Hey, I just opened my first ever merch store. You can grab sweet cutting mats, mugs, t-shirts, hoodies, and a patch for your blue jean vest! Check it out: miniac.bigcartel.com/
I think the reason people want a black primer is for instance, if painting chainmail on a plague marine, is so they dont have to deal with those tiny, intricate details on the chain
This is driving me crazy. Please, for the love of God, explain to me what people see romantic about evil, demons, gore, and all those nasty things. I mean, this is the most relaxing hobby ever, miniature painting, Is for people who are calmed, relaxed, mostly benign in nature, but for some reason there's always people lile you who enjoy things thag are considered evil and edgy (becaise they are evil), thus creating your introduction for yoir videos. A zombie/demon hand making the devil horns handsign, wich is an exaltation of satan, wich is a representation (i think is actually real but whatever) of evil, lies, pain, suffering... It's kinda stupid, sorry but it is. What do you love so much about the figure of Satan? Do you think being bad is actually cool or what? You are not 12 years old anymore you know? And of you think it's not important (it's just a picture bro), try to ask yourself this. Why am i nowñt chosing a positive image to represent what i do and what i like? Why it must be something that symbolizes evil?
One I'd add is not cleaning mold lines; I can't count the number of times I've seen miniatures in photos and in person where a decent paint job is ruined by glaringly obvious mold lines on the miniature. Also, while I don't use rattlecan primers anymore I picked up a great tip while I still was using them that might help other people; about 15 to 20 minutes before you want to prime your miniatures, place the rattlecan in warm water. It doesn't need to be submerged fully and the water only needs to be warm (too hot is actually dangerous); this helps to warm up the paint in the can, making it easier to mix when you shake the can, which in turn helps get a much smoother primer coat. When you're done, you should also hold the can upside down and spray for a few seconds until no more primer comes out; this clears all the paint/primer from the spray nozzle so there won't be any dried lumps or flecks that would otherwise be ejected onto whatever you're priming next time you use the rattlecan.
Yes! I should've added mold lines!! Also, top knotch advice about rattlecans. I use the warm water trick especially during the winters here when I'm priming in a cold garage. Helps a lot with correct pressure too!
"Perfect is the mortal enemy of Good Enough." This would certainly apply when it comes to model painting and other art projects. You can spend years attempting perfection and never reach it, or hours reaching good enough and being mentally sound. Great work as always, been going on a binge on your videos (on repeat) for inpsiration as I work on my Heroes of the Grid and AoS: Nighthaunt minis!
Guilty as well. When I started a new all-Primaris chapter I got everything assembled, painted one squad of Intersessors and after base painting the second squad, I realized that I didn't have the stamina to paint the entire army up to the standard I had set for myself with that first squad. I have had thoughts that I can get my Craftworld army, for which not a single figure is even assembled yet, together and painted (obviously to a lower standard), faster than I can paint my fully assembled Primaris because I can't commit to painting the rest of the army to a lower standard and leaving that one squad of dudes superior, but also can't fathom the idea of stripping them and repainting them to match a lower standard. Haven't touched a paintbrush in a couple of months as a consequence.
Tyrannids are nice and easy. I decided in infinite wisdom i liked to hand paint lines on the edges of their chitin. About 150-200 lines per termagant say. All my termies are done, 60 of them, as well as my big creatures. Just finished 36 rippers (models not bases xD) and i still have my hormagaunts and gargoyles to do. That is over half way! Physically painful to do though, more risk of repetitive strain that holds me back than motivation, they look soo good all together. Remember the rules, face, guns, and with tyrannids, shells. I recommend making them shiny with gloss varnish. Makes a great contrast to their bodies and makes them very insectile imho. For normal nids? Its all about paint order. Get that right and you are on, bad coverage undercoat, wash to hide dark crimes, highlight to pick out muscles and hide light crimes, batch done. I use a brownish yellow for skin, magenta for mouth, tongue, gums, some sinews etc. And bone for claws and teeth with a grey shell. And luminous greens sparingly for veins, acid, gun details, all based on a palette designed around colour theory. My bases are blue ice bases that help them pop, and an important choice for getting the colour balance right. Quite frankly with a base wash and even drybrush and basing will make them look spectacular en masse. With practice you learn exactly the minimum quality of base for example that net the same results at the end. Guardsman I can do in 1 hour per squad for example*, and they look great, with some hand painted text, and little metal bits tipped like the pins of grenades, flask poppers, etc. *depending on your paint/washes needing drying time.
Humidity is measured in about 4 different ways. The way he means, arizona is 45%-60% in the mornings, and 20-40% in the afternoons. He is using RH, or relative humidity.
I was already thinking about watching my progress through doing multiple versions of the same model. Your comments about your miniature painting history is exactly that. With a 3D printer you can produce the same model and consistently try new things and see your improvement.
I'm a total noob as I've only just started making my pieces and this has helped a bit thanks as I don't want my work to look shit even though mine are not as detailed as some examples shown just want mine to look good !!
Don't hassle over paints, owning lots or which brands are best. Bigger more important things are having good lighting and understanding how much paint to have on your brush and how to apply and use it for different results. There will be examples of any number of amazingly talented miniature painters who swear by different brands or use one brand exclusively and still get terrific results. How you use them and the environment in which you use them matter far more than the minutiae of different acrylic paint blends and brands and the results they can give when starting out. Pro-Tip of the day: Are you running into problems with your wet palette growing mold? Get yourself some food grade hydrogen peroxide 3-6% should be enough and some small syringes like 2-5ml to measure it out and add it to your wet palette. The peroxide is strong enough to kill the mold but not enough to harm you even if you lick your brush.
lunahula this is actually amazing advice. I own almost every scale 75 set, and a few Andrea sets. Which I HIGHLY recommend. I guess for me it's just the love of trying new paints. But this is still sound advice.
