Painting Black

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**vipoid**

Let's say I want a model (or parts of it) to be black.

Obviously I could just paint it black and call it a day, but is there a way to do this and still bring out the details? (I'd normally do this with a wash, but they don't really work when that area is already as dark as it can get

).

So, should I paint the model in a dark colour, and then use a wash?
Or, should I paint it black and then highlight it with a lighter colour?
Or, something else?
Or, is the 'paint it black and call it a day' idea the best I'll get?

Anyone have any experience with this?

**kb_lock**

Painting with black and white is hard because you are very limited, the trick is to use them sparingly (though in opposite methods).

For black, you can definitely paint it dark grey and wash it black, though I'd prefer to paint it black then highlight with dark grey (and edge highlight in a lighter grey).

This is shown here; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7p2us0W-10#t=204

And here (same video);

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=a7p2us0W-10#t=530

**finnan**

depends what colour you want the highlights. An easy way to do it is to, using red as an example, to basecoat in a dark shade of red and then do a couple of washes with black - that'll knock the red back quite well and give you the highlight.
The other way to do it is to basecoat black and then highlight with the colour you want using thin washes - takes time, but you have greater control and a more subtle highlight.

**Riquende**

Ive become a big fan of Vallejo Model Color's Black-Grey for the purpose of washing it black. It works really well when you want to make something look like black leather (coats etc). I usually apply a base, wash with black, then put a little mid-grey on the highest points of folds etc, then wash again. It's not the fanciest award-winning technique, but it's a good look for the time it takes:

**Paradigm**

I like doing it with blue. Basecoat with neat black, and then add some blue, building up layers so that you get highlights without really losing the black and going grey. Example:

And the tutorial I used:

**AllSeeingSkink**

I've never been able to get a black I'm happy with by applying black washes to grey. If I want black I just concede and paint it black and then edge highlight to create definition.

**BaronVonSnakPak**

I paint the mini black, use eshin grey for subtle highlights, then dawnstone for pronounced highlights.

**NuggzTheNinja**

A trick that you can use with painting black, if you're speed painting an army, is to nix the edge highlights and focus on weathering. IMO this is the fastest way to produce black that looks good. On Marines, you can use weathering powder on the feet, and metal to sponge chip the edges (VERY sparingly). This covers up the fact that you haven't done any edge highlighting.

Here's an example:

I can't say for sure if the guy line highlighted anything, but if he did, it isn't very salient. This is not my model btw.

**Tannhauser42**

I've seen one tutorial somewhere where you start with grey or even white, and then do multiple black washes until you reach the result you're looking for.
Another option is to use a really dark color (dark blue being a common choice), and doing a black wash over that.