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I’m trying to get better at highlighting my models and….well let’s face it, I pretty much suck at it
My models appear too flat, not well shaded and not well highlighted. I think I’m a pretty clean painter with a steady hand, but I just need to improve my methods or something.

Here’s how I paint my models –
* Undercoat with Krylon matte black spraypaint
* Base coat with Regal Blue thinned with water a bit
* Paint over most of the model except for places that need to be shaded with Ultramarines Blue
* Ink wash the whole thing with Asurmen Blue
* The ink wash darkens it considerably so I re-paint most of the model with fairly thinned Ultramarines Blue
* Highlight with a mixture of Skull White and Ultramarines Blue
* Second highlight with a lighter mixture of Skull White and Ultramarines Blue
* Then all the rest of the detail

Is there something wrong with this?
Am I screwing up somewhere?

Actually when I think about it, I think my problem might be that I don’t know *where* to highlight. I want to paint my models in a comic style with highlights on the highest parts of the model.
But I guess I just need some help.
Are there any tutorials, advice, or examples that might help?

Here are some pics of a finished model and one that I'm at least done with the armor

How can I improve?

Your technique is to complicated. I would go just regal blue, asurmen blue wash, ultramarines blue over brush and an 1:1 ultramarine's blue/skull white highlight. If your having trouble with your highlighting just practice. Theres know secret trick to it (or if there is no ones told me it).

For starters, I think your minis look fine.

If you're stumped as to where to apply your highlights, try holding your miniature under a desk lamp or other light, look at where the light catches the surfaces and apply highlights there.

As for the actual technique, it looks fine, though I'd apply the wash as the last step. That way it'll make the whole thing look smoother.

First off I think the mini looks great! I think it is a solid foundation to getting a great paint job, perhaps there a few too many steps/other ways to do things easier, ect....I may be off base a bit, but I have the feeling that maybe highlighting so much inst your question as much as getting you models to "pop" on the table. If that is the case, it is not really about highlighting as much as it is about contrast. I would deepen those shadows that you have started, with a nice dark red or green, and I would apply some edge highlights mixing in some pale flesh with the base color to help give the highlights a nice pop. As you increase that contrast you will find your models colors will look more vibrant and pop more.

Ashton

Pancritic wrote:For starters, I think your minis look fine.

Well thank you - the photos I have here are to show the highlighting job more than the whole mini. So it's not really a good shot of the whole thing, maybe I'll get some better photos up.
Also, I'm painting more for the sake of painting than for the purpose of tabletop gaming - I realize it's allright for them to be "good enough" for gaming purposes.

Redfinger wrote:I have the feeling that maybe highlighting so much inst your question as much as getting you models to "pop" on the table. If that is the case, it is not really about highlighting as much as it is about contrast.

Allright, yeah I've been looking at some miniatures in the gallery here and the ones that really stand out to me have almost completely black shadows and bright edges and corners.

I don't care for the models done only with edge highlighting like the official GW examples, like on their box art or their website. I like the ones that look more like they came off the page of a comic book
Like this one
http://www.dakkadakka.com/gallery/252439-Blood%20Angels%2C%20Space%20Marines%2C%20Terminator%20Armor.html

Pancritic wrote:I'd apply the wash as the last step. That way it'll make the whole thing look smoother.

Using the ink wash darkens the color quite considerably, enough so that they don't really have the right color for Ultramarines anymore. Is there any way around that?

I've tried diluting the ink with water, but that seems to make it splotchy and it doesn't really darken the low points so much as it does darken the whole thing more evenly.
And I've tried adding a bit (a really tiny bit) of dish soap as I've read about, but that seems to make bubbles form and it dries that way.

Yeah I agree that it makes everything look much smoother, ties everything together, and helps blend the different levels of highlight.
But it just turns out so dark - any tips there?

The_Juggler wrote:Using the ink wash darkens the color quite considerably, enough so that they don't really have the right color for Ultramarines anymore. Is there any way around that?

I've tried diluting the ink with water, but that seems to make it splotchy and it doesn't really darken the low points so much as it does darken the whole thing more evenly.
And I've tried adding a bit (a really tiny bit) of dish soap as I've read about, but that seems to make bubbles form and it dries that way.

Yeah I agree that it makes everything look much smoother, ties everything together, and helps blend the different levels of highlight.
But it just turns out so dark - any tips there?

Ok, I think I grok what you're going for.

I think what's holding you back is the Asurmen Blue wash. As you've noticed, GW washes shade colour and dry to a matte finish. This makes them great for what they do, but not for the technique you're looking for, which is glazing.

A long time ago, GW only sold stuff called 'ink'. It was basically the same as artist's inks, which are just that. Inks. A few years later, they separated their product lines into 'washes' and 'glazes', with the glazes being basically diluted inks (the actual chemical stuff is more complex) intended for glazing. Then, the glazes were discontinued and the washes reverted to being called 'ink', and nowadays we have washes again, which are a lot different than the old ones. Confusing, isn't it?

In any case, a glaze is a very thin coat of ink painted over an opaque colour that tints it in some way while allowing the original colour to show through. This is what I believe you're looking for in your lightest highlight parts. To accomplish it, you'll need a bottle of blue ink or blue glaze. I don't know what brands you have available in your neck of the woods, but if there's no glaze available (you might want to check at an artist supply shop), I'd try Vallejo blue ink and their Glaze medium, in a 50/50 mix.

Use that to glaze the top highlights with a very thin coat, then work downwards from there, applying more coats as the highlights darken, and finally use straight asurmen blue wash in the darkest regions.

You will need to thin your ink. I haven't had any problems with water, but water quality (hardness, microparticles, etc.) might be an issue. Dish soap breaks down surface tension, but as you've noticed, the bubbles are an issue. It's less of a problem with paint, since paint is thicker, but with inks, and especially if you're trying to glaze, dish soap will work heavily against you.

Note that this technique is not something that I have a great deal of experience with, nor have I done it in a long time, so keep your grains of salt handy.

Just to give you another option, i'll do a step by step on how i paint/highlight the power armour on my ultramarines.

1) Spray prime chaos black (any black primer will do)
2) Base coat Mordian Blue
3) Light was of Asurmen Blue, try and aim for the cracks and crevices (if any)
4) Go over most of the armour in Ultramarines Blue, leave cracks and crevices previous colour
5) Do your first highlight in enchanted blue, colour change should be slight
6) 50/50 Enchanted Blue and Ice Blue leaving a strip of the previous highlight
7) Finally do extreme highlight with pure Ice Blue (Optional)

For the gold eagle, wash it with Gryphonne Sepia to darken the crevices and then a light drybrush with the gold basecoat colour to bring back the shine.