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As the title states, does it affect the end product if you use either a white or black primer? I am painting ultramarines and my local stores tend to stock each color in waves.

Depends on how you paint, but essentially yes. White tends to bring out the colors brighter, black darker. Paint has a degree of transparency to it allowing the under coats to come through.

Depending on how bright you want that ultramarine blue to show. Also if you apply a lot of coats it will pretty much nullify what is underneath no matter what. just that the more coats you put on, the more risk you put on obscuring details.

It's really more for the color going over it, and it ensures a better color with less layers.

If I'm using a yellow, light blue or green, white, etc, a white primer will ensure that you won't have a darker hue from a single coat.

The same goes for darker blues and greens, red, grey, black, brass, silver, etc. Using a black primer will keep them darker.

RivenSkull wrote:
It's really more for the color going over it, and it ensures a better color with less layers.

If I'm using a yellow, light blue or green, white, etc, a white primer will ensure that you won't have a darker hue from a single coat.

The same goes for darker blues and greens, red, grey, black, brass, silver, etc. Using a black primer will keep them darker.

That's what I was going to say. You want to minimise the number of coats you need to do in order to achieve the depth of colour and shading you want. I have painted Deathwing miniatures from both black and white primers. The white primer reduced the number of coats by 5 or 6 (n.b. they were thinned to the same consistency).

I always use black, but that's mainly because I was taught to use a black primer, since I first started playing Ultramarines xD I got the starter set thing and the instructions said to prime black, and I've done it ever since (even when I'm painting my white Blood Eaters, but I use bleached bone beneath the white, so it doesn't show as much) :3

Like others have said it depends on how bright you want the color. I use black Krylon on my infantry, because I bought it prior to my airbrush and it works fine so I'll use it up. I'll probably keep it black even once that's gone to keep them from coming out to bright. Since I play SW, I like a bit darker grey so it works. However, on vehicles I use white so I can do pre-shading.

Since it hasn't been mentioned yet, black is also more forgiving of incomplete coverage. If you miss a spot or can't reach a recess, black is less likely to be noticed (or will be assumed a deep shadow) than white. You can also intentionally leave joints and panel lines unpainted to achieve a blacklined effect without having to go back with a wash, micron pen, etc.

Really, though,ease of even coverage is usually the main consideration when deciding between black and white (or grey, for the more neutral middle ground). All subsequent coats being equal, a white primed mini will look brighter and more vivid and a black one darker and more muted (until so many coats have been applied that opacity approaches 100%), but the real question a painter usually asks himself is "do I have lots of problem colors (yellow, white, red)?" If so, painting over white will make his life easier.

I've always used black for my orks. Mainly 'cause white makes them WAY too bright.

I'm doing Slaanesh right now, so black is definitely no go. I usually use slate grey as a default primer, with white if I'm painting lighter/primaries like yellow or lavender.

About the only time I use black is when I'm dry brushing or doing a dark or dirty model. (Orks, Cryx, Nurgle, weathered metal/vehicles.)

In general White is good for very bright or vivid colours, especially those that can be trickier to paint like bright reds or yellows. Black is for darker shades and can also provide basic shading. Grey is a nice compromise between the two.

I recommend priming all the metallic areas black, since metallic paints are horrible on light colors.

if you have an airbrush and foundation/base paint it doesnt really matter. citadel base paints look just fine sprayed onto either white or black or red or blue.

if im painting white or yellow then i prime white because it makes things a bit easier. same thing with black, if im painting death company, i wouldnt want to spray them white, that's kinda dumb.

Army painter : ultramarine blue , just to throw that out there save painting and is generally better quality than gw sprays

 Havok210 wrote:
As the title states, does it affect the end product if you use either a white or black primer? I am painting ultramarines and my local stores tend to stock each color in waves.

Yes and No.... the end product will be different, in that if you prime two similar figures each colour, then paint them both using all the same method one will be a bit brighter and one a bit darker, certain colours lend themselves to covering black or white easier, if you wanted say; bright yellow lamenters marines, then id reccomend white, as it will take a fair few coats of paint over the black and potentially obscure details.

It can also be a matter of working preference, do you like to shade up from dark to light? or down from light to dark? both are accaptable and just are different procedures.

Most people will probably want to get army unity out of their paint schemes, and as such using the same primer across an army is preferable.

Army painter colour sprays are nice Some automotive primers are suitable too.. not all though try them on sprue first. Grey can be a best of both worlds with black and white primers.