when I was using a colour needed would do the next bit, just had to remember to take the photo afterwards ! LOL There are so many different techniques and ways to paint a model, it's all about trying different ways and find what's right for you, if your willing to try new things that always helps, as you may find that technique that you just have to use all the time, or ones that you use occasionally for something special

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  7. John@justneedsvarnish6 December 2022 at 14:40

    Good tutorial there, Dave, and very clear when combined with your step through photos! With smaller figures I only need base coats and layers and I tend to paint more like Roger, with all base colours first and then paint up to edges rather than over them!

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    1. Thank you John, glad it came through clearly, as that's always a worry for me when doing an SBS. Indeed smaller scales benefit from doing less as you can over complicate a model trying to do too much ( my 11 mm Warmaster were taking forever ! LOL) and we all develop our own style that works for us.

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  8. Thank you Harry, always good to share the knowledge ! LOL

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  9. This is a useful and well-written tutorial and the results speak for themselves. If I wrote a tutorial for painting an entire miniature, I reckon it'd be a simple and easy 50 step process! :D Maybe not quite that many steps but there would be at least enough that I don't know how many people would actually want to follow my process haha

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    1. Thank you Jeff, your painting is on a far superior level than what this is aimed at, personally I'd love to see a tutorial from you, although I'd only probably use it for an occasional display piece, as it would take a lot longer than my normal army painting standard ! LOL

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