How to pixel paint...
What you need -
After you've downloaded Paint.net open a picture you want to pixel paint on it -
What you need -
- Paint.net software which you can download here for free.
- Acrylic paint - I use Black, Phthalo blue, Burnt Sienna, Violet and White (lots and lots of white).
- Paint brushes - I use 0/5 Humbrol brushes which I then have to trim down because they're still too big
- Graph paper with a 1mm grid and at least 115gsm thickness or canvas boards.
- Ruler with 1/10th of an inch markings on.
- Pencil (Mechanical are the best).
- One small pot with lid and one medium tub with lid (to store mix paint).
After you've downloaded Paint.net open a picture you want to pixel paint on it -
Change the settings so the image is in pixels rather than cms or inches and then crop the picture to how you want it. Then resize the image to the size of your canvas (1mm = 1 pixel on graph paper or 1/10th of an inch = 1 pixel), so if it's on an A4 graph paper pad then the image should be 280x180 pixels in size which you can see in the bottom right hand corner.
When the image is the right size you need to use 3 things from the Adjustments settings - 1st, click Black and White to greyscale it. 2nd, mess around with the Levels until you're happy with the image (you can darken the hair this way which is sometimes a bugger to pixel paint). 3rd, Posterize it...whatever number you choose equals how many colours you'll need to mix...16 looks great but it's really hard to mix 16 colours. 13 is the most I've ever done but I usually stick with 11. If you're just starting out I'd do 2,3,4 colours and then move onto more when you're ready.
Now you've sorted your pic out, it should look like this -
When the image is the right size you need to use 3 things from the Adjustments settings - 1st, click Black and White to greyscale it. 2nd, mess around with the Levels until you're happy with the image (you can darken the hair this way which is sometimes a bugger to pixel paint). 3rd, Posterize it...whatever number you choose equals how many colours you'll need to mix...16 looks great but it's really hard to mix 16 colours. 13 is the most I've ever done but I usually stick with 11. If you're just starting out I'd do 2,3,4 colours and then move onto more when you're ready.
Now you've sorted your pic out, it should look like this -
This is for an A5 Norman Reedus pic I did in blue. It's 11 colours and 140x180 in size.
Click the grid on, zoom in and then you're ready to start drawing on the darkest colour...like this -
Click the grid on, zoom in and then you're ready to start drawing on the darkest colour...like this -
Then paint it with the base colour...I did it in Phthalo blue -
Then get a small pot and squirt a good amount of base paint inside and then half the amount of white paint. Mix it up. You've now got colour number 2. Sometimes I mix all the paints I need at once and scoop out a dollop of each mix and place it inside another bigger plastic tub with a secure lid, like this -
Okay, that's violet, but you get the gist. Repeat until you have as many colours as you need. Then from your pic on paint.net, zoomed in 2400% or 3600% continue painting. It's a bit like doing your own paint-by-numbers.
And then it's done. You can do the same on canvas board but you have to draw in your own grid and the pixels are bigger.