Practicing without paint

[Mark]

Paint costs money so I am practicing movements and the basics using water and spraying it on my chalk board. I live in the desert and it is really dry but the sprays do not evaporate right away so I can judge my work.

Thought this might help people who are rank beginners like me.

 

[ad fez]

food colouring also gos though nicely if all you are doing is practising strokes

 

[Cordyk]

Nowt wrong with that mate, you could also use food colouring, nice one for posting that up. If you can stretch to one bottle of black that would be better but getting the feel of your new toy is a good thing.

 

[Mr.Micron]

Mark
write a nice letter asking them about their Wicked line and how it compares to other water based paint, Include you mailing address and you should get a free sample of their latest blend, You will get a white a black and a bottle of reducer. For Free.
Also if there is a hobby Lobby in you area print the 40% Off coupon and buy one bottle of Wicked (any color) that will take the price from 5.99 down to 3.60 plus tax of course , or a bottle of Createx from 3.99 down to about 2.40 Food coloring runs about 2.50 for the 4 pack.
One bottle a month and in a year you have 12 colors. Small cost,
As far as reducer alcohol and water works great you can also add 1 drop of Glycerin (local drug store) per ounce of the container holding the alcohol and water. 8 ounces = 8 drops
Still pennies on the dollar. One bottle at the dollar tree is 1 dollar.
So it is fine to take small steps in getting started into air brushing. Money is tight now a days and looking at buying large amounts of anything for a hobby sometimes seems out of the budget But One color and you can do cool monotone paints and learn to build the colors to make anything your mind can think of.

 

[Mark]

I actually started doing this after cleaning my brush. I was just spraying water and decided to spray the chalk board. Worked perfectly. So that is what I am doing just to get the feel again.


Thanks for the pointers Mr. Micron. I shall do just what you suggest. I have no problem using paint but by practicing the basics this way I also don't have to clean my brush out.

 

[Mr.Micron]

I actually started doing this after cleaning my brush. I was just spraying water and decided to spray the chalk board. Worked perfectly. So that is what I am doing just to get the feel again.


Thanks for the pointers Mr. Micron. I shall do just what you suggest. I have no problem using paint but by practicing the basics this way I also don't have to clean my brush out.

Well that is a good point too no mess to clean..But for me I would not be able to tell I was improving unless I could see it.....LOL trouble with old eyes

 

[drobbins12]

A 2oz bottle of black will last you a really long time. They really do go a long way


Dylan

 

[mika]

well, why the people allways think that you have to use allways (airbrush) acrylic paint? you can use gouache,pastell,drawing ink, self oil paint can you load in to your airbrush, but make sure that you have the knowledge about the medium you use. and spray just water brings you sero... cause you have to "understan" how the medium works what happen when you tinn 10, 20, 30, 40 % of the colour,how fast dry the color on different canvas etc.

 

[ad fez]

well, why the people allways think that you have to use allways (airbrush) acrylic paint? you can use gouache,pastell,drawing ink, self oil paint can you load in to your airbrush, but make sure that you have the knowledge about the medium you use. and spray just water brings you sero... cause you have to "understan" how the medium works what happen when you tinn 10, 20, 30, 40 % of the colour,how fast dry the color on different canvas etc.

fair enough mika i think we understand what you are saying, but practicing with water or food colouring is perfect for newbies like myself (and the person who started this thread) to enable us to practice muscle memory such as dagger strokes without excessive cost. so i do not quite believe that it teaches you absolutely nothing

 

[mika]

well,every kind of colour is for me ok.. but water.. my point of view is just, the most importen think is train not just your muscle memory.. the most importen thing is train your eyball and the eye hand coordination,it was just to say it gives better ways then water. and at the end sooner or later you have to start whit that .. and i find that you waste time when you do it like that.. my meaning, it is not to punch mark .. and i feel me as an beginner too,i airbrush since mai this year and for me i know now,every colour have a different behaviour so i have to lern a lot and i do that not when i use water..
cheers
mika

 

[justme]

well,every kind of colour is for me ok.. but water.. my point of view is just, the most importen think is train not just your muscle memory.. the most importen thing is train your eyball and the eye hand coordination,it was just to say it gives better ways then water. and at the end sooner or later you have to start whit that .. and i find that you waste time when you do it like that.. my meaning, it is not to punch mark .. and i feel me as an beginner too,i airbrush since mai this year and for me i know now,every colour have a different behaviour so i have to lern a lot and i do that not when i use water..
cheers
mika/QUOTE]

My point of view and what i about tip dry, or a nozzle that get clogged up, while painting you need to do minor adjustments aswell all of the time to keep the paint flowing.

But there is a benefit in spraying water, in the unfortunate event that one come to the conclusion that airbrushing ain't for them you can always become a fireman in madurodam in holland with your new water spraying skill.:biggrin-new:

 

[Mark]

well,every kind of colour is for me ok.. but water.. my point of view is just, the most importen think is train not just your muscle memory.. the most importen thing is train your eyball and the eye hand coordination,it was just to say it gives better ways then water. and at the end sooner or later you have to start whit that .. and i find that you waste time when you do it like that.. my meaning, it is not to punch mark .. and i feel me as an beginner too,i airbrush since mai this year and for me i know now,every colour have a different behaviour so i have to lern a lot and i do that not when i use water..
cheers
mika

A musician plays scales to warm up, not a concerto. My airbrush sat dormant for years and when it came out it was maybe once or twice in 20 something years. Using water on a chalkboard is the way I am warming up. You are free to do what you want. I would rather treat paint knowledge as something different.

 

[justme]

Mark i do warming up excersizes aswell, but my main point is you need paint to practice to get used to behavior of the paint when you actualy use it on a project. Different stages of a painting requires different reductions, and the more you play with paint, the faster you learn when to add reducer, or paint when you reduced it to much and the paint goes skating on you.

 

[Zotilraxx]

I know some people who use regular pen ink. You can look into that...

 

[ekko]

I use what I have that needs to be used up. Mainly those cheap craft bottles of paint. I don't feel bad spending a $1 or two. The only downfall is that they take more thinning, although I'm learning quickly how to get the right consistency.

However I totally understand using water. The airbrush was tricky when I first picked it up. Any other medium I've used you put directly on the surface you are working on (paint brushes, pens pencils even the computer the cursor is where the line goes). The airbrush doesn't work that way. You have to train yourself to know where the paint will end up landing, that disconnect slowed me way down, I've had mine for months and have just now started feeling like I know where the paint is going and what it will look like when it gets there.

 

[Strictly Attitude]

Good points made on both sides of the fence the truth is practice will make you better. I know half my battle when I started was with the paint getting it to right consistency with out it blowing out. If you are getting the feel for the AB I see no harm but don't for get to learn your mediums too. Water flow easily through the ab no pigment or binder to hold things up. But hey nice little trick for a beginner learning the ropes.

 

[MegaTitaniumMan]

Yes I agree, range: