Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

My tiny brain cant figure some thing basic out. So i have a base color, and a 1st stage highlight for that color, im wondering instead of using a even brighter 2nd highlight, why would it not make sence for me to just use the base, then mix the base with 1st stage highlight to do the 1st stage highlight, then just the 1st highlight by it self with out mixing to act as the 2nd highlight, can some one please try there best to explain to my little brain why this makes sence or doesn't.

I'm bad at explaining things, hopefully you get what im trying to say.


Thank you all once again for your help.

EDIT - Just in case you are wondering im doing the bone colors finally after like 1 year for my CSM.

Of course you can mate and it is the most common way of doing highlighting (or used to be). Whilst it seems common to use different paints for different shades/highlights that is just the way GW (and Reaper?) sell their paints, mixing them for intermediate stages was always the goto way. Best to use a wet pallet if you are though so you can maintain the consistency of the mix across the whole army.

For bone I mostly start with a mid brown and mix in more bone per highlight layer.

Just to be clear, you're saying instead of doing:

Basecoat -> Highlight Color 1 -> Highlight Color 2

You want to do:

Basecoat -> 1:1 Basecoat/Highlight Color -> Highlight Color

If that's what you're asking, the answer is that there's nothing wrong with that latter method, and in my experience it's better for avoiding any unwanted color changes along the way.

However, it means having to mix paint for the first highlight. If your paint is in dropper bottles then this might be straightforward, but if you're using GW-style pots, then getting consistent ratios can be difficult.

Note also that if you take this approach, you also need a pretty strong contrast between the basecoat and highlight color. Otherwise, the mixed highlight step won't be very different from either the basecoat or highlight, meaning you'll invest a lot of effort for relatively little effect.

That's why generally people use straight colors- whatever you're trying to paint, you can probably find appropriate paints for each step. Very specific tones, though, can sometimes require mixing.

Do you mind sharing what you're trying to do?

 ingtaer wrote:
Of course you can mate and it is the most common way of doing highlighting (or used to be). Whilst it seems common to use different paints for different shades/highlights that is just the way GW (and Reaper?) sell their paints, mixing them for intermediate stages was always the goto way. Best to use a wet pallet if you are though so you can maintain the consistency of the mix across the whole army.

For bone I mostly start with a mid brown and mix in more bone per highlight layer.

Yeah but there will be a difference right since im not able to actauly get out of these 2 paints a bright enough highlight to match what ever the 2nd highlight would be if i also bought that, so then my question is sort of like i guess what would be the main difference if i did it GW way and bought a even brighter colur that is impossible for me to mix with the 2 i have. My assumption/guess is that it simply just gives a different look lol... but can any one tell me how much of a difference this look is or what ever....hopefully you understand. Thanks!!!


Automatically Appended Next Post:

catbarf wrote:
Just to be clear, you're saying instead of doing:

Basecoat -> Highlight Color 1 -> Highlight Color 2

You want to do:

Basecoat -> 1:1 Basecoat/Highlight Color -> Highlight Color

If that's what you're asking, the answer is that there's nothing wrong with that latter method, and in my experience it's better for avoiding any unwanted color changes along the way.

However, it means having to mix paint for the first highlight. If your paint is in dropper bottles then this might be straightforward, but if you're using GW-style pots, then getting consistent ratios can be difficult.

Note also that if you take this approach, you also need a pretty strong contrast between the basecoat and highlight color. Otherwise, the mixed highlight step won't be very different from either the basecoat or highlight, meaning you'll invest a lot of effort for relatively little effect.

That's why generally people use straight colors- whatever you're trying to paint, you can probably find appropriate paints for each step. Very specific tones, though, can sometimes require mixing.

Do you mind sharing what you're trying to do?

Its just the bone color for all my Csm troops to finally get there horns complete. the two paints i have is zandri dust and screaming skull. I thought it would have been wiser and better for me to learn if i just got zandri dust and white paint instead and mixed it all my self, but i thought id just listen to gw advice.

And then this confusion of what i should do suddenly dawned upon me llol

Not sure if I do fully understand to be honest.

Here is roughly how I do bone, brown base layer (graveyard earth) 75%/25% mix of graveyard/Ushabti, 75%/25% Ushabti/graveyard, 100% Ushabti, 75%/25% Ushabti/white. very thin edge highlight of pure white.
Comes out like this;

 ingtaer wrote:
Not sure if I do fully understand to be honest.

Here is roughly how I do bone, brown base layer (graveyard earth) 75%/25% mix of graveyard/Ushabti, 75%/25% Ushabti/graveyard, 100% Ushabti, 75%/25% Ushabti/white. very thin edge highlight of pure white.
Comes out like this;

I mean like, if i follow the technique of mixing instead of just applying straight from bottles of the different highlights, i obviously will get a different look, so im just wondering if you can try and explain like what the major differences in look would be.... if this doesn't make sense give me about 2 decades and i will probably have thought of a better way to describe this ahahha. joking.

It is usually used to give smoother gradients and transitions.

Ok thank you so much, i finally understand 100%




Thank you.

you should always mix your transition colours to give intermediate layers. this gives a much smoother transition. I often use between 3 and 10 gradually increasing mixes between 2 different colours/shades of paint

Anne, thank you for trying to help, but i promise i get it now but i was definitely struggling and i don't know why but i get it. Its like as some oen once said to me here, it depends on how much effort you want to put in to it sort of a thing.

But thank you.

EDIT - But GW does advise you do it the non mixing way generally right? Well it seems like it, any way i guess they just want to keep it simple etc.


Cheers

 Stormatious wrote:
Anne, thank you for trying to help, but i promise i get it now but i was definitely struggling and i don't know why but i get it. Its like as some oen once said to me here, it depends on how much effort you want to put in to it sort of a thing.

But thank you.

EDIT - But GW does advise you do it the non mixing way generally right? Well it seems like it, any way i guess they just want to keep it simple etc.


Cheers

The GW painting "System" is 100% aimed at the beginner to intermediate level of painter and will get you from the first stage to the second very efficiently, it encourages neat work and has taken away a lot of the barriers that existed when some of us longer term hobbyists started.

The Duncan Videos will go into some more detail about mixing and blending your paints, and once you've got some of those techniques under your belt there are a lot of painters out there who post videos about doing a particular thing.

My advice after watching some videos is to pick a technique or effect and practice it as much as you can, then repeat this for the next thing. It could be anything, Power Weapons, Non-Metallic Metals, Faces, Gems, Free Hand Patterns, Weathering whatever.

Rik

 ingtaer wrote:
Not sure if I do fully understand to be honest.

Here is roughly how I do bone, brown base layer (graveyard earth) 75%/25% mix of graveyard/Ushabti, 75%/25% Ushabti/graveyard, 100% Ushabti, 75%/25% Ushabti/white. very thin edge highlight of pure white.
Comes out like this;

Why don't you use a wash?

Thanks, that's my last question.

Cause I want to highlight rather than shade. A brown wash could be applied after the first bone mix but I wanted it lighter.

 ingtaer wrote:
Cause I want to highlight rather than shade. A brown wash could be applied after the first bone mix but I wanted it lighter.

I went base/wash/slight base restore/ then 75%/25% mix of base/1ststagehighlight, then just 1st stage highlight, and i think that is looking good i dont want it any brighter, its just the CSM troops horns not like your model but yeah looks good.

cheers. Pics coming soon.

Just showing 2 not all of them. Went to heavy on tips with highlight so ill fix later but you get the idea.