The reason the everlasting wet palette coming to kickstarter has a mold proof sponge and the reason I looked into a solution is because not everyone uses a wet palette for a short one use stint. In fact the very reason I use a wet palette is that I can take weeks or even months on a project and it keeps the paints workable and there as I originally mixed and intended, ready to return to the miniature. Not to say that a wet palette cannot be a use at the time thing. I see plenty use plates or plastic lids to make wet palettes to work from for single sessions.
Ah, now I know where the new subscriber spike came from, thanks for the plug! Can totally relate to the feeling guilty and/or never having no time to spend on painting your own models when you're doing commissions. I usually try and do one in between commissions but yeah it can definitely be a weight on your mind, especially if you have a queue of them to get through.
I just found your channel after looking around the online hobby space. Having just started (built most of a start collecting box and painted like 5 models), I really like your content as a way to dive deeper. Super well produced, educational and entertaining. Thank you!
Wow, your chanel is the best painting-chanel i know. First you are an awesome painter and second, and thats the important part, your production values are off the roof! Way too many great painters dont script what they want to say and simply improvise which leads to awkward scilences, stammering, unprecise language and generally low information density. None of this happens in your vids and im loving it, the effects and the lite acting are bonuses. You deserve way more views.
I spend sooooo much time on each mini because I'm never 100% satisfied with it. I think this is a confidence thing that develops with practice, color mixing knowledge, and technique to eliminate repainting the same parts of the mini over and over.
Miniac I was 8 and it was tau. Now I'm getting back into the hobby I'm getting some blood angels and everything necessary to actually make it look good tomorrow. And to be fair the guy who sold me the stuff just put the paints and brushes on the counter and said it would get me started when painting the minis. He didn't even give me any kind of primer.
I've been painting 5 space marines for the last 3 weeks and I've stripped the helmets once and the entire body twice on most of them (3 times on the Sargent). This video was amazingly helpful, thanks!
I really needed this. ;_; I take way too long on every miniature. Thank you for reminding me that it is okay to be proud of my previous miniatures, without repainting them!
Universal Advice: Dont drybrush everything. Im still seeing people with over 20 years of experience in the hobby that drybrushes anything, every miniature in every situation. It hurts my feelings.
I agree with this completely. Maybe it's snobbish on my part, but I think it's lazy if you're capable of better. I can tell someone did it as well by the irregular "dusty" appearance of the highlights. TIL I'm a painting snob.
The other day I saw someone that dips (drowns in washes) and (hard) drybrush every miniature that he owns, saying that its disrepectful to him that the other dont paints their miniatures for our local tournaments because with all the time that spends painting his minis... Its not about being lazy or being, for us, snobs. Its about being smart and not saying stupid shit. Its easy to paint at least at a decent level a miniature.
It's all about what your goals are. If painting is a means to an end (playing a game), I don't think you're obliged to put forth much effort. It's however much you want to do. If you DO want to improve at miniature painting, however, there's definitely value in putting more effort towards your models; even the ones that you use for games.
Thank you Scott, I was to start my first painting session this very day, but here in Hamburg it´s cold and rainy and windy and wet…… so your video stopped me and saved me from having my first failure right at the beginning.
A good video with some sage advice. Another thing people should avoid happens before you even start painting. Assemble that miniature properly. It's my pet peve when picking up a commission and the person had already built the model. Then didn't bother to remove mold lines, used excessive glue, left nubbies or horrible gaps.
Been in this business for 15 years and this collection of tips is the best I've seen. Very thorough and touches on the most common issues mini painters will encounter. Thank you.
A note on trying hard when painting minis, if you play TTRPGs such as D&D, like I do, I would recommend trying hard when painting the PCs minis/Important NPCs and villains, but when doing multiple, say goblins/orcs or gnolls, that's when you should cut corners and not try your hardest.
Thanks so much for the white primer tip. I've always wondered why I sometimes get this nasty texture on my models when using it. I'll keep distance and humidity in mind in the future!
Im a KDM painter and i was very hesitant on even painting my minatures(on the count of the price lol) but your point on just painting and looking back on your progress to see how far you've is so true. The first miniatures i painted were Old Joe and Young Rachel and they came out sub-par but by the time i got to The Flower Knight my abilities in painting improved and it felt good to look at them side by side and have a tangible look at your progress.
Mondays suck, so it's good to play some cool stuff on youtube. Oh look, Miniac has uploaded something new - let's check it............Shit, now I know how many times I messed up. Thanks man, I knew I can count on you... Great vid as always.
I'm loving this channel. I'm a 40k player from waaaayback, just getting back into the hobby as my daughter showed interest during a trip to the LGS. Thanks so much for the amazing content, I just wish we had the internets back in '93.
Thank you for mentioning wet palettes! Its something I find myself telling loads of new and amateur painters (miniature, terrain, even canvas/paper traditional folk) to do all the time. So glad someone else is talking about them!
Handy tips, I'd add 'expecting to be awesome from Mini 1', whilst everyones starting level will naturally vary comparing your starting work to Golden Demon/Crystal Brush level stuff will just demoralise you, just keep plugging away, learn from mistakes and you'll be surprised how fast things get better, keep those first mini's and after a few month compare them to current output
5:46 thank you so, so much! Every guide on priming I've ever read talked about not priming on humid days and not spraying too close to the miniatures. I haven't played war games in a decade but I've recently gotten back into painting board game minis and this mysterious primer texture was driving me nuts. I will try getting closer with to some cheap minis and then might overcome my hesitation to use the same primer on more expensive games.
Thank you for this video! it has really helped me a lot. As an artist, and a newcomer to the world of painting miniatures, i can admit that i have done several things on this list. It's always fun to come up with new and creative ways to add details to your models, but i find the more i try to do those things the less i actually get done. After watching this video i see why. painting takes time and if you spend all of your time on a single model then you never get anything done. sometimes it really is best to take what you have and move forward.
This is great! I just finished my first miniatures and they are ... mediocre haha. I started with a game that we didn't care too much about first so I don't feel the burning desire to re-paint them. I am excited to keep going. Mixing paints to find the right colors (especially the bright green/neon colors) is hard for me, but I figure I'll learn. Great tip on the priming! I live in Utah so I'm guessing the spraying too far away was my problem.
