"Are contrast paints taking over?" Topic

I've been painting minis for 30 years and there have been several advancements that changed everything. These include things like the introduction of acrylic paints that were much easier to work with than oils that are popular with model kit builders, the dip method leading to the popularity of washes, hard plastic pretty much taking over from metal minis to reduce prices, the current emergence of 3d printers, and now contrast paints. All great things!

I really like contrast paints, but only for certain things. They work great on very uneven surfaces, but less so on smooth ones where they look a bit messy, or at least that is my opinion. I regularly watch painting tutorials and it seems some people at least are moving to using contrasts exclusively, especially for smaller scales.

I'm just curious if this move of only using contrasts is the new thing and will ultimately take over the hobby. Please let me know what you think.

I do not use or sale anything fancy. No modulation paints or contrast that I know of.

They have their uses. But to say that they are "taking over" is like saying that if you have a strap wrench, that's the only tool you will ever need.

It's taken me a while to get to know how to use them and now I like the outcomes when done properly. However, I do not, and will not, use them exclusively.
So, good for some things, not for others.

I remember acrylic floor stuff as being the end all fix for all your painting needs. Where is it now? Adding layered washes goes back to pre-renaissance time.

This doesn't mean that advances are not to be belittled
but to be given the time for acceptance (or not), In any case,
it is a delight to see new ideas and I thank you for sharing yours.

…. Glad to see you back John!

I'm old enough to remember highly pigmented washes as the Seifried Method, decades before "Contrast" or "Speed" paints. As noted, helpful for clothing with folds--cloaks especially--but less so on other surfaces. They're one more tool in the kit.

If you except GW, "the hobby" is too diverse and decentralized to be taken over.

I'd have to run out of most of my other paint first before I'd ever get a bottle of contrast paint… ;-)

I think it has its uses, but it might depend upon what kind of painter you are. If you're an above average painter, do a lot of detail work, etc., then contrast paints are just one tool in the toolbox, not the whole toolbox. If you're an average at best painter or looking to do a lot of figs quickly, then contrast paints could be your go to thing.

I agree with most of those who've posted above: It's another tool that is good for some jobs.

I agree with aegiscg47.
I am a very average painter and contrast paints can give some great results that I would not normally be able to achieve. They are a great product for me and I have purchased a number of colours.
I understand for talented painters that contrast paints are not something that is necessary or useful but for me they are great.

Haven't ever seen them and have never used them so I would say they are not taking over. At least not where I am.

What is a Contrast paint? It is all paint or washes for me.

To each their own, to be sure. But it doesn't give the effect I'm looking for and colors are limited. Washes are actually a bigger deal to me and does more of what I'm looking for. I have a few contrast paints but very rarely use them.

Contrast paint is different from a wash. It consists of a pigment paint and a dye (so far as I can make out). The pigment settles into recesses and the dye stays on the raised surfaces, giving visible contrast in a single coat

However, it has characteristics of its own that make it behave differently from a base coat +wash approach, so it has its own learning curve. One is that even the underlying pigment is transparent, so any mistakes show up clearly

For me, contrast paints have greatly speeded up my painting for certain kinds of miniatures, but, like base coat + wash, don't do everything

If you think it's "taking over", you may be watching too many Yoo Tube videos

John

I'm kinda with Shagnasty on this -- I don't really even understand to concept or the nomenclature. I've been painting minis since the 70s and migrated to acrylic paints by the end of that decade and it's only been washes and dry brushes over base coats for me since then. I detail with a fine brush to whim and need. That pretty much does everything I need or want, and if this isn't fast enough for speed painters or the like, I can live with that.

One other related thing I will say, is that I'm very out of sorts with the extraordinary prices model paints demand these days, which just pushes me to rely more and more on good "craft paints" for my base painting.

My biggest problem with Contrast paints is the silly and asinine names.
What the heck is a Guiliman? And the "Snakebite Leather" looks nothing like the old color with that name.
It's like GW only wants to sell to fanboys who are current with the latest rules revision.

Contrast paint is a tool or method of painting that is great when it can be used but is not good as a technique for 24/7 365 use.

Models I do see with 100% contrast look awful and you know why just looking and coffee staining and tide marks.

