There are a few things going on in my blending:
1. Water down the paint. I get the paint as thin as I can while still being able to control it. (I have no idea what the actual proportions are. It’s like the way Ray Charles defined soul music: “I can’t tell you what it is, but I can tell you when I feel it.”) That gives it a nice translucency as you build up your layers.
2. Lots and lots of layers. For the most part, I start with the mid tone and build the shadows down then build up the highlights in very, very gradual shifts of watered-down paint. I don’t keep count, but there are easily 10-15 layers for each blend.
3. Matte Medium glazes. I got this tip from a seminar I took from Jen Haley a few years ago and it was a total game-changer in my painting. Matte medium is basically paint without pigment, so by adding ink or paint to the matte medium, you’re creating a super-transparent glaze. After I finish all my highlighting, I apply two glazes. One of a very dark color—but not black—to all the shadows. (GW’s Devlan Mud is great for warm shadows, and VMC Transparent Blue mixed with a little GW Black Ink is great for cool shadows.) The second glaze is a very, very, VERY thin layer of the mid-tone color. Roughly 1 part paint to 3 parts matte medium to 3 parts water. I find this really smooths out the transitions between layers, creating smooth blends.
4. Final highlights. The glazing process tends to obscure your highest highlights, so I usually do a final highlight with a super-thinned white, ivory, or light yellow (depending on the base color.)
If there’s interest, I can take some process photos as I’m doing one of my next models and post them.