Help w/ This Project (Multiple Things, Evidently)

[worldly escarp]

Hi guys. This is my first attempt with NMM and I am trying to figure out how each step is working out as I go. I have no eye for it so I’m asking for some input from the group. I’d really appreciate any feedback or tips.

I’ve attached some photos of my work and then the references I found on Pinterest. I want it to be a little darker blue by the end. I know these references far exceed my skill at the moment but it’s good to practice!

Thanks in advance for any help you all can offer. If you see something else not NMM related, please send that too! All feedback welcome!

[old cloud]

What are you trying to paint NMM? You mention blue, but neither of your references are blue NMM so I’m s little confused.

[worldly escarp]

@old cloud Oh! The armor is what I’m trying to get right. I guess it’s just highlighting but in both cases his armor looks metallic and that’s the effect I’m going for.

[old cloud]

In that case what you are trying to achieve is called volumetric highlighting. 🙂

You pick a lighting direction (in your references it’s a top down light) and highlight all parts of the mini from that direction.

I think it’s explained fairly well here:
https://youtu.be/UbUrsOt_Yyw

[worldly escarp]

Spot on! That’s what I was looking for—thanks!

From the photos, do you see any glaring issues? I am not sure how to adapt the video’s concept to something that’s not round.

Help w/ NMM Please (Actually Volumetric Highlighting)

[old cloud]

Highlighting the basic shapes:
https://piratemonkeypainting.wordpress.com/2016/12/19/pirate-monkey-basics-basic-shapes-and-light/

[old cloud]

It’s honestly a little early to point out any glaring issues. You need to paint more.

A good advice is to look at the figure from the direction of your light. You should not see any shadow from this angle.

From the opposite angle you shouldn’t see any highlights.

So turn it around in your hand and remember to maintain that lighting angle.

[worldly escarp]

Awesome. Thanks so much for your help. This is really great...I didn't really know what I was doing but I am glad I tested a theory and then turned to the community for help. I'll give it another shot and see how it goes.

[worldly escarp]

Ok, updated photos. My brain is sort of wrecked. I followed the video, had too much contrast, and then glazed so
much I couldn’t see the contrast anymore. Then, after about an hour of going back and forth, I went in with a thicker brush and splotched the bits where the light should be…it felt super non-technical.

I’m not sure if I have enough contrast anymore, but I don’t know exactly how much to darken. Maybe the blue I’m using for the highlight is too light and I need a middle layer? I’m very open to feedback.

[old cloud]

You’re not far off, but definitely need to keep pushing the value - go brighter on the highlights.

[worldly escarp]

Today went a little better. Started slowly but in the last stretch before I hung it up, something clicked. I am really loving the cauldrons and shin guards now! I am wondering if I should go back over and darken some bits to really draw out the crisp shadows, or leave it as is…or go for even more value and go brighter on the micro-highlights…am I on the right track?

Only issue I have is that he's looking a little dusty. Not sure if that'll balance out as more of the model is painted...maybe i need to go back in and do some more with the shadows?

[old cloud]

The dustiness can come from a couple things.

Most likely you’re being too careful with your highlights and going in too thin with your paint.

Also it looks like you’re trying to do too smooth gradients that cover the entire surface.

As a result of this you’re losing your blue color almost entirely.

I’ve repainted the near side shoulder using only colors already in your artwork, though I pushed the value a bit. By tightening the transitions and increasing the midtone it again appears blue.

[worldly escarp]

You just blew my mind…how did you do that (repaint my mini). Amazing.

So to be clear, I need to reduce the transition zones in overall space and increase coverage in my midtone? Should I just repaint in midtone and then rework the shadows/transitions? I started with a dark blue originally, and I really wanted this to be a darker blue overall…

[old cloud]

I painted over your photo on iPad. 🙂

If you want the material to read as dark blue your midtone needs to be dark blue. The midtone defines the color of a material.

You don’t need to repaint, just increase the area of the midtone and redo your transitions.

[worldly escarp]

Thanks so much for offering so much help. I’m learning tons!

[old cloud]

That’s great to hear. Keep pushing. 💪

[worldly escarp]

Okay. I both did and did not do what you suggested.

Did not do: I did not NOT restore the base blue. Then I worked some darker tones in the shadowed areas and hit the rest with mid-tone.