They are meant to be time saving, using one layer of "paint" rather than a number of different layers. Any time saved is spent going back over areas with white paint to prevent splashes etc showing through,

Tally Ho!

I might try them one day, but tbh with little amount of stuff I paint these days, I'm still happy with my old wash/drybrush method.

I have some and they get used, but I use regular paints far more often.

I am a pretty rubbish painter, though after 50 years of it, maybe less rubbish than when I started. I've used contrast paints recently on a couple of small projects, including some textured building surfaces. Generally, I liked the effect, which was more or less as advertised. However, I also found the effect a bit inconsistent: on some panel lines, the density of coverage was very high, making for what looks like patches or blotches on the surface. In scale distance, I can live with these, but it was a reminder that no technique is perfect, nor any user. I'll mix more vigorously next time, and do some more test runs on less visible surfaces. But they're a useful tool to have and they're now 'in the rotation'.

I celebrate any tool in the box which gets more painted models on the tabletop! S-A-L-U-T-E!!!.

Not everyone, to be brutally honest, gives a damn about anything other than painted models on the tabletop; not everyone, Virginia, cares for high quality figure painting as most of said quality cannot be seen on the tabletop, more than three feet from the orbits, even with 20/20 vision. I prefer any paint job over bare, or only primed, figures.

Anything that gets models painted, and played with in weeks, or months, rather than years, is to be celebrated…

A recent YouTube video lamented that the fellow worked on painting his then-new, GW army for three years! Reminds me of a 3-hour tour, a 3-hour tour, on a small boat, with an eclectic group of tourists, with an inept two-man crew… This guy found that when he finally finished painting his army, it was too late: GW had changed the rules, and his (Finally!) painted army was no longer legal in tournaments. 8-\

I am not a GW gamer, don't care about anything GW. But, I feel his pain.

I'm a hack painter, with 1,200+ painted figures in my collection, all of which I game with, as often as I can. I have <200 figures left to paint, within my collection. I will not spend $100 USD+ on a set of Speed Paints, for <200 figures.

Besides, the Speed Paint figures would look absolutely out of place with the 1,200: totally different style; better looking results -- yes, but with an absolutely glaring contrast in style. This old dog refuses to learn expensive, new tricks, this late in the game. Cheers!

Contrast paints another tool in the paintkit – useful for some things (I find very useful for horses) but not the only tool that's there – for example, I find the contrast whites very disappointing

Gimmicky, gimmicky.

I'm still using Humbrol enamel paints but, what do I know?

The funny thing is, some people actually like the results I get. Tell me the truth, would any of these look better if I'd used contrast paints? BTW. the Italian Wars and SYW flags are also hand painted with enamels.

link

I'm guessing not but, I'm open to new things if they ARE better.

I started to paint figures using oil enamels in 1984. Now I am using both Valleyo Model Colours and Contrasts (all Army Painter Speed Paints + several others). Always first used contrasts to fill as much space as possible and finish with normal paints.

Not for me.

I gave them a whirl and I really like them. However, they have a use and sometimes I don't get the results I like. However, they have made my painting faster and more fun- and they don't stop you from putting in the same amount of detail as you used to- you can still go the extra steps- it's just faster to get the basics in place. They made my painting more enjoyable and less tedious.

However, they are another tool in the tool box- not the only one. I have seem some contrast painting that frankly looks terrible to me. However, it has allowed me to get some really interesting looks as I experiment.

If you haven't used them, give them a whirl, but look up how people use them well and give them an honest try. However, they are not a panacea and don't replace traditional painting techniques.

However, for the average painter, I think they offer a nice way to get more painted minis to the table quickly.

Olicana, your stuff is amazing and you clearly know your stuff. I could duplicate your catapult looks (for both the catapults themselves) in about a minute using contrast paints. So you might want to try it, but if you really love what you do, then don't and don't feel bothered by it. You clearly know what you are doing.

Olicana, not bad, but perhaps you could improve if you used contrast paints,

I'll get my coat!

Tally Ho!

I still use Humbrol Enamels as well but Humbrol are actually stopping producing them and switching instead to Acrylics.

I do also use GW paints but find they dry up within a year even when unopened, and they're not cheap either!

