There are two things to consider:
Are you in art for the long haul?
Your budget.
Can you meet in the middle of these two dilemmas? If you believe oil painting is what you will be doing for some time, I strongly recommend buying the best product. Each major art company, such as Colart, Chartpak, and Fila, is a conglomerate that owns many art brand companies. The amount of filler is the determining factor. More fillers, such as calcium carbonate, decrease the cost of the paint. This makes the paint less pure and, of course, less expensive.
Be careful of adding words to pigments; for example, Cadmium Red is NOT the same product as Cadmium Red Hue. The added word “Hue” implies that this color is similar to Cadmium but not actually cadmium. Think of it as a Cubic Zirconia that appears the same as a diamond, yet when my wife chose her wedding ring, she chose the diamond… Go figure :).
Choosing Oil Paint Colors
Choosing oil paint colors is the same for the professional artist. Most often, I choose a color by its hue and saturation. The name brand is not always my first consideration. I purchased almost all the artist-grade oil paints from most companies. I made charts and compared every company’s Cobalt, Blue, Ultramarine Blue, etc.
The reasons I have chosen this list are many, but mostly to be able to make realistic colors. That is the colors you see in nature and a portrait. If I were an abstract artist, I would choose more of the newer contemporary colors and another blog. Buying only a choice of a few colors is crucial to keeping your colors clean and vibrant, allowing you to spend the same amount as purchasing many student-grade filler paints.
There are three grades of paint:
Professional - please do not buy personally. I have maybe two professional-grade pigments. (Michael Harding, Old Holland, Williamsburg, Mussini).
Many professional artists, including myself, use artist-grade paints. (Winsor Newton, Gamblin, Sienniller, Grumbacher Pre-Tested).
Student Grade paints have various types of fillers. (Winton Newton, Gamblin 1828, Rembrandt).
The stuff sold at Michael’s Hobby Store and Joanne’s Hobby Store are not actual art stores, and do not expect to find your supply there.
Most of the pigments I purchase are Winsor Newton because the colors (Hues) change value and temperature perfectly. Whoever set up Winsor Newton’s original pigment when they first put oil paint in a tube in the 1840s knew their stuff about color.
Winsor Newton Colors (Artist Grade):
Winsor Yellow
Cadmium Red
Alizarin Crimson
Sap Green
Viridian Green
French Ultramarine Blue
Yellow Ochre
Burnt Sienna
Raw Sienna
Titanium White small tubes - I purchase a few at a time, Winsor Newton only- the large tube, which I believe is mismarked as artist grade, and that is not possible—a different blog.
Grumbacher Pre Tested: Thaylo Blue
If you have a slightly higher budget, add:
Cadmium Yellow Pale
Gamblin Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Orange Winsor Newton
Cadmium Red Deep
Ultramarine Violet
Cobalt Blue
Cadmium Lemon
Naples Yellow
Utrecht Cerulean Blue Hue
We hope this helps for now. We cover much more of this in our Online Courses on Painting. For now, happy painting!