Did: I attempted to tighten up the transition zones and relied more on wider coverage on from the mid-tone to give it more blue color. I am actually really pleased with how it is coming. It is starting to click a bit and I'm really grateful for all the feedback.

What's next: I need to work the layers below the shoulder line. I feel decently confident that I know what the layers need to be in order to replicate what I did on the shoulders. I think the hard part is going to be knowing how to restrict the high highlights.

SOS: I have no idea how to replicate the sheen on the top of the jump pack. I moved the light source from over the left pauldron to directly overhead/zenithal, which helped me a lot with the volumetric highlighting. Unfortunately, I don't know what to do with the big square on his back now...if you, or anyone else reading this has any suggestions, please help!

[old cloud]

Great improvement dude.

Big flat planes facing the light just become uniformly bright. So the top of your shoulder dictates how bright anything facing directly upwards needs to be. The more it's sloped the darker it gets.

Think of the arch of the shoulder as an infinite series of angles from horizontal to vertical. Wherever a the angle of a given surface lands on that scale you have your value.

Now for big surfaces we sometimes have to cheat and add a bit of gradient that has no logical explanation except that it looks better. But my approach is usually to start from the logically correct highlight and then see how that works.

[worldly escarp]

First, thanks so much, man--I feel like you're leading me up the mountain and I would've been lost in the cold without fire had you not swooped in.

Now, my read-back is that the top part of the jetpack is probably going to be quite bright, but after that first notch (where the icon is over his head) and then it's going to slowly decrease in saturation until it gets to the bottom edge. By contrast, the back and sides of the jetpack are going to be quite dark because they are effectively shaded by the contours of the pack.

Is that all sounding correct?

Also, I am having a bit of trouble figuring out how to graduate the shade/highlights of the shields on his chest. Right now, with the "sun at high noon" there'd be some amount of bright light hitting the bottom of the shields because they are ever-so-slightly-concave...but how much? Should I just keep them a flat matte since they're getting decals anyway?

There are lots of questions here and I'm feeling sensitive to how much help you're giving @old cloud. I don't want to be a burden. I really appreciate your help. Again, I'm learning tons.

@jaunty wraith could use your help too man...I know you're lurking somewhere nearby...

Help w/ This Project (Multiple Things, Evidently)

[old cloud]

Sounds correct, yep.

Like I said, don't be afraid to break the rules. As long as you navigate by them you don't have to be a slave to them.

The shields definitely need some form of shading. Your two reference figures are good examples of how this can be done.

Also note that the rear foot would be in shadow on both of your references but they highlighted it anyway. Definition is key. If some detail gets lost in the darkness, there's probably some element in the environment bouncing light in there. You should very rarely go full shadow. Even the underside of things get hit by reflected light from the ground in most cases.

[worldly escarp]

Gotcha. Good call—makes sense. Not sure if I’ll be able to paint tomorrow just looking at the schedule, but next time I’m on it I’ll try to focus on the shields and jump pack.

I’m also noticing—going back to the references, that I could still tighten up the transitions a bit—I’ve got a bit too much high highlight compared to what they have, and I also have a bit too much mid-tone. I might tinker a bit once I get a little further in but for now I’m gonna try not to fixate.

Also, I notice in the reference with the OSL, the high highlights are both colored and slightly offset—I assume cuz the right arm is drawn back so the high point of reflection would be different. Actually, seems like the only spot that went as light as my highlights were the edge highlights.

Are you seeing the same thing?

[old cloud]

I don’t know what you mean that the highlights are colored?

[worldly escarp]

So my shoulder highlights are off white, but the references look like a richer blue…the lower shadowy parts of those models are a darker shade—almost gunmetal grey/blue.

[old cloud]

Yes, I agree their highlights are less pale.

[worldly escarp]

Okay, I did a bit more work and it’s getting closer. I still have some highlighting to do but I think I’m getting pretty close. Again, my lighting is terrible—it looks a little crisper in person.

I’m struggling with the feet a bit…

I think I need to do the other parts of the shoulders now…it’ll help give a better idea of what the blue looks like on a finished model. Probably I’m over-fixating because it’s all just too blue…

[worldly escarp]

So, I figured out what I was missing…patience…

I’m on my way with this and I know what I need to do now. Thanks for all the help @old cloud!