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Prop artist portfolio review

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Joost polycount sponsor
Hey guys, I'd like some feedback on my portfolio. Trying to find an internship and maybe some freelance work in the meantime.

I did an internship from September-February but I was kind of a jack of all trades and fixing the other interns' work, so I don't have anything to show from that period.

The knife is the only recent thing I have, everything else is from last year or older.

I'd appreciate any feedback on the content, website and everything else. Thanks!

http://joostvanhoutte.com/

Replies

  • walklikethis
    Hey Joost

    My only and biggest crit would be lack and type of work. All i know is that you are some what good at baking, decent at texturing and all round not bad.

    Which is possibly the worst position to be in, as there are a hell of a lot people out there at exactly the same level. However, because you aren't terrible, you can rectify this!

    Bespoke, well done and creative ideas is the name of the game. Do things to set yourself apart from the crowd, and do them well. Prop artist is a tough market these days. However, they are still about. A good example of unique well done asset would be this peice:

    824_large.jpg

    A unique take on the classic ammo crate and it is executed well. it is a bit odd, you dont quite know what it is at first (which is good in this case) it has nice details and you can see the function of it as well.

    Now obviously i and nobody else expects you to do this sort of quality right away. However, it is a case of seeing how an interesting unique prop will sell your work.

    If you applied that same level of skill to an AK47 and a 1970s jet pack, the 70s jet pack is going to be the thing that gets people looking at your work. Because it is cool, unique and interesting. I can find lots of knives and handguns on polycount, some better, some worse. So you dont set yourself up to be directly compared to thousands. Set yourself up to be unique and creative.

    That is what will get your work noticed! Also, it has to be good, so post everywhere to get crit and all that. But no point going into your work. This was just to help your portfolio in general.

    Good luck!

    The artist is Denis Rutkovsky if you want to check his work out.
  • Tobbo
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    Tobbo polycounter lvl 11
    Hey Komaokc,

    I think this is a great start to your portfolio. Your knife is great and is obviously your strongest piece.

    Are you rendering the revolver in Marmoset Toolbag 2 as well? I feel the materials and textures on the revolver could be pushed a bit more. There is somewhat of a background banding issue with your first pic of the revolver.

    For a prop artist, I would advise having a wide range of props and not just weapons. I'm sure you already know this.

    Just keep on making art and updating your portfolio with your strongest pieces. :)

    Best of luck!
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    Hey Joost

    My only and biggest crit would be lack and type of work. All i know is that you are some what good at baking, decent at texturing and all round not bad.

    Which is possibly the worst position to be in, as there are a hell of a lot people out there at exactly the same level. However, because you aren't terrible, you can rectify this!

    Bespoke, well done and creative ideas is the name of the game. Do things to set yourself apart from the crowd, and do them well. Prop artist is a tough market these days. However, they are still about. A good example of unique well done asset would be this peice:

    A unique take on the classic ammo crate and it is executed well. it is a bit odd, you dont quite know what it is at first (which is good in this case) it has nice details and you can see the function of it as well.

    Now obviously i and nobody else expects you to do this sort of quality right away. However, it is a case of seeing how an interesting unique prop will sell your work.

    If you applied that same level of skill to an AK47 and a 1970s jet pack, the 70s jet pack is going to be the thing that gets people looking at your work. Because it is cool, unique and interesting. I can find lots of knives and handguns on polycount, some better, some worse. So you dont set yourself up to be directly compared to thousands. Set yourself up to be unique and creative.

    That is what will get your work noticed! Also, it has to be good, so post everywhere to get crit and all that. But no point going into your work. This was just to help your portfolio in general.

    Good luck!

    The artist is Denis Rutkovsky if you want to check his work out.

    Thanks for taking the time to write that, I really appreciate it!
    You have a good point. I was working on a car which is 40% done but I'll put that on hold for now since it's pretty generic. I'll start looking for something more interesting and unique to make. I'll post a portfolio progress thread here as soon as I find something to work on.
    Tobbo wrote: »
    Hey Komaokc,

    I think this is a great start to your portfolio. Your knife is great and is obviously your strongest piece.

    Are you rendering the revolver in Marmoset Toolbag 2 as well? I feel the materials and textures on the revolver could be pushed a bit more. There is somewhat of a background banding issue with your first pic of the revolver.

    For a prop artist, I would advise having a wide range of props and not just weapons. I'm sure you already know this.

    Just keep on making art and updating your portfolio with your strongest pieces. :)

    Best of luck!

