Just started painting a month ago, advice welcome!

[Enceladan Oceans]

As the title says, I just started painting miniatures during spring break, having no prior artistic background. I'd read a few tutorials, bought some minis from my FLGS, some brushes and paints from the local corporate megamart, and got to work quickly. I didn't want to make a massive investment going into a new hobby, so I used cheap Apple Barrel paints and bargain brushes, which I understand is A Bad©. Anyways, without further ado, here is 5 weeks worth of progress! Pictures under links since the post maker doesn't like me.

77022: Human Ranger, Michelle

Front

Back
 

77282: Vampire
Front
Back
 

77309: Crystal Golem
Front

Back

 

89018: Sajan, Iconic Monk

Front

Back

 

03461: Goldar the Barbarian
Front
Back
 

77203: Barnabas, Human Warrior
Front
Back

 

77205: Alistrilee
Front

Back

 

03715: Erick, Paladin Initiate
Front

Back

 

77024: Rogan, Half Orc Rogue
Front

Back

 

03734: Andriessa, Female Wizard
Front
Back

 

77222: Aaron the Conjuror
Front
Back

 

77122: Tierdeleira, Dark Elf Cleric
Front
Back
 

89021: Mystic Theurge
Front

Back

 

These were a lot of fun to paint, and aren't supposed to be anywhere near even tabletop quality. C&C welcome!

Edited April 25, 2016 by Enceladan Oceans

[EvilJames]

Off to a good start, I'd say. Don't worry about the paints and brushes. Plenty here swear by the cheapy brushes and have good success with apple barrel. I use semi cheap brushes and whatever paint happens to catch my eye. Nothing wrong with that. Especially just starting out. Keep up the good work. We like to watch your skills evolve.

 

Edit: Unfortunately I'm not much help at giving advice. Likely some of the more useful members will be around soon to give some good pointers.

Edited April 25, 2016 by EvilJames

[Pingo]

Huh. Did you go to "Use Full Editor" when you posted? That usually allows you to upload pictures in "Show Off".

 

For a month new to this these aren't bad at all! I like how you seem to be playing with color and shading.

 

Things are a little rough yet -- you might want to think about faces -- but these are already distinct and usable for gaming.

[hammer570]

Welcome!  You're off to quite an impressive start!  Those really are a lot better than you might think.  You certainly have a good eye for color, I really like some of the color schemes you've chosen.  Excited to see your future work with some more practice and eventually maybe some better tools!

 

Here's a couple tutorials for eyes, as that's the only big thing I could offer as a critique.

http://www.reapermini.com/TheCraft/12

http://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/36753-how-i-paint-eyes/

 

Keep up the great work and stick around!

[ub3r_n3rd]

First off, WELCOME! Secondly, GREAT JOB!!

[Morihalda]

Welcome to the forums! I think you're off to a fantastic start.

 

You'll find a ton of friendly folks here, and the Tips Section has some awesome threads, like this directory!

[Gadgetman!]

As far as I can tell, your only problem is your photography...

 

Your painting is coming along nicely.

(There's a series of quick youtube videos listed in the 'Tips and Advice' section, but I assume you've found them already)

Brushes...

For now, all that really matters is the size and point of the brushes.

Generally the rule is:

Good point = Good detail and accuracy.

Silly expensive brush with good point = Good details and accuracy for a long time.

 

I would suggest that you pick up at least a few of the more important colours from Reaper, Vallejo, Army Painter or other manufacturer of fine paints.

The difference is... visible. For one, the pigment is ground much finer, so it gives a smoother finish, and the emulsion is much better for thinning, so that you can thin the paints a lot and still get an even covering.

Thin paint layers = Less loss of detail.

 

Welcome to the obsession!

[Chris Palmer]

  Like the others have said, you are off to a great start; and for only a month of practice you're doing extremely well.  

     Don't feel guilty about your paint and brushes;  I paint almost exclusively with craft paint and use whatever brushes I can get cheap. (You can see my latest Show off thread here to see what can be done with craft paint: http://http://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/68412-orc-snipers-archers-77056-bones/  And check out my All Bones blog, linked in my signature for even more craft paint examples.   Everyone has there own preferences and style, you just need to find what works best for you.  

[Serenity]

One thing that can really help out a basic paint job is a dark wash that gets down into the crannies and breaks up the mini into more distinct parts.  You can buy various kinds of washes or make your own, depending on your personal tastes.  You can do it with a mixture of water with flow release, matte medium, and paint or ink, if you want to make your own.  I'll leave it to others to make suggestions for buying and mixing washes since it isn't something I've done often. 

