Binder
A sticky natural or synthetic substance used to bond pigment particles in order to form a colour that can be applied on a surface.
Bleeding
An effect where a dark shade seeps through a lighter shade applied over it.
Blending
The process of smoothing the edges of two shades together to create a clean gradation.
Brilliance
This term is used to refer to the brightness and luminosity of a shade.
Capillary
The type of ink feeding system in a pen where the ink is carried to the tip through very fine tubes called capillaries.
Liquid ink pens mostly work on two systems of which one is capillary-fed and the other is gravity fed. Fountain pens use gravity-fed where the ink is poured in and flows to the tip through gravity. Gravity-fed pens can only write when the tip is pointing downward, while capillary-fed pens can write in any position including upside down.
Colour Shift
Some shades of acrylic colours turn dull on drying because the binder used in them turn whitish.
Colour shift does not occur in Camel Artist Acrylic Colours and Camel Artist Heavy Body Acrylic Colours because completely transparent binders are used.
Drying Time
The duration that the paint takes to dry once it has been applied on the surface can be specified as - Slow, Moderate, Fast.
Dye
Soluble, transparent colour particles that are used to make transparent colours.
These small particles completely dissolve in liquids to create colours. The result is transparent paints that are high in coverage and brilliance with low permanency and lightfastness. Hence, they are rarely used as ingredients for artist colours.
Fat Over Lean
A process in oil painting that is useful for better drying and finish of the painting.
The base coat is applied using minimal oil as a medium with a gradually increasing ratio of oil to colours in subsequent coats.
Ferrule
The aluminum ring that is used to attach the tuft of bristles to a brush handle or to attach an eraser to a wooden pencil.
Film
A dry and thin coating or layer of colours and medium which is applied while painting.
Flexibility
A quality that refers to how a shade behaves on expanding once it has dried on the surface.
Flexible colours are tough and elastic, staying intact through expansion and contractions induced by weather changes and other reasons, while weaker colours tend to crack. The right use of proper mediums may help to enhance the flexibility of less flexible shades.
Glaze
A thin, transparent layer of colour that is applied over an already dried paint film to create desired effects.
Hue
This term is used as a suffix in a shade name when that colour is created using a substitute pigment.
Some traditional pigments such as Cobalt Blue are extremely rare and often highly expensive while some are highly toxic and not fit to ensure consumer safety. Therefore, to make it more viable and safer for the artists, modern alternative pigments are used to create colours like Cobalt Blue or Vermillion.
As a responsible manufacturer, we believe in complete transparency and, by adding ‘hue’ as a suffix to the shade name, make sure that our valuable consumers are aware of the facts and make an informed choice.
Impasto
The technique in which thick colours are applied with either painting knives or hard white bristle brushes.
Intermixing
The action of mixing two or more shades together to create new shades.
Lake
This term is used as a suffix in a shade name when the colour is created using a dye instead of a pigment that is not naturally present.
Pigments are not available for all shades that an artist may need. For instance, certain shades between blue and red need to be created through a process called precipitation, in which the dyes of respective shades are absorbed in white pigment. This process called laking is used to create shades such as Crimson Lake and Scarlet Lake.
As a responsible manufacturer, we believe in complete transparency and, by adding ‘lake’ as a suffix to the shade name, make sure that our valuable consumers are aware of the facts and make an informed choice.
Lightfastness
The resistance of a shade to changing or fading with exposure to ultraviolet rays present in sunlight or artificial light.
Luster
This term is used to refer to the quality of shine or gloss.
Masking
The technique of covering or hiding part of a surface so that that paint will not apply on that area.
Permanency
An indicator of a shade’s ability to withstand the impact of changes in humidity, temperature and light, once applied on the surface.
A for Absolutely Permanent - Permanent when used in any manner but there are chances of slight fading when mixed with a white shade.
B for Permanent - Permanent when used directly and even after mixing with a medium, water, oil or turpentine but tend to fade when toned down by mixing with a white shade.
C for Fairly Permanent - Permanent only when used directly from the tube or jar but will gradually fade when mixed with a medium, water, oil, turpentine, or a white shade.
Pigment
Insoluble colour material that is ground into a fine powder and suspended and saturated in a vehicle-binder solution (medium) to make colours.
These particles do not dissolve in any liquids, do not cover large areas, and are not highly brilliant. They produce opaque paints that are highly permanent and lightfast with moderate coverage. They are the most commonly used main ingredient for artist colours.
Pinholes
Tiny holes visible through canvas priming which allow oils and mediums to seep through the canvas, making the painting look dry and chalky.
This happens due to improper processing or when the primer used for coating the canvas has a thicker formulation.
Rub Resistance
The ability of a coat of colours or inks to withstand friction and avoid flaking or peel-off.
Series
The classification of colours in price brackets based on the cost of pigments.
The higher the series number, the higher the price due to higher cost of pigments. However, this doesn’t have any bearing on the quality of the shades or colours.
Spring Action
The ability of the bristles on a brush to bend under pressure and regain their shape as soon as the pressure is released. This is important to ensure a nice application of colours.
Thixotropic
A consistency of paint that settles into a semi-solidified state. When shaken or stirred, it can return to a liquid state to be ready for use.
Tooth
A small grainy but even texture of a surface that allows paints to hold and attach smoothly onto forming film or layers.
Transparency
An indicator of how a colour will look on the surface in terms of visibility of the background.
Transparent - See-through shades that are great for layering and glazing.
Semi Transparent - Balanced shades that offer both boldness and visibility of the background.
Opaque - Bold shades that are more reflective and will cover or hide what’s under them.
Vehicle Absorption
Some shades absorb a high quantity of a vehicle while others are able to absorb and retain only a limited amount of medium. In such cases, the medium separates from the colours in the tube or jar which either remain suspended on the top of the jar or spew out from the mouth or crimp of the tube.
Different pigments have different capacities to absorb vehicles. We might see some shades that become very thick in their packaging and others shrinking with medium oozing out from the packaging. It is important for artists to understand this behaviour of the shades and use adequate mediums while painting to improve the look and life of the painting.
Vibrancy
This term is used to refer to the brightness and luminosity of a shade.
Viscosity
This term is used to refer to the thickness or body of the paint.
Wash
A thin layer of transparent or heavily diluted colours that is usually broadly applied on a surface.
Many washes are used by the artists, one on top of the other, especially while painting with water colours to create the desired depth and visual effect.
Wedge Joint
Two parts of wood strips joined without using any fastening device like a staple, nail or clip to form the frame of a canvas.
Unlike the fixed corner frames with staples and nails, wedge joint frames can be expanded to further tighten the canvas and can also be disassembled and re-assembled easily for safe and convenient transportation.
Wet on Wet
The technique of mixing a shade to another wet, previously applied shade to create soft blending and gradation while painting.
Wood Casing
The outer wooden body of a pencil which holds and protects the core or lead.
Working Time
The duration for which the colour can be manoeuvred and modified on the surface after it has been taken out of the tube or jar - Low, Moderate, and High.
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“The artist is not a different kind of person, but every person is a different kind of artist.”