A question about Face painting with oils

[smeagolthevile]

Ok, I have been following the Aces of Iron Tutorial

http://www.acesofiron.com/skin_tones.htm

They say at one point to use yellow for highlights, but no matter what I try it ends up looking like they have Jaundice...

Should I leave that step out, use a darker yellow? What?

 

[polyphemus]

Try Naples Yellow or Naples Yellow Light.

Geoff

 

[Tecumsea]

Good advice Geoff...........recommended by Bob Knee in his colour theory and application book!

Keith

 

[Einion]

Ok, I have been following the Aces of Iron Tutorial... They say at one point to use yellow for highlights, but no matter what I try it ends up looking like they have Jaundice...

Well look at the finished result on Aces Of Iron, does that look like a healthy fleshtone to you?

It's far far too yellow to be realistic. Caucasian flesh is basically orange or scarlet in hue and even sallow skins that might be described as "yellowish" aren't actually yellow at all, just yellower.

BTW Naples Yellow paints (both the real thing and the various hues) vary hugely in colour, I wouldn't recommend you rely on them for painting skin especially if you don't know which version is being suggested.

Einion

 

[Hawk_Uk]

To give you an idea take a look here:
Paul Blaber Website

Paul paints all his faces with oils, he uses Napals yellow, just for high lights. He has several articles in Military Modelling magazine, if you can get it, which explains how he paints. His last article was in Vol.40 Issue 12.

I also found this book useful, though it mainly covers acrylics, Painting Miniatures by Danilo Cartacci


Hope that helps.
John

 

[polyphemus]

The Naples Yellows I use are W&N Naples Yellow Light & Old Holland Naples Yellow Extra.

Geoff

 

[Einion]

Here's a selection of swatches showing some of the variation in Naples Yellow Hue paints that are currently available:

Some of the real thing for comparison, to show just how much a single chemical can vary:

As we can see many of these you wouldn't want to use for fleshtones, at least not by themselves

Einion

 

[PJ Deluhery]

As always, Einion, very instructive! Thanks.

 

[smeagolthevile]

So let me ask you guys your specific preferences?

What do you use for a base coat? for the shadows? the highlights?

 

[jknaus]

I like these 2 videos. Maybe they will help.
http://giovannimodelling.blogspot.com/search/label/Video
James

 

[Einion]

Not a simple answer from me I'm afraid:
http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28127
http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27804

I use a different palette for ethnic skintones.

Einion

 

[ryall]

Hi

I also think the colour may change depending on what size figure yoy are painting

Ryally
http://www.brisbanemodelbuilder.com/

 

[smeagolthevile]

right now I am working on a 200mm Verlinden bust of a Croatian Hussar.
I tried not using the yellow as a highlighter and just a bit of white, twice and it worked fairly well, but my base color is way to dark it would seem. I need to get a very light tan...

 

[BionicCow]

Skins are great, you can use just about any colour with just about any colour. Your limit is your understanding of how colour works.


Highlights are a result of the light source

Temperature is a result of, well the temperature of the scene(warm for warm, colder for cold)

Saturation is a result of the amount of sunlight in the scene. Colours desaturate the less light there is present(which can be done simply by adding or glazing with blueish tones)

colour of skin depends on person, females are green, males are red. Obviously I dont mean forest green and blood red though!


You can have a skin like the link shows, modified by the scene its in to be heavily greened because its in green bush.

So I suppose what Im getting at is...

What type of scene is your model in? What is your goal?

 

[smeagolthevile]

I am working on this Bust from Verlinden. I think I have found myself a nice skin tone base now, so I am going to attempt the face again, for the 5th time. Im making nice headway on the clothes though. doing the white cap was alot fun


This image isn't mine, its from the website I got the bust from.

 

[smeagolthevile]

I think I have myself a good tone now!
I took what was left, about half a bottle of my Tamiya Flat Flesh (to orange) mixed it what was left of my flat brown and alot of flat white, it came out to a nice... tan color. darker then skin tone but its a nice base.
For the deep shadows I used the raw umber I have, since there are some DEEP ones in the sulpt, like on the eyes and under the nose before the mustache.
I then instead of using the burnt sienna like that tutorial says to use I used it, mixed with some white to get a lighter color for the less deep shadows.
I then mixed said Burnt Sienna with ALOT of white untill it became a slightly orange, but alot more peachy tan color and I used it for highlights, I am very happy with it right now. Its not a perfect skin tone but its nice at this stage atleast

 

[smeagolthevile]

Ok, this is NOWHERE near finished... but I am 99% finished with the hood and the face (just need to do the mustache on the face)
The hat is still being base coated, so simple im putting off finishing it, and its taking alot of detail work to get the little blue stripes on the shoulders correct.
Tell me what you think, and as always, photos show so much that you wont see with the nekked eye

 

[brian]

Ok, I have been following the Aces of Iron Tutorial

http://www.acesofiron.com/skin_tones.htm

They say at one point to use yellow for highlights, but no matter what I try it ends up looking like they have Jaundice...

Should I leave that step out, use a darker yellow? What?

Hi There
I wouldn't follow the tutorial your using as the end product isn't very good.When i first started painting many moons ago i used Burnt Sienna,Yellow Ochre and Titanium White and a touch of blue just too take the starkness away.It's the simplest of oil mixes and will give you good results.Underpaint face with a tan colour either Humbrol 93 or an acrylic of similar colour.
Brian

 

[Einion]

colour of skin depends on person, females are green, males are red. Obviously I dont mean forest green and blood red though!

Uh-uh, both are orange or scarlet! When skintones look greenish it's illusory, just like when they look yellowish as I refer to above.

Surprising as it sounds virtually all human skin colour falls into the orange-scarlet zone on a colour wheel, including African and other very dark skins. The differences from one person's skintone to the next are largely about value and chroma, not hue (just as it is between midtone and shadow on a single person's skin).

Einion

 

[BionicCow]

Uh-uh, both are orange or scarlet! When skintones look greenish it's illusory, just like when they look yellowish as I refer to above.

Surprising as it sounds virtually all human skin colour falls into the orange-scarlet zone on a colour wheel, including African and other very dark skins. The differences from one person's skintone to the next are largely about value and chroma, not hue (just as it is between midtone and shadow on a single person's skin).

Einion

you could very well be right and it may be a result of some random scientific talk or perhaps it was makeup related or misinformation on my part

however this article suggests that i may be correct

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081208081006.htm