Project and Portfolio I

I was very excited for this class. Of course, the entire time I was thinking I was going to do a single prop. But guess what? If you got an A in 3DF, ART1, and MCR you had to pick an advanced model to block out, i.e. a whole scene. Yep, I got to do a whole scene. At first I will admit I was a little taken aback, but with no challenge comes no reward. After the month, with our projects due on Friday instead of Sunday, I realize a regular prop would have been too easy for me- and how exciting is that? Just a few months ago I was spending 4-6 hours on single props that only take me minutes to do now. It's so satisfying to see that kind of progression. My edge flow has improved, my mapping skills have improved, and my overall modeling skills have greatly improved. Hard work does pay off.

 I learned how to put a model on a turn table. I couldn't keep the brick walls and glass up, but here is the scene in finality for turn in. This scene is a compilation of about 20+ hours of work, just because I had some duplicating issues with bricks. I'm so happy with it, and a regular prop would have been too easy for me.

So many UV's! I had no idea what I was getting myself into when it came to UV's. The plants were probably the worst part, because they came with their own but I had to remap them and position them just right. There was a lot of single mapping and duplicating involved in this, and I also learned how to bake normal maps in ZBrush, which it turns out is far easier and more efficient than baking in Maya. Looking at this brings me deep anxiety (the memories) but also pride in my accomplishment.

Some plant detail. I painted them in and then converted them to geometry. I'm pretty happy with how they look.

This month held many stresses for me- too many polygons, random Maya shut downs, triangle and UV issues, the graphics card in the mac not being compatible with rendering certain things. Delightful. My hope is to find time to throw some ambient occlusion on this and mess with the lighting. I'm very happy with my final product

            

ART 1

 Originally, I was not aware that I had to make a post for this class. Needless to say, it really helped me refresh my drawing skills, and made me realize I'm capable of much more than I thought I was with a pencil and a piece of paper. The following post is a compilation post of the things I did in ART1. Although it's not modeling or game design, I feel the traditional art style is absolutely essential to a successful modeling career. Many studios require skill in the traditional method, and those that do not practice or take the time to learn the skill might find themselves less than desired for the work place. Of course, the only problem with the order of these classes is that first was 3DF, then ART1, then Model Creation. That gap really gave me a rough start in MCR, but it's all about adaptation. Anyway, the pictures.

This is my still life drawing from week three. Before this, in week two, I had experimented with a wacom tablet and originally had it drawn on the computer. Of course, being new with the tablet and not quite sure how to get the full range of value, I had to trace it onto paper and shade it traditionally. I'm actually very happy with how it turned out, and it took me quite a few hours to do. But, I expected this class to be full of late nights, just like the other ones.

We had to draw the principles and elements during our week one. I had to carry around a little sketchbook with me everywhere I went to get the projects done for this week. I was rather surprised with myself when I started drawing texture, and at first I thought I had bitten off more than I could chew. But I stuck with it and it turned out okay. Kind of like school. But anyway, I found that for all of these drawings I was using a mechanical pencil, rather than the set that the school had sent me. It wasn't until the later weeks that I started using the 6B and 2HB pencils to draw and shade my pieces. The things I learned in this class were seemingly small but good for my skill-set as a whole.



            This class, as I said, was kind of badly placed. I wish It was before 3DF so that I could have that right before model creation. Anyhow, It was still a valuable class to have in that it was a refresher for my drawing skills as well as my knowledge in the arts, and it helped me reaffirm my aspirations as a modeler. This class was filled with many late nights, and the classes ahead of me will also be filled with such. I just hope I can find the time to keep this up, so I won't become another victim of a "dead blog". As I get deeper and deeper into the program, the more I learn it's about grit, perseverance, time management, and self motivation. It's not just about skill, but having the confidence to put your work out there and keep going, the struggle might be real sometimes but so is the dream.