    Thanks! only the first render of the revolver was in TB2, and with the original non-PBR materials. I could spend some more time working on some proper PBR materials, but I don't think it's worth it to fix up a project that's a year old now. I'd rather work on something new. I love doing weapons, but I'll find something that isn't a weapon next :)
  • Clark Coots
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    Clark Coots polycounter lvl 12
    Its a pretty strong portfolio. I'd change the 2012-2013 title and image to something else. It's a picture of a grass field and tree but inside there are these awesome props from Seige of Inaolia. Make it something more related to whats actually in the section.
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    Thanks for the advice! I'll make a better thumbnail for it and remove the 3 unrelated things.
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    Finishing up this project atm:

    01-1024x576.jpg

    After that's finished I think I'm going to start applying for a job. If anyone has any more feedback on my portfolio I'd really appreciate it.
  • Daves
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    Daves polycounter lvl 9
    I have only a small support for you because im in a similar postion :) I like the overall quality of your work, but as the others said, its not that much to show. When i look at the stuff youve done, the only thing that really gets my attention is the helmet. Quality and creativity way higher than other models. Reminds me of Bioshock Infinite, but with pbr texturing ;)
    Try to do a small modular scene in Unreal Engine 4 or Cryengine, only basic scene or modular pieces, and do more good textures, texturing is the thing that is even harder to be good at than modelling and baking. That shows you can keep in an art style and that you know the basics of an actual workflow. Showing stuff in Marmoset is ok and looks good, but putting it in ue4 isnt much harder ;)

    edit: I like the quality of the Knife and some of the textures and modular pieces too, but as i said above. I like that Helmet more ;)
  • Sir Apple
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    Sir Apple polycounter lvl 8
    Basically whats already been said, you need more interesting pieces on your site.

    The revolver and knife are pretty common and not very eye catching, when I see prop artist I expect to see some kick ass original environment/prop art. The Siege of Inaolia castle stuff is not to bad, its pretty cool, Although I would say the axe and sword are the weakest links, so perhaps get rid of them. Also, why is the Siege of Inaolia props tab at the bottom of your site? Its far more relevant to your title of "prop artist" then a knife and gun, something I'd expect to find in a weapon artists folio.

    Another issue to me is the thumbnails for the projects - they don't look interesting. To be honest, your Siege of Inaolia props are cooler then the thumbnail led me to believe. I would seek a solution to draw more interest to the works, you need to make people want to click.

    Its getting there but you've got plenty of room for improvement.
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    Thanks guys!

    Do you think I should start applying now, or make some more stuff first?
    I could work on my portfolio for another year and have an awesome portfolio, but I'd much rather find a job ASAP.

    I don't really know what I want to do yet. I like making environment stuff and props, but I also like making weapons.
    I think I'll do a little scene in UE4 next.

    @Daves: Before the helmet I thought if I made sure the technical quality of the asset was high I'd end up with a good asset. But walklikethis' comment was a real eye opener. This video is also a good watch:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UX2PzNHwabE

    @Sir Apple: The projects are basically in chronological order right now. I'll try to fix the SoI thumbnail, it is pretty awful.
  • .Wiki
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    .Wiki polycounter lvl 8
    You could create a small scene out of the props you made for this SOI project. :) The image with the tree and the grass looks way better then your current thumbnail. Maybe you could combine some houses, the trees and the grass to create a nice composition of a small medieval village :)
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    I'm a bit hesitant to do anything with the SoI props, as most of it is over a year old. I'd like to think I've grown as an artist since then. I'd much rather create a new scene. It will take more time, but I've got nothing but time right now...
  • ArminChaudhry
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    ArminChaudhry polycounter lvl 7
    The biggest advice which i can give you beside what the other guys said is that i would get rid of the word "prop artist".
    You are limiting yourself with that and I don't know many company´s which are hiring people if they are just a prop artist. Props usually get outsourced or taken over by Environment artists/3D Artists.

    So basically if i would be you i would call myself 3D Artist or Environment Artist and i would try to make a whole scene if you have enough time. And apply for indie/mod Teams, because this is also counting as a experience :)
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    Thanks Armin, I'm going to change the title to 3d artist. And I'm going to look for a nice concept and make a finished environment. I told myself I'd apply after I finish the helmet though. At this rate I'm just going to keep delaying it. Need to find a job at one point :(
  • andreygheorghe
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    andreygheorghe polycounter lvl 9
    Hey komaokc!Your work looks pretty good to me and I really think you have chances to land a job.I think is a good idea to make an entire environment,besides modelling and texturing it will show off your composition skills...
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    Thanks Andrey! I think I'm going to pick this concept by Andree Wallin. I am going to apply to some jobs in the meantime though *fingers crossed*

    usUt4GK.jpg
  • skyline5gtr
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    skyline5gtr polycounter lvl 9
    On top of what everyone else said, i would replace the knife as there is a tutorial on how to make it

    http://cgi.tutsplus.com/tutorials/next-gen-weapon-creation-part-1-the-high-poly-model--cg-782
  • Joost
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    Joost polycount sponsor
    I didn't follow any tutorial though... And there's plenty of tutorials for guns and pretty much everything else?
  • skyline5gtr
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    skyline5gtr polycounter lvl 9
    komaokc wrote: »
    I didn't follow any tutorial though... And there's plenty of tutorials for guns and pretty much everything else?

    Indeed but this one was well known, so an employer may think you simply copied it. What does everyone else think ?
  • billymcguffin
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    billymcguffin polycounter lvl 11
    I think komaokc's knife is different enough from the tutorial to be ok. I didn't even think of the tutorial until you linked it.
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