Hey there ! I found this good resource for mixing paints, figured it might help you. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure youtube blocks links, but if you search up "Mixing the entire citadel color line with just a few colors" and click on the bolterandchainsword forum link, it will take you to it. It shows how to mix citadel colors, but it's not exact. Hope it helps! Disclaimer: I'm not the author of the resource.
my best advice, just keep painting, watch videos and try their tips. the more you paint the better you get. you won't start out a master, your first models will potentially look like ass.... but just keep on painting.
Number 4, I think that's why I stopped for about 25 years. Now I'm getting back into it, currently doing Spacemarines & Skeleton Horde. Great vids, keep up the good work.
I've started painting minis about 2 weeks ago. My first was a practice spacemarine I guess, and the second was a LoTR Warrior of Minas Tirith. Now I, personally, don't plan on buying loads of 40k, or any other minis because I'm not going to use them. My friends do use them, and buy loads of kits and don't paint that much. So I'm doing their minis which is really fun to do so far. Your videos are helping aswell on how to paint, so thanks for that!
I haven’t painted in years, but I primed ork boyz white, light green, pale yellow, or light grey, then painted them using an assembly line method, mostly building layers of washes followed by thinned paint for mids and highlights, then a final unifying wash. I dry brushed metallic equipment with appropriate paint and a lil more washing. I did more washing than a laundry mat I did 5 at a time, stuck in a row to a little piece of wood, and could knock em out. The finished results looked good enough! The skin and leather looked really good, the different primers made the Boyz look like a great big mass of individuals with a fraction of the work Black priming was reserved exclusively for nobz and the boss, and this worked to make them stand out I need to bust them out of storage and get back into it
Thanks for the advice, and the confirming my desire to keep painting rather than stressing over my first minis. They aren't awesome, yet, but I'm getting there
This is a good video, i have made every single one of these mistakes except for the commission one, but I know a friend who had a near breakdown from it so I know it's real
"Your models don't have to look amazing if they're in a squad, you can put less effort in if you want, here are some of my models, as you can see these ones will only win me 2 golden demons each, and they still look fine!"
I just spent 26 hour on my first aggressor, painting all parts before assembly to guarantee every spot is perfect. Just to later see a dude online half ass it in 40 minutes with a result better looking than mine. Your words hit close to home.
I’m one who always base coats in black. But I then lighten it up with a dry brush of grey and white. It keeps the black in the hard to reach areas and natural shadows and the dry brush really pops the details out to make for easier painting.
It is good to remember that, when playing on the tabletop, other players aren't going to scrutinise your models to the same extent that you do. Where you might notice small imperfections with your models because you have spent so much time working on them it is likely that other people will think they look great!
I always wondered why some minis look like they've got dust on them. Guess I get to check the humidity today before I prime my first ever mini. Huzzah! Learning!
I got burnt out like you said. I'm a new painter and it got frustrating. I changed armies and picked up alot of the new citadel contrast paint and I am so reinvigorated and am excited to paint my first army again. I have also learned alot of the techniques you mentioned on my own, alot of times on accident.
I love it when I come across videos made by people who can talk without dithering and stuttering their way through the video. Well done. RE: stripping, I have a no repaint policy. For me, done is done.
thanx for the tips just got into the hobby always liked it but was scared to build and paint my models always bought used 1s for my army but just finished painting my first battle bike wasn't great but so rewarding knowing I did it should look a lot better now with your tips
Great video. Been painting for years, but it is nice to reminded of what "not" to do. I suffer from burnout when painting a lot of the same stuff (like all my Wild West stuff). I always need to remind myself it is ok to shift gears and paint something like fantasy or sci-fi (or even not at all) for a period of time.
This might be the best painting video I have ever seen as it covers so much which in other tutorials is overlooked as assumed knowledge. PS you don't seem like that much of a maniac to me, Scott!
Glad to hear someone bases before painting! Almost everyone online bases last and I have no idea why! The big issue for me is that I want to drybrushing my bases and therefore would get paint platter on my model if I did it last.
Dude. You are HILARIOUS!!! I’d watch your videos just for the hilarity but then you’re awesome at what you do and can scream like a death metal singer???!... What?! 🔥🔥🔥 🤯
I like the "production line" style of painting. Prime all the figs at the same time, next day do all the base colours at the same time & so on. Works well if you have to do a whole squad quickly.
Hi, the situation of wanted to paint everything good is what made me give up miniatures, only painting monsters here and there but mostly 1/6 scales models. The thing about moving forward, and creating good looking units for the army is really great. Now I will focus and big units and generals since they are very often alone, and let the huge swarms of skavens have a nice tabletop paint job. Watching and seeing a lot of great minis made me forget that most awesome pieces are commissions or for display.
Love the vid but just to point out something regarding paint stripping. I instantly fell in love with space marines when I learned 40k 2 months ago and realizing how expensive individual pieces are, my journey is set to enjoy painting and slowly collect pieces over time, I have to reduce costing so stripping is good for beginners if I may say, you can always use some digital resources to record your painting progress to look back.
i agree with the part about just leaving your old models as is. I don't play warhammer (yet) but do collect a ton of D&D miniatures, the first batch i painted (with cheap walmart craft paint) wont win me any awards but they actually turned out better than expected. I've improved a lot but I keep them as is, because frankly they're more than table ready and it's nice to see that growth.
Your video helped me, I'm someone who started painting on a whim for my interest in wargames. I want my miniatures to look nice, but my current best is not near as good as your miniatures at 4:46 for your wood elves. I have started watching videos on certain techniques to achieve what I want, but sometimes it doesn't help me overall. I'm amazed at what people can do with a paint brush, but I feel that I am so far from that goal. In correlation with the video, I do thin my paints, use the primer I think would make the process easily (starting with a white or tan primer for skeletons, and black for my space marines and d&d miniatures) and maintain the times to prime, and I don't strip old models (it has helped track my progress). I took a break from painting to focus on other interests and education. However, I have that spark in me to start painting again. This time I want to take what I learned, and what I can learn from others, to be a better painter. Thank you.
