Painting Styles

There are a number of styles or schools of finishing such as European, Japanese (highly detailed), Spanish (weathered), Verlinden........ & so on. There are plenty around here that know more than these about me though.

PS - PolyScale, PhotoShop?

I use the "I really hope I don't f- this up" painting style. Usually involves crossed fingers...

O, and crossed legs, toes and anything else i can cross and still paint at the same time.

Bish, Doogs,  I'm with you brothers!  I think it must be that if you aren't laying down paint every day like it was you job, you probably are going to take a long time to "master" techniques like Preshading, feathered edges, and even overall finish.  I find that one week it may be an overall gloss blue, next is OD over neutral grey, then splintered camo with soft mottle splotches.  You get good at mixing paint and handling the airbrush, but you are trying to duplicate different styles of paint jobs with each and every model you start to finish.  I feel uncomfortable every time I start to put a finish coat on a model.  That is why I almost always squirt a little color on an old model carcass that I have sitting at my spray booth.  I like to get the feel of the airbrush, how the paint is coming out, and any adjustments that might need to be made.  And then like you said, cross the fingers, "Hail Mary", "Damn the Torpedoes" and spray the paint!  Rick.

lol thanks guys for the comments.  I will keep practicing my paint work and hopefully post up some of my work soon.  Promised the wife I would finish the pro-line f650 body for my R/C car before I worked on a new kit ;-)

I can think of several styles;

Day it came out of factory style

In service for years style

Scale effect or not

What you expect it to look like style

What it actually looks like style

Super-dark panel line style (related to "what you expect it to look like style")

It never looked that nice style,

etc. :-)

I use the spray and pray method myself.

I think the PS either stands for preshade or postshade. Some us one some use both.

I usually don't describe my method until I see what the final results are!!

"Uhhhh, yeahhhhh, that's supposed to be heavily oxidized by acid rain..."

Oh well, seeing as everyone is describing their own method, I usually follow the "Variable School" of finishing!

Most people either make things look brand new of very used. it is your chioce.