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Art Station FV portfolio review

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GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
Hi, I have a personal Art Station portfolio focused primarily on 3D Prop Art but also demonstrated some of weapon art gigs.

Link: https://fvportfolio.artstation.com/

I would like to hear if there is any critique or advice I could withtake to make it as professional as possible. If you consider it's already good enough then advice whether to remove anything is more than welcome because - less is more!

Thank you in advance.

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  • Ashervisalis
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    Ashervisalis grand marshal polycounter
    Heya. I think you should keep the space dumpster, vase, fire extinguisher. The knife and the telephone booth are ok, they could stay or go. I would suggest removing everything else. The crossbow is pretty weak, modeling/texturing/rendering. The prop rendered with a blank background is a little tiresome. If you're making props, you should probably get into making full environments. Else, the props you make need to be pretty complex and really well done (think realistic guns, or jet engine). One thing you're missing is the art side... I can see you know how to model and throw down some texturing, but a filing cabinet and plastic crates aren't making me want to look at your portfolio for longer than I have to. What are some super cool ideas you have? If you don't have any, what are some really cool concepts you've seen on ArtStation? Try making something which would make yourself go 'woah! sweet!' if you looked at it for the first time.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Heya. I think you should keep the space dumpster, vase, fire extinguisher. The knife and the telephone booth are ok, they could stay or go. I would suggest removing everything else. The crossbow is pretty weak, modeling/texturing/rendering. The prop rendered with a blank background is a little tiresome. If you're making props, you should probably get into making full environments. Else, the props you make need to be pretty complex and really well done (think realistic guns, or jet engine). One thing you're missing is the art side... I can see you know how to model and throw down some texturing, but a filing cabinet and plastic crates aren't making me want to look at your portfolio for longer than I have to. What are some super cool ideas you have? If you don't have any, what are some really cool concepts you've seen on ArtStation? Try making something which would make yourself go 'woah! sweet!' if you looked at it for the first time.
    Thank you for the post. I've had scenes on my mind for a long time but I prioritized getting greater at props for the time being before jumping the gun too soon to environments. I do have some ideas, yet are no matching prototypes / concept arts I found to to this date that replicate them, I only have the scene vision "in my head" and abridged version of props inclusive to it. The way I could attempt to go about it is arbitrarily blockout as I see it in my head and then begin developing the details - what do you think about this idea, is it correct way to go about it? I wouldn't want to spend too long doing something to see it die. Anyways, regardless of the answer I see that this scene, if complete would make me go "woah! sweet!" I feel very into SciFi these days, specially with Mass Effect: Legendary Edition arriving soon :)

    I recognize most assets on the portfolio are boring and lack the artistic touch, and yes, this would get fixed by doing objects / scenes I would genuinely love to do.
  • Ashervisalis
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    Ashervisalis grand marshal polycounter
    Honestly, if you've never jumped to environments, I would highly suggest working off a concept which you've already found. When I was first starting out, any time I would try to create something out of my head, it never turned out very well. If you work off a 2D concept, it has a higher chance of working out, and you will learn art related stuff on the journey.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Honestly, if you've never jumped to environments, I would highly suggest working off a concept which you've already found. When I was first starting out, any time I would try to create something out of my head, it never turned out very well. If you work off a 2D concept, it has a higher chance of working out, and you will learn art related stuff on the journey.
    Noted.

    I jumped into environments before but never via concept art. They were composited using real life photographs as main reference.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    I published a new prop, could this 1 be kept also / is it good enough? Render attached:Link: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/J90m2v

  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Heya. I think you should keep the space dumpster, vase, fire extinguisher. The knife and the telephone booth are ok, they could stay or go. I would suggest removing everything else. The crossbow is pretty weak, modeling/texturing/rendering. The prop rendered with a blank background is a little tiresome. If you're making props, you should probably get into making full environments. Else, the props you make need to be pretty complex and really well done (think realistic guns, or jet engine). One thing you're missing is the art side... I can see you know how to model and throw down some texturing, but a filing cabinet and plastic crates aren't making me want to look at your portfolio for longer than I have to. What are some super cool ideas you have? If you don't have any, what are some really cool concepts you've seen on ArtStation? Try making something which would make yourself go 'woah! sweet!' if you looked at it for the first time.
    Hey, since I updated my portfolio a lot recently I was wondering what do you think which of the current work should be kept and what removed based on the current state? I was careful with choosing the right props for the right reasons. Thanks in advance!
  • CybranM
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    CybranM interpolator
    I think you need to push your props further. Looking at your artstation most of the pieces arent bad but they dont stand out either, if you made an environment scene with that quality I think itd be a solid portfolio piece though. The robot arm doesnt look like it would function at all if made real and makes it seem like the design wasnt thought through. The yellow data tape looks like it was modelled in 20 minutes and then put into substance painter, if you want a prop to be a solo piece it cant look that simplistic.
    Youve made some pretty good models but you need to work on the base geometry more, several of your pieces have hard-edges and bad shading. Try to make something more complex for your next project, its tough but I think quality > quantity will improve your portfolio.
    Good luck! :smile:
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    CybranM said:
    I think you need to push your props further. Looking at your artstation most of the pieces arent bad but they dont stand out either, if you made an environment scene with that quality I think itd be a solid portfolio piece though. The robot arm doesnt look like it would function at all if made real and makes it seem like the design wasnt thought through. The yellow data tape looks like it was modelled in 20 minutes and then put into substance painter, if you want a prop to be a solo piece it cant look that simplistic.
    Youve made some pretty good models but you need to work on the base geometry more, several of your pieces have hard-edges and bad shading. Try to make something more complex for your next project, its tough but I think quality > quantity will improve your portfolio.
    Good luck! :smile:
    I already listened to most of same advice you given here several times and it's same result every time. And you did not answer what I asked about what to keep or take out from current... I wasn't interested to continue without work even if it has to be bad one. I am confident it's already quality enough to grant me a small job.
  • lluc21
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    lluc21 polycounter lvl 6
    The improvement on your latest upload (the fire hydrant) is noticeable. The aestethic of it is nice and the textures and bakes seem to be proper and well thought out, however it still needs a lot of improvement on other areas. Topology and UVs are particularly weak.