The commission guilt is so real....painting the same model over and over in the same colour scheme while looking at all the models for my own army that I would love to get done. Sucks being at war with yourself over painting time, even worse than the wife...! Great video Miniac, love your techniques and results.
I've recently started painting miniatures for warhammer, first time I've done it since I was a young kid dipping models into paint out of laziness. I've never been that artistic, but I immediately realised that with the models I'm painting, I wish I'd painted some parts before assembly.
Nice video! You and Kujo are my main source of tips and learning material. Keep up the good work! I started painting recently. I got a Dark Vengeance box ONE YEAR AGO, as a birthday gift, and never touched it because of... life. Too much work, planning to live with my fianceé and other things. 6 months ago I got that little box with 3 Space Marines, a brush and some paint. Well, I tried to paint them. Why not? I didn`t use a palette. I got paint directly from the pots. I washed the minis as I would wash my car. The Space Marines look like xenos now. I`m an heretic. Well, the point is, after one year, my fianceé gave me a huge load of citadel paints (she got all the paints from the Warhammer TV videos about painting the Dark Vengeance set), some brushes, and a 8th ed. Core Rulebook. And said "you will paint, git gud and will give me a Sister of Battle army. I want to be a Sister of Battle. Git gud or git dead". Here I am now.
From a minipainter with 30+ years of experience, Miniac makes a lot of good points in this video. Don't paint other peoples miniatures, unless you're a bunch of friends helping each other to paint their armies. Later on, when more experienced, taking commissions, can be a fun way to paint interresting miniatures, you don't intend to buy yourself. Don't paint large scale armies, if you're a perfectionist like me. I have tons of army projects from different games, but very little to show in the finished army department. which is mostly due to burnout, as Miniac mentioned.
When he talks about "Strip Everything" it reminds me of something I read in the Horus Heresy Book 'Fulgrim', a remebrancer, I can't recall his name says something very similar to the Primatch Fulgrim shortly before the Horus Heresy begins. The moral of it all can go very deep.
Hey, I just opened my first ever merch store. You can grab sweet cutting mats, mugs, t-shirts, hoodies, and a patch for your blue jean vest! Check it out: miniac.bigcartel.com/
Please restock the cutting mats!
I think the reason people want a black primer is for instance, if painting chainmail on a plague marine, is so they dont have to deal with those tiny, intricate details on the chain
Why whiten your teeth and gel your hair, only to put on your grandmother's reading-glasses?
This is driving me crazy. Please, for the love of God, explain to me what people see romantic about evil, demons, gore, and all those nasty things. I mean, this is the most relaxing hobby ever, miniature painting, Is for people who are calmed, relaxed, mostly benign in nature, but for some reason there's always people lile you who enjoy things thag are considered evil and edgy (becaise they are evil), thus creating your introduction for yoir videos. A zombie/demon hand making the devil horns handsign, wich is an exaltation of satan, wich is a representation (i think is actually real but whatever) of evil, lies, pain, suffering... It's kinda stupid, sorry but it is.
What do you love so much about the figure of Satan? Do you think being bad is actually cool or what? You are not 12 years old anymore you know?
And of you think it's not important (it's just a picture bro), try to ask yourself this. Why am i nowñt chosing a positive image to represent what i do and what i like? Why it must be something that symbolizes evil?
Jesus protects are you for real?
Bro i’ve seen psychologists who care less about my mental health than you do. Nice advices and totally subscribing 👌🏻
That is fucking depressing man honestly
three years ago i was quite in a dark place to be honest
0:58 google search for "strip a model" turned out to be exactly what i needed but not what i intended to find ;-)
google is becoming much more tame.
I enjoyed the pics actually
Love this
I like warhammer now
Absolutely underrated comment - gave me a good laugh, thanks mate :D
I appreciate that you talked about the mental mistakes as well as just the physical ones.
One I'd add is not cleaning mold lines; I can't count the number of times I've seen miniatures in photos and in person where a decent paint job is ruined by glaringly obvious mold lines on the miniature.
Also, while I don't use rattlecan primers anymore I picked up a great tip while I still was using them that might help other people; about 15 to 20 minutes before you want to prime your miniatures, place the rattlecan in warm water. It doesn't need to be submerged fully and the water only needs to be warm (too hot is actually dangerous); this helps to warm up the paint in the can, making it easier to mix when you shake the can, which in turn helps get a much smoother primer coat. When you're done, you should also hold the can upside down and spray for a few seconds until no more primer comes out; this clears all the paint/primer from the spray nozzle so there won't be any dried lumps or flecks that would otherwise be ejected onto whatever you're priming next time you use the rattlecan.
Yes! I should've added mold lines!! Also, top knotch advice about rattlecans. I use the warm water trick especially during the winters here when I'm priming in a cold garage. Helps a lot with correct pressure too!
Guilty. :(
Did 4 zombies last night and primed another 4 before I realized I didn't wash them, either. D:
My thoughts exactly. Someone get this man a beer, its on me
...GOD I hate it when I am about to lay paint on a part and .... DAMN! I see that mold line I missed. Out comes the knife...scrape....scrape...
"as an example, look at my unit of wildriders"
*shows a unit of amazingly painted miniatures that i can't even come close to creating*
It's Just Milk I Swear me too
Yes, this dude is the fucking Zeus, Odin and Ra of mini painting. His work on the Aquaman and Shazam minis blew my mind.
This was my thought exactly
His skills are amazing but it took him years to get to that point
Not with an attitude like that! :P
"Perfect is the mortal enemy of Good Enough." This would certainly apply when it comes to model painting and other art projects. You can spend years attempting perfection and never reach it, or hours reaching good enough and being mentally sound. Great work as always, been going on a binge on your videos (on repeat) for inpsiration as I work on my Heroes of the Grid and AoS: Nighthaunt minis!
