Novice Watercolor Pigment Selection Guide (Dry Goods)

After writing the Guide to Choosing Watercolor Pens for Beginners, I have always wanted to write another Guide to Choosing Watercolor Pigments, but because watercolor pigments are much more complicated and difficult to explain clearly, I have no way to start. I study watercolor paints several times more than watercolor pens.

In this article for watercolor beginners, I hope to write out the essence of hundreds of videos and articles I have watched in recent months, and of course, attach my direct experience. I hope I can help my friends who just started watercolor painting in into the pit to avoid detours, spend less time, energy and money on choosing watercolor pigments, and spend the time saved on improving painting skills.

At present, the more popular watercolor pigments on the market are probably the following brands: domestic Mali, Sakura, Windsor Newton, Rubens (domestic), Lucas, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Mei Jie Le, White Night, New Korea, Caobu, Meilan Hummingbird, Shennier, daniel smith (ds for short), holbein, Smink, MG, Auspicious Chae Yeon and Phoenix Chae Yeon.

None of the above pigments is unique, indicating that they have their own characteristics and audiences. Every painter has his own favorite brand.

The cheapest watercolor pigments are tens of yuan a box, usually around 100 yuan, and the best ones cost more than several thousand yuan. How to choose depends on which parameters are very particular.

Of course, people who are not short of money can buy all these pigments home. I saw on the Mile Mile that UP owners with hamster disease bought all the popular pigments on the market, and all of them bought full-color brands. Except for drawing color cards, almost all pigments have not been used. These pigments are estimated to be inexhaustible for dozens of lives, which is really a waste.

So in the end, whether you want to paint or become a painter, think clearly before you start!

Next, I will explain it from six parts: the classification of watercolor, the characteristics of pigments, the characteristics of popular brands, my introduction to watercolor pigments, and the guide to watercolor pigments recommended to novices.

The whole article is a bit long, so I can only read the first part and the last part. But if you have the patience to read it, you will have a more comprehensive understanding of watercolor pigments!

1. Price range division

Taking the configuration of 24-color solid watercolor as an example, I divide the mainstream watercolors on the market into three grades:

Low grade pigment

The first gear is cheap entry level, and the price range is from tens of yuan to 130 yuan. The main brands are domestic horsepower, Japanese Terrence cherry blossom, Taiwan Province lion and domestic Windsor Newton.

Why 130 yuan? Because that's the price I paid for 24 cherry blossoms with fixed colors. To tell the truth, this box of cherry blossom watercolors is really expensive. I don't feel 100 yuan, and the performance is not much better than dozens of pieces. But somehow, everyone came from into the pit, KINOMOTO SAKURA, probably because of the good marketing, focusing on entry-level watercolor pigments.

In fact, these pigments can be painted for children at will. If you want to paint watercolors seriously, don't choose this level.

Intermediate pigment

There are many pigments of this grade, such as Van Gogh and Rembrandt in the Netherlands, Newton College-level poems in Windsor, England, Rubens made in China, White Night in Russia, Machiler in South Korea, and Caobu in Japan. The price is below 150 to 400, mostly in the form of two or three hundred.

Beginners are advised to choose from this pigment, and don't be superstitious about any entry-level cherry blossoms.

Advanced pigment

From more than 400 yuan to thousands of yuan, the mainstream has German Schminke, Japanese holbein, American daniel smith and MG, French Shennihele and Italian Meilan Hummingbird.

Smenk's college-level 24-color solid color treasure is around 420 yuan, and its cost performance is OK. Beginners can also try. Other watercolors are really not cheap.

MG artist 15ml tube color is more than 60 yuan, and 24 colors are more than 1500 yuan, plus the cost of various pens and papers as consumables and other painting tools, and it takes years of honing to improve painting skills. Long-term investment is really a modest expense!

(I didn't know until I entered the painting pit that in addition to watercolor, there are various materials such as colored lead, markers and oil paintings. )

Hum, painting is really unfriendly to the poor! Of course, rich people are still free. Buy high-grade pigments, paper and pens as much as you can, especially paper! Good painting materials can help you alleviate the blow when you are learning painting.

2.？ Transparent watercolor, translucent watercolor, opaque watercolor.

We generally say that watercolor mainly refers to transparent watercolor. Pigment is transparent after adding water, and the depth (lightness) of color is controlled by adding water.

In addition to transparent watercolors, translucent colors are also very popular, used to paint ancient styles. Translucent watercolor has bright colors and some characteristics of transparent watercolor.

However, because it is translucent and the particles are relatively large, it is easy to get dirty when three or more colors are mixed together. But I haven't tried antique myself, so I don't comment much.

Opaque watercolor has the same covering as gouache (gouache is cheaper and rougher), and is generally used in landscape painting, with beautiful colors. Many background colors of animation are depicted in opaque watercolors. Miyazaki Hayao animation scene uses the opaque watercolor of Nicole brand, which is similar to the following effects:

Does it feel completely different to compare transparent watercolors? White paper can also show a white background under the cover of transparent watercolor.

Most brands in the market are mainly transparent watercolors, and some brands also have opaque watercolors. Don't make a mistake when buying.

3. University level and artist level

Most brands are divided into college level and artist level. The university level is used by students to practice, and the price is cheaper than the artist level.

In terms of performance, the junior college level is definitely worse than that of artists. However, some specific parameters are not introduced here, so I won't explain them. In this way, the expressive force and preservation of the artist level will be better.

In addition, the names of some brands are different between the university level and the artist level. For example, the college level of Windsor Newton is called Govin, and the artist level is imported Windsor Newton artist level; Magellan's gold costume is an artist's course, and silver costume is a college course. People who are not familiar with it are prone to make mistakes.

It is said that it is difficult for novices to tell the difference between the two when they use their hands. In this case, it is enough to choose some brands of junior college level to practice.

4. Manage and care for vegetables

When I was a child, I used Mali tubular pigments in my art class, so when I first started to learn watercolor, I felt very fresh when I first came into contact with three-dimensional watercolor. Pigment is very small, just like sugar, very beautiful and useful.

I draw with a wet pen. At first, I was afraid of getting dirty, and I had to wipe off other colors on the surface every time I finished painting. In fact, solid color is a highly concentrated pigment, even if the surface is dirty, it will not affect the use of the color behind.

Most brands are tubular and solid, and most of them are solid colors. I think this is because solid color is more convenient to carry and use than tube color and has a wider audience. However, MG only has tube color, DS has tube color but no fixed color, only watercolor pen.

In addition, although the pigment used for tube color and solid color is the same, the properties will be slightly different because of different manufacturing processes. For example, tubular pigments in holbein are not as dispersed as solid colors. The tube color of DS is easy to dry after extrusion and not easy to get. After deciding which brand to buy, it is best to check the characteristics of Guan Cai and Gu Cai first.

Beginners always start with small paintings, so the size below 16K (about A4 paper size) can be fixed by color. Only when the picture frame is large, it is more convenient to use tubular pigments.

The above are some basic points that should be paid attention to when choosing watercolor pigments. If you pay good attention to them, you won't make mistakes in the general direction.

Next, let's talk about some characteristics of watercolor pigments in detail. When choosing watercolor pigments, I once squinted at the videos of many brands of watercolor pigments tested on the miles and miles, and constantly made comparative screening. I really appreciate the selfless dedication of some local tyrants.

To sum up, through the dynamic display of UP owner, we can see the following characteristics of pigments:

1. saturation, that is, the brightness of the color.

2. Transparency, some pigment particles are big and heavy, and the transparency is low.

3. Diffusibility, that is, the effect of wet coating. Spread a layer of water on the paper first, and then apply it when the water is still wet. Pigments with good diffusivity disperse in water. This painting method is generally suitable for rendering the background atmosphere.

