LEATHER & INTENSE SHADOW COLORS

The brown almost every model needs

In the package are Burnt Umber, Raw Umber, Earth Brown, Dark Earth, Sepia and Pure Black. It is a selection built around umber, that is the pigment with a centuries-long history in painting, used in modeling in exactly the same way: on leather, wood, earth and on a shadow that is not meant to be cold.

Leather, straps and gear

A military belt, a pouch, a saddle, boots or a pistol holster have a surface whose color varies from almost black to a faded brown according to age and care. Anyone who paints all the gear in one tone robs a figure of a great part of its expression. Here there is material for a smooth scale: burnt umber as the base, sepia for a saturated shadow, earth brown for scuffs and worn places.

Shadows without gray

Adding black to a color means taking its life away. Brown pigments, by contrast, deepen a shadow and leave the color breathing. It works best in a thin glaze applied into the joints and under overhangs, where it settles by itself. Raw umber has a cooler cast than burnt, so the pair covers both positions.

Overview of the set

• Burnt Umber and Raw Umber as the warm and the cooler umber
• Earth Brown and Dark Earth for earth and dusty surfaces
• Sepia for a saturated brown shadow
• Pure Black for the deepest places, shared with the black and white set of the line

It pays to mix brown tones as you go and in small amounts, because one extra drop of umber is enough to shift the shade more than one would expect. Rather let the remainder on the palette dry out than top it up.