Really struggling with foundational and observational aspects and applying that to 3d space
polycounter lvl 5
So, I've been doing some digging over the last few weeks and I will say I've currently moved more off the game stuff to product viz maybe even looking into archviz but I'm still bouncing around a few things. But i thought i'd try and get some advice here as you're a great bunch that really know your shiz.
Anyway I've posted here a few times over the years and I put a post up about whether i enjoy it or not , after doing some digging around and writing some stuff down I've come to the conclusion of the lack of motivation, getting stuck in big ruts etc is really just my feel of lack of progress/understanding core fundamentals and not learning the building blocks to approach different assetts which is my downfall.
So a big issue with me is taking something from 2d and applying it into 3d it's really hard to explain but sometimes I seriously struggle and after a good 4 years or so of this now i feel like It's just a flaw with me and it's never really going to go away, I've done multiple courses of all sorts,watched all sorts of tutorials but you know how to make that one thing but is pointless to keep doing that because everything is different. I have moved off of that now and I am doing my own stuff but some days I'll seriously struggle to transfer what i see in 2d to 3d regardless of the amount of references I have available to me I just can't seem to do it get overwhelmed and give up for the day because I'm so mentally drained.
So let's say a knife for example I can get the blockout down but really struggle with edge placement to make the blade and so forth. I am aware of concepts I've read here in terms of blocking out cube,sphere,cylinder and so forth it's just the stage after that with the refinement and details i get hung up on and I have no idea other than keep trying which i don't feel like is working for me at all considering it's been a long time. I think stress esp for me plays a big part I don't think i could go a week without opening up maya and doing something it's just impossible but when i do i feel this wall of self doubt and stress hit me like a brick wall and stop me in my tracks. I start thinking how am i going to do this part, model this, model that etc and i just explode with overwhelm and think 12 steps down rather than step 1