All paints generally have four main ingredients — pigments, binders, solvents (liquids) and additives. Pigments provide color and hide, while binders work to “bind” the pigment together and create the paint film.Solvents are the liquids that suspend the ingredients and allow you to place the paint on the surfaces, and additives are ingredients that provide specific paint properties such as mildew resistance. All four ingredients combine to provide paint that meets your specific design needs.Pigments are finely ground particles that are dispensed into paint and provide color and hiding properties.