Write it down! Keep a recipe book. You will forget what paints you used. Especially if you do any mixing.
Good advice!
"It was definitely some kind of green...."
Oh, you THINK you'll remember. But you won't, and when you don't there will be sadness. Write that stuff down.
Tommy D I use the citadel app but good point!
I line up the bottles and take a picture. Include a finished model sample too, if possible, for fast reference while photo swiping.
I am guilty for putting too much effort into every model... 12 down... 500 more tyranids to go.
Lol lol lol
F
I just got my brother into WH: 40k and I told him to look up a faction to start with... he chose Tyranids. It's going to be a long journey for him
Guilty as well. When I started a new all-Primaris chapter I got everything assembled, painted one squad of Intersessors and after base painting the second squad, I realized that I didn't have the stamina to paint the entire army up to the standard I had set for myself with that first squad. I have had thoughts that I can get my Craftworld army, for which not a single figure is even assembled yet, together and painted (obviously to a lower standard), faster than I can paint my fully assembled Primaris because I can't commit to painting the rest of the army to a lower standard and leaving that one squad of dudes superior, but also can't fathom the idea of stripping them and repainting them to match a lower standard. Haven't touched a paintbrush in a couple of months as a consequence.
Tyrannids are nice and easy. I decided in infinite wisdom i liked to hand paint lines on the edges of their chitin. About 150-200 lines per termagant say. All my termies are done, 60 of them, as well as my big creatures. Just finished 36 rippers (models not bases xD) and i still have my hormagaunts and gargoyles to do. That is over half way! Physically painful to do though, more risk of repetitive strain that holds me back than motivation, they look soo good all together.
Remember the rules, face, guns, and with tyrannids, shells. I recommend making them shiny with gloss varnish. Makes a great contrast to their bodies and makes them very insectile imho.
For normal nids? Its all about paint order. Get that right and you are on, bad coverage undercoat, wash to hide dark crimes, highlight to pick out muscles and hide light crimes, batch done. I use a brownish yellow for skin, magenta for mouth, tongue, gums, some sinews etc. And bone for claws and teeth with a grey shell. And luminous greens sparingly for veins, acid, gun details, all based on a palette designed around colour theory. My bases are blue ice bases that help them pop, and an important choice for getting the colour balance right.
Quite frankly with a base wash and even drybrush and basing will make them look spectacular en masse. With practice you learn exactly the minimum quality of base for example that net the same results at the end. Guardsman I can do in 1 hour per squad for example*, and they look great, with some hand painted text, and little metal bits tipped like the pins of grenades, flask poppers, etc. *depending on your paint/washes needing drying time.
"Only spray on days with at least 40% humidity"
*lives in Arizona where the humidity is 2%*
Humidity is measured in about 4 different ways. The way he means, arizona is 45%-60% in the mornings, and 20-40% in the afternoons. He is using RH, or relative humidity.
Live in the Netherlands, average humidity 95%
Wondering if too high matters. Currently says 83%
Same
97% humidity right now...one day I'll be able to prime my models...
I was already thinking about watching my progress through doing multiple versions of the same model. Your comments about your miniature painting history is exactly that. With a 3D printer you can produce the same model and consistently try new things and see your improvement.
I'm a total noob as I've only just started making my pieces and this has helped a bit thanks as I don't want my work to look shit even though mine are not as detailed as some examples shown just want mine to look good !!
7:30 I have my original beakie space marines painted with enamels. they're atrocious and I love them.
Don't hassle over paints, owning lots or which brands are best. Bigger more important things are having good lighting and understanding how much paint to have on your brush and how to apply and use it for different results. There will be examples of any number of amazingly talented miniature painters who swear by different brands or use one brand exclusively and still get terrific results. How you use them and the environment in which you use them matter far more than the minutiae of different acrylic paint blends and brands and the results they can give when starting out.
Pro-Tip of the day: Are you running into problems with your wet palette growing mold? Get yourself some food grade hydrogen peroxide 3-6% should be enough and some small syringes like 2-5ml to measure it out and add it to your wet palette. The peroxide is strong enough to kill the mold but not enough to harm you even if you lick your brush.
lunahula this is actually amazing advice. I own almost every scale 75 set, and a few Andrea sets. Which I HIGHLY recommend. I guess for me it's just the love of trying new paints. But this is still sound advice.
If your wet palette grows mold, you are fucking up. It takes 2 seconds to take a paper towel to the case, and 2 more to wring out the sponge.
Zalia Crimson some people are forgetful though. Life happens sometimes, and sometimes palates get left out. I see your point though.
The reason the everlasting wet palette coming to kickstarter has a mold proof sponge and the reason I looked into a solution is because not everyone uses a wet palette for a short one use stint.
In fact the very reason I use a wet palette is that I can take weeks or even months on a project and it keeps the paints workable and there as I originally mixed and intended, ready to return to the miniature.
Not to say that a wet palette cannot be a use at the time thing. I see plenty use plates or plastic lids to make wet palettes to work from for single sessions.
Ah, now I know where the new subscriber spike came from, thanks for the plug! Can totally relate to the feeling guilty and/or never having no time to spend on painting your own models when you're doing commissions. I usually try and do one in between commissions but yeah it can definitely be a weight on your mind, especially if you have a queue of them to get through.
Kujo Painting you are very welcome, Kujo. Thanks for dropping by!
Just swung by, watched one, and subbed. Love it so far! Kudos, Kujo!
Thanks buddy :)
RUclipsrs helping RUclipsrs
Talks about stripping, then says "a google search on the subject will get you far." 10/10 trolling.
numbSKULLery You aren't a nerd if you didn't get it
you're probably more of a nerd if you don't get it haha!
+Will 'n Co how is this gate keeping?
Well, he said you should look up stripping models, so it's not so bad.
Wait...
s t r i p. A. M o d e l
I just found your channel after looking around the online hobby space. Having just started (built most of a start collecting box and painted like 5 models), I really like your content as a way to dive deeper. Super well produced, educational and entertaining. Thank you!
