Re: Gum Pigment Quality and Tonal Scales

Michael Koch-Schulte wrote:
>
> Do higher grade water colours generally print shorter or longer tonal scales
> in Gum?

Mmmm, it depends...

If I move from an inexpensive number 3 grade to a very expensive
> number 8 do I need to start cutting back on the amount of pigment I'm
> adding?

While price is somewhat correlated with quality, it isn't a one to one
correspondence by any means. For instance, M. Graham, a
reasonably-priced paint, is by all accounts, and certainly by my own
experience, a very high quality paint, equal to the highest-priced
paints.

Also, whether a brand has more or less pigment in it isn't necessarily a
function of the price. Grumbacher is packed with pigment, but still is
in general a pretty crummy paint as well as being very cheap.

Do I save any money by using cheaper tubes or does it equal out in
> the long run?

.
Well, it depends. If you buy cheap paint that's crummy paint, then it's
false economy. If you buy cheap paint that's good paint, then you save
money.

For a good analysis of the different brands, how pigmented they are,
comparative prices, the overall quality, etc see

http://www.handprint.com/HP/WCL/pigmt2.html

Good luck,
Katharine Thayer
Received on Thu Sep 22 09:18:12 2005