The lightest colour (1), the pale-purple, was reserved for the very lightest parts of the flesh: the highlights on the tops of the shoulders and upper parts of t he chest along the clavicle. I moved the colour cold again for these lightest areas, because I think the contrast between cold shadows, warm mid-tones, and cold highlights creates a nice, almost 'glowing' sense of light on the flesh.

       The middle colours (2) and (3) were used around all the upper areas of the chest and shoulder, as well as biceps. (3) was used as a gentle highlight on some lower parts such as the abdominal and most protruding serratus muscles. Colour (4) was used mainly to aid the transitions between dark and light areas; wherever the transition was becoming a little rough, some glaze layers of (4) helped to keep the gradation smooth.

Step 5:

       The next stage of the painting was to introduce some stronger nuances of colour into the flesh. You may notice that the colour has become quite washed-out after step 4; this can commonly happen when applying strong lights and shadows.

       Consequently, the palette for step 5 is much more vibrant than the previous palettes I have used through the process. Colour (1) is a mixture of GW Snakebite Leather with P3 Heartfire (a bright yellow like the old GW sunburst yellow). Colour (2) is pure P3 Sanguine Highlight; (3) is a mix of GW Dark Flesh with P3 Khador Red Base (almost a primary red) and a point of purple; (4) is an aqua colour made from VMC Dark Sea Blue mixed with P3 Arcane Blue (a bright aqua), and (5) is pure P3 Battledress Green. It is important to note that the dilution of the paint at this stage is much greater than in previous stages; the paint has a very thin consistency indeed. See the paper towel on the right of the photo: each colour has been streaked across the paper with a loaded brush.

       These colours were applied in very thin glaze layers, and because the paint is so dilute, it was extra important to concentrate on technique. So I ensured my brush was not over-loaded with paint, by wiping thoroughly on a piece of paper towel before moving to the figure; also the movement of the brush is important, stroking the brush towards the area where the colour needs to be strongest.

       Again I continued with my 'warm/cold' logic for the distribution of colour over the flesh, meaning that the warmest and brightest colours, (1) and (2), were concentrated around the upper, lighter areas of the flesh, and the colder, darker colours, (3) and (4), were primarily used around the darker, shadowed parts around the sides. (5) was the 'clean-up' colour used to aid the transitions if they became rough. And also, as a colour of yellow hue, (5) was applied on areas of the flesh that I felt had strayed a little too far from the overall 'golden' feeling of the flesh, to try to re-establish the dominance of the golden colouring. You can see in the photo that I also concentrated the brighter yellow colour (1) around the central upper areas of the chest, and the pink-purple more to the sides; again, this was designed to draw the eye and push it upwards toward the face.

       This is a very important stage in the process, because the subtle tints and nuances of stronger colour in the flesh really give it a lot of life, and generate a much more interesting surface, in my opinion. If you are wondering how I choose the colours to add, the reasons is quite simple: the colours are always somehow determined by the overall colour scheme. In this particular case, I mentioned earlier that I wanted a sort of 'golden' (warm orange-yellow) ambiance for the flesh, so the colours I have chosen to add as nuances lie on either side of this hue on the colour wheel: orange-red going towards red-purple, and yellow-green going to teal. All the colours on each of the palettes I have used for each stage in the painting have been decided by this logic. This isn't the only way to decide which colours to use, though – on my Lathiem, for example, (see here: http://www.guildofharmony.com/lathiem.php?picname=lathiem1#picstart), the colour nuances I introduced into the flesh were dark blue-green (GW Scaly Green), red-purple and a touch of orange, in order to echo the overall colour scheme of the figure which is balanced around these 3 colours.