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Hello! I am attempting OSL for the first time.



This is a test model. Ignore the eyes and quality neatness; I am mainly concerned with the OSL around the main part of the gun; I have clear yellow tubes that I use instead of the green ones. Also, the brown color is "screaming bell" that I will use on the rest of the model for the joints and any metallic parts; the OSL makes it seem less metallic but I feel like keeping it in there as I"ll be using it on the rest of the model. I've seen some people simply splash the OSL over the area and don't bother painting, say, the screaming bell metallic color over the metal chord that hangs down behind the big one.

My main question is: How do I make the painted yellow chord/hanging yellow tube thing you see be more "vibrant" than the light it emits? I have "Ardcoat" that I use and the effect looks better in person, honestly, than over my mediocre phone camera. Is there a way to make the yellow light source more...yellow and "bright?" Or do I just tone down the yellow that it emits on the model? I am using "flash gitz yellow." I do not consider myself to be an expert painter so please explain if you use an advanced level terminology or painting technique. Thanks for any input you may have!

Most people work their light source up to pure (or near it) white, relying on the less intense periphery of the lens/bulb/tube to convey the color of the source, which in turn justifies the color of the glow. A blue plasma coil, for example, might have light-ish blue crevices, then pale blue layered up with increasing amounts of white, with pure white highlights on the very tops of the coil's ridges. The white conveys the source's brightness, while the blue recesses let you know that the light, however bright, is colored, thereby justifying a blue glow.

It's the only way, really, to have a light source brighter than the ambient glow when working with light colors. Gloss varnish applied to the tube will make it look smooth and shiny, like glass, but it won't make it appear any brighter - for that you need to actually lighten the color.