Airbrushing
11:10 PM Posted In Art Edit This 0 Comments »
I was recently asked to airbrush a piece of metal for a friend, and I'm really excited about it. My compressor is a couple of hours away at the moment, but I can't wait to get it back and start arting it up again. :)
It's been a while since I could pull out my airbrush and really get into anything, but I used to have a dream. I wanted to airbrush motorcycles. Like most of the hobbies belonging to an attention deficit chica, this one fell into the background after several months of passionate studying and practicing. The love for it never went away, though, and it's going to be great to pick it back up again, even if just for a little while.
Airbrushing on metal is a bit different from airbrushing on papers/canvas/posters/t-shirts. The first obvious difference is the kinds of paint. The second would probably be that one doesn't usually need to prime t-shirt material. Then there's the issue of sanding, which also doesn't come up all that often otherwise. Clear coating between layers becomes an option, well, really clear coating in general. Plus, with what and how you paint is affected by what the metal is going to be exposed to, as well (is it going to get really hot? is it going to get wet everyday? etc.). Okay, so it's really different! It's also really exciting, and an art form that's hard to match.
I say that about most art forms. :p
If I had to pick just one book to absorb a good intro on airbrushing metals specifically, it'd be Craig Fraser's Cheap Tricks and Special F/X. I'm not getting paid to say that, by the way (but wouldn't it be nice if I was? Heh). I picked it up in high school when I was first getting interested in painting bikes and helmets, and just opening it inspires me to this day. It explains the basics and walks you through several full paintings on different surfaces. While just copying him probably isn't what you should take away from it, the techniques you learn can be applied to any number of projects of your own and are just really inspirational. The way you go about airbrushing is just so different from any other form of painting, and the step-by-step pictures help give you a feel for how to layer what you want, and how not to stop before it's perfect.
That's probably my biggest problem with any art piece - wanting to stop before it's really done. You see how great something looks, and you're so proud of it that you don't want to risk screwing it up by adding the final touches, but in airbrushing, that's what really makes a piece POP.
Okay, enough babbling out of me. I'll include some pictures, techniques, and advice once I get the project really moving. :) See you later!
-MM
It's been a while since I could pull out my airbrush and really get into anything, but I used to have a dream. I wanted to airbrush motorcycles. Like most of the hobbies belonging to an attention deficit chica, this one fell into the background after several months of passionate studying and practicing. The love for it never went away, though, and it's going to be great to pick it back up again, even if just for a little while.
Airbrushing on metal is a bit different from airbrushing on papers/canvas/posters/t-shirts. The first obvious difference is the kinds of paint. The second would probably be that one doesn't usually need to prime t-shirt material. Then there's the issue of sanding, which also doesn't come up all that often otherwise. Clear coating between layers becomes an option, well, really clear coating in general. Plus, with what and how you paint is affected by what the metal is going to be exposed to, as well (is it going to get really hot? is it going to get wet everyday? etc.). Okay, so it's really different! It's also really exciting, and an art form that's hard to match.
I say that about most art forms. :p
If I had to pick just one book to absorb a good intro on airbrushing metals specifically, it'd be Craig Fraser's Cheap Tricks and Special F/X. I'm not getting paid to say that, by the way (but wouldn't it be nice if I was? Heh). I picked it up in high school when I was first getting interested in painting bikes and helmets, and just opening it inspires me to this day. It explains the basics and walks you through several full paintings on different surfaces. While just copying him probably isn't what you should take away from it, the techniques you learn can be applied to any number of projects of your own and are just really inspirational. The way you go about airbrushing is just so different from any other form of painting, and the step-by-step pictures help give you a feel for how to layer what you want, and how not to stop before it's perfect.
That's probably my biggest problem with any art piece - wanting to stop before it's really done. You see how great something looks, and you're so proud of it that you don't want to risk screwing it up by adding the final touches, but in airbrushing, that's what really makes a piece POP.
Okay, enough babbling out of me. I'll include some pictures, techniques, and advice once I get the project really moving. :) See you later!
-MM
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