 

I prefer to use a technique called dark lining to do a similar thing, which requires a lot of brush control and patience to pull off, but if done well, gives you a cleaner-looking figure.  I'm one of those people that prefers better brushes and paints, but you don't need them to do tabletop work; they just make some things, like layering and glazing, easier.  The better brushes also hold up much better, which is a huge advantage.

[Kheprera]

Welcome! Always good to have another friendly face around here.

 

You're off to an awesome start. Don't worry about the Apple Barrel paints and cheap brushes. Once you feel more comfortable, you can upgrade at any time.

 

First off, are you thinning your paints? You might find thinning, especially with the chalkier craft paint, will help with smoothness.

 

Also, most noticeable on Goldar the Barbarian, is mold lines. These are from the molding process and cleaning them with needle files (or sanding sticks for Bonesium iirc) will give you a smoother finish.

 

When you did eyes, you didn't do too badly. Good job.

 

Overall you're well on your way. Far better than my first attempts! I advise watching YouTube videos, reading the Painting threads, and, most important, ask questions. If you want to know how to do something, one (or many) of us will happily help!

 

Thanks for sharing and welcome home!

[knarthex]

Welcome to our Asylum away from Home!

 

You have nothing at all to be ashamed of, for painting a month, those are CURSED Good paint jobs!

 

Others have posted those things that I would have mentioned, but let me re-iterate a couple:

 

Ask Questions!  We are a friendly bunch around here, and love to help folks out! We remember the asking the same questions ourselves! (Some of us older folks around here remember not being able to find people to ask!) We are also still asking questions of each other! (Just ask Ub3r_N3rd how crazy I drove him!)

 

Keep those first Minis!  I still have the first mini I ever painted, in it's original paint, from 1977! When I am having a difficult time with something new, and thinking 'I will NEVER GET THIS!' I look at him, and see how far I have come, and it let's me go on to try again.

He is / was painted with the DREADED TESTOR's and Pactra enamels....

 

Look Around! There are lot's of pics of minis on this site, and in the Inspiration Gallery that can help you if you are in doubt as to what you want to do with a mini color wise. You can also google the name of a mini, and will usually find painted images... You don't have to copy them, unless you want to, but looking at one cloaked mage, might give you inspiration for that ranger that is stumping you!

 

Tools. People mentioned mini paints and good brushes. These will be things that you will likely aquire if you stay in our hobby. (And we ain't lettin' you go!)

If you look in the painting Tips Forums, you will find a lot of good information! (Brushes, Wet Palettes, for example)

 

But the most import of all

 

HAVE FUN!

 

 

if you are having fun painting, then you are doing it right!

 

(Purple is the color of Sarcasm or Teasing around here, just so you know....)

 

George

 

(Spaces hate me....)

 

Edit #2   And Don't stick your paint brushes in your mouth, or Pingo will Whack you!

Edited April 26, 2016 by knarthex

[Enceladan Oceans]

Thank you for all the kind words and encouragement! To answer your question Aryanun, I thin sometimes but with these paints it usually leads to horribly uneven coats, but I suppose the adage "you get what you pay for" exists for a reason. Also, the minis are in order of being painted, with Michelle being the first and the theurge having been painted today! The only exception is Goldar, who should be between Rogan and Andriessa. I also picked up a Valkyrie miniature recently which I'm going to paint Thursday probably and I've got a Hero Forge mini on the way for my Thursday D&D group!

Edited April 26, 2016 by Enceladan Oceans

[knarthex]

Thank you for all the kind words and encouragement! To answer your question Aryanun, I thin sometimes but with these paints it usually leads to horribly uneven coats, but I suppose the adage "you get what you pay for" exists for a reason. Also, the minis are in order of being painted, with Michelle being the first and the theurge having been painted today! The only exception is Goldar, who should be between Rogan and Andriessa. I also picked up a Valkyrie miniature recently which I'm going to paint Thursday probably and I've got a Hero Forge mini on the way for my Thursday D&D group!

When you thin paint stir it well!

When I am thinning paint (Scale 75 especially!) I will often stir the 1 drop of paint and 1 drop of my thinning solution for over a minute! This will help your thinned coats even out. and remember that you will often need more than 1 coat for complete opacity...

 

George

[Glitterwolf]

Welcome.

 

You're off to a good start!

 

Most important thing is to have fun.

 

As for learning stuff..ask, read the forums and look at youtube vids "painting fantasy miniatures" that will get you a lot of info.

 

Start a WIP ( Work in Progress) and let people comment on progress, that way you can learn on the go, and it is fun.

 

Remember more thin layers is better then one thick layer. Details will be preserved better with thin layers.

[Chaoswolf]

Welcome to the boards!!

 

You're off to a very impressive start; the first few figures I ever did did not look anywhere near that good.

 

Keep up the good work!