This is the paints and primers you need to do this: A black primer (I use Vallejo’s Black Surface Primer) A light gray paint (I use Vallejo’s Model Air Light Gray) A white paint (I use Vallejo’s Game Air Dead White) An airbrush (similar results can be achieved with spray cans, it is just a lot easier with an airbrush) Priming and the color you choose is especially important with Contrast Paints. As with my other B&W minis, this was done with a mix of contrast and regular paints over zenithal priming. The black is just pure contrast, no medium. In the attached images I did two tests with the three Contrast paints I had available. This means that for the majority of the game, you are looking at the miniatures from above. Mar 17, 2018 - Painting 201: Zenithal Priming, or how to shade & highlight like a BOSS | POWERFISTED Hair was diluted Gryph Charger gray (this has a green/blue tint but made it stand out a little from the skin). I don't consider myself an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but hope to share what I know about the topic with those folks in the same boat as me. I do this step mostly completly wet in wet, that means i … Zenithal highlighting is a key component in many speed painting techniques. Maybe not at all. When painting miniatures, contrast is the most important aspect to get right. With this method you prime or paint the entire figure black. If you are doing stormtroopers, prime, off white coat to cover primer texture, zenithal with white, plaint black areas german grey, use wash sparing on recessed areas and black areas, paint gun, done. So your answer is really dependant on your paint … Once dried, a lighter color like gray or white is added from the top, or zenith. Zenithal Priming. In this video, Jay tries the New Contrast Paints over a zenithal priming. Mechanus grey and corax white zenithal base. The matte varnish layer is pretty transformative actually, finishes on unvarnished models using contrast paint have generally displayed as satin or semi-gloss. Zenithal priming serves three functions, to act a guide for where highlights and shadows should be placed, to give a light platform for bright colors while leaving recesses dark, and to provide starting highlights and shadows for techniques that use thinner (or more transparent) paint than normal.. You can see the basecoat of black, followed by the zenithal of white. On rebel troopers, well the zenithal is going to be more of a guide since all of that will get painted over with some many different colors. Zenithal highlighting on models can be a huge and somewhat complex topic and it's with some reservation that I'm posting this whole "tutorial." Zenithals. I mean, if you’re cash strapped or lazy you can get away with using 2 colors, but 3 gets best results. I'll definitely give these suggestions a go though. More miniature-painting goodness: Citadel shades and washes, zenithal primes, and Etherfields. Either prime black and then add a dusting of grey/white for "light sourcing" or prime grey and apply small amounts of black to the shaded areas (only really works by airbrush) and the "auto-shading" effect of the Contrast … I had good luck with it on stormtroopers. Zenithal, meaning “located at or near the zenith”, is all about painting from above. Unlike ‘regular’ miniature paints, Citadel Contrast Paints are paints designed specifically for new painters or people who want to get their tabletop models and miniatures painted quickly. Watching a few videos, some say to prime with the white directly from top, other at a 45 degree angle, then 45 degrees from top AND down, or even … The new Citadel contrast range of paints are a pleasure to work with, and are now my “go to” paints when dealing with any rank and file troops, you simply cannot bear an average of 5-10 minutes per figure and will result in many boxes of minis actually … Ive already seen several tutorials but one topic stays unclear. So, the stages go as follows: (i) Preshading Take the model, prime it black (I use Vallejo Black Primer through an airbrush). I mean, if you’re cash strapped or lazy you can get away with using 2 colors, but 3 gets best results. A zenithal shade does a lot of work under semi-transparent paints and inks. Zenithal highlighting when priming is to use the lighter color more on areas that would be exposed to the light, and more of the darker primer on shaded or recessed areas. Saved by Mattmann. 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