How does one get motivated For 3D modeling

Ladygrace

I am wondering how people get motivated to 3D model.  I have brought software and tablets etc to try and get motivated into modeling but i cant get anywhere beyond starting something. I do suffer depression which makes things hard but i am curious how people get started as the only thing that use to make me model stuff is someone saying they needed or wanted something so i had attempts at making it while still learning.

I really want to create Anime Models mainly but it is hard to find information on it. Although i have Purchased some books from japan (Cant read Japanese but has enough images to get a good look at topology etc) and Looking at amazing work from this site for ideas http://nudekimbob.cafe24.com/xe/index.php?mid=gallery_chl

Any Considerations would be wonderful to help me get back into 3D Design stuff again.

Thank you

AdventurousDrake

Just so you know, those character's that you are linking to are Korean and not Japanese, there is a pretty big difference in look and feel between the two.

I would suggest you play some games like Minecraft or similar, where you need to be creative but in a non taxing way. You could also start modelling a background or environment first, and then model a character that fits the environment as characters are more difficult to model. Personally, if I am having a hard time, I cannot create either, but the correct video game usually gets me there.  

PyrZern

Post every progress onto the forums or Facebook ("ten thousand hours" is a great group to join) or somewhere ppl can see. They help you drive forward. Don't disappoint your fan-base.

Ladygrace

AdventurousDrake said:

Just so you know, those character's that you are linking to are Korean and not Japanese, there is a pretty big difference in look and feel between the two.

I would suggest you play some games like Minecraft or similar, where you need to be creative but in a non taxing way. You could also start modelling a background or environment first, and then model a character that fits the environment as characters are more difficult to model. Personally, if I am having a hard time, I cannot create either, but the correct video game usually gets me there.  

Yeah i know they are Korean but i was using it as an example of the work i would like to do and i do own some Japanese books as well.
I like your idea of creating the background first as the anatomy is very hard to get rite.

Odow

Don't try to find motivation, search for discipline, for passion, human are lazy and "motivation" is their number 1 excuse to not do something.

sziada

Its hard at the start but once you start making cool stuff you tend to want to do it more and more. You will then want to start taking on more challenging projects and that drive you to do more and more 3D.

Jonas Ronnegard

cut up your goals in to smaller pieces, so everyday that you can work you have a goal to reach, 
if you have no particular deadline for the day, there is a big chance you just end up rotating your viewport.

Meloncov

Also, take the time to think about whether this is really something you want to do. I'm not necessarily saying you're one of them, but a lot of people love the idea of being an artist but not the actual process of making art. If 3d art isn't your thing, you're not under any obligation to stick with it.

cptSwing

Meloncov said:

Take the time to think about whether this is really something you want to do.

Pretty much this, and valid as an answer to a lot of these "where do I find motivation" threads.

PixelMasher

im just going to copy/paste this reply I posted in another one of the hundreds of in need of motivation threads. cause these are starting to get out of hand. Everyone posting they are lacking motivation needs to read: No Excuses! by Brian Tracy.  Hands down one of the best books I have on my shelf and I reference it constantly. 

most people look at the world/taking action as this : 
Feelings > Actions > Descisions   
example: I feel tired/unmotivated today, so im going to play video games instead and decide to work on my art tomorrow. This leads to a bad habit of not getting shit done, and downward spiraling into depression/not working.

The 5% of most successful people in the world tend to look at it like this:
Descisions > Actions > Feelings   
example: I have decided to become a kick ass artist, so I am going to work on art, even if I am unmotivated. After doing that, I feel amazing and successful, having accomplished one more step towards my goals and success.

it really comes down to simply forcing yourself to get to work even if you dont feel like it, consistently. day after day, week after week. No use sitting around feeling depressed not doing anything, when you can be working towards your goals. Do it or don't, but looking to others for motivation will usually get you chasing your own tail.

leilei

On a private forum, I'd call out the next character concept i'll model before modeling any other character (as a way discipline so I don't make busty elf #638 by accident).  Unfortunately this leads to much procrastination because my schedule is so messed up (Drawpiles, TV and streams) and I also have programming tasks to do


Seconding on the music thing however.   Music is important for obvious reasons

GrevSev

I enjoy doing it as a hobby and thus im eternally motivated 

Work a physically demanding low paying dead end job and imagine how nice it would be to make game art for a living. You'll be more motivated to model than you would eat.

Melazee

I had a bad period at the end of last year where I did no art due to personal issues (bar at work of course). I ended up wasting valuable time I could have used to improve my work more, and that brought me further down into that spiral of unproductive doom. I decided this was no good, I was becoming stale, and every moment I spend not working on stuff, other people are (and they are becoming more kickass at it too!). 

I set myself up a schedule a couple of months ago:

-Get home from work (I work in a studio so it can be double tough to force yourself back onto the PC after a whole day of doing that already).

