Colour theory

I think i’m going to buy some cheap acrylic paint just to learn the basics pf colour mixing over the weekend then buy some createx to spray when i’m paid.
Probably be a bit cheaper that way and i’m not too fussed because i’ll buy the student grade of acrylics which are about £2 a colour.
I think it will help me get my head around the colour wheel and how to mix.

Just a quick question rather than start another thread, is there a brand of acrylic paint people would advise go buy that you can just thin yourself and spray so
i can learn about thinning paint too for the airbrush?
I mean the type of paint you buy in tubes as that is what I pretty much have available around me.
I think windsor and newton is probably the main brand I can buy off the shelf. Would this be a good brand to experiment with with for mixing and thinning?
Sounds like a good plan for color mixing.
Golden has an airbrush medium you can use to thin their paints, of course that would probably be just as expensive or more.
I've had success when just messing around using craft paints. Not the bottom of the line 50 cent ones (the pigment is too rough) but the same kind of brands $1.50 ones. Ive had a lot of success thinning artist acrylic with just water and liquitex varnish and it works great until you get into tiny details. If you thin it enough to work right then on small details it just spiders all over the place.
It really does no good for learning how to thin the paint you will actually be using though.
 
Just to play with colors you could get a cheap, cheap set of little tubes to mix. Even some watercolors to play with on paper.
Just be aware that there are differences you'll still need to adjust for.
For example;
I dont know If CI black is really black but wicked is not, its near black with blues and greens and such.
Whereas most Artist acrylic is lamp black or something approximating it, its made with suit basically and it is black as black gets.
 
@Malky , you make it sound like I don't have a clue how to paint and wont learn because I experiment.
I'm definitely not fantastic at it but I think I've been picking up airbrushing at an ok pace.

What exactly did I say to make you think that?, I haven't said anywhere that you can't paint because you are experimenting, nor have I said that you shouldn't experiment, i enjoy yiyr experiment threads as I do anyone else's, all I have ever said is I personally don't want to experiment, I want to paint, if my brush doesn't do what I want it to do I've bought the wrong brush and will buy another that does, that applies to everything else I need to use, I sure as hell hope I don't need your permission to do that.

I have never ever criticized your work here so I really don't know what your problem is, I've just struggled to get a load of new gear together to make a new start, nit because I want to paint for myself, but because I wanted to be able to some small demonstrations for the newbies here, but thanks to this excremente I'm ready to just lob the lot again.

I'm sick now so this this will likely be my last post for a long time.
 
What exactly did I say to make you think that?, I haven't said anywhere that you can't paint because you are experimenting, nor have I said that you shouldn't experiment, i enjoy yiyr experiment threads as I do anyone else's, all I have ever said is I personally don't want to experiment, I want to paint, if my brush doesn't do what I want it to do I've bought the wrong brush and will buy another that does, that applies to everything else I need to use, I sure as hell hope I don't need your permission to do that.

I have never ever criticized your work here so I really don't know what your problem is, I've just struggled to get a load of new gear together to make a new start, nit because I want to paint for myself, but because I wanted to be able to some small demonstrations for the newbies here, but thanks to this excremente I'm ready to just lob the lot again.

I'm sick now so this this will likely be my last post for a long time.
I'm sorry it's probably just my crappy mood. I don't Know I'm sure I just took it wrong.
 
@Malky you always give great advice and have the best jokes. I guess I was just feeling hypercritical of myself.
I'm really sorry, didn't mean to upset you. My fault on that totally.
 
If you can afford it, Wicked makes a really good Primary color set- what I like about it is the colors are true primaries. I seem to get very accurate mixed colors from them. (I'm a beginner too) You really wont use very much paint- just a few drops here and there. Then when you go to paint, you have useable paint that will spray nicely through your airbrush.
 
If you can afford it, Wicked makes a really good Primary color set- what I like about it is the colors are true primaries. I seem to get very accurate mixed colors from them. (I'm a beginner too) You really wont use very much paint- just a few drops here and there. Then when you go to paint, you have useable paint that will spray nicely through your airbrush.

Thanks Jurien.
I think for the first month i’ll do what Malky daid and focus on control while learning a bit of colour theory with the links posted earleir but definitely look into the wicked set when I do.
 
I think my suggestion goes along nicely with what Malky said- you can learn some color mixing (which is really fun by the way!) and you're using the same paint to spray with, so you are learning the same "system" all along. If you go buy cheap paint, you then have to "re-learn" once you start using "better" paint.

From my own experience, trying to mix colors from all these weird colors is exasperating. Most info on the net assumes that you have 50,000 bottles of paint. If I could afford that much paint, I wouldn't give a damn about buying one more bottle!