Wow, your chanel is the best painting-chanel i know. First you are an awesome painter and second, and thats the important part, your production values are off the roof! Way too many great painters dont script what they want to say and simply improvise which leads to awkward scilences, stammering, unprecise language and generally low information density. None of this happens in your vids and im loving it, the effects and the lite acting are bonuses.
You deserve way more views.
Thank you for the kind words!
I spend sooooo much time on each mini because I'm never 100% satisfied with it. I think this is a confidence thing that develops with practice, color mixing knowledge, and technique to eliminate repainting the same parts of the mini over and over.
I accidentally used a citadel layer as a base and didn't thin it either or prime the model.
Pray for a pleb like me plz
Son Sukcharoen what is WRONG with you?!?!
What is this heresy?!!
Miniac I was 8 and it was tau.
Now I'm getting back into the hobby I'm getting some blood angels and everything necessary to actually make it look good tomorrow. And to be fair the guy who sold me the stuff just put the paints and brushes on the counter and said it would get me started when painting the minis. He didn't even give me any kind of primer.
Miniac sorry for disappointing you lord (T_T)7
Son Sukcharoen
T'au you say?! Your heresy is forgiven! Suffer the xenos not to live!
I've been painting 5 space marines for the last 3 weeks and I've stripped the helmets once and the entire body twice on most of them (3 times on the Sargent). This video was amazingly helpful, thanks!
I really needed this. ;_; I take way too long on every miniature. Thank you for reminding me that it is okay to be proud of my previous miniatures, without repainting them!
I've just started painting miniatures, and this was exactly what I needed. You've got yourself a new subscriber.
Subbed after the first 5 seconds of this video! Great content, fantastic sense of humor! Keep it up, please!
Title is misleading, this is actually a very good, nice and polite advice video.
Universal Advice: Dont drybrush everything. Im still seeing people with over 20 years of experience in the hobby that drybrushes anything, every miniature in every situation. It hurts my feelings.
Thanks for the additional tip!
Yup. Dry brushing doesn't look good on everything, it can really make lots of things look terrible.
I agree with this completely. Maybe it's snobbish on my part, but I think it's lazy if you're capable of better. I can tell someone did it as well by the irregular "dusty" appearance of the highlights. TIL I'm a painting snob.
The other day I saw someone that dips (drowns in washes) and (hard) drybrush every miniature that he owns, saying that its disrepectful to him that the other dont paints their miniatures for our local tournaments because with all the time that spends painting his minis... Its not about being lazy or being, for us, snobs. Its about being smart and not saying stupid shit. Its easy to paint at least at a decent level a miniature.
It's all about what your goals are. If painting is a means to an end (playing a game), I don't think you're obliged to put forth much effort. It's however much you want to do. If you DO want to improve at miniature painting, however, there's definitely value in putting more effort towards your models; even the ones that you use for games.
Thank you Scott, I was to start my first painting session this very day, but here in Hamburg it´s cold and rainy and windy and wet…… so your video stopped me and saved me from having my first failure right at the beginning.
A good video with some sage advice. Another thing people should avoid happens before you even start painting. Assemble that miniature properly. It's my pet peve when picking up a commission and the person had already built the model. Then didn't bother to remove mold lines, used excessive glue, left nubbies or horrible gaps.
Been in this business for 15 years and this collection of tips is the best I've seen. Very thorough and touches on the most common issues mini painters will encounter. Thank you.
Thanks for the kind words!
A note on trying hard when painting minis, if you play TTRPGs such as D&D, like I do, I would recommend trying hard when painting the PCs minis/Important NPCs and villains, but when doing multiple, say goblins/orcs or gnolls, that's when you should cut corners and not try your hardest.
This is, by far, the best mini painting channel I have come across. Good work!
Wet pallet. Moist.
Oh dear bob, don't get him started with the tongue again. The horror... the horror.
*slurping sound*
Ron H splsplsplsplspl
You guys are sick and need a check up from the neck up. I love this channel.
Mooiiisssttt
Thanks so much for the white primer tip. I've always wondered why I sometimes get this nasty texture on my models when using it. I'll keep distance and humidity in mind in the future!
4:30
Three years out. Attempting to get back in.
I wish I'd known what I knew then. I know now.
Im a KDM painter and i was very hesitant on even painting my minatures(on the count of the price lol) but your point on just painting and looking back on your progress to see how far you've is so true. The first miniatures i painted were Old Joe and Young Rachel and they came out sub-par but by the time i got to The Flower Knight my abilities in painting improved and it felt good to look at them side by side and have a tangible look at your progress.
Mondays suck, so it's good to play some cool stuff on youtube. Oh look, Miniac has uploaded something new - let's check it............Shit, now I know how many times I messed up. Thanks man, I knew I can count on you...
Great vid as always.
Haha, you're welcome? :D
Man I love you.
Every time I watch one of your videos I burn to paint something. Your enthusiasm and joy are inspiring.
Thank you mate !
You are very welcome!
I never strip models i love looking back at my old skills n remember the memories of how excited i was painting that model
I'm loving this channel. I'm a 40k player from waaaayback, just getting back into the hobby as my daughter showed interest during a trip to the LGS. Thanks so much for the amazing content, I just wish we had the internets back in '93.
Thank you for mentioning wet palettes! Its something I find myself telling loads of new and amateur painters (miniature, terrain, even canvas/paper traditional folk) to do all the time. So glad someone else is talking about them!
Thanks for this! I'm not even painting minis, but I'm going to start painting my first Tamiya model and this helps a whole lot
Handy tips, I'd add 'expecting to be awesome from Mini 1', whilst everyones starting level will naturally vary comparing your starting work to Golden Demon/Crystal Brush level stuff will just demoralise you, just keep plugging away, learn from mistakes and you'll be surprised how fast things get better, keep those first mini's and after a few month compare them to current output
Good advice!!
I fell into the trap of constantly stripping minis, resulting in getting nowhere.
