Fighting an indian - detail troubles

[steven88]

Hi guys, I'm trying to practice a little on lines and shading by attempting to spray this first portrait,
but It's real messy because I'm still fighting my airbrush and can't seem to spray a fine line.

- I find it very difficult to predict when paint will come out of the airbrush (on detail work), most of the time nothing is coming out and then suddenly I get these fat lines which are impossible to correct.
- I was wondering if this is normal in the beginning, or will I always 'have to guess' at which point the paint will come?
- Is it possible to spray details like wrinkles with an airbrush, or should I always use a small paintbrush for this kind of details?
- If it's possible to spray wrinkles, do I have to spray them like very quick or can this be done while slowly moving the airbrush?


Already thanks a lot for any answers or tips!


I'm using a 'Hansa 381' airbrush,
trying to spray at 0,4bar (5,8psi),
and I use Hansa 'pro-color' black opaque paint (1-1)

Here's what I got for now, have no clue how to spray fine wrinkles or details. A lot of lines are already to thick

(the proportions are also not correct because I sketched it first with a pencil)

 

[rick]

You're doing it right but not with the right reduction at all and it shows. 1-1 on opaque paint is barely transparent. Go 10-15 reducer to 1 paint.

More detail and a better painting.

But not bad mate.

 

[m3ntalo]

AW: Fighting an indian - detail troubles

Hi.
It doesnt look bad so far. Try reducing the color more and working with a higher pressure. 0.4 bar sounds quite low for me. I didnt use pro color colours very often but a hansa 281 is one of my favorite airbrushes. You should with some experience be able to get the trigger control to be consistent.

Greetings, René.

Gesendet von meinem GT-N7100 mit Tapatalk 2

 

[jord001]

You're not doing a bad job Steven, like its already been said reduce you paint a lot more and up your psi to about 15psi. Have a little practise to the side to see just how much control you have with the new reduction, take it slowly and you will see how your painting will improve. It's just a case of learning how your paint works, it's the same with everything, we all have to learn our paints and what reductions to use, trial and error, see what works best for you and your brush. Keep on going though you're doing a great job.

Lee

 

[ad fez]

Yep agree with what the fine gents above said... reduce your paint more. ... you can still spray at sub 10 psi but your paint needs to be reduced at least 8:1 to get it to flow consistently. .... this does however let you build up layers slowly. ... by erasing back light areas and highlights you don't even need to use a white..... many different ways to approach portraiture and you will find what works for you

 

[steven88]

Alright thanks a lot for the advise guys!
I had no idea the paint should be reduced this much and my air-pressure could be higher.
This evening I'm going to experiment with the paint-reduction/psi and make some new dot- and line exercises, as I'm probably also jumping to fast into this realistic stuff.

Many thanks!
Steven