With the Wicked set, I have like 5 bottles of paint and I have any color I ever need. Limited only by my paint mixing skills of course. ;)
 
I shall have a looksy online.
Anyone know the best place price wise in the uk for paint sets?
I bought my set up from airbrushes.com but after closer inspection they may be a little dearer than others.
 
I shall have a looksy online.
Anyone know the best place price wise in the uk for paint sets?
I bought my set up from airbrushes.com but after closer inspection they may be a little dearer than others.
I have no idea if this is helpful or not but here I just get the set at hobby lobby and use their 40% coupon. Which makes a wicked primary set like$16.
Idk if you guys have some sort of deal like that or not
You cant scrathc and erase wicked the way you can CI though so you still might be better off going the CI primaries if you intend to do mostly illustration
 
So many choices lol
I think I shall have a good think and decide when I get paid.
I don’t want to bog myself with too much because i’m still planning on carrying on learning with grapahite so don’t want to be juggling to much as I have a very chaotic job too so definietely will fo what Malky said and stick to one paint set up at a time.

When using illustration paint do you mix into separate bottles and if so what kind of bottles should I look out for?
 
So many choices lol
I think I shall have a good think and decide when I get paid.
I don’t want to bog myself with too much because i’m still planning on carrying on learning with grapahite so don’t want to be juggling to much as I have a very chaotic job too so definietely will fo what Malky said and stick to one paint set up at a time.

When using illustration paint do you mix into separate bottles and if so what kind of bottles should I look out for?
Itll clear up once you jump in.
Umm. For me I like to keep a "flesh tone base" premixed. Which is just sort of a yellow/orange leaning brown that I can lighten for basic tones or add a little of this or that color without starting from scratch. That's about it. Which I keep in a washed out empty bottle. I'm on the simpler side with my colors for now though.
Otherwise any bottles I could tell you about probably don't really apply since availability would be different.
 
Thanks for the help Robby
Once I get properly going i’ll fly. I have pulled enough info out of you guys to see me out for the next six months probably so it’s appreciated.
I’m pulling fairly straight lines at the mo so i’m happy.........well straight horizontal lines, not quite worked the technique out for vertical yet so still wobbly.
I’m going in the right direction though and still excited to progress :D
 
I'm always happy to try.

I'll throw this up here just in case anyone does want to use it. The way I get the Skin tone base is I find a photo of a black person thats not really light and not really dark either, I use the matching method you see mitch use in his video. (error correction maybe, not sure which one) Then I match them.
Then I can usually match a few varying tones through a reference anytime in the future by adding a little bit of primary colors or by adding it to white or adding some trans base to get it transparent enough.
It's very basic, but most of my stuff is cartooney anyhow and even the more complex ones the color has at least matched my ability to paint the subject if that makes sense.

The only time it doesnt work is for very very light bright peachy tones but those are easy enough to mix on the spot
 
With regard to Dru’s colour theory, it’s what he teaches you on how to perceive and create colours that is his “theory” not the way the paint works like yellow and blue make green
Etc
He teaches you how to use the colour wheel in a multidimensional way, stating Munsell as the originator,
With the tools he taught me I have been able to explore the world of colour with more purpose,
 
With regard to Dru’s colour theory, it’s what he teaches you on how to perceive and create colours that is his “theory” not the way the paint works like yellow and blue make green
Etc
He teaches you how to use the colour wheel in a multidimensional way, stating Munsell as the originator,
With the tools he taught me I have been able to explore the world of colour with more purpose,
Method i'll believe, theory, I don't think Dru even claims that (anymore).
But that does make much more sense to me what your saying there.

It seems like a specific approach to me

Like a way of looking at an age old problem, solving it with age old techniques, based on age old theory
but all in a way that makes it more applicable or understandable, more concise i guess maybe.
Idk I'll figure that out when I learn it LOL
 
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With regard to Dru’s colour theory, it’s what he teaches you on how to perceive and create colours that is his “theory” not the way the paint works like yellow and blue make green
Etc
He teaches you how to use the colour wheel in a multidimensional way, stating Munsell as the originator,
With the tools he taught me I have been able to explore the world of colour with more purpose,

Just for future reference is the only available content for Dru’s technique through his workshops?
Is there no books or dvds or any other training media?
 
You are correct, I hunted high and low for some! Only SBS in the magazines. I have Dru’s permission to teach it and will do start this year!! Just building a classroom in my studio :)

I don’t suppose you are in the uk lol
Does anyone know real good teachers for airbrushing realism in the uk?
 
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