So, since I started this blog, I have only made one post. And for Senor Giggawatts, who pestered me to create it, I figured I would make an additional post. And this post is all about the wet blending, and our example model, is the GW Archnarok Spider! OF DOOM! Sorry, couldn't resist. This thing is possibly one of the most terrifying things I could imagine for someone who is afraid of spiders, and for those of us who are not, it's the coolest thing ever! =D But since I have one to paint, you'll be seeing it a lot here soon. Ok...so this is what this ungodly large thing looks like unpainted. 
And here is my inspiration for it's paint job. Terrifying, right? I thought so. I would probably cry if I woke up and saw this thing anywhere near me in real life. But ya know what? I bet the opponent is thinking the same thing if that ginormous spider across the board looks like this. The beauty of this Orky spider is that it is in fact supposed to be terrifying, gross and yet beautiful at the same time. Sounds impossible, right? WRONG. Let's do this!!
Ok, so it was primed black. I used Army Painter Black primer, but trust me, Krylon Matte Black is just fine, so is Walmart Brand Matte Black primer for $0.98. As long as you apply it thinly in good weather, it'll all turn out fine. I just happened to have army painter laying around.
Then, I picked out my colors! I used:
Vallejo Model Color :Grey Blue 943
Medium Blue 70963
German Grey 70995
Red (Dark) 70926
Red Bright 70947
Reaper Master Paint Series
Stone Grey 09086
Pure White 09039
Reaper Master Paint Series - High Density Pigment
Suntan Flesh 29822
Citadel Washes
Badab Black (Nuln Oil)
Gryphonne Sepia (Seraphim Sepia)
Baal Red (Carrowburg Crimson)
Yes ladies and gentlemen, that's everything. I promise. Now let me show you what we have to work with. Now please understand, I have had this model for quite some time before taking these pictures and writing this blog entry. So I'll give you step by step directions, and do my best to show you what I mean on the models and then show you as I add things from where I'm actually currently at. Sorry 'bout this, kids. Ok. Here's my starter picture, then I'll tell you how I got there!
The grotesque underbelly that is about to get a lot grosser here soon.
OK! Now let's get started. I'm going to reuse this pictures to show you what I mean, so beware! Holy crap, picture reuse! 0.o
I took my medium blue, and made a bright blue V across the butt. I wanted it to be the focal point there, so the center is the brightest. Then, I took the grey blue and outlined the bright blue V with it. On both sides of the bright blue, there was suddenly two grey blue V's. Got it? Yes, not blended. Just there. They looked pretty stark, not gonna lie. And yes, I did them on top of the spikes too. I just wanted the V - I'll do the spikes later. Who cares? No need to be perfect from the getgo.
Now, I made more V shapes but this time with the stone grey on each side of where the Grey blue V's were. Then, last but not least, I painted the remaining space on both ends of all my V's with German grey. So up there where the butt meets that shell looking thing, and at the end of the but shell, it is a dark grey. And no, none of this is blended. We're getting there! You have to start with an outline of what you want blended to know what you need to do to get there, especially for people that are just now learning blending.
Ok, now for blending. make a 4:1 mix of the grey blue to light blue. Just 4 drops of grey blue to one drop of bright blue. No biggie. Now for my favorite tool - FLOW IMPROVER, by Reaper. Code 09106. Just two drops of that into your blue mix. Now swirl it around really well, dip your brush into it, and then take a tiny bit off onto your paper towel. You want only a tiny bit of paint on your brush.
Like this. Now brush it lightly where the bright blue and blue grey meet. Now, you should have a little bit of blending. You can blend these two colors by doing almost a drybrush over the area where they meet with a combination of the colors, with the color you want to be predominant being the dominant color in your mix. I wanted the bright blue to fade into grey blue, so I used more grey blue than bright blue. Make sense? Or, you can wet blend. What that means, is that you blend your colors while the paint is still wet. Ever tried to paint something new over paint that isn't quite dry yet? Yeah, it doesn't work well. When it's on accident. When it's on purpose, it can be kinda pretty.
Here's how -
Make your V pattern pretty rapidly, and while the paint is still wet, mix your intermediate shading. So for this, the grey blue/blue mix. Brush it really lightly between your still wet grey blue and bright blue, and mix them together where it meets. Just make sure that you do not have much paint on your brush for the intermediate color - it will overpower and create a new stripe rather than blending. you want to feather your edges where the blues meet, and if it's still wet, it blends into each other. Now, if it's starting to dry in some spots, the other method of wet blending involves putting a tiny tiny bit of water on your brush and dabbing it on the paint to thin it out so that when the paint becomes thinner, it fades into the underneath color. So you put water on your brush, dab it where you want it to fade, and suddenly you have a little water drop that is full of paint pigment, and you're freaking out that it's going to be where you don't want it to be. Don't panic! Just dry off your brush by pressing it down on your paper towel and reapply it to where that water droplet is. Paintbrushes are made to absorb water based pigment - it'll act like a vacuum cleaner. Then just clean your brush as normal, and then if you need to blend again, go for it! It's trial an error to figure out how to wet blend and how much water to use and such, but if you keep doing it, you will get better. I promise. I did. Took me a month or two of practice, but it was worth it.
Oh, and I lied. I was frustrated about trying to show you colors and how to blend without having pictures...so I redid his butt along with you all. He's now got a nice shiny new coat of paint. Which is ok, because I've had him so long and he's needed to be finished for so long that in places the paint was wearing anyway. *shrug* Worth it. But for now, I must bid adeau, and now you have a basic lesson on wet blending, and more will follow as I work on this pretty spider. And now that that main portion of his body is done, the rest will be a piece of cake. Especially since it's done with the same method. Have a fun day! =D
Dat ass.... Mockapetris is a lucky man.
ReplyDeleteTrue story bro...he is indeed.
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