Eventually, I would get a part-time job at GW, and with it, there were certain expectations. Aside from the fact that you were not allowed to play with unpainted models there, being an employee, I felt I needed to up my abilities to be worthy of the GW-staff mantle. So, I asked my co-workers for advice on how I could improve my skills. They gave me what was very obvious and basic advice, but at the time, they were things I didn't even think about doing.
Increase your colour palette. Use a palette! Add some water to your paint. Hold your wrists together so you don't shake. Lick your brush to keep the point (most people still don't like to do this one, but I do it religiously). Simple concepts, but they started me on the road to becoming a decent painter.
There was just one problem: I didn't care about painting that much. But as I mentioned before, you couldn't play with unpainted models. So, I started painting faster. I still used the advice I was given. But I just painted as fast as I could, and kept everything in the lines. Over time, I started becoming pretty good at the whole speed painting thing. Depending on the type of model, let's say ones with lots of ridges and mainly metallic robot guys, I could even drybrush the majority of it. If I primed my models black, it could hide uneven coats of paint. I painted a whole Eldar army in one day so I could play in an event the next day. It was crazy.
I honed my skills over time, improving over the course of a decade to the point where my models looked pretty good. Then, I met some guys at my local game store, the Friendly Troll. There were two new guys that came: Alan and Brandon, and some existing people Andrew and Thomas. They were all excellent painters. They taught me the concept of how to blend and use more subtle highlights. I even tried to slow down my painting to try and do a "great job" instead of my regular "good job." However, I noticed I just wasn't at the skill level to see any sort of improvement when I slowed down, so I went back to speed painting my things.
But more time has passed. Another 3 or 4 years or so. My models still aren't going to win any awards. However, I see noticeable improvement over the models I painted even just 3-4 years ago. A lot has changed in the industry. Paints seem to have an overall better quality. GW shades (aka: "Liquid Talent" as Andrew calls it) literally upgrade a paint job a level. Bad becomes decent. Decent becomes good, etc. Paints are actually cheaper in real dollars. When I started about 20 years ago, GW paints used to be $4.00. Today, they are still $4.00. That means they are actually half as expensive as they used to be if you consider inflation! Best of all, since the Internet exists, people are able to exchange ideas. Even if it's not about painting directly, just being with other miniature gamers is bound to expose you to painters and sweet paint jobs.
All I know is, when I got Dust into this hobby, I taught him some very basic lessons on how to paint. It was information I was never given for a good 7 years or so. And guess what? Right off the bat, Dust's models looked way better than my first 7 years of painted models ever looked. Everyone is right: knowing is half the battle!
So, while I still have things I can improve on, I am happy with how my models turn out these days. I don't use black primer anymore. I certainly don't drybrush anymore. And I'm even more happy knowing that I belong to an elite few who are able to paint up some pretty sweet looking models in a very short time. That Chisel model pictured above? I don't know how long it took me to paint it. All I know is, I assembled, cleaned, primed, waited for primer to dry, and painted the whole thing in less than an hour and a half!
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the hobby, whatever way you see fit. But I wanted to thank all the people who helped me along the way to get me to the point where I am today. I am always improving, and a lot of it has to do with those who have given me advice. And for those who want some advice from me, feel free to ask! :)
-the aY
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