Painting Wood/Trees

[G-wiz]

Does anyone have any methods for painting tree trunks and other types of wood. I'm looking for a more natural effect rather than just painting them brown.

[ErHo]

I wish I had examples but you may try using brown based washes or ink/shades over a sand color.  Sounds nuts but it changes the sand color to a textured brown.   The shade/wash/ink color is the key, the nature of it is more than just watered down paint, it collects in the recesses and brings out some nice detail.

Look at the painting process here for an example.

[Ace of Spades]

If you look at real trees you'll see that the trunks are usually more of a dark green than brown I think... Starting outr with dark green and then light drybrushing in greys and brown colours might do the trick.

Cheers,
Rob

[Dr Dave]

I made woods ages ago using plastic tubes 1" long glued on to a larger base and then made the "canopy" using cocktail sticks glued into rubberised horse hair sprayed black and flocked.

For the trunks I just painted the plastic tube "trunks" a greeny-brown and then used a dark brown artist's pen to draw dozens of wavy vertical-ish lines - worked a treat. 

[Terry37]

The trees around me are various shades of brown and gray-brown.

I paint my trees in a middle brown then wash with a darker brown ink, and when dry follow with various wet-dry brush coats to bring out the highlights.


My Huorns for my Riders of Rohan army.


Here are my Ents


Lastly, here are my apple trees for my Glenda of Oz Army

Some of the local guys use a darker brown than I do, and mine are appearing lighter than they are in person, but most trees are not a dark brown usually.

Terry

[Leman]

I like a brown base coat followed by a dry brush of grey. Most trees round my way have greyish trunks, apart from the Scots pines which have more reddish brown showing through.

[Subedai]

Same as Leman.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Because no one has said it yet:
https://youtu.be/B5Wo1ubuzAE

[Leman]

TBH those trees looked terrific until he put the trunks in and suddenly they looked like a 6 year-old's tree! 

[FJAdams]

I prime/basecoat with flat white. I find that doing them in black makes them too dark.  I do have some flat olive drab and flat grey that I'm thinking of trying on some. I think the grey would probably come out better.

After that I use Vallejo washes. Depending on what color I want the finished trees to be the first coat is either: 73.202 Pale Grey, 73.205 Green Wash, 73.204 Flesh Wash, 73.203 Umber Wash, 73.206 Red Wash. Then I layer on the other colors including the ones aforementioned and 73.200 Sepia Shade, 73.203 Umber Wash, 73.206 Red Wash, 76.503 Dark Yellow, 76.513 Brown.  I've also tried the 73.201 Black Wash, 73.207 Blue Wash, 76.518 Black but haven't liked the results with any of them.  Then I use various shades of green to paint any moss, vines, etc. Then flock and clearcoat to seal everything.

I find that using the washes gives me the most options for coloring making the trees somewhat alike but not exact. I haven't figured out how to post pictures on here to show any of my finished Ents, Dryads, Treemen, etal.

[Leman]

I've given up posting pictures as each time it messes up my computer. Never been the same since Photobucket started arsing around, but then they're part of the great corporate USA where making money is all. Incidentally saw some interesting footage of Newark, New Jersey the other evening. Methinks Mr Trump has not come across the phrase the kettle calling the pot black. It certainly didn't look like somewhere I'd like to end up.