5:46 thank you so, so much! Every guide on priming I've ever read talked about not priming on humid days and not spraying too close to the miniatures.
I haven't played war games in a decade but I've recently gotten back into painting board game minis and this mysterious primer texture was driving me nuts.
I will try getting closer with to some cheap minis and then might overcome my hesitation to use the same primer on more expensive games.
Too much moisture, something like 75% or higher humidity could be problematic. I've never had an issue personally, but experimentation is necessary!
But Scott, what if "pleb" was my style of painting ?
Thank you for this video! it has really helped me a lot. As an artist, and a newcomer to the world of painting miniatures, i can admit that i have done several things on this list. It's always fun to come up with new and creative ways to add details to your models, but i find the more i try to do those things the less i actually get done. After watching this video i see why. painting takes time and if you spend all of your time on a single model then you never get anything done. sometimes it really is best to take what you have and move forward.
This is great! I just finished my first miniatures and they are ... mediocre haha. I started with a game that we didn't care too much about first so I don't feel the burning desire to re-paint them. I am excited to keep going. Mixing paints to find the right colors (especially the bright green/neon colors) is hard for me, but I figure I'll learn.
Great tip on the priming! I live in Utah so I'm guessing the spraying too far away was my problem.
Keep going! Your models will look better and better as you experiment and find out what works best for your process.
Krystle Rees something you may like is Vallejo glaze medium. You can use it to slowly build depth of colour easily
Hey there ! I found this good resource for mixing paints, figured it might help you. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure youtube blocks links, but if you search up "Mixing the entire citadel color line with just a few colors" and click on the bolterandchainsword forum link, it will take you to it. It shows how to mix citadel colors, but it's not exact. Hope it helps!
Disclaimer: I'm not the author of the resource.
I like the care and detail you take in your videos and they are enjoyable to watch, you have a new subscriber.
my best advice, just keep painting, watch videos and try their tips. the more you paint the better you get. you won't start out a master, your first models will potentially look like ass.... but just keep on painting.
Number 4, I think that's why I stopped for about 25 years. Now I'm getting back into it, currently doing Spacemarines & Skeleton Horde. Great vids, keep up the good work.
best video title ever
RAT_DatBoi rust noob
Liam Winterton bbgc
We literally are all plebs though.
I've started painting minis about 2 weeks ago. My first was a practice spacemarine I guess, and the second was a LoTR Warrior of Minas Tirith.
Now I, personally, don't plan on buying loads of 40k, or any other minis because I'm not going to use them. My friends do use them, and buy loads of kits and don't paint that much. So I'm doing their minis which is really fun to do so far.
Your videos are helping aswell on how to paint, so thanks for that!
i'm fuckin blown away you got alton brown for the example shots
Geoff G dude, he was tough to pin down
Getting back into mini painting, thanks for the ideas! Was already aware of paint thinning, but the rest was all new to me!
where can i get that t-shirt !
I haven’t painted in years, but I primed ork boyz white, light green, pale yellow, or light grey, then painted them using an assembly line method, mostly building layers of washes followed by thinned paint for mids and highlights, then a final unifying wash. I dry brushed metallic equipment with appropriate paint and a lil more washing.
I did more washing than a laundry mat
I did 5 at a time, stuck in a row to a little piece of wood, and could knock em out. The finished results looked good enough! The skin and leather looked really good, the different primers made the Boyz look like a great big mass of individuals with a fraction of the work
Black priming was reserved exclusively for nobz and the boss, and this worked to make them stand out
I need to bust them out of storage and get back into it
OHH !! I just got it, Miniac....
NICE
Thanks for the advice, and the confirming my desire to keep painting rather than stressing over my first minis. They aren't awesome, yet, but I'm getting there
Your nostrils are moving when you talk.
Anyway, love your videos!
This is a good video, i have made every single one of these mistakes except for the commission one, but I know a friend who had a near breakdown from it so I know it's real
"Your models don't have to look amazing if they're in a squad, you can put less effort in if you want, here are some of my models, as you can see these ones will only win me 2 golden demons each, and they still look fine!"
Fim 0458
So basically, save your effort for the good looking one that stand out.
I just spent 26 hour on my first aggressor, painting all parts before assembly to guarantee every spot is perfect. Just to later see a dude online half ass it in 40 minutes with a result better looking than mine. Your words hit close to home.
This channel is pure GOLD! I don't even paint miniatures and I've watched way more of this content than I have any right to xD
5:00 lmao
I’m one who always base coats in black. But I then lighten it up with a dry brush of grey and white. It keeps the black in the hard to reach areas and natural shadows and the dry brush really pops the details out to make for easier painting.
0:41 DAMN BOY HE THICC BOY!
I listened to this while I was painting.
Thx for good advice, my nobz look outstanding.
The idea of painting units in the hundreds seems like hell to me
It is good to remember that, when playing on the tabletop, other players aren't going to scrutinise your models to the same extent that you do. Where you might notice small imperfections with your models because you have spent so much time working on them it is likely that other people will think they look great!
Title could also be "How to overcome OCD"
Excellent video, im just starting to get into the habit of PAINTING MORE MINI'S. its refreshing to learn some good ole painting tips to better myself!
great vid, but its hap-hazardly, not half-hazardly
I always wondered why some minis look like they've got dust on them.
Guess I get to check the humidity today before I prime my first ever mini. Huzzah! Learning!
Unsubscribed!
The Noob Painter uhoh, what did I do?
The thumbnail is a direct insult, sir! /tongue-in-cheek/
The Noob Painter I was talking about everyone but you!!!
A little from column A, a little from column B... Or, maybe it was just a joke?
Obviously a joke.
I got burnt out like you said. I'm a new painter and it got frustrating. I changed armies and picked up alot of the new citadel contrast paint and I am so reinvigorated and am excited to paint my first army again.
I have also learned alot of the techniques you mentioned on my own, alot of times on accident.
0/10 Video AS ALWAYS.
