Sky & Clouds
I got my ideas for painting sky and clouds from sources such as
Tried and True Trains, Tips for Painting Clouds
Sierra
Scale Models, Painting Backdrops With Ease
I bought two shades of blue, with the idea of getting a
continuous
transition from dark at the top to lighter at the bottom. I brushed the
paint, blending the colors as they met. Frankly, I achieved three color
bands. It looks better in the above photo than in real life.
You can search the Internet for pictures
of clouds for inspiration. I made stencils for the clouds out of
cardboard
boxes. Some of my stencils are shown at the left. The "wisps" (A)
turned
out to not be a good idea when the stencils were used repeatedly.
I found it very effective to paint some clouds then move the stencil
left
or right and continue the clouds.
These templates are held close to (but not hard up
against)
the backdrop. If you hold the stencil about an inch from the backdrop
the
cloud edges are more sharply defined than if you hold it further away.
Then, using an airbrush or spray can, flat white paint is sprayed very
lightly. Less is better in this instance. Your clouds will look
nebulous
and hazy if you just mist it on. Too much and they start to look too
solid.
Try to achieve sharper edges on the tops of clouds (where
the sun shines on them) with feathered edges underneath (in the
shadow).
Allowing the "sky blue" color to show through the cloud at places gives
it a realistic misty look. If you don't like the results, just paint
over
with blue and try again. These two pictures show rounded corners
in Marshal (left) and Carol Gardens (right).
For the storm clouds (below), spray gray paint first and
then
over spray with white to the desired density.
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