A couple of pointers given that I have just finished a fairly challenging red on black scheme: first, I prime in light grey (board to pieces, but tastes vary). I then applied several thin coats of American a Lamp Black until I got an even appearance. I drybrushed overall with Vallejo German Grey, which is a really super-dark grey, and then hit the highlights with a wet palette mixture that ranged from German Grey up through Vallejo Basalt Grey. Top highlight at raised edges was Vallejo London Grey. I then washed the grilles and joints with GW Badab Black, and lined certain shadowed panel lines with GW Black Ink. The overal mini is a very dark grey, but not too bluish or brownish, and doesn't have the look of being 'over-drybrushed', which can wipe out some of the nicer detail.
The red, which you haven't really got to yet, but which I was determined to make maximum contrast from, was a little more involved. using a white craft paint, thinned a little because the red going on afterwards is by nature a little thick, I blocked in the areas to be coated in red. Once completely dry, I went back over the white with a single coat of GW Blood Red. Trust me if done right this will seriously pop. After the Blood red, I washed the red areas, being sure to cover any spots of white that I had missed, with GW's red wash, which brought out panel lines and shaded areas. Finally, using a little GW blazing Orange, I hit the top highlights, especially where the red panels adjoined places I had already highlighted the black, for continuity's sake.
