How to Airbrush for a Chrome Look

Chrome is a common texture for airbrush.

An airbrush is a versatile painting tool that can be used to render many textures. Chrome and other metals are simple to convey using an airbrush. To make an object appear to be made of chrome, create areas or bands of very bright white on the object, which makes the object seem shiny. Using very dark paint next to light areas creates this illusion. Because chrome is so highly reflective, an artist can be creative using colors, and using touches of the surrounding colors on a chrome object makes the object more realistic.

Things You'll Need

• Pencil
• Masking film
• Craft knife
• Airbrush
• Paint
• Water
• Paper

Instructions

1. Draw the object you want to render on masking film, then cut it out with a craft knife to create a stencil.

2. Position the stencil on your surface.

3. Mix a medium gray in the color cup of your airbrush and test the color on a piece of scrap paper. Lightly shade the object as you would any other nonreflective surface, adding small amounts of black or dark grey paint into the color cup as you go to create darker shades of color.

4. Locate the area or areas on the object that would have the strongest lighting. Using a dark grey or black color, paint a line next to this point. Keep the airbrush close to the surface to control the flow or use a stencil. This makes the area next to the dark line appear to be very bright and shiny in comparison, like chrome.

5. Create a gradient moving away from the dark line to make the line look more natural.

6. Lightly shade areas around the highlight in gray or add other colors. Blue is a good color for chrome, as it suggests the coolness of metal or metal reflecting the sky.

Tips & Warnings

• To airbrush chrome letters or other flat surfaces without a specific light direction, paint a dark line in the middle of your stencil, then fade the color downward, making a gradient. Shade the top of the stencil lightly, but do not shade the highlight in the middle of the stencil. Remember, the shiny look comes from high contrast between the dark and light areas.

References

• "Airbrush Painting"; Miguel Ferron; 1988
• "The Complete Airbrush and Photo-Retouching Manual"; Peter Owen and John Sutcliffe; 1985
• How to Airbrush: Airbrushing Chrome Letters; Don Johnson