Portfolio Critique (Help me improve)

Spamtastic

I'm trying to improve my portfolio and would love any critiques this community has to offer. I know there is much lacking or to fix, but where is what I'm not sure of. I've posted a link to my online portfolio and some samples below.

http://usagivision.com







Be honest (and harsh if you need to, I won't take it personally).
Thanks!

CarlK3D

While the 2D Art is cool I have to scroll down to see any of the work I want to look at.
So I'm not sure why you have a (WiP I assume) Sculpt there but not your main work.

Having everything on 1 page in sections is a nice idea but I'm not sure about the Page "Top" as I said its only showing me a Sculpt & a Background Image.

More Info on your Work would be good. such as Tris Count, Texture Size & Wireframes.

The Wood & Gold on the Pistol isent reading very well. looks kinda flat & the gold part could use a sharper spec looks dull. Also there are parts that are fair lower poly then others and its seen quite clearly in the silhouette. Around the Trigger & the Handle

I really Like the Tree Scene. The Pink leaves do look a bit large and its making them appear as paper. perhaps try sizing them down I bit and see if you like it.

Spamtastic

Thanks CarlK3D, I suppose nuking that top part of the home page would prove more straight to the point. I added some descriptions to the works now too.

Getting the textures to work properly on the gun was an issue for me. I think I spent too much time trying to match the concept when I should have just went with what looked better. Since I textured on a color calibrated monitor, everything would look off when I check it on regular screens which was a nightmare for adjustments.

I'll try some other changes you suggested as well. Thanks again!

Nosslak

I think you should put up some more shots for each project like additional angles, wireframes, potential highpolys and textures as that'd make the portfolio feel a lot more complete and would show your proficiency off in those areas better.

I generally hate lightbox but at least with this one you can save the image so at least it's got that going for it.

The pieces you posted are pretty nice but they could be better IMO:
1. The tree crown could be a bit fuller with more leaves further away from the big branches. The scene feels a bit empty so I'd maybe place some bigger rocks or plants on the right side as well.
2. The pistol looks pretty nice but it feels a bit too clean for me. I'd add a bit more dirt and wear to break up the materials a bit better (faded colors on the grip for example).
3. Looks pretty good but it feels a bit flat. Personally I'd probably try making this scene rainy to give it a bit more interest and again break up the textures with some water puddles and such.

Good luck!

[Deleted User]

Hey Kev, Sup? Your mako piece looks a bit jagged in the edges. Double the size of your document (Document>Double), then click on Antialiased Half Size on the right, just above the perspective button (or ctrl+0). Your edges will look much smoother. You might also want to do a BPR to get some shadows on there. By default it's going to have sharp shadows, just adjust the BPR settings.

Spamtastic

@Nosslak, you're right, the gun does feel too clean. I've had a lot of mixed feedback on that gun, but I'll try and muck it up some more. I'm not much of a fan of lightbox either but it reacts the same as HTML5's version. The coding is near identical, I just went with what I knew haha. Thanks for the feedback.

@Paololazatin Hey Paolo! Thanks for that, I knew there was a way to get rid of those damn jagged edges. This is what I get for not using zbrush more.

Nosslak

I prefer links directly to the images without any extra fuzz or anything but that's a bit of a personal preference I suppose. The upside of just doing that is that the portfolio will be a lot faster to browse and there are less potential compatibility problems. It might look a bit uglier but I think the benefits outweighs that.