Headshots: Lilith 1

 I've begun painting Lilith next. For her, I'm going with a little softer colouring.

It's been a while since I've painted with a white base, and because of this, I'm using a different technique as far as the flow and order of things goes.

 I began painting Lilith's skin first, which is really pale for someone who spends her time under the burning sun. It's also got a little bit of a grey tint.

Quickly, it became apparent that I can't just start by painting her skin because it's too close to the white base all around it.

I started to paint her hair, which is crazy bold, and it's going to be. But it still wasn't enough, and I thought back to how I used to paint with lighter colours.

 So the next step I took here was to roughly and lightly paint on all the colours I'll be using on her. Think of it like how an artist might sketch their image before committing the time and detail to creating a masterpiece.

I've done the same thing here... and all the paints I'm applying are being thinned with water so they go on like a wash. Some of the benefits of doing things this way are:

• light colours are easy to build on and paint over.
• washing will seep in to crevices, giving you an idea where to shade and highlight.
• You can look at the overall model and get an idea of what the finished product will look like.

Don't worry about the painting being rough. These colours are still light enough to paint over AND, that roughness can add character to the final image if it's the style you're going for. (which I am)

Again, I'm going after a dirtier look, so I created some splatter effects with a darker brown paint, pretty much all over.. though focusing on her clothes.

It looks really messy now, but I'll be covering up a lot of that... sometimes it pays to paint a dirty undercoat, if you use thinner layers later... you'll get a bit of a natural dirt appearance.

Like I said, it's dirty, but it's going to be covered up. Here's her cloak after a bunch of layers of various shades of brown thinned with water. Adding all those extra layers is what makes the appearing more natural.

I started in the darker areas, worked up to the edges with a white highlight, and worked back down to the shadows again. By being inconsistent with where the paint and shades went, and layering it a few times, it just looks more natural.

Part of the reason I went so light on the cloak is that in game, Lilith doesn't actually have a cloak... so I wanted to de-emphasize it by going lighter.

Because I'm using light colours and style, I'm going to postpone washing and cell-shading for when the whole mini is ready. The washing will clean up the transition between shades, and the cell-shading will create a bold edge to emphasize the coloured areas. By doing all the sections at once, it makes it easier to make everything look uniform.


alright, lay it on me!

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With many thanks to MiniWarGaming and their crew for donating the miniatures that are being painted for this project.

Final figures will be auctioned off, all proceeds going to the Childs Play charity during the Headshots from the Heart marathon.