hello if you please check the "finished " helmet of the gladiator iam working .i think it turned out to muddy...i wasnt going for this can you critique iwill expain my way..the basic is 50 % black and 50% bronze.for lights i add for 3 times 20% bronze and the last is pure bronze.for shadows is pure black
http://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=30655&img=&...;α_012.jpg
http://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=30656&img=&...;α_013.jpg
http://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=30657&img=&...;α_014.jpghttp://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=30658&img=&...;α_015.jpghttp://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=30659&img=&...;α_018.jpghttp://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=30660&img=&...;α_021.jpg

Dim,

From this picture's it is hard to say what went wrong or is it good.
I can tell you my way of painting bronze.
I start with an undercoat off Burnt Umber.
When it is dryed i mix burnt umber with Bronze till i have a medium bronze tint.
Then after dry i rework all the outside lines of the bronze with raw umber. Even i start then with shading with a mix of burnt umber and raw umber.
Then i go again with burnt umber and more bronze to the highlights.
When all dry, i do a wash with raw umber and after dry do the highlights again.
After drying doing the high highlights with only bronze.

Marc

Hi all!

Hi Dimitri!If I'm not mistaken,you have painted the figure in acrylics,right?

1-If you use acrylics,you have to thin your paint in MUCH more water(always distilled!).This way you will get thinner layers on the figure and every detail will be clearer.Furthermore,you could repair any mistake by painting over the old layer,without the fear that the paint will get too thick on the figure.

www.acrylicosvallejo.com

This is Vallejo's website.Push "Miniature and Model Color".Then "Model Colors".Then
"Painting Figure with Model Colors"-an article by Mario Fuentes on painting with acrylics(very good and helpful!-Bravo Mario!)

2-If you're painting in oils,you have to paint the area in the basic color using acrylics or enamels.Then you add the oils.The oil paint has to be a little thinned in white spirit.When you have applied the paint clean your brush and start removing the paint off the figure.To do this just pass the clean brush directed from the top to the bottom of the figure.This way you use the direction of the light.Only a very thin layer(a film) of paint has to be left on the figure and the basic acrylic or enamel will be seen under this oils layer.This way you get thinner layers on the figure,better details and easier painting!

On the helmet:Yes,I agree with you,it doesn't seem the way it should.The mix you use it's ok,but you could use gold for the final highlights and for the shadows black is too much!You may use black only in the very deep shadows.Use more coats(you have added three highlights and one shadow!).Normally you should start with a darker tone of your basic color(in your case,bronze with very little black and burned umber brown).
About 10 different tones for highlights and 7 for shadows would be fine.

What to do now:Considering on the photos,the paint is already too thick!If you try to repair it it will get even thicker and you won't like the result!So,use Printer Inks gold,thin it in white spirit and add enamels(black and brown).Printer Inks are the best paints for metalic colors and they are very thin!II suppose no detail will be lost and you may get a fine result,which I wish you to!

So take a deep breath and start all over again!

In Greekatrida,kalh tyxh kai prospathise na vafeis me pio lepta strwmata,ekei einai to provlhma!Tha deis poso pio eukolo ki euxaristw einai an to xrwma einai kala dialymeno!

Good luck and keep us posted!
-Kostas.

thank you Marc and Kostas for your time you took to write and comment on this !!!take care
dimitris

Hi Dimitri!
(oi photo den einai toso kales,alla nomizo ot oi antitheseis einai ligo "sklires,apotomes".Ligo pio apala)
christos

thank u chris i will have to strip it now and start again slowly...

Ferto sto club na to doume