WASH??

Kenny, any updated pictures of your work...maybe some before and afters...What I mean is before you received the wonderful advise! Curious to see how they turned out, don't leave us hanging! Huck

no thanks mate that what we here for to help one out

maffen,
Just wanted to give an extra thanks for passing on this link http://www.ttfxmedia.com/vallejo/index.htm I have found it very detailed and infromative.

QUOTE: Originally posted by maffen hi Kenny , infact i don't use what you call a wash put your basecoat and for the shadows i use the same basecolour but darkend and highlites again basecolour but now a little lighter (work in layers untill you find it o.k) and the fleshparts when they are completely dry i put a dull or semigloss coat on it to protect it. here's a link to help you further: http://www.ttfxmedia.com/vallejo/index.htm go to miniature & model colours - model colour there you find everything about figurepainting

As he said. I now usually apply 3 shades of color to figures to really define the details.

Good luck.

Thanks for the advice and help. I'm slowly finding out that using enamels takes a lot of time.

Cheers!

QUOTE: Originally posted by kenny_conklin attempting to use a wash to bring out more detail on soldiers equipment. first was to thin and just ran off the second attempt was decent filled in all the recesses nicely but i think i may have let it dry too long cause i couldnt get the excess off. how is the process done correctly? thankyou for your help everyone. kenny

I never wipe off a wash. Better to place well thinned paint where you want it and allow capilary action to draw it along the crevasses. Are you using enamels or acrylics? Enamels and oils work much better for a wash. The surface tension of thinner allows for more capilary action and the pigments are generally finer. I know some folks use acrylics cut with Windex or isopropyl alcohol, but this just seems more work than necessary.

So, my recommendation: Get a tube of Paynes Grey and Burnt Umber oils at AC Moore, Michaels or an art store. Get some plain old thinner, cheap non-hobby stuff is fine. Take a small dab of the color more complimentary to your subject and place it on the lid of a take out condiment container. Mix a drop of thinner at a time until the mixture will run along the edge of a sharply raised surface. Place a small drop of this where you want a low light. It will spread along any seam or sharp corner. Lay a small amout under folds, but don't cover everything. Let this dry. The thinner will spead the drying time of the oil considerably. Drybrush or paint complimentary highlights on the top of the folds.

QUOTE: Originally posted by tsteenbergen I tried the same thing and drybrushed after my wash. I ended up taking a bunch of base paint off of the nose and cheeks of my figure. I fugure that I was either using too much thinner with my drybrushing, or I did not let the base paint dry enough. Can someone give me a quick guide on the basics of drybrushing?

Dry brushing should be just that...DRY brushing.
Never thin your paints for drybrushing. The best stuff I ever used was pretty dried out PollyS paint, just about ready for disposal. It was more of a thick paste than "paint" at that time.
First, allow your basic colors to dry, at least overnight with enamels and a couple hours for acrylics. Next, use a wide, flat brush and get the smallest amount you can. Dabbing the thick stuff at the top or sides of the paint jar is ideal. Now, wipe the brush back and forth on a rag until you can hardly see any strokes. Give it a couplpe more strokes. Now do this on your model, in a top to bottom direction. Add some white to the first drybrush color, and repeat but with less pressure. Add yet more white and repeat with less pressure again. You can now hit the very highest spot with almost pure white.

As you become more adept, you'll start to use drybrushing less and rely more on blended highlights. This is especially try using oils.

hi Kenny , infact i don't use what you call a wash put your basecoat and for the shadows i use the same basecolour but darkend and highlites again basecolour but now a little lighter (work in layers untill you find it o.k) and the fleshparts when they are completely dry i put a dull or semigloss coat on it to protect it. here's a link to help you further: http://www.ttfxmedia.com/vallejo/index.htm go to miniature & model colours - model colour there you find everything about figurepainting

I tried the same thing and drybrushed after my wash. I ended up taking a bunch of base paint off of the nose and cheeks of my figure. I fugure that I was either using too much thinner with my drybrushing, or I did not let the base paint dry enough. Can someone give me a quick guide on the basics of drybrushing?

thanks heavy

I actually don't wipe it off. I just go back with the base color and drybrush the area to restore some of the base color and leave the darkened in low ares.