Do you keep a painting journal?

[ub3r_n3rd 152256]

I don't keep a journal, I probably should, but I always forget while in the middle of painting/basing to even do it.

[Chaoswolf 115532]

I don't keep a journal, I probably should, but I always forget while in the middle of painting/basing to even do it.

This is where I am, too. When I think about it (like now) it seems like a really good idea. When it comes time to sling paint, it gets forgotten about.

[Lt. Coldfire 4303]

I keep a journal.  Mine is a bit different than most of what people are posting here.  Mine is more of a time journal that I keep in Notepad on my computer.  I basically just use it to track how long it's taking me to paint a certain mini.  It has actually been very helpful in realizing that sitting there staring at the model is not a very useful way to spend time.  Since I've been using it (only one month), I have literally painted more than I have in the last three years.  I know, it sounds crazy, but it has worked very well for me so far.

[maxstyles 436]

I have kept a painting journal in varies forms but the one that seems to work best for me is the one I made with Filemaker pro.  It has an app for the ipad (filemaker go) which makes keeping notes a little more handy for me at least.  The cool think is that I have all of my paints listed in it so I can just add then with the touch of a button.  The only down side to it is that I keep tinkering with it so has some feature bloat which gets trimmed back from time to time.

 

I find that in tend work best by added notes to my journal at the end of a painting session.  Its the last thing I do before I turn off the lights and put things away. This way I get stuff down on paper while its still fresh in my memory and I don't have to stop in the middle of a session to take notes.

[Bathory 13907]

I always think about making one... then never do. Maybe if I was really good at painting I might be more inclined to.

[DixonGrfx 4340]

It seems to be mostly a matter of discipline then. I have never been a very good note taker kind of person. But I can see the benefits of keeping a journal. The idea of it is appealing. But I don't want journal keeping to be a deterrent to painting.  "I want and need to paint that figure, but UGH...  notes...."  I like the idea of notes at the end of the paint session though.

[unidentifiable 557]

I bought a 17x10" sketchpad and tear out a page, then use it as my painting surface.  When I paint a section, I can use my brush to daub the paper and write (with the brush if I'm lazy) what color it is or what blend it is:

 

<daub> 2Linen 1GrsGn : 2 H₂O -- Cloak

<daub> 3Linen 1GrsGn : 3 H₂O -- ^^ HiLite

 

Can place the daub at any point through the painting, so long as it gets there.  I can annotate with a pen after I'm done painting.

 

Then I just snap a picture of the page when it's full, and grab another one.  The sketchpad has like 250 pages, I've used maybe 15.

 

Only drawback is that if you're doing drybrushing or flicking paint around you get blotches of spray everywhere.  Also if you're stupid and put your brush down then you smear paint on your records.  The section of the page near my water cup tends to have water marks too.

Edited March 30, 2015 by unidentifiable

[lexomatic 8457]

I had a one that got lost. I had all my paints sampled by color. I also had a section for the steps of mixes I wanted to recreate and another to list what paints I used.

I have started another but it's more limited to paints and mixes. Mostly because I prefer to use my limited time to catch up on stuff.

[DethStruck 198]

I try to document what colors I use.

[Marineal 9753]

I have one that I use to write down techniques. I don't remember anything I didn't write down, so that helps me more than pictures do. So, if I'm learning how to do zenithal lighting, I make up steps that I then can refer back to later. It probably wouldn't make sense to anyone else since I use a really lazy, sarcastic shorthand, but it works for me!

[CashWiley 36632]

Another thing I do is try to write up a WIP or at least post pics after every painting session. Then I can go back and hopefully I discussed it enough that I can remember what I was thinking at the time.

[Glitterwolf 204620]

At least I learned to put a small tip of the paint on the tip of the dropper bottles, so I can see what the paint look likes.

 

I have noted recipes in the past. But I tend to forget about them.

Painting a zombie, finished it, then thought oh, i got a good skin recipe somewhere...

 

So I stopped doing that.

Also during painting I mostly forget to write stuff down.

Edited April 3, 2015 by Xherman1964

[Silvervane 11871]

Another thing I do is try to write up a WIP or at least post pics after every painting session. Then I can go back and hopefully I discussed it enough that I can remember what I was thinking at the time.

Currently this the only form of journal I do. Though, on a few occasions I wish I had something more specific and accessible.