Acrylics Top 10 Vallejo paints

[Mat Lambert]

Hi PF,
I want to ask what are your top 10 Vallejo colours. Those you find using on most projects (faces etc) or that are versatile for hiliting and shading other colours.
I have just started this week using Vallejo acrylics for the first time after getting the 72 color military set for a very good price on eBay. This has a lot of green/grey/earth colours but I think I need a few other basics.
Thought this may make a good thread for those starting to use Vallejos.
Cheers and thanks Mat.

 

[Einion]

There are 72 (72!) paints in the set and yet you might need some more?! That is soo wrong

Lemme go find what's included in the set and I'll post back.

Einion

 

[FigureLover]

Hi Mat,
As Einion said, YOU NEED MORE???? There are really ony five definate Vallejo flesh colours, although you can always mix other colours to get different shades, it really depends on the final finish that you want with your paints. I think you should start off with the basic ones and then expand from there, other wise you will get confused by choice. Keep it simple to start.
Ben

 

[Anders Heintz]

Faces

Brown Sand
Basic Skintone
Cavalry Brown
Gunship Green
Flat Black (which isnt flat at all)

Reds

Vermilion
Scarlet
Carmine Red

Blues
Prussian Blue
Dark Prussian Blue
Sunny Skintone

 

[TWOMOONS]

Faces

Brown Sand
Basic Skintone
Cavalry Brown
Gunship Green
Flat Black (which isnt flat at all)

Reds

Vermilion
Scarlet
Carmine Red

Blues
Prussian Blue
Dark Prussian Blue
Sunny Skintone

Anders,
I'm curious as to what you use the flat black for on the faces...eyebrows and lashes, etc.?

 

[Mat Lambert]

Einion - Yes, 72 colours does seem an extravagant number to suggest needing more! Im sure a lot of the colours will be useful, I just wanted to get an idea of what other painters started with (or first turn to when starting to mix lights and shades for a new figure). I look forward to your reply if you get to see what is included in the Military Set.

Ben - thanks for the tip, and good advice. Im trying to start simple but think part of the problem has been with so many hues "where do I start to pick a base colour!"

Anders - thanks, your reply is spot on. The Military Set concentrates on WW2 and so doesnt include many reds and bright blues. You understood my thinking perfectly!

Please keep the paint lists coming.
cheers Mat

 

[Einion]

Einion - Yes, 72 colours does seem an extravagant number to suggest needing more!

I've looked at what this set includes now and it's easily seen why you might want to get at least two or three specific colours to make sure all your bases are covered. At least the set includes a decent red and one or two blues, but no yellow so you might want to get one of those (not essential though).

Some key colours that you might like to consider:
909, made from Cadmium Red Light;
945, Quinacridone Magenta;
925, which is French Ultramarine (have to ignore the names here, 839 is actually made from Cobalt Blue);
899, a version of phthalo blue (if you're prefer something duller, I think 965 is actually Prussian Blue).

Add one of the brilliant yellows (e.g. 915 or 952) and that's a pretty decent starting point for a painter's palette along with white, black and a couple of browns.

Lastly, in case you think you need them the two most useful greens could be 969 and 838, which are the two versions of phthalo green (yellow shade and blue shade respectively).

Those you find using on most projects (faces etc) or that are versatile for hiliting and shading other colours.

Good ol' white can be your go-to colour for highlighting, with the addition of this and that if necessary (most of the lighter colours that people use for highlighting are X + Y + white).

Darkening stuff is more complicated and really should be done on a case-by-case basis. Adding black works well for most dark colours, but for lighter colours you need to mix at least one intermediate shadow colour which can be done in a number of ways.

Einion

 

[Anders Heintz]

Phil,

Black is used with Cavalry Brown to make the shadows, both intermediate and deep shadows. Cavalry Brown, Gunship Green, Scarlet and Black makes for some real nice shades.

Mat,

Don't worry about the number of paints, I have probably 400-500 colors from Reaper, Andrea and Vallejo, but only probably use 30-40 with any regularity. I tend to always mix colors though, and hardly never will use anything straight out of bottle. As a general rule, I always add the highlight color and shadow color to the base mix, this ensures color compatability through out the paint job, something which can easily be lost when using something right out of the bottle as you never really know what colors was used to make up that particular shade.

I'd argue Einions point about using white as a go to highlight color. It is only really useful when painting whites and grays as you loose a lot of depth when using white as a main 'lightening' agent in a mix. Instead I use either light tans, sand or flesh colors to highlight most things, and only in extreme cases add white to a final hi-highlight. Gives a lot softer and deeper results many times. As an example, painting blues and reds. You want to keep the colors blue and red so you have to start with a dark blue and add a lighter blue to keep it blue. Same with reds, adding white to red makes things pinkish, and unless you want pink, it's not going to work very well, so instead you highlight with a brighter red added to mix (like scarlet) and a flesh tone for higher highlights, this keeps it reddish and lighter without it becoming pink. Same with painting black, its better to add sunny skintone to black instead of white as white will just make it a sterile gray, while sunny skintone gives it a warmer softer black-grayish mix. I can go on, but you get the point Im trying to make!

 

[Mat Lambert]

Einion and Anders, thanks to both - good feedback and lots to experiment with.
Cheers Mat

 

[PhilinYuma]

Thanks, Mat! Now we all know what colours we should be getting from the "choose any ten paints" site on Ebay!

 

[Panzer]

I would have to agree with Anders

This dawg has no bone is this fight but I would have to agree with Anders his work and reputation speaks for its self!
I too have thousands of paints and some time have problems decideding what colors to use but Anders is the MAN!
Mrosko

 

[Anders Heintz]

Dam Chris!! Usually I have to pay people to say such things. Where do I send the check?

 

[Einion]

I'd argue Einions point about using white as a go to highlight color.

Good ol' white can be your go-to colour for highlighting, with the addition of this and that if necessary

It is only really useful when painting whites and grays as you loose a lot of depth when using white as a main 'lightening' agent in a mix. Instead I use either light tans, sand or flesh colors to highlight most things, and only in extreme cases add white to a final hi-highlight.

(most of the lighter colours that people use for highlighting are X + Y + white).

So I don't have to type it all again:
http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31372
http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31171

I'm not going to use my own stuff as an example of what I'm saying, because I can point to stuff higher up the food chain - think about the way painters do highlights. They don't have tubes of flesh, or light sand etc. on hand.

They highlight most with white (there's a reason most painters use more white than any other paint), modifying as necessary to get the colour right.

Einion

 

[Mat Lambert]

Again - thanks to all for the discussion. I guess this thread is confirming the view that there are numerous valid approaches to every aspect of the hobby.

If anyone else out there wants to post a list of useful paints please do - just 10 names & numbers is ok.
Cheers Mat

 

[Andyfettes]

Anders and Chris

I hate the thought of all those unused and unloved paints,

Id give them a caring home

 

[Einion]

I guess this thread is confirming the view that there are numerous valid approaches to every aspect of the hobby.

Totally. Apart from anything personal taste is very important when it comes to colour - starting with Oxford Blue, one person might be perfectly happy with how it looks when lightened with white, another will think it's too blue so might use Buff or Flat Flesh instead. And a third person won't lighten it at all, merely layer French Mirage Blue over it for the highlights.

Einion