MODEL PAINT COLOR MATCHING BASICS

[David Rapasi]

Some basics I learned in 60+ years of matching / mixing paint by EYE.

Or more significant, what I learned in recent years using Adobe Photo Shop.

The colors we see have three components;

Their Color Hue, their Saturation, and their Brightness .

The Color Hue is created by the pigments used in the process of making paint.

The Saturation of a color mixture is determined by the percentage of Color Hue to the percentage of Gray. ( Munsell Color System “Chroma†)

The of Brightness of a color mixture is determined by the percentage of Black to the percentage of White. ( Munsell Color System “Value†)

The three primary colors RED, YELLOW, and BLUE are shown in the three pictures of the Adobe Photo Shop Color Picker below.

RYB Primary Colors are used in subtractive color mixing primarily for mixing paint.

In the three pictures above, the vertical Color Hue bar to the left of the HSB column shows the 360 degrees of Color Hue.

The Color Hue Chart is also shown at the bottom of the three Picker photos.

Red can be either 0 or 360 degrees.

In the three pictures the Primary Color can be changed to 10,000 different shades of color by changing the percentage of Saturation and/or Brightness.

With the 360 degrees of Color Hue, multiplied by 10,000 Shades, we have 3.6 Million colors.

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The six color chips below are samples to demonstrate how the color picker measures different colors to get the HSB Numbers.

About 15%-20% of the 3.6 million color shades produced can’t be perceived by the human eye, either they are to dark, to light, or to low in Color Hue saturation.

Using Photo Shop to match paint has replace hours of (sometimes agony ) trying to match paint by EYE.

Now I can take the HSB numbers of a paint chip and produce a paint mixture close to that chip.

Then I compare the mixed paint to a computer printed chip and adjust the paint mixture accordingly.

For a final check I compare the original chip to a spray painted chip that was scanned into Photo Shop.

Sample colors;

ANA 607 NS SEA BLUE

ANA 608 INTERMEDIATE BLUE

ANA 611 INTERIOR GREEN

ANA 612 MEDIUM / DARK GREEN

ANA 613 OLIVE DRAB

ANA 617 DARK EARTH

………………………………..................................................

The 1966 Federal Standard Paint Chip Catalogue that I had gave specific instructions on how to match paint by EYE. ( the method used in the old days )

A notice in this catalogue specifically stated that the catalogue should only be used as a reference guide because the 1 x ½†chips were ink reproductions.

If colors were to be matched for Government use, the 3†x 5†color cards, or one foot square color tiles had to be ordered.

Federal Standard Catalogue Specified Color Matching Method;

To match two or more colors, the color cards or tiles had to be placed horizontally next to each other and viewed at a 45 degree angle, facing North, around noon on an overcast day.

Back then I only ordered about ten of the most commonly used color cards at a Dollar apiece. (About $10.00 in today’s money)

As far as I could see the colors on the one 1 x ½†ink color chips were an exact match to the 3 x 5 color cards using the specified method in the FS 595 Catalogue.

Dave

[Rex]

David, if you get a 595A booklet from 1969 and up (but before 1984), you will get a full set of chips that are actual paint instead of ink, and you can avoid using "ink chips" as long as you avoid getting a fan deck.

I do not know what those "reprint companies" are giving out when they sell a reproduction of each various FS release, and the not knowing in advance of what I will get is what is keeping me from paying that much for something that might end up being a 1971 layout, but with 2013 paint or ink chips on the pages

let's face it, a full set of all the FS revisions, but, reproduced as Ink Chips, would be almost worthless,,,,,you could do the same by downloading and printing the chips from the various "scanned in 595B" sites,,,,printer color shift and all,,,,,there is no way to verify an Ink Chip Booklet, unless you have all the Paint Chips,,and if you have the Cards, you don't need to spend the money on the Ink Chip Booklet

[Rex]

by the way,,,some of my 595A booklets have cracked paint chips in them,,,,,,that is how I can say they are paint from 1969 and up, and not Ink

matching by eye is not that difficult if you have paint colors and want to check them,,,,,it can drive you nuts if you are mixing all of your paint the way you do, David,,,,,once you get just a little "off the goal", if can be very hard to get back on track with a color

I took the easy way,,,,,I just looked for the colors in everyone's bottles and picked out the ones that matched up,,,,,,by eye, with vintage 595A booklets

came up with chips like these for each color, and for each color I bought based on websites' recommendations, that I ended up either keeping or rejecting

Edited January 25, 2013 by Rex

[David Rapasi]

Matching FS 33538 or similar colors by eye isn’t to difficult because of their high color hue saturation and the brightness of the color.

It becomes more difficult when trying to match dark camouflage colors by eye because of the low saturation of color hue and the darkness of the color.

This is where Adobe Photo Shop Color Picker becomes valuable.

I can measure the color Hue of the paint chip and know what base color to use when I start mixing that particular color.

The examples below demonstrate this.

All six colors look relatively close, but when the Hue is measured it becomes apparent some are not.

When the color chips are made 20% lighter to simulate fading, the difference in some chips is more visible to the eye.

It also is difficult to mix very light camouflage colors with low color hue saturation by eye, because it is almost as hard to detect the color Hue.

Dave

[Rex]

Dave, I think you already said in one other thread, but, do you use all MM enamels for your color creating?

[David Rapasi]

I use Model Master Enamel paints because they easily mix with lacquer thinner and I can spray a fine line without splatter.

I use Testors Gloss Enamels for gloss paint jobs and for tinting military colors because they are almost a pure color with a low percentage of gray.

Dave

[Rex]

thanks, I am a former MM user myself

I just thought some of your mixes might convert to MM Acrylics,,,,,but, I don't know how they would match up with the Square colors added to the process

I use different brands than MM mostly, but, will use MM Acrylics and mixes for anything that Floquil acrylics and LifeColor don't have

[LDSModeller]

Hi Dave

Your posting of this, has come at a good time.

I have been playing around with some colours to mix some paint, and going no where fast.

I really need the paint to be spot on, (AMS I know, but I need to do this)

Your post has opened up a whole new realm for me!!!

Many thanks

Alan

[David Rapasi]

Hi Dave

Your posting of this, has come at a good time.

I have been playing around with some colours to mix some paint, and going no where fast.

I really need the paint to be spot on, (AMS I know, but I need to do this)

Your post has opened up a whole new realm for me!!!

Many thanks

Alan

Alan

You’re welcome.

Good luck with your new adventure into another aspect of model building.

Dave