the power of stippling!

Hi Folks,

here is the third part of the „how to become a better painter“ series.

In this video, we will paint all the NMM parts of our goblin mercenary from Lucas Pina.

Again this episode tackles one main technique: The stippling technique

We will be using the stippling in combination with Layers and Glazes.

As we are painting an NMM surface, we have to make sure to place our highlights and reflection in the right spot, but NMM is not about a smooth blended surface! Actually, it´s quite the opposite,

if our placement of highlight and reflection line makes sense to the eye, the transition can be very short, even rough, or like in our case super textured.

As a little reminder: We always have the main highlight (Sun), we have a horizon reflection and we have a light that is bounced back from the ground or object close by (please see the NMM guide pdf from a while back)

We are first placing our highlights and reflections using the layering technique.

And instead of blending in between the visible layers to soften things out , we are using the stippling technique to bridge the tones. We are using small lines and random brush strokes using the layering as a guide for our values and placement.

We are also using glazes to connect some areas and also to control the overall intensity.

Next to the technical part, we are also speaking about another way to recognize your own personal/artistic growth.

There are many different strategies to track and improve your painting skills.

I introduced the painter's development sheets, but to work with that kind of material it has to kind of fit your personality...So if you feel stuck a little maybe the next method is something that feels a bit more natural, although it takes quite a little longer.

“The time capsule method”

Paint a miniature to your best current standard, put it in a box, label it with a date and lock it away. Keep an additional unpainted copy of the same model together with your time capsule

Set an alarm on your phone for one year.

After a year has passed it´s time to take the unpainted model and paint it to your best ability. Then open the time capsule and have a look at the model and compare the two models.

I am sure you will see quite a bit of development, some areas/ materials will be better, and others will not have developed the same way.

It's time to acknowledge your own achievements, but also have a look at what materials or techniques could need some attention.

You can repeat that exercise as often as you want ;)

And again you can eliminate your weak points, material by material and technique by technique.

Alright, let's see how the stippling works to create a shiny, yet super detailed and textured NMM!