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Hello,

Sorry newbie painter question here. I have been looking into different painting techniques and I do notice that most people say they paint in layers. I am not 100% what this means. I did watch a few instructional videos where the presenter used washes for almost every aspect of the model and it came out very well. I've also heard of really thinning paints down to almost a watery (wash) consistency and doing this as well.

What method is the preferred method for the best results?

What do you thin with? Water, airbrush medium or something else?

How do you do metallics?

Do you use a wet pallet or dry for the best results?

How do you avoid having the paint run everywhere?

Thank You.

Normally I just use some water to thin my paints to make them go on a bit smoother, shouldnt be that runny that it just goes everywhere like a wash does, just enough for it to spread better.

Painting in layers could be anything, the most basic layering you could do would be something like prime the model, do your base colour, wash the model and drybrush to make the details stand out, then do a few finishing touches (painting eyes, gems etc).

Or you could do lots of very thin coats of paint to build up a colour giving it a smoother look, for example building up a bright blue by starting with a dark blue base and slowly adding lighter shades of blue, thats probably something you would look at using a wet palette for.

I guess it really depends on the effect your after as to what techniques you should go for.