-Set alarm for 30 minutes and have a nap. This helps so so much. Don't oversleep or else you can wake up exhausted again, but I find 30 minutes is perfect. It gives your brain a much needed refresh after a long day.

-Eat. Eating is important yo. Can't think right without a properly fuelled brain.

-Sit at my desk with a good brew, open up the programs I need for my work, open up Artstation for inspiration... and away you go.

-Work from about 6pm till 9:30pm, then it's bed (assuming work at the studio isn't busy of course!)


I've learned so much in those past two months that I just wondered, "why didn't I do this before?". I am the least organised person on the planet, so none of this is written down in a schedule anywhere. I've been getting my body clock used to it so I can work even without the motivation. It becomes routine.

But of course, some nights you just want to chill and relax, or hang out with people and that's perfectly okay! It's all about finding a balance and not burning yourself out in the process. And don't become a hermit and a slave to your work either! That can be just as bad, trust me!

Kevin Albers

As other other people have mentioned, forming a habit of doing the work is very helpful. Another thing I'd like to point out is the challenge level of the models you decide to make. If you try to make models that are way beyond your current ability, it will likely be very demotivating. Making models you can already easily make can be very boring, so that is also not good. Try to challenge yourself some, but not too much, with each new model. This way, you will almost certainly suceed in doing a fine job on each model, and that is very motivating. Keep doing slightly more difficult work, with a good idea of what you eventually want to be able to make (luckily you already have that part figured out!), and over time you will become insanely good compared to whatever you current skill level is at.

Continual improvement without crazy stress involved really helps with motivation.  

FireBat12

I'm in my final month of college so right now my main motivation to model is to get a passing mark haha. Seriously though my motivation comes from the fact that i just like to make models and getting to learn new Technics as well as seeing how easy making something is the
second time doing it and getting to see how much i have improved. An example of this is my final project for school, I am modeling 2 jets. 1 tejas light combat aircraft and 1 JF-17 thunder. I started with the tejas and it took forever and frankly was really hard to wrap my head are because i went in thing it was just a cylinder with some extrusions and that's how i started. Holy crap I was so wrong there is a lot a complicated topology that goes into making one of those things and it took forever to get were i am currently.  I stopped working on it and moved to the jf 17 thunder and tried starting with more faces (I used a 8 sided cylinder for the tejas and a 16 sided cylinder for the JF 17)and a different approach to modeling it by and was amazed at how fast and easy it was to get get a large chunk done in a comparably tiny amount of time compared to the tejas. This experience only fuels my desire to get better and faster.

What I'm trying to say is find something that's hard for you to do the first time like a house,vehicle or whatever and then another one and see how much you improve on it. Don't ever go into something you have never done before and take it lightly.

Joost

Find a reason to learn. Whether it be finding a job in the game industry, working on indie games, 3d printing anime figurines, whatever you aspire to do.

"I really want to create Anime Models" is too vague of a goal and doesn't provide much motivation I imagine.

Zack Maxwell

I've found flagellating myself with a belt to be very effective when I'm feeling too lazy, not that I would recommend it :P

More realistically, good music makes me feel more motivated in general.

I also enjoy working on stuff more when I plan to release it online and get feedback.

My real go to though is to just use my multiple monitors to watch a show or something while I work, making motivation mostly irrelevant.

zetheros

Yeah, like @odow said, it's not so much about motivation, rather than discipline.

Motivation can give you a kick start, but discipline is what will keep you working until you fall into that 'artist's zen' where time flies by, and the next thing you know the sun's shining through the window, and you realize you haven't showered for 48 hours.

fdfxd2

Go to a 3d modelling pinterest board/art station
get inspired
then the motivation will come..

aaronmwolford

If you love it then the motivation should come easier. That's not to say we all don't find ourselves in a funk here and there, but it's the idea of constantly improving that I feed off of. I have a playlist of music that I turn on sometimes before I start working that gets me motivated to work. Also I look at other peoples work that is superior to mine and that fuels me to improve. That doesn't work for everyone, but it may for you. 

Lastly, where do you want to be in 5-10 years. If you want to be an artist working on games or film then start working now. If the idea of doing anything else than creating art makes you cringe then get busy and create. 

RogerP

Music, browsing art from awesome artists (Artstation, etc). Even if I don't feel motivated sometimes I just sit on my computer and start doodling on something new or force myself to keep working and after a few minutes I get back to it without any issues.

Ruz

money

vertex_

Ruz said:

money

Bingo

Amsterdam Hilton Hotel

im not motivated to learn how to cut and tan leather and therefore i dont do it.

im motivated to make silly models and textures for games for god knows what reason so i do that all the time even though it would probably make more sense to do other things like program computers or build a log cabin deep in the woods away from tax collectors.

i think you should try not doing anything other than modeling. see if you get into it or not. maybe it's not for you? maybe it is. you have to sit down and do it to find out