dots

Start by creating a pin-point dot. To do this, place the airbrush approximately 1/16" from the surface. Depress the trigger only about 1/4 down releasing only air. Now gradually pull the trigger back until you see a tiny dot develop.

This seemingly simple exercise will help you develop much of the control over the airbrush that you will need to possess before attempting a illustration. It teaches you how to apply the correct amount of paint and air mixture, combined with the proper distance from the surface to obtain the desired effect. It is also a way to master targeting the airbrush to where you want to apply paint. The goal is to keep nice round dots with soft edges and maintain a uniform pattern as they increase in size.

Move on to the second dot. Pull the airbrush back to 1/8 inch from the surface. Depress the trigger slightly to only release air. Once again, gradually pull the trigger back letting paint mix with the air flow. Try to maintain the same air and paint mixture youn did with the first dot. If you need to increase the size of the dot, pull the airbrush farther from the surface.

Try to keep the dots the same distance apart as you move over to make you next one. Continue to pull the airbrush a little further back for each dot to increase the size. Hold the airbrush point directly at the surface. Don't try to make dots by moving the airbrush in a circular motion.

Do not try to increase the size of the dots by adding too much paint. This is also an example of what you will see if you are pulling the trigger back too far and releasing more paint than needed for the distance between the airbrush and surface.

Continue creating dots in a straight line. Once you get to a certain distance from the surface you will have to start increasing the amount of paint being delivered by progressively pulling the trigger backwards.

By the time you reach your center dot you should be approximately six inches from the surface. At this point you should be pulling the trigger about 1/2 to 3/4 backwards.

This is what your progression of dots should look like. Now, start from the center (largest) dot and go the opposite direction in creating dots from largest to smallest.

Practice this exercise over and over until you master it. Practice doing rows of dots that are all the same size. Once you perfect this you're ready to move on to the next lesson.

Here's a helpful hint: As you increase the amount of paint being delivered by the airbrush to achieve the larger dots, Paint might start building up at the tip or in the nozzle cap. Move the airbrush off to a area that is not being used and just depress the trigger to release air only. This will clear out any excessive paint build up that will cause the spitting you see in this picture.

Steven Craig is the owner and head painter of SKC CUSTOMZ in Lake Havasu City, AZ. In the past Steven has won the House of Kolor Prestigeous Painter Award and was a 1st Place winner of Dupont's Hot Hues Awards. He most recently was awarded the Matrix System's FX Grand Prize Award. Steve paints a wide range
of jobs from guitars to large off shore boats. Visit his web site at

Airbrush : Iwata HP-BH, Custom Micron B
Spray Guns: Iwata LPH400 and Iwata LPH300
Paint Media: PPG, Xotic Colours, Dupont and Matrix Systems
Surface Media: Everything I can get paint to stick to.
Masking : R-Tape and 3M Masking Tapes
Projector: Artograph
Lighting : Natural and Florescent. Spray-Line and Spray King Paint Booths