Painting: is it skill based or effort based?

[OnTheBranchline]

My question is, is something like painting you have to have the starting talent for or can people become a good painter by simply working at it?

 

Also, how long does it take you to realize that you are good or bad at painting?

['CHARD]

Are we talking about painting like Coach does, or in the style of an entirely different 'Old Master?'

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

 If we are talking about painting models to represent a livery or finish, all of it learnable. But the difference between a competent and blindingly good result does rest with the 'eye' and 'hand'; and some folks can acquire this higher skill with more or less practice depending on innate ability, and others - frankly - cannot. (I am in the 'cannot' category, mechanically competent at getting the wet coloured stuff into position adequately.)

...Also, how long does it take you to realize that you are good or bad at painting?

 And how critical are you? I have seen paint jobs that appeared to have been done in a sandstorm by someone in a blindfold. And the perpetrator was flat out delighted...

[7013]

I studied art, the painting of still life, portraits, landscapes etc. However that did not really help me a great deal when it came to painting locos or wagons. There are various technical aspects to that kind of modelling which can be learned to a certain extent. The old adage practice makes perfect springs to mind, you may not become perfect but practice will help you to learn about the medium you choose. Painting buildings with Acrylic or Enamel is a good way to learn before you tackle a loco, it will help you to work out dilutions, the characteristics of how it goes on, and how it looks after drying. If you want to airbrush there is a lot of help on this site or online. 

Weathering is one of the more free form types of painting in our hobby because it is difficult to do it wrong. If you start with powders it is easy to build up an effect quickly, if you do not like it, wipe or wash it off and start again. Using paint has a few basic rules which are worth following:-

1) Practice on something that is not important

2) Get to know the texture and nature of your brushes

3) If using and airbrush see (1) but also make sure you learn about the technical aspects of using one  (there aren't many)

4) Take your time and be patient, it is better to build up layers or effects than go for the full effect in one go

5) Enjoy your efforts, it is surprising how many people praise your work even if you feel you could have done better, we all experience that feeling from time to time.

Post a few photos on this site and ask people for opinions and/or help. There is a wealth of experience accessible on this site and railway modellers tend to be a helpful lot.

[griffgriff]

IMHO the answer to your question is both. Skill takes practise and practise takes effort.

 

Additionally preparing for a spraying session requires a great deal of care (nothing too taxing but you have to be thorough); the work piece has to be immaculately clean and dry, the paint well mixed and the spraying environment safe and free from dust etc.  Masking takes time, the painting itself needs careful attention and once everything is done there's the cleaning (and maintenance of the airbrush itself).  

 

I suppose I'm suggesting that providing you are prepared to do the 'yaka' spraying is within reach of anyone but there is no doubting the more you do the better you are and I'd call that skill.

 

 

EDIT

 

Added a key word: Immaculately 

[AngryMeerkat]

As a painter of some 15 years I can say 100% that anything to do with painting is entirely within the capabilities of ANYONE. I've been lucky enough to work on everything from normal cars, show winning cars, in the Aston Martin factory, superyachts, aircraft, and my current job working in the aerospace/military sector. None of this 'came naturally' to me, it all had to be learned through theory and practical training, but nothing beats actually getting your hands on some paint and a spray gun/airbrush and actually playing about.

 

Another common thing people often get wrong, and something I often shout from the rooftops - THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG WAY TO PAINT SOMETHING. There are many different ways to get paint onto a surface, and when done by the right person each method will be just as 'right' as any other method. For example in my current job we have certain specs to meet, mainly paint thickness. A project I worked on last week had a paint tolerance of 4 microns, or 0.004mm, which is roughly 1/4 of a coat of paint. That's a VERY tight tolerance between the thickest area of paint and the thinnest area of paint, especially when the total thickness could not exceed 21 microns or 0.021mm including primer!! My method was to hold the spray gun further away from the object, keeping the paint atomisation and pressure the same but allowing less to land on the object. My other sprayer turned the air pressure and paint flow down and sprayed closer to the object. We were both smack in the middle of the tolerance range first go, but used very different methods.

 

So in short, yes painting is a skill, but it's most certainly not a skill you are born with. The more you do the faster you learn and the better you get.

 

Unfortunately this is a subject I could go on about for a LONG time, getting right down to atomic level, so il stop now before you all fall asleep!!

 

Mark

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

Aft'noon all,

 

Good painting is down to recognising which technique, which paint (inc. how to prepare it and all surfaces properly) and which brush to use in order to recreate a given finish. In order to be able to deal with each situation appropriately one has to be sufficiently experienced at each stage. Natural flair, touch and having the 'eye' for such situations helps but determined practice and repetition will get you there too.

 

Dave   

[Edge]

It takes both skill and effort. But effort cannot be learnt.

 

My earliest Warhammer models were laughably bad. In some places it looked as though I had applied the paint with a spatula. But I carried on, and persevered. Now, I'm never going to win awards for my painting, but it all passes muster, and that's good enough for me.

 

Start small, and don't get disheartened.

 

Another tip: invest in the right stuff. Get good quality brushes and paint: cutting corners on this will do you no good at all.

[Steven B]

Put the effort in to practice and your skill levels will increase.

 

That said, there are some people who have a natural ability for some things. No matter how much practice I did I'll never play lead violin at the Last Night of the Proms or run the 100m in less than 10 seconds!

 

Happy modelling.

 

Steven B.