"Scientists vs Artists" from S. Zaloga
Hey guys,
In deafpanzer's Chaffee thread, Roy posted a link to Steve Zaloga's magnificent dissertation on Olive Drab. It can be read here, for those of you who missed it or didn't check out the thread:
Zaloga on Olive Drab
However, for those of you who didn't bother reading the whole thing, there was this one very interesting section which, naturally jumped out at me. You all know I'm a big proponent of "scale effect" and of lightening and "post shading" finishes, and that stressing yourself out about "exact" colors is unnecessary. I thought it was really interesting what Zaloga had to say on the "scale effect", as he had observed and tested it. Admittedly, I have highlighted the passages that support my opinion on this matter...
"Having
matched the colours to actual colour chips, how about use on models?
There has been a long running argument between two contending camps, who
I shall dub the scientists versus the artists. The scientists argue
that a colour is a colour is a colour, and that hobby paint should
exactly match the official colour chip. The artists argue that the use
of an exact match creates an unrealistic looking model due to scale
effect. A full-size vehicle painted in Olive Drab viewed from some
distance away will appear to be a lighter colour than a small chip
examined at close quarters. I tend to side with the artists over the
scientists on this issue, as I think that models painted in precise
matches of dark colours like Olive Drab look unrealistically dark.
To
test this theory, I primed and painted a 2 foot x 3 foot panel of
Plexiglas (Perspex) using Tamiya Olive Drab. This is not intended to be
scientific proof, but to provide at least some rough evidence on the
controversy. After establishing a proper white balance for the camera, I
photographed the test panel from a distance of 15 feet using a
high-resolution digital camera (Nikon Coolpix 995) under direct sunlight
on a day with low humidity. I then transferred the image to my computer
along with the Olive Drab colour chips and the various hobby paint
colour chips. Using Adobe Photoshop for measuring the colours, I
compared the sample panel with the colour chips. This supported the
scale effect argument. The Olive Drab on the panel when photographed
from a distance had the appearance of a colour about 15-17% lighter than
the Olive Drab colour chip, and with slightly less colour saturation.
This effect changes with lighting conditions, the angle of the panel to
the sun, reflectivity, etc."
Food for thought...? 