Five Mini Painting Tips For Beginners.

This was easily the hardest video I have ever made. I felt like a complete imposter all the way through the editing process as I am not a confident miniature painter by any stretch of the imagination. If it wasn't for the kind words of @Nat1videos I would have deleted all the footage!

As always my videos are aimed at helping others make the best of the hobby for as little cost as possible. The difference this time is that Games Workshop still make the best figure models for playing Warhammer 40k, but painting can for many be a complete chore & put them off the hobby before they even get started. Playing the game with unpainted models is not immersive at all & makes the experience much more like a board game, but at the same time, most of us are never going to be competing for a Golden Demon but somewhere in the middle is achievable for all of us.

Having only painted five Space Marine models, I wanted to show people you can get better quickly by using some very simple techniques & a limited pallet. These are my top six tips for levelling up fast!

1. Layering :

Firstly, the order in which colors you paint, many Fine Artists work from back to front, dark to light or light to dark. My point is they have a particular process that they use when painting anything. For Space Marines, your base coat is usually the color of your chosen Armies armor.

Water is your friend. Watering down paints creates a translucent finish, more water, more translucent. This is great for adding layers of paint allowing the undercoats to come through, acting like a tint or can be used for adding consistent layers for highlighting.

Washes, or as some refer to them, 'talent in a bottle' are another great tool. You can buy them or make your own at home. These are similar to just watered down paint but with a few additives to alter the behaviour the paint, as it settles into recesses.

2. Keep it simple :

You don't need to buy box sets of paint. Firstly, they are expensive, & secondly, half of the set you will never use. When you know what the basic color scheme of your army is, do some research. All paint companies offer color swatches, have a look & pick the exact paints you want.

You can get Contrast or Speedpaints & they produce great results but require you to be very accurate when painting & mistakes can be difficult to fix. All you really need is paint, water & some washes if you feel fancy.

3. Detailing :

You don't need to pick out every detail, just enough to trick the eyes & mind into thinking you've done a lot more work than you actually have which can help with batch painting. Washes also help this process by running into the reassess of models creating more visual definition.

4. Use a wet brush :

I'm sure there's a scientific reason for this, but to put it simply, wet bristles on your brush move more easily & a little fluidity to the paint making the whole process much easier.

5. Be Patient :

You will get better at painting over time, you just will! It's very easy to get frustrated & when you inevitably do, you will make mistakes which compounds the issue. In my experience of learning to paint canvas' & minis, being patient, a little slower, actually produces better more consistent results much faster.

6. Don't just paint minis :

This is probably the best bit of advice. If you only paint minis you will only learn how to paint minis. Painting scratch built terrain or even canvas' will teach you more about how paint behaves, how to manipulate it & new techniques. Basically don't just paint on plastics, find as many different types of surfaces as you can to paint on.

There are several 'bonus tips' in the video that expand a little on some of the things I've been talking about in this blog. I also paint my biggest model yet & my first Imperial Knight showing you some simple techniques that can produce great results that are easily replicated.

As long as I have helped just one person improve their mini painting, I will consider this entire endeavor a success!