Knight Full Painting Process (Patreon)

Wanted to focus on textures and reflections of the armour in this piece, while also using some depth in the foreground and background to create a more cinematic look.

What I find makes armour, or any time of shiny surface look very convincing is how well you can capture reflections. When a surface is shiny and reflective, you'll see colours in the surroundings being cast onto the shiny subject more strongly. It's basically a distorted mirror. When you look closely at the armour in this painting and in references, you'll see the sky, the ground, and even horizon lines directly visible on the metallic surface.

This is just something I now always try to keep in mind when painting reflective objects. Always be aware of what is around it and how it might reflect the colours in its surroundings! A convincing reflection is all you need to create metallic textures.