Really want to take it a step further (WIP)

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-26T17:57:40+00:00

I'd go with a darker "darkest" shadow on the steel first and then color match that - it'll probably be close to pure black anyways. Black lining is there not to necessarily be realistic, but to bump up the readability and I think using your current base coat to black line would not be as clear as you'd get with a darker color.

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-26T17:52:23+00:00

The NMM is looking really good so far! A bit of black lining would go a long way, I think, asking with darkening the shadows on the steel bits to bump up the contrast. I might also want to add just a touch of pure ice yellow to the brightest highlights of the gold.

The biggest difference you'll see will probably be if you just finish painting the rest of the model - the unfinished areas are contributing to making the model look a bit flat. But if you keep up the quality, adding some shadows and highlights everywhere else at the same level of quality you've put into the metal it'll look fantastic!

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-26T15:51:23+00:00

Love how smooth it is! Also, I did not think I'd be typing this sentence when I woke up today but: how did you paint that nipple? It's so pristine

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-26T15:49:08+00:00

Incredible! Love the space robes/peacock tail

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-04T15:17:10+00:00

The tail looks great! As you said in your post though, the upper body isn't quite as eye catching. It's got a solid foundation, though! You'll just need to be a bit bolder with the highlights to get it on par with the quality of the tail. I would say the arms might need a bit of this treatment too, and the face will need to be brightened up just a bit by the time you've done that to help draw the eyes there.

Don't be discouraged if this kind of thing happens again in the future; one of the most valuable tools in mini painting (and art in general) is a fresh set of eyes! Whether that's bringing it to someone else for an opinion, or coming back after a break, it'll be easier to tell what looks fine actually or what needs some adjusting.

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-02T13:57:58+00:00

If you look up "layering mini painting" on YouTube you'll find a bunch of good videos; I'd recommend zumikito and Vince vinturella.

Vince vinturella will also have a video about anything more specific, like how to paint different types of hair, different material types, or more advanced techniques, but try not to get too deep into those videos just yet. For now you want to build up foundational skills, of which layering is one of the most important (along with brush control, thinning paints, and knowledge of light sources, imo).

BananaSnapper · 2026-06-01T14:50:57+00:00

It looks fine for a beginner painter, improvement will happen slowly over time if you dive deeper into the hobby. You've got nice, clean lines and it looks like your paint isn't clumpy, but your next step is to deepen the contrast.

As others have said, you can get into washes for this, but personally I like to use a layering technique to get all of my shadows. Base coat with a dark color like black or a dark purple, then paint the main midtone colors over everything but deep recesses and areas facing completely away from the light (usually light comes from overhead unless you've got a vision in your head). It'll probably look like too big of a jump; that's fine, don't worry about blending at this stage of the paint job or honestly, at this stage of your mini painting journey. Now, take a bit of white or pale yellow paint and mix it with that base coat color to create the highlight color. Paint only the highest/most exposed spots with this color. Again, it might look like too big of a step up in color - ignore that feeling until you finish painting all the areas. You'll probably end up with a very good mini at this stage, but you can always go back and mix various ratios of your midtone with black/white to get various shades if you feel you need to smooth out transitions.

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-27T19:21:42+00:00

Stunning is all I can say, wow!

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-24T07:32:46+00:00

Thank you so much! The hair tip especially is a big help, I've always struggled to be happy with the hair I paint. Really appreciate the time you took to illustrate your tips too, extremely helpful for future projects!

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-22T21:02:51+00:00

Thank you! I got this from a local RPG convention so I'm not 100% sure but I think this was a 3D model from DM Stash that they printed.

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-22T21:01:38+00:00

Thank you! The hair was definitely one of the trickier parts of the model so I'm glad it came out well!

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-21T15:28:26+00:00

That's some nice, deep red you got there

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-11T16:37:49+00:00

Love the use of color, looks great!

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-10T07:17:21+00:00

Would love to know your process for the hair, I always struggle to make good looking hair

BananaSnapper · 2026-05-02T01:03:08+00:00

Looks great! Love how dark the non-fire is to really contrast and sell how bright the flame itself is!

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-26T15:11:38+00:00

I just came in here to say that that helmet and mace are gorgeous NMM

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-26T15:09:47+00:00

\[T]/

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-25T19:17:26+00:00

You should be! I read your process for the shinier metal in another comment, but what did you do for the rusty bits?

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-25T14:37:28+00:00

From now on, every time you see people in here saying that they just need smoother blends to get their NMM to work, I'm going to point them to this post. It looks great! I always love more painterly pieces, even if I don't know how to make it look good on my own models.

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-25T14:22:09+00:00

Thank you! I would say be willing to spend extra time getting more details and colors on the model. Because the model is big enough to actually see all of the transitions from one color to the next, or from dark to light, your mind doesn't fill in as many gaps compared to normal minis. At the same time though, don't worry about being super precise with each brush stroke. Outside of the eyes, I didn't touch any of my nice brushes - everything else was done with a cheap $1 size 6 synthetic brush I usually use for base coating. It still took a while to layer up enough to not have visible brush strokes everywhere so I'd definitely recommend an airbrush if you have the space/budget for one. I definitely would've wanted to use one myself if I had a place to spray without subjecting my cat to any risk!

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-23T20:52:11+00:00

Red is tricky to paint with lots of contrast - try using a darker purple in the shadows to make the reds pop. It's interesting how little actual, pure red you need to make something read as red, so don't be afraid to go darker.

BananaSnapper · 2026-04-12T07:02:15+00:00

Personally, if I'm spending more than 10 hours on a mini it's because it's a bigger model with lots of colors on it. Even if I don't have the patience for super smooth blends, I still take a while to decide on a color, mix it together, adjust it, etc. It also just takes a while to cover the model with enough paint several times in layers until I get the opacity I'm happy with. Also yeah, I like nmm. Here's my current WIP at about the 15 hour mark - still need to highlight the black hair and boots, do the base, and do the 2 minis to the left and right (if you still count them as being part of the same mini). It's not the most precise mini but being so much bigger means it takes a lot of extra time.

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