I recommend squeezing the paint in three separate session. Most DS paint dry nicely when squeezed into half pans. Does it matter? If you expect more minerals from the Genuine label then I guess you may be disappointed because some of these paints are not cheap. Daniel Smith's reply was that there are minerals but not 100% mineral because of various reasons that you can read in this reply to the geologist. A geologist shared an Instagram post which said he/she found that Amazonite Genuine actually contained 90% Phthalocyanine Green.

There is a controversy with the Primatek colours though. Lapis Lazuli is very pale so I don't recommend that colour. If you store the paint with cap downwards, then this is not a problem. Many of these minerals are heavy and can separate easily from the gum arabic binder, so sometimes the paint has to be stirred before use. Downside to Primatek is certain paints can dry hard and become difficult to rewet, e.g. These colours aren't as vibrant compared to the classic pigments though. The main characteristics of Primatek paint is they have very obvious granulation.

The Primatek series are supposedly made with minerals.

For example, Cadmium Lemon is supposed to be PY35 but Daniel Smith's formula is PY53, PY138, PY3. DS Cadmium colours are not made with cadmium but a mix of pigments to reproduce the original cadmium colours. There are many transparent colours so these are great to use on top of pen and ink sketches. They also have a huge variety of colours. Price from Straits Art in Singapore is S$12.50 onwards.ĭaniel Smith watercolours are richly pigmented and vibrant. And price will vary depending on sales of course. From Jackson's Art UK, price is from £11.30 to £23.00. Ultramarine Blue from series 1 will be from the low price tier whereas Lapis Lazuli from series 5 will be most expensive.įrom Dick Blick Art Materials, price is from US $10.34 to US$19.52. And pricing also depends on the series the colour is in. Price of the paint can vary significantly depending on where it's sold. The paint is available in 5 and 15ml tubes, half pans, watercolour sticks, sold individually as well as in sets.

The full colour chart (PDF) is available for download. My review covers the Extra Fine and Primatek series. And these colours are split into the Extra Fine (classic colours), Primatek (minerals) and Luminescent (reflective) series. These are many reviews I've written for the various DS watercolour products over the years:Īt the time of this video, Daniel Smith has 260 colours in their entire range. Daniel Smith is the brand that I use most often because the quality is good and here in Singapore (sold by Straits Art), the pricing is actually very competitive compared to other brands. I've been using Daniel Smith Watercolor since 2013.

Daniel smith watercolor chart