Whoops forgot a 1
feelsbadman
10/10
I love it when I come across videos made by people who can talk without dithering and stuttering their way through the video. Well done. RE: stripping, I have a no repaint policy. For me, done is done.
I'm new to this hobby and your videos are so incredible and approachable for a pleb. Thank you!
thanx for the tips just got into the hobby always liked it but was scared to build and paint my models always bought used 1s for my army but just finished painting my first battle bike wasn't great but so rewarding knowing I did it should look a lot better now with your tips
Great video. Been painting for years, but it is nice to reminded of what "not" to do. I suffer from burnout when painting a lot of the same stuff (like all my Wild West stuff). I always need to remind myself it is ok to shift gears and paint something like fantasy or sci-fi (or even not at all) for a period of time.
This might be the best painting video I have ever seen as it covers so much which in other tutorials is overlooked as assumed knowledge.
PS you don't seem like that much of a maniac to me, Scott!
Kieran Lawson-West you'll see in good time, Kieran... good time...
Thanks!!
Glad to hear someone bases before painting! Almost everyone online bases last and I have no idea why! The big issue for me is that I want to drybrushing my bases and therefore would get paint platter on my model if I did it last.
Just found the channel, but this has been a great video. This was super helpful for someone looking to up their game.
Dude. You are HILARIOUS!!! I’d watch your videos just for the hilarity but then you’re awesome at what you do and can scream like a death metal singer???!... What?! 🔥🔥🔥 🤯
I like the "production line" style of painting. Prime all the figs at the same time, next day do all the base colours at the same time & so on. Works well if you have to do a whole squad quickly.
Hi, the situation of wanted to paint everything good is what made me give up miniatures, only painting monsters here and there but mostly 1/6 scales models. The thing about moving forward, and creating good looking units for the army is really great. Now I will focus and big units and generals since they are very often alone, and let the huge swarms of skavens have a nice tabletop paint job. Watching and seeing a lot of great minis made me forget that most awesome pieces are commissions or for display.
Love the vid but just to point out something regarding paint stripping. I instantly fell in love with space marines when I learned 40k 2 months ago and realizing how expensive individual pieces are, my journey is set to enjoy painting and slowly collect pieces over time, I have to reduce costing so stripping is good for beginners if I may say, you can always use some digital resources to record your painting progress to look back.
I've got one: Priming at night, in sandals., at your new place...and discovering the fire ant nests in the back yard.
i agree with the part about just leaving your old models as is. I don't play warhammer (yet) but do collect a ton of D&D miniatures, the first batch i painted (with cheap walmart craft paint) wont win me any awards but they actually turned out better than expected. I've improved a lot but I keep them as is, because frankly they're more than table ready and it's nice to see that growth.
Your video helped me, I'm someone who started painting on a whim for my interest in wargames. I want my miniatures to look nice, but my current best is not near as good as your miniatures at 4:46 for your wood elves. I have started watching videos on certain techniques to achieve what I want, but sometimes it doesn't help me overall. I'm amazed at what people can do with a paint brush, but I feel that I am so far from that goal. In correlation with the video, I do thin my paints, use the primer I think would make the process easily (starting with a white or tan primer for skeletons, and black for my space marines and d&d miniatures) and maintain the times to prime, and I don't strip old models (it has helped track my progress).
I took a break from painting to focus on other interests and education. However, I have that spark in me to start painting again. This time I want to take what I learned, and what I can learn from others, to be a better painter. Thank you.
Frontbutt88 you're very welcome! Keep painting!
The commission guilt is so real....painting the same model over and over in the same colour scheme while looking at all the models for my own army that I would love to get done. Sucks being at war with yourself over painting time, even worse than the wife...! Great video Miniac, love your techniques and results.
Great advice and funny to boot. Subscribed.
I've recently started painting miniatures for warhammer, first time I've done it since I was a young kid dipping models into paint out of laziness. I've never been that artistic, but I immediately realised that with the models I'm painting, I wish I'd painted some parts before assembly.
Nice video! You and Kujo are my main source of tips and learning material. Keep up the good work!
I started painting recently. I got a Dark Vengeance box ONE YEAR AGO, as a birthday gift, and never touched it because of... life. Too much work, planning to live with my fianceé and other things. 6 months ago I got that little box with 3 Space Marines, a brush and some paint. Well, I tried to paint them. Why not?
I didn`t use a palette. I got paint directly from the pots. I washed the minis as I would wash my car.
The Space Marines look like xenos now. I`m an heretic.
Well, the point is, after one year, my fianceé gave me a huge load of citadel paints (she got all the paints from the Warhammer TV videos about painting the Dark Vengeance set), some brushes, and a 8th ed. Core Rulebook. And said "you will paint, git gud and will give me a Sister of Battle army. I want to be a Sister of Battle. Git gud or git dead".
Here I am now.
YOU BETTER LISTEN TO HER, SON
From a minipainter with 30+ years of experience, Miniac makes a lot of good points in this video.
Don't paint other peoples miniatures, unless you're a bunch of friends helping each other to paint their armies. Later on, when more experienced, taking commissions, can be a fun way to paint interresting miniatures, you don't intend to buy yourself.
Don't paint large scale armies, if you're a perfectionist like me. I have tons of army projects from different games, but very little to show in the finished army department. which is mostly due to burnout, as Miniac mentioned.
So glad you covered the white primer speckles. I couldn't figure out what on earth I was doing wrong.
When he talks about "Strip Everything" it reminds me of something I read in the Horus Heresy Book 'Fulgrim', a remebrancer, I can't recall his name says something very similar to the Primatch Fulgrim shortly before the Horus Heresy begins. The moral of it all can go very deep.
I'm quite a rookie mini-painter... that part about humidity blew up my mind ... XD thanks man.
Great video, love your sense of humor and I can say I learned a few things, even having started in the mid-nineties!
YT kept suggesting this video and I kept ignoring it. Until today - you got a new subscriber sir!
qarion thank you!!
Great video... and ++++ on wet palette... 1 year not using one and now I will always use it!