Airbrushing/Expert Profile

Expertise

I can answer questions relating to basic and advanced airbrushing technique, general how-tos, preparation and compatible media for different substrates, proper paint-to-air ratios, troubleshooting, color theory, maintenance and repair, stencil cutting and use, and most other areas relating to airbrush. I'll be posting tutorials in the future if that would be helpful, and if possible.

Experience in the area

I learned to airbrush the hard way, watching and collaborating with people who didn't know much more than I did. Later I got instruction from people who knew what they were doing and learned what I had been doing wrong. I have been airbrushing for over 30 years; the first two years were in an amusement park painting as fast as I could, often for 12 hours a day, six days a week. You get good real fast. I have painted on almost everything imaginable, from walls to a bus to prosthetic limbs.

Education/Credentials

I studied art at the University of Texas at Arlington for three years but haven't made the time to complete my now obsolete "graphic arts" degree. We did layouts and color separations by hand, thank you very much. It has served me well, but not in the way I expected.

What do you like about this subject?

Everything! I love the soft look the airbrush can achieve, the realism, the speed in finishing a painting and the fact that it is an uncommon skill. People find it fascinating.

What do you still hope to achieve/learn in this field?

I learn something new all the time. I constantly work on improving my technique. I would like to do medical illustration and finishing work on prosthetics.