Painting figures :

click on the Infantryman for a large image:
Paint used:
I have used various paints over the years to paint wargame figures and I have found that the best paint to use are artist quality acrylic paints,
Paint manufactured by Winsor and Newton or Rowney are especialey suited which come in tubes and are bright and vivid.
These paints cover very well and do not fade easily.
Tube paints can be thinned down with water to give nice translucent washed and are ideal for dry brush work.

Colours used:
I use a limited selection of colours and mix other colours such as orange, browns and greens myself
I use the following colours.
Phthalocyanine blue- for creating a dark blue undercoat.
Phthalocyanine green - for making dark greens for Rifle Regiments and Russian coats
Cadmium red - Bright red for cuffs and turnbacks.
Cadmium yellow - For bright yellow facings, turnback and making lighter yellows.
Titanium white - A white with good covering power as well as tinting other colours.
Ultramarine blue - For making dark blue for Prussian and French coats and light blue.
Black- see below
If you wanted to use these colours but did not want to mix your own colours you can buy Yellow Ochre, Dark Umbre and a flesh colour

Black paint:
Black needs special attention as it is a colour that can be easily over used.
If used minimally it can add impact to the finished work.
The artist phrase “ less is more” is very applicable here. I only use black on things that would normally be black in colour such as shoes, boots, pouches and hats.
The base colour will normally be a very dark blue grey that I mix from red and blue.
The black is added for the shaded areas and some light brushing over to add texture in 25mm figures.

Brushes:
I use a brush suitable for the figure scale.
When starting a new figure I use a size 3 or 4 for the base colour and jacket.
The next brush is a size 2 for smaller items on the figure such as nap sacks, rifles/muskets, hats and trousers.
A size 1 brush for painting hands and faces and turn backs.
A size 00 is only used if painting 1/300th or 25mm figures that need detail.
Ideally all brushes should have a good point to them and preferably Sable hair.

Detail:
The amount of detail I put into a figure depends on the scale.
I compare the scale to what I would normally see in real life at a distance for that size figure.
A 1/300th scale figure is comparable to somebody standing at 200 yards/metres which does not reveal too much detail.
A 15mm figure is comparable to some body standing at 100 yards/metres. Some detail can be seen at this distance.
A 25mm figure is comparable to somebody standing at 50 yards/metres. The amount of detail that is painted for this scale depends on time and how miniscule and finiky you want to be. The question I ask myself when painting any detail is, does it enhance the figure? I do not believe in painting the eye balls.
Again with detail the phrase “ less is more applies.

Finishing off:
Having finished the painting there is a need to cover the Acrylic paint with a protective film. Acrylic paint is durable to a degree but it helps if a coat of varnish is laid over the paint work.
I use interior decorators matt acrylic varnish. Any other will yellow with age
This is very durable and is very flat and helps the colours stand out.