4. Watermark is the reverse of wet painting. Paint the paper first, and then drop the water immediately. Pigment will be washed away when it meets water, forming a beautiful splash and creating a special texture effect.

5. Mixed colors, the difference of pigments with different prices in this item will be obvious. Mixed color is also an important effect that watercolor needs to present.

The effect of watercolor on paper can basically be seen from the above test. I think saturation, transparency and color mixing are more important for beginners to draw simple small pictures. As for diffusibility and watermarking, although it looks good when tested, it is generally not used by novices.

Unless, at first, you decide to draw a large area of smudge (which needs diffusion and color mixing) and the effect of water mark, as shown below.

So here are the test results after I bought some pigments myself and repackaged them. Please feel free to have a look, for reference only.

It can be seen that the effect of color matching with cheap pigments is relatively poor. Cherry blossoms, in particular, are dirty and have no clear feeling. Master Smenk has a heavy watermark, which is difficult for beginners to control.

PS。 This test can't completely and strictly reflect the condition of pigments, because there are too many variables to be controlled, such as environment, moisture, time, paper and so on.

Thank you for your patience to see the little friends here. Next, I want to say something more professional. In fact, it's not so mysterious, just the logo on the official manual of watercolor paint you bought. Take Master Shi Ming as an example:)

1. Pigment grade. Pigment Pigment generally comes from metal, organic matter or synthesis. The more difficult the color is to extract, the higher the grade and the higher the price. Smenk's pigment grade is represented by circled Arabic numerals.

2. Transparency: represented by a square, divided into transparent, translucent, translucent and opaque.

3. Dyeing degree: represented by triangle. You can try to get rid of watercolors when they are wet. The higher the dyeing degree, the easier it is to stick to the paper and the harder it is to wipe.

4. Light resistance: Light resistance is indicated by stars. The more stars, the more stable the pigment and the better the light resistance. For artists, of course, they hope that their works can be preserved for a long time and choose stable pigments with good light resistance.

5. Pigment composition: The colors of some cheap pigments are not extracted from a single pigment, but are synthesized. It is conceivable that the stability and color mixing effect of synthetic pigments are poor. The better the brand, the more single pigment.

6. English name and number: Most of the high-quality pigments we are in contact with now come from abroad, so it is recommended to pay attention to their official English names, because the translated Chinese is prone to errors or inconsistencies. In addition, English names can also reflect the characteristics of pigments from one side. For example, many pigments bear the names of metals or organic substances, or the word hue stands for synthetic pigments. Each pigment has a unique English name and number, and you can recognize it wherever you go in the world.

I have focused on Smenk, but I think the logos of other brands of pigments should be similar. When your painting skills become more and more mature, you can choose your own color scheme according to these attributes to form a unique style.

MG: Anyway, everyone I heard said yes, and I like every color. But what's so good about it? I don't remember much. Excuse me! I think it may be the top performance in all aspects.

Beautiful blue hummingbird: highly recommended by a flower painter. It is characterized by excellent diffusibility (perhaps the best), bright and clear colors, and beautiful warm colors and blue colors.

DS: The overall performance should be as good as that of MG, and then there are several famous mineral colors. The main idea is to directly grind the gem into powder. What a local tyrant! Rich and varied precipitation colors. Of course, novices must be difficult to control.

Shen Nehlil: The color is brighter, the others are unclear, and fewer people use it.

Holbein: Look at the Internet. Some people say it's small and fresh, others say it's gorgeous. I think it's probably in the middle. Let's see what it compares with. Then there are other pigments with better comprehensive performance.

Smenk: The legendary high-grade ash, the things made by the Germans are as calm and elegant as their personality.

Mei Jie Le: It is said that it should be the most beautiful, even more beautiful than Van Gogh, who is famous for his bright colors.

Windsor Newton: The British made it small, fresh and elegant in color. College-level song writing series, suitable for beginners.

