On the topic of getting into 3D art...

Akas

(I do hope I'm posting in the right place)
I am asking for any of your experiences and ideas regarding the problem below.

I have been trying to get back to 3D art for a while now. I started a couple years ago by joining a largeanimation project and honing my craft for the next 2 years. The project however failed, I lost interest andsince then haven't even touched 3D. Now I wish to return. The problem however is that I don't know how. I don't have the slightest idea of where to begin, what to do and how to reignite my passion with this type of art. I can't even find a suitable course because they either cover material I'm familiar with or are way beyond my level.

Therefore I wondered if you could share your stories of how you got into 3D - for the first time or after a break. What did you create? Did you create it just for training or perhaps for a need? What made you stay interested?

I'd be sincerely grateful to anyone who could help me with that obstacle.

Thanks.

Brian "Panda" Choi

I sketched as a child.

I played games.  Then wanted to make games.

Asked myself how do sketches turn into animating 3D models, because I want to make games.

Tried my best to follow the bread crumb trail.

Couple years go by.  hustle hustle hustle, now we're here.

Longer form here:
http://sketch.zone/episode-4/

My question to you: do you make art on a regular basis?  Any kind of art?

Taylor Brown

Perhaps sharing some pics of your work would provide a better idea as to what gaps you need help filling?

Spag_Eddy

I grew up playing way too many video games, watching way too many horror movies, building way too many things out of Legos, and spending way too much time drawing/creating my own comic book characters because I was inspired AF by Marvel collectors cards and comic books. I wasn't necessarily any good at drawing, but I loved being able to bring all of my crazy imaginations to life, and still do. I never really thought there was any sort of avenue where I could put my creative talents to use and actually make a living doing it, and then I discovered 3D-Modeling a couple years ago, abandoned my previous career to self-learn full-time, and haven't looked back since. It's been a long road, and an often frustrating road, but a worthwhile one. There is nothing better than waking up every single day and doing the thing you love.

I would highly suggest partaking in some sort of weekly/daily art challenge, it's really what helped me get through the beginner days when I felt lost and overwhelmed. r/Daily3D on Reddit has daily art challenges that are geared towards beginners that are fun and as simple as you want them to be, and when you start feeling more comfortable with your skills, participating in something like one of the many ArtStation challenges could be a lot of fun as well. 

If you enjoy 3D modeling, figure out what else you really enjoy. If you like football, then model a stupid football. If you think the weapons in Skyrim were badassed and you always wanted to make one of your own, then create a simple broadsword. If you're an amateur nudist who galavants the many earthly beaches...nevermind that one. The point is, figure out what you love, create it, and be inspired enough by it to continue doing more. Start simple, then continue to challenge yourself as your skills grow. Absorb yourself into the world of 3D Art as much as you can. Interact with other artists. Join 3D art communities, etc. etc. LIVE/EAT/BREATHE/POOP 3D ART BRUH.

Also:

Mike Hermes on Youtube
Game Dev Academy on Youtube
Carol Ashley on Youtube
Udemy.com is a great resource for paid tutorials (they often have really good deals/discounts on some really awesome tutorials)
Pluralsight (You used to be able to get a free 3-month membership if you downloaded "Dev Essentials - Visual Studio" from the Microsoft store. I assume it's still a thing. I definitely recommend)

Good luck, matey!

Alex_J

For me motivation is that the games that I want to play don't exist. So whose gonna make them?

Also working in 3d is fun and very rewarding. So discipline is usually needed not to start but to stop. Like wild sled dogs. They don't ever need to be told to go. Only to stop so they don't run themselves skinny. If you haven't found the joy in work, aim for that first

Akas

Thank you all for replying.

Brian: No, I don't make any art at all. In fact I consider myself artistically illiterate. The problem I seem to have with sketching stuff is that I either want to draw something way above my level or something that doesn't interest me. Either way I get discouraged rather quickly. I feel like I have a simillar attitude in terms of 3D. I can't think of anything that would be both interesting and feasable.

Taylor: All my work was lost in an unfortunate yet deliberate "accident" (don't ask).  I was mostly playing around with static objects like buildings and props. 

