How do you use video tutorials?

YF_Sticks

Hello fellow polycounters

As I am learning 3D it is important to follow lots of tutorials and learning different workflows. My question is, how do you use the video tutorials or how do you learn from them?
For modeling in Maya i.e. : Do you model along the instructor or do you just watch the tutorial and take notes?
I did follow a lot of tutorials, but I'm at a level now where I feel I just do what the guy does without really focusing on the stuff he is saying.

What is your prefered way to learn?

Thank you

CrackRockSteady

Personally I think the best approach is to watch a tutorial in order to understand a particular method or technique and then try to apply what you've learned to your own project.  

I see a lot of people who follow tutorials to the letter, going along step by step doing exactly what the instructor is showing and making the exact same thing the instructor is making.  This really only teaches you how to do that *exact thing*, when really what is important is understanding the underlying concepts that are being taught and then being able to apply those concepts to your own work.

I'm not even saying that following a tutorial step-by-step is a bad thing, it may help you initially get a good grasp on what is being taught.  But after you've followed that tutorial, take what you've learned and try to make something new, I guarantee you'll learn a lot more.

RyanB

I always follow along with the program open and match their work.  Much slower but the info sticks in my head.  When I reach a basic level of competency, I will stop looking for tutorials and learn through experimentation.

YF_Sticks

CrackRockSteady said:

Personally I think the best approach is to watch a tutorial in order to understand a particular method or technique and then try to apply what you've learned to your own project.  

I see a lot of people who follow tutorials to the letter, going along step by step doing exactly what the instructor is showing and making the exact same thing the instructor is making.  This really only teaches you how to do that *exact thing*, when really what is important is understanding the underlying concepts that are being taught and then being able to apply those concepts to your own work.

I'm not even saying that following a tutorial step-by-step is a bad thing, it may help you initially get a good grasp on what is being taught.  But after you've followed that tutorial, take what you've learned and try to make something new, I guarantee you'll learn a lot more.

Totally, I think so too. I tried doing it following step by step, but the principles didn't really stick with me.

SpaceRogue

Honestly it really depends, I may get bored trying to recreate the instructors 'file' tho, so if I have enough knowledge I would just watch the tutorial and apply it to my own project. 

If I don't then I'll try to recreate the tutorials just to get the whole thing memorised. But again it really depends, if I where to pick up Houdini I'd certainly follow it to a T because I'm new, while if I had to rig something in Blender I could just take one of my own models and follow a generic rigging tutorial ecetra. 

Brian "Panda" Choi

As a beginner professional, I've come to point where I'm scrubbing through tutorials for specific problem areas I'm having. Rarely have I seen the tutorial front to end. 

Early on as a beginner, definitely was doing front to back, making sure I heard UI explanations, shortcuts, etc. 

sacboi

Mainly watch them for 'button pushing' workflows, that I've either forgotten or might be more efficient working with. After all this time I still need a helping hand once in awhile. Also there's a tiered difference between the mountains of instructional content online in respect too quality, so I recommend sticking with the best known tutorial libraries eg: Digital Tutors, Gnomon, 3DTotal, Eat3D...etc

...IMHO less painful in the long run when you're following a pro or seasoned artist's advice, well at least I'd found to be generally true over the years learning this stuff solo.

aryarie

At the moment I follow along with the tutorial whilst also taking notes. The notes I take are usually because the tutorial is an older version of Maya and so sometimes the buttons they use are located somewhere else or have been renamed so I have to jot down the new way of doing the same thing so I can remember later on.

If I'm comfortable with what I've done in the tutorial then I try to apply what I've learned to my own project, normally by creating a similar object using photo reference (or sometimes sketches, if it's a made up thing). This helps reinforce what I've learned from the tutorial.

Currently trying to learn UVing/texturing so I'm stuck in tutorial land at the moment and it'll be a while before I can apply this to my own stuff.

Stuart Campbell

@YF_Sticks

Are you asking the question because you feel you are somehow missing something as you watch the tutorials, or not getting enough from them?

YF_Sticks

Stuart Campbell said:

@YF_Sticks

Are you asking the question because you feel you are somehow missing something as you watch the tutorials, or not getting enough from them?

Actually I'm just trying to get some ideas from people of how they approach learning by video. Some tutorials I follow step by step (especially with a new software). And now I'm moving more and more away from that and just take notes and applying it to my projects.
It is more a "fear" of missing something in the tutorial.