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Since I got back into painting a year and a half ago I've often used shade paints, following the instructions about how to use them from online tutorials. But I'm now wondering why they always place so much emphasis on avoiding pooling. I do that and make sure I get a nice even coat but surely all the shade really does then is change the colour of the model to a darker, but still nice and even version of the colour it was before. Is it doing anything more than that? And if not, why not just simply base coat in a darker colour? Isn't the whole point to get a darker colour in the recesses than the raised areas?

Also what's the deal with GW tutorials sometimes telling you to first layer back up with the original base coat after shading, sometimes going straight to a different layer paint. Is there any logic to this?

By "avoid pooling" they're not talking about more paint in the recesses, they're talking about an excess of paint running down the model and making large pools due to gravity. Too much paint runs off, just enough will cover the surface and sit in the recesses.

In my experience, there's a significant difference between letting a wash filling in recesses and having pool in a recess to a point that it obscures details.

I use shades/washes primarily for skin tones, metals, and my cobblestone style of bases. I can't imagine doing these without washes/shades.

EDIT: Ninja's by BBB

There's no logic to games workshops paint tutorials. They won't make your models look like the ones on the box. Going straight from a wash to a lighter tone is not normally best practice.

In regards to washes, what they mean is not drenching the entire bit/model in the wash. Apply it precisely to the area's you need eg, recesses. If you apply it excessively to an armour panel for example, you will fill the recesses as designed, but you will also end up with huge blotchy pigment stains on the flat surfaces when it dries. This is what you are trying to avoid.

Jandgalf wrote:
Since I got back into painting a year and a half ago I've often used shade paints, following the instructions about how to use them from online tutorials. But I'm now wondering why they always place so much emphasis on avoiding pooling. I do that and make sure I get a nice even coat but surely all the shade really does then is change the colour of the model to a darker, but still nice and even version of the colour it was before. Is it doing anything more than that? And if not, why not just simply base coat in a darker colour? Isn't the whole point to get a darker colour in the recesses than the raised areas?

Also what's the deal with GW tutorials sometimes telling you to first layer back up with the original base coat after shading, sometimes going straight to a different layer paint. Is there any logic to this?

You can use a shade like a glaze (it's easier if you thin it down first), to change/darken the colour evenly, but that's not what they mean by avoiding pooling, or how you normally use a shade.

You do want the shade to primarily go into the crevices, specifically to add shading as you think! You want to minimise how much is left on the higher or flat surfaces, as that leads to 'coffee stains', or random darker blotches, so you use the brush to pull shade from the high points and towards the crevices. By pooling, it means avoiding a very heavy build up in the crevices, as in a literal pool of shade, or great big blob of liquid. The problem with this is that it will dry unevenly; you'll get a 'coffee ring' effect partially up the side of the crevice where the pool dries first, and then eventually a very dark shade colour at the bottom. You also run the risk that gravity will act on such a heavy amount of shade, and get literal drips of it running down the model onto other areas.

So I think you may be taking it a bit too far in trying to avoid pooling - you absolutely want a reasonable coat mostly in the crevices, while removing most of the shade from the higher areas while it's wet. You will still get some darkening on the higher areas, and possibly staining, but it's mainly a problem for flat surfaces (e.g. space marine armour). You can then go back over the flat areas with the original base coat colour (leaving crevices alone), thus covering up stains or uneven marks as you do so. If staining isn't a problem (e.g. a highly rough surface like fur), then you can just crack on with the highlights; it all depends on the colour and the type of surface as to whether you need to brighten it back up to the base coat on the higher areas, as sometimes the intent is to also darken the base shade somewhat, as well as heavier shading in the crevices. It just depends as to what looks better, in the end!

You could experiment on a test model; do one part the way you currently do, do another area with a moderate amount, aiming mainly into the crevices, and one where you lather on as much as the model can hold before it literally drips off, and let it all dry to see how it looks. That last area is what the advice against pooling is generally trying to avoid.

You can also apply shades literally only to the crevices, but this is more laborious, and can lead to harsh transitions up the sides of the crevices; it depends on the model as to which is the better method of application. For only painting into thin lines (such as the shapes in space marine armour, or tanks), this technique is usually known as 'pin washing'.

One option to make shades more controllable is to thin them a little; I usually mix Contrast medium into my shades on the palette, about 1/3 medium, 2/3 shade, and that seeks crevices better and stains less; I rarely need to do a second coat, but that's always an option if I really want to darken it down. In theory, the new versions of GW shades just released act more like this out of the pot, but I haven't bought any of them yet.