Van Gogh: There are many favorable comments on the Internet. The price is moderate and the color is bright. Generally speaking, it is a very suitable one for beginners.

White night: I see that many students' party's first box of paint is white night. Advantages are large size, cheap price and bright color, while disadvantages are rough workmanship.

Rubens: A little pride made in China. The new generation of colors are fresh and beautiful, and all aspects are not bad. Beginners can try.

Lucas and Rembrandt: Older pigments are not used by many people now, and their comprehensive performance should be ok.

I feel that the obvious difference between pigments is whether the color is small, fresh and elegant or lively and beautiful, and each has its own suitable style.

Van Gogh and Mattel in South Korea are brightly colored and suitable for drawing exaggerated cartoons, character illustrations and food illustrations. Elegant Windsor Newton is suitable for literary style; If you paint realistic style, you should still use some old European and American watercolor pigments. For example, Smenk needs to paint large-scale works on a large area. Therefore, to test the comprehensive ability of pigments, it is best to choose better pigments, such as Meilan Hummingbird and MG.

Having said that, I still suggest that before you decide to buy formal clothes, you should go to a treasure to buy sub-packaging, or buy an official spot trial card to experience the effect for yourself. Everyone's preferences are different. You have chosen the right one!

Sub-packaging is generally to manually squeeze tubular pigments into sub-packaging boxes for sale. The price is much cheaper than that of large cans, which can be used for color testing, or especially expensive pigments can be bought directly in large packages. Watercolor pigments are durable. Although some pigments look small, they can be painted for a long time.

Let me talk about the boxes of paints I used first. I haven't put much paint in for more than half a year. I'm running out of three small packages: 24-color solid cherry blossoms, 24-color domestic Windsor tubes, 40-color Van Gogh packaging and 12-color Shi Ming master.

I have used these two boxes of pigments for about 2-3 months, and I have drawn many pictures. But the cherry blossom powder is too heavy and opaque. Dozens of pieces of domestic Windsor actually worked well, but after a while, many colors were degummed, so they all gave up.

Van Gogh and Smock are commonly used now. Van Gogh is brighter when I need to draw some small illustrations. Master Smenk, I bought a whole piece of 12 color, and I made several half pieces, which is enough. Smenk's mixture of green and purple is very beautiful, and it is used to draw realistic small landscape paintings.

I plan to prepare a set of MG tubular pigments by myself after my painting skills have improved, but it is estimated that it will take quite a long time.

Choosing a pigment is the same as choosing a brush. Know yourself and yourself. Suitability is the most important thing As a novice, it is difficult to feel some subtle differences between different brands of pigments at first. If I recommend pigments for beginners:

1. price: novices with limited funds can choose mid-range, such as Van Gogh and Govin, which is very cost-effective; Welcome local tyrants and novices, as long as you don't choose uncontrollable pigments.

2. Fixed color or tube color: Novices prefer fixed color, and it will be more convenient to use tube color when painting big.

3. Color matching: It is not recommended to buy too many colors, and 24 colors are just right. If there are many colors, one is not conducive to exercise color matching, and the other is that you can't remember the eye-catching when painting, and in fact you can't tell some subtle differences of the same color system.

4. There are also ordinary novices who start from copying the painter's works. If you can accept the brand price used by the painter, you can also enter the same paragraph.

Therefore, for beginners, buying one or two sets of 24-color solid pigments is generally around 200-300 yuan, and painting once a week is enough for about one year.

Finally, the most important thing is to draw more pictures and see more works of different styles. On the one hand, I am constantly familiar with painting materials, on the other hand, I am looking for my favorite painting style.

When you draw dozens of paintings with a box of pigments, you will be very familiar with its characteristics, and then you can deeply understand the differences with other pigments, and choosing new pigments will be more targeted.

The above is the introduction of watercolor pigments. I hope I can help you. I wish you all a better painting, refill!

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My experience in buying watercolor pens for beginners (dry goods) and the detours I have gone through.