Spag_Eddy: Thanks for mentioning the challenges. I feel like I definetely need an external motivator. The aformentioned project I partook in was great at that, but finding something simillar borders with a miracle. It would sure be nice to bring my imaginations to life like you, but unfortunately my creativity seems to be very limited. Something like a writer's block before even starting to write : P. Thanks for the sword suggestion, might as well try that for start. I often have trouble with joining communities and being social, but I suppose creating an account here is a step in the right direction.

BIGTIMEMASTER: heh, the games I'd like to see come to existence are overly ambitious even for triple A producers : P. I suppose the metaphor you used is true, but only after you develop a passion for the subject. I however am still in the process of rebuilding it after I lost it those years ago. 

Following your suggestions I will try modelling some stuff from games and see how it goes. Sooner or later I will have to address my unhealthy perfectionism, but that is a problem I can't expect others to solve. Still, perhaps you have some tips to share? Did any of you also have a case of not being satisfied with anything you create? if so, how did you manage to overcome it? I think that's the one thing that burdens me the most.

Brian "Panda" Choi

If you're artisitically illiterate, why not spend the time to learn how to 'read?'

Or would you rather be already at a point where you can write novels without learning how to construct sentences.

Taking some classes bruh.  Even at a rinky dink community college; get a foundation and some discipline so the last question you're asking yourself is "why am I not making anything?"  You'll be doing stuff that is uninteresting, but you'll be learning how to make feasible things.

Akas

Physical classes are unfortunately out of the question for me due to lack of time. Maybe online courses would be possible if I find some. 

Still, learning how to draw would mean devoting many hours for just that and I don't think I would be able to manage that while doing 3D at the same time. Maybe I will put some time in drawing once I have more free time, but for now I'll have to manage without it.

Thank you for replying.

Alex_J

Great art classes on YouTube. And painting on photoshop  is invaluable skill for 3d artist. 

I think the ease and flexibility of digital painting is great for discovering the joy in creating. Just forget the results for awhile and have fun. Develop broader interest.

Taylor Brown

You need to talk to yourself first. Ask yourself what you truly desire out of this. If the answer is "to make some badass 3D art" then you need to push through all those stories youve told yourself about things being either too boring or too complex. Make something, show us the work and then we can help you grow as a community.

Brian "Panda" Choi

If something is going to take a long time, you could always just do it a bit at a time.

ToffeeApple

Hi Akas - I'm also a fellow perfectionist. I have improved with this though. I think the best way to deal with it is to make a lot of work/assets. I always think of the 1 versus 100 pots analogy. Basically it's better to spend your time making lots of assets than 1 perfect asset. If you focus on just making 1 that is when you can become obsessed and the perfectionism kicks in. If you have many to make you are forced to just move on to the next and to not worry about it so much. Also I find that if I am getting very obsessed over an asset even though it could be classed as finished - then just say to yourself you are going to call it finished. Move on do some other assets. Then when you look back at that asset you might not see the flaws you once saw before - you might suddenly realise it was better than you thought as you are no longer looking at it through your magnifying glass. 

If you are not familiar with the analogy I have linked it:

https://medium.com/startup-leadership/the-best-way-to-learn-something-make-a-lot-of-pots-7f4aa97e1d3a

Good luck getting back into 3D!

Akas

Hm, I’ve never thought of such a method. Thanks a lot, I’ll definetely try it!

Taylor Brown

Looking forward to seeing you post some projects!

Nick_Medukha

Hey OP, I was in a completely same situation two weeks ago, I am switching to the 3D from app developer, cause I hate strictly defined programming rules and love freedom of the freelance with hopes that someday I can grow it out in a small studio. I started creating those "game-ready assets", but I don't play games. I don't play games at all. And then a good friend of mine asked me - so why the hell you are doing stuff for games, if you really don't know nothing about it?! I asked that question to myself and got depressed. I felt exactly like you told in a first post - I didn't know where to go. I googled and googled and came up with about 20 industries where 3D modeling can be used, and  there are very artsy ones and also very technical ones, so anybody can find something that he can like Spag_Eddy said LIVE/EAT/BREATHE/POOP 3D. So just get a week-off, go for a walk in a forest, breathe fresh air, meditate maybe. Take your time to find something you really like, cause you have to live you life with it. Remember, the life is only one.