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Or do you paint as if the "light" is hitting all directions, for example, do you do the brightest highlights on all the highest edge's that is on your model?


Or do you go for a "light" hitting one particular area? ( like the front of the model only for example ).


Thanks Dakka.

I try, but usually fail.
If there's a face, I try to make it the focal point, especially for characters.

I do highlight all around. I think strongly directional light is good for specific models or painting comp entries, but for normal day to day models for tabletop play, I think it makes more sense to have omni directional lighting.

Also it's much easier strongly directional light sources do look really cool, but I think they are hard to pull off well.

I paint with a main light source, usually being above. however sometimes I deviate in certain areas if it makes that part look better. Sometimes you need to twist reality a little bit to ensure the work looks better. You do get secondary light sources in real life too so these usually work quite well.

I find single-light-source to be beyond my painting... level? Desire? Interest? Time commitment?

I also find that, on the table, minis with clearly specific lighting look weird if it doesn't match the natural light of the room. While it's cool for dioramas and display pieces, the effect falls apart if you're looking at it from the "wrong" angle.

But I'm a habitual table top standard guy. I think I've painted 5 models in my life that I aimed for display level. Avatar of Khaine comes to mind... and I wound up giving it to my buddy so he could play it on the table.

Iv been getting lazier and lazier at this but generally its ether highest point or focused in the areas i want to draw attention to like the face.

 greatbigtree wrote:
I find single-light-source to be beyond my painting... level? Desire? Interest? Time commitment?

I also find that, on the table, minis with clearly specific lighting look weird if it doesn't match the natural light of the room. While it's cool for dioramas and display pieces, the effect falls apart if you're looking at it from the "wrong" angle.

But I'm a habitual table top standard guy. I think I've painted 5 models in my life that I aimed for display level. Avatar of Khaine comes to mind... and I wound up giving it to my buddy so he could play it on the table.

Good points. For painting competitions yes one source makes sense, but as you say not really for general viewing ( aka on the battle field ).


Thanks!! Tree.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
I paint with a main light source, usually being above. however sometimes I deviate in certain areas if it makes that part look better. Sometimes you need to twist reality a little bit to ensure the work looks better. You do get secondary light sources in real life too so these usually work quite well.

Thanks!! Queen.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Desubot wrote:
Iv been getting lazier and lazier at this but generally its ether highest point or focused in the areas i want to draw attention to like the face.

Yeah that's fine if it works.

Thanks!!! Desu.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Flinty wrote:
I do highlight all around. I think strongly directional light is good for specific models or painting comp entries, but for normal day to day models for tabletop play, I think it makes more sense to have omni directional lighting.

Also it's much easier strongly directional light sources do look really cool, but I think they are hard to pull off well.

Yeah i agree, thanks!!! Flint.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

fresus wrote:
I try, but usually fail.
If there's a face, I try to make it the focal point, especially for characters.

Thanks!!! Fresus.

Closest I get to one direction is zenithal highlight.

Light white (in case of sunlight) drybrush over the desired area, especially the edges.

Possibly dense drybrush over the desired area if necessary.
Smaller brush with shorter bristles is ideal.

If I use a guardsman as an example - both shoulder pads, top of the helmet, top of the weapon.

If using metallic colors (Skitarii), I just put thinned layer over the already washed color over the desired areas, following the example above

I don't do edge highlight with a wet color at all, as it does not look natural most of the time.

I usually have one primary direct light source, and a weaker secondary light source.

I let the lights of the gaming area determine where the light hits my miniatures.

Do you guys some times put a real light on the mini before hand to see where the light hits?

That is definitely a common practice, 100%.

What about not doing the same amount of highlights on all areas?

Like for e.g doing the edge highlighting of a rhino, was thinking might be best do just do like 2 highlights max for that.


EDIT - Because im going nuts trying to think where i would put the very brightest when doing edges on a rhino....theres so many long highest edges its like wtf, do i put a little bit on the middle area of the all top edges, or on the corners of all edges or only on the very top of rhino and not the sloped parts ( this is me trying to do a light hitting all edges of model ). Of course i could just do 2 colors max and not worry about that extra step for that part if its irreverent but, still...


EDIT - Oh who cares, ill just try it and if it looks good then fine, but i want it to make sense.

I highlight everything...because as someone picks up and turns the model as they look at it, will always get to see it.

Cheers,

CB

Captain Brown wrote:
I highlight everything...because as someone picks up and turns the model as they look at it, will always get to see it.

Cheers,

CB

Yeah same thoughts, and i do do that ATM.

For the rhino, dont do all the highlights equally. There are natural gradients and light patterms that means different parts of the edges will reflect and catch the light differently. Do a few corners really bright and a few bright spots along the longer edges and it should look more realistically sparkly compared to the same level of highlight along everything.

Yeah, ill do that mate, thanks alot!

I think the wording on the question is slightly confusing. The options aren't to highlight the same all over or only highlight one area.

If you want to really paint well, you really have to consider where the light is coming from. That doesn't mean you only highlight the front or something. It doesn't have to be some kind of extreme lighting effect, like having one side of the face in the light and the other completely dark or anything like that. But some areas, usually towards the top, should ideally have different lighting than others. This helps direct the eye to the focal areas, and adds greatly to the realism. I don't know the science of this, but it really helps make the miniature look like a big six-foot warrior rather than a two-inch tall toy. As I say, it doesn't have to be extreme, it can be very subtle, and it's really no more difficult than edge highlighting everything the same.

Here are a couple of examples from my own gallery. Apologies for using my own work as some kind of instructional aid! I'm not arrogant enough to think that my stuff should be held us as an example of how to do things - I just know my own work better than other people's.





In both cases, I highlighted everything, but the areas towards the top of the miniature, and around the face of the Aggressor, I went up a couple of stages of brightness when highlighting. This is explained really well in Jeremie Bonamant Teboul's excellent book on miniature painting, Figopedia. I recommend it to anyone who is even vaguely interested in miniature painting. Here's a diagram from the book on this subject.

 feltmonkey wrote:
I think the wording on the question is slightly confusing. The options aren't to highlight the same all over or only highlight one area.

If you want to really paint well, you really have to consider where the light is coming from. That doesn't mean you only highlight the front or something. It doesn't have to be some kind of extreme lighting effect, like having one side of the face in the light and the other completely dark or anything like that. But some areas, usually towards the top, should ideally have different lighting than others. This helps direct the eye to the focal areas, and adds greatly to the realism. I don't know the science of this, but it really helps make the miniature look like a big six-foot warrior rather than a two-inch tall toy. As I say, it doesn't have to be extreme, it can be very subtle, and it's really no more difficult than edge highlighting everything the same.

Here are a couple of examples from my own gallery. Apologies for using my own work as some kind of instructional aid! I'm not arrogant enough to think that my stuff should be held us as an example of how to do things - I just know my own work better than other people's.





In both cases, I highlighted everything, but the areas towards the top of the miniature, and around the face of the Aggressor, I went up a couple of stages of brightness when highlighting. This is explained really well in Jeremie Bonamant Teboul's excellent book on miniature painting, Figopedia. I recommend it to anyone who is even vaguely interested in miniature painting. Here's a diagram from the book on this subject.

Thanks mate appreciate it. Also your models are very nicely done.


Thanks.

Leaders and special units I'll do with light coming from a single direction (as well as anything with a metallic as a primary color as it makes highlights far easier and more natural). Grunt#57 can get away with an all around highlight.