    You need to work on your use of Normal Maps and topology, and study when is it convenient to have more geo vs normal mapped detail. At the moment there is detail in the geometry (i.e the vertical ridges) that is too fine to be noticeable in geo and would be perfectly fine, or would look even better in NM. There is also a lot of flat surfaces with too many edges that serve no purpose, and rounded parts where the polygons are too visible.


    In the UV's you need to work quite a bit. You need to straighten your islands where it makes sense, instead of having the wobbly and distorted mess you have at the moment. You also need to pack the islands tighter, there's too much wasted space. This will be much easier to do once you straighten the islands.


    My final advice would be to take on an asset similar to the fire hydrant (in shape complexity, avoid very rectangular or basic shapes like the dumpster or data tape you have ATM), maybe even do the fire hydrant again if you want, and go back to the High Poly. Then ask for feedback on every step. You can ask for feedback on a dedicated thread here on Polycount or in one of the many Discord communities that work really well for this purpose. When you have asked for feedback on the high-poly and people have given you meaningful feedback you can move on to the low poly, and do the same. Ask for feedback and follow it.

    The problem I'm seeing right now is that you don't have a solid foundation supporting your finished models (proper topology, proper UVs...), so you're carrying mistakes done in your HP to your LP and so forth.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    I have a few more artworks and would like to strip it all down to get chance at any game company as 3D prop / asset artist. I'd like advice on what to keep, what to remove from the portfolio... Thanks in advance. https://www.artstation.com/fvportfolio
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Bump, more updates were made, I would like to hear some feedback.
  • lluc21
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    lluc21 polycounter lvl 6
    The hallway is definitely your best piece, I think if you managed to get 3 or 4 environments with that quality you would be onto something.
    The UFO scene is ok-ish but there are a few things that stand out. First of all the lighting could have much more work, right now it is a bit of a mess composition wise, so I think if you work on that you can be onto something. Maybe making the UFO beam much brighter could help, but you will need to work on the camera angles and maybe the position of some objects... Or maybe it'd work better in the day? just dropping some ideas but you will have to experiment a bit...
    Another thing that caught my attention from the UFO scene is the asphalt on the road and the material transitions between the surrounding materials like puddles and sidewalk. ATM it is very obvious that it's just a decal on top and it is not well integrated. The grass could have much more love also.

    Apart from that I think you should get rid of all the individual props in your portfolio, they are all way too simple to stand on their own.
    You could have some props breakdown inside of the environment it is used in as an extra tough... 

    Also, for the environments... You need to break down the scene a bit to show how the scene was constructed. A few things you need to make very clear on the breakdown:
    Make sure to clearly show that it is done in a realtime engine. You don't need to put the logo or anything, just something that screams game engine, like a lighting breakdown or a short "cinematic".
    Make sure you use techniques that would be used in a production like trimsheets and modular assets, and break them down to show how you used them.
    Take a look at other real time environments in Artstation and take notes on how they are presented.

    TL:DR Get rid of all the individual props and make proper breakdowns of the environments
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Thanks for the feedback. Can you take a look again, I am still in progress of updates, specially at Chicago. Can you tell me how it is now...?  I also have this snip. https://www.artstation.com/artwork/ykraXK Thanks.  
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Curious about feedback now. Where I stand, what I should keep and remove from portfolio to certify best impressions about my work? Link: https://www.artstation.com/fvportfolio Thanks in advance!
  • lluc21
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    lluc21 polycounter lvl 6
    I think you're definitely getting there. I can see a big improvement compared to your old works on this thread.
    Things that are missing and are holding all your assets back are PBR understanding and UV layout cleanliness.
    You need to pause and look at real world materials, how are they composed, what kind of detail is part of the roughness, what is part of the color and so on... Also why are things dirty/clean in the places they are, what cause paint to chip off or get scratched at a specific place...

    To better understand PBR you can take a look at the PBR guide: 
    https://substance3d.adobe.com/tutorials/courses/the-pbr-guide-part-1
    https://substance3d.adobe.com/tutorials/courses/the-pbr-guide-part-2

    You don't have to understand everything down to the equations on that guide, but make sure to skim around it to see the things you can and cannot do if you want to stay physically accurate with your values.

    For the cleaner UVs the main thing you need to focus on is straightening up your islands. You need to avoid curves and bends as much as possible, even if it means adding a bit of distortion. Using the space efficiently is better than having completely undistorted UV's, especially nowadays that all the texturing is done in 3d.

    I recommend you to publish the process of your next work in as many places as possible (polycount, discord, Artstation blog) to gather feedback during the process and make the necessary changes early.
    I think for your next work you could pick a concept art for an environment and try to recreate it. Polycount bi-monthly challenges are a good place to look for cool concepts that are not incredibly complex. If you do make sure to document the process from the beginning.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    lluc21 said:
    I think you're definitely getting there. I can see a big improvement compared to your old works on this thread.
    Things that are missing and are holding all your assets back are PBR understanding and UV layout cleanliness.
    You need to pause and look at real world materials, how are they composed, what kind of detail is part of the roughness, what is part of the color and so on... Also why are things dirty/clean in the places they are, what cause paint to chip off or get scratched at a specific place...

    To better understand PBR you can take a look at the PBR guide: 
    https://substance3d.adobe.com/tutorials/courses/the-pbr-guide-part-1
    https://substance3d.adobe.com/tutorials/courses/the-pbr-guide-part-2

    You don't have to understand everything down to the equations on that guide, but make sure to skim around it to see the things you can and cannot do if you want to stay physically accurate with your values.

    For the cleaner UVs the main thing you need to focus on is straightening up your islands. You need to avoid curves and bends as much as possible, even if it means adding a bit of distortion. Using the space efficiently is better than having completely undistorted UV's, especially nowadays that all the texturing is done in 3d.

    I recommend you to publish the process of your next work in as many places as possible (polycount, discord, Artstation blog) to gather feedback during the process and make the necessary changes early.
    I think for your next work you could pick a concept art for an environment and try to recreate it. Polycount bi-monthly challenges are a good place to look for cool concepts that are not incredibly complex. If you do make sure to document the process from the beginning.
    Ok, I'll consider your feedback and read through the guide a bit. May I know if you were to choose what artworks would you leave and which would you remove from present portfolio? I asked it on my post but didn't notice that you addressed it. Thanks!
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    This post is just to update that I spent most of today reading into the PDF from the 2 parts of the PBR guide, it was quite an interesting read and I can already feel/assume it will boost my realism precision in later stages :)
  • lluc21
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    lluc21 polycounter lvl 6
    I'd say the dumpster and the elevator platform could go. The dumpster textures are not really thought out and I think there are some baking issues, and the elevator has many shading artifacts and the textures look a bit off. I might be ok if it was part of a bigger environment but I think it doesn't quite stand on its own.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    Ok, thanks for the feedback. I'll consider it and reach out later on if I will have any more questions.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9


    There have been many updates to my portfolio since I last posted here, so I'm looking for some expert feedback again. I'm curious on what could I take out of the portfolio for quality improvement / better impressions? General feedback on improvement is welcome too.

    Here's the link: https://www.artstation.com/fvportfolio

  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    I am bumping this because nobody had replied and I am looking for feedback on my portfolio. Since there had been many layoffs recently across the industry and I am under impression that feedback on my work is mixed, I am now a little bit confused on how much it is my end and how much it is caused by the current work market situation.

    Please feel free to reply if you have any thoughts about this.
  • lluc21
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    lluc21 polycounter lvl 6
    Hey! I have been off for a while, but I remember this and can see a massive improvement on your portfolio over the last few years. The two environments really stand out and are very pleasing to look at. 
    The current situation is definitely very challenging. Layoffs not only mean less job spots available, but also more experienced people looking for jobs.
    Environment and prop art being one of the roles with the most applicants doesn't help either.

    I'd suggest you to work on a few outstanding complex props, don't bother too much making them optimised, but rather make sure they look as good as possible.
  • GTARandom
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    GTARandom polycounter lvl 9
    lluc21 said:
    Hey! I have been off for a while, but I remember this and can see a massive improvement on your portfolio over the last few years. The two environments really stand out and are very pleasing to look at. 
    The current situation is definitely very challenging. Layoffs not only mean less job spots available, but also more experienced people looking for jobs.
    Environment and prop art being one of the roles with the most applicants doesn't help either.

    I'd suggest you to work on a few outstanding complex props, don't bother too much making them optimised, but rather make sure they look as good as possible.
    Thank you, yes I recognize there has been great improvement over the time passed so far! I am still working on sharpening my skills, and looking for feedback whenever I consider it necessary, so yeah, in terms of self-improvement I too believe I'm on the right track - even though the current set of circumstances concerning layoffs and game industry in general are disappointing to say the least. I am trying not to let the latter discourage me from progress, though.

    In that advent I have been working on a new environment project based on a New York city street. I let myself combine two Manhattan locations and make a new rendition with my own artistic flair added into it. I am now actively seeking feedback on it to determine what I can do to improve it and make it portfolio-ready. Screenshots and a small part of references I used are included below:



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