I did briefly look at using some GW contrast paints for some plastic spaceships but they were 4 notes a bottle!!!!

So I stuck with Humbrol for base coat. I do use GW Nuln Oil as a wash and then highlight after.

But heh, I only discovered washes 10 years ago.

Old dog, new tricks 👴🏻🐶 😊

Contrasts sound like something that would be really good in a certain situation. I just didn't fancy delving in to finding out what.

B

…the perfect thread!

Not for me, craft paints all the way.

With my true 15mm goggles on:

The figures and detail are too small for the contrast paints to really showcase what they can do. Robert P hit the nail on the head; I paraphrase, good for large expanses with deep folds (cloaks), but not the be all and end all. John ofm,summed it up nicely as not the one tool to rule them all.

Good, but not the panacea that some would have us believe. Another tool in the painting arsenal.

I've seen a number of videos of people demonstrating how to paint Warlord Epic figures, similar size to my own true 15s. I thought the main selling point was the speed of painting. Is having to use a zenithal undercoat for the supposed slap chop method any quicker than my block paint and wash? Probably very similar times I'd imagine. Are the results that different? I don't think so, for me the limited colour range compared to 'normal' acrylic spoils (in several examples that I have seen) the results of the slap chop figures.

I am also known to dabble in 28mm (In Her Majesty's Name), and contrast would be great for those. But not for my everyday lead mountain.

Horses for courses I suppose. Just not for me and the bulk of my painting.

Agreed. And they work really well on horses.

I've been using acrylic inks for 35 years (mostly FW, one or two Liquitex, recently also abstract(sic)). Contrast paints are just a rebranding of the same thing, with a lot more pre-mixed colors. They are a great tool, but just another in the toolbox. They are not a replacement for paints or even washes or dips.

They work brilliantly for single-coat painting of textures that need lowlight/highlight contrast. I like them most on wood, cloth, flesh, and fur. They also do really well as a base color coat on something like a scaly hide or brigandine armor. They don't work as highlights, and look terrible on large surfaces (because they pool and create whorls and whoops and bubbles where there should be none). Lots of areas on miniatures just need a solid color, so I still use acrylic colors.

I also still use dips and washes. I tried inks and speedpaints on 1/200 and 1/144 aircraft, and hated the results – planes look better with a solid color coat, a very thin wash that settles only into panel lines and vents and rivets, then highlights and weathering over the top. An ink or contrast paint might work on a really small scale tank, but they don't work on my 12mm and up vehicles.

- Ix

olicana said:

The funny thing is, some people actually like the results I get. Tell me the truth, would any of these look better if I'd used contrast paints?

No, I don't think your results would be any better. But they might speed up your projects. You paint so fast already, the drastic speed increase of contrast paints might cause a dangerous heat build-up in your craft room and start a fire. You probably shouldn't try them.

Contrast paints, inks, and speedpaints are what hamfisted simpletons like me use to try to get a bit closer to your results, in less than a month per figure.

- Ix

I have had fantastic results using Contrast Paints for Flesh, both Caucasian and Native American. Both are rather close.
They give great horse colors too.
My only complaint is the absurd names these colors have, and of course the outrageous price.

But uniform coat colors? Frankly, no. They come out too garish.

I tried contrasts when they came out and really found them difficult to get good results with. They seemed to me to be a sort of heavy wash.
I am painting some Shadow ships (Babylon 5) soon and was wondering if I should paint them grey and use Contrast Black over it (the ships have mottles on their castings)?

I have not used actual branded "contrast" paints but I am familiar with the technique and use it when it fits.

I used this basic method in the 2000s to speed paint warhammer units. I would do a monochrome shaded undercoat (either white primer with black wash or black primer / gray drybrush / white highlight) then flood the block areas with the Citadel colored inks I used at the time for washes.

I prefer a warmer undercoat though, usually white with brown wash and usually, thinned paint over that. Still some figures cry out for a heavy pigmented wash, or as I have called it since reading a Duke Seifried article in The Dragon all those years ago, a stain.

I have watched enough videos on mixing your own contrast paints that I am confident I am getting close enough by adding additional thinned media to the high pigment artist colors I already use.