Airbrush Technique
Airbrush Technique: Free Handing Basics
Airbrush technique, sometimes called free hand airbrushing, is imperative to master if you are to excel at airbrushing. Even with masks, and stencils, you've still got to be able to free hand. As you can see in This Demo .
The secret to airbrushing free hand comes down to 2 rules. (for a double action airbrush)
- Always start with air only and end with air only. OR air on first, air off last. NEVER should you start with both paint and air at the same time, and NEVER should you end a stroke by letting both air and paint off at the same time.
- Never start spraying with the airbrush still or stationary, unless you are trying to paint a dot or "hot spot". Keep the airbrush moving at all times.
Your goal is to get that sharp tip at the beginning and end of your airbrush stroke. This is called a dagger stroke . It is the bread and butter of all accomplished airbrushing. Once you learn that, you have the fundamental principle mastered.
Airbrush Technique: Spraying a Fade
One other effect is the fade. A fade is just a field of sprayed paint that goes from lighter to darker or from one color to another or both. You spray a fade by starting at one end and covering the surface with a series of passes overlapping about 50%. Be careful as you do this to run the airbrush all the way past (off) the edges so you do not get paint build up on the edges. Follow with a second coat only just spray 1/2 way down the color field, then repeat as many times as desired from the top overlapping 50% with each pass and steadily decrease the area covered .
If this technique is done correctly you should finish by spraying only one or two passes at the top and the over all effect should be a fade from dark to light, top to bottom.
Airbrush Technique: Other Important Factors
The other factors that are key to airbrushing are:
- The psi vs. the paint consistency or viscosity you are working with. Too little psi is bad as well as too much. experiment with different air pressures until the paint begins to spray with the slightest rocking back of the trigger. This part of airbrushing technique is important because you must know when the paint is going to begin spraying so you can start and stop your stroke exactly where you want.
- The distance from the substrate.
- The amount of paint you spray. Generally speaking, the more you pull back the trigger, the greater the distance you should be from the surface you are spraying. This is particularly important when working with urethanes since you can get "solvent burn" if you are too close with too much paint and air pressure.
Airbrush Technique: Reducer Tricks
This section pertains primarily to airbrushing with urethanes.
- If you want to paint with really fine lines, then you should use a slow reducer. A slow reducer will keep the paint from drying on the tip of the airbrush needle which means way less clogs.
- For all other spraying I use medium reducer. Your shop temperature has a lot to do with what reducer you use as well. But all of that information is on the tech sheets for the particular products you are using.
To see other airbrushing techniques go here
Learn more about Airbrush Technique with these great resources
Watch me airbrush and demonstrate these techniques
Live Fire with Anh Pham - DVD | |
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Watch as Anh Pham turns a stock bike into a show piece. Pham demonstrates the various painted shapes, stencils, and freehand airbrush strokes used to make photo-realistic fire effects. He also demonstrates how to incorporate skull stencils and set them on fire, too. |
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An hour of the best realistic fire airbrush training you'll ever get on a DVD. You'll be there from scuff to multiple color layers including kandy and clear.