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I just got my new paints in today and decided to give it a go and basing then layering with a Dark Angels marine. I based with caliban green then tried to do a layer with Warpstone Glow. The marine on the right is my first ever marine, painted in just flat Caliban Green for comparison. I think I am doing something wrong, my marine looks too light. I haven't done any washing or anything else, just the Caliban Green and Warpstone Glow. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Hi,
I don't use the GW method of layering(maybe someone else can correct me if I'm wrong here) but I think you are meant to just use the warpstone glow on the edges of the armour, that way you get the moody/dark angel feel but with the edging of a lighter green.

With layering, you'll want to make sure your layer color is thinned down considerably so that only a small amount of the pigment is left with each layer, otherwise you'll lose the original color as shown in your photographs. Additionally, rather than laying the color on the whole model, apply the lighter green on the edges (like Slipstream suggests) to highlight the target green color. The idea is to make the base color pop out to the eye, and by thinning your layer color down and applying it selectively to armor edges, you'll achieve a much better effect. If the highlight isn't light enough for your liking, take another pass with the thinned highlight color.

This is also the fundemental technique behind "juicing," which is a great way to achieve color blends without the hassle of wet blending.

 roastbeefaweefs wrote:
With layering, you'll want to make sure your layer color is thinned down considerably so that only a small amount of the pigment is left with each layer, otherwise you'll lose the original color as shown in your photographs. Additionally, rather than laying the color on the whole model, apply the lighter green on the edges (like Slipstream suggests) to highlight the target green color. The idea is to make the base color pop out to the eye, and by thinning your layer color down and applying it selectively to armor edges, you'll achieve a much better effect.

Ah, thanks! Should the layering be thing like a wash or shade? Or just a tad thicker than that?

Grafeld wrote:

Ah, thanks! Should the layering be thing like a wash or shade? Or just a tad thicker than that?

You'll want it a bit thicker than a wash, otherwise it'll start pooling at the edges. Start at a ratio of about 3:1 distilled water to paint, and paint a line on your palette. It should look a little watery, but still leave a consistent transparent layer of pigment. If it starts pooling up like a wash, add a dab of paint, and it it's still opaque, add a little bit of thinner. Each paint will thin differently, and it really comes down to trial and error to get it right. Nice thing about thin paint is that it gives you more room to cover up mistakes without losing detail or adding brush lines than paint straight from the pot!

 roastbeefaweefs wrote:

Grafeld wrote:

Ah, thanks! Should the layering be thing like a wash or shade? Or just a tad thicker than that?

You'll want it a bit thicker than a wash, otherwise it'll start pooling at the edges. Start at a ratio of about 3:1 distilled water to paint, and paint a line on your palette. It should look a little watery, but still leave a consistent transparent layer of pigment. If it starts pooling up like a wash, add a dab of paint, and it it's still opaque, add a little bit of thinner. Each paint will thin differently, and it really comes down to trial and error to get it right. Nice thing about thin paint is that it gives you more room to cover up mistakes without losing detail or adding brush lines than paint straight from the pot!

Thanks for the help. When I do washing, with the actual GW shades, where should I do it on the armor? Over certain areas or just apply liberally?

The trick with washes is to avoid flat areas. The wash needs nooks and crannies to flood into for them to work their magic. Here's how I apply my washes:

1. Dip the brush in the wash, then touch it to a piece of paper towel to wick away some of the wash. This will help keep the model from being flooded.

2. On rough areas with plenty of pits and cracks for the wash to pool up into, I brush the wash evenly over the entire area, making sure the wash is distributed evenly across the area.

3. On predominantly smooth areas, like the edging round shoulder pads, I carefully paint across the corner where the shoulder pad and the edge meet, cleaning up any pooling or other errors with a Q-Tip. However, if you use a wash like Biel-Tan Green, you probably won't notice any glitches since the tone so similar to the base color.

As far as the order in which to paint, I suggest base coating, washing, and then layering your highlight colors. This will allow you to fine tune any issues with your wash.

 roastbeefaweefs wrote:
The trick with washes is to avoid flat areas. The wash needs nooks and crannies to flood into for them to work their magic. Here's how I apply my washes:

1. Dip the brush in the wash, then touch it to a piece of paper towel to wick away some of the wash. This will help keep the model from being flooded.

2. On rough areas with plenty of pits and cracks for the wash to pool up into, I brush the wash evenly over the entire area, making sure the wash is distributed evenly across the area.

3. On predominantly smooth areas, like the edging round shoulder pads, I carefully paint across the corner where the shoulder pad and the edge meet, cleaning up any pooling or other errors with a Q-Tip. However, if you use a wash like Biel-Tan Green, you probably won't notice any glitches since the tone so similar to the base color.

As far as the order in which to paint, I suggest base coating, washing, and then layering your highlight colors. This will allow you to fine tune any issues with your wash.

Thanks so much for all the tips. Going to try them on a freshly primed marine tonight!

Good luck, and have fun!

I still have a lot to improve but, fortunately, I have quite capable friends who actually kinda showed me how it should be done.

(And it is way simpler understanding it, rather than doing it... but il all comes to practice); so said, forgive me if I state the obvious:

The layers colour has to be thinned approximately to a glaze and you have to unload the excess paint (possibly using a tissue or a paper towel, but a rag may work ^^); this way the brush keeps the point and you keep control.

Many people I know apply a similar style to the base coat; this makes necessary to give 2-3 coats to achieve a smooth colour (but, being the colour very thinned, the 3 layers will not cover any detail); in the same way, if the "glazing" is too thinned, you just give a second layer (when the previous is dry).

The goal is to see the previous layer (darker colour)while applying the new/lighter one.
Note that it's the same principle (with the appropriate colour range) that creates the NMM effect

Moreover, by covering less surface with each pass (or couple of passes), you'll achieve a gradient (and a better result if you give "sense" to that gradient)
The blend will be smoother if you'll use a slow transition, for example:
pure Caliban Green
2:1 Caliban Green : Warpstone Glow
1:1 Caliban Green : Warpstone Glow
1:2 Caliban Green : Warpstone Glow
Pure Warpstone Glow
etc

The downside of all this principle is that this way is totally time-consuming.
It has to be said that a complex blending (with tens of layers and hues) is usually reserved to showcase models and not to tabletop ones.

For a faster, tabletop effect you could go with something like
Pure Caliban Green
50% Caliban - Warpstone (leaving recesses)
Pure Warpstone Glow
50% Warpstone - Snot (iirc)
Pure light colour (I keep forgetting the name, Snot green?) on the very edges

If you like a 'eavy metal-like result, I guess you could skip the second to last layer.

If the gradient is too harsh, you could smoothen it with the appropriate glaze.

Of course, anybody feel free to correct if I skipped something... as I said, it is easy to understand, less easy to divulge or apply it

EDIT:
Btw, I have the impressions that the photos are a bit darkish... try and adjust the white balance and/or the lights, it is simpler to see the right colours rather than to guess (and here on dakka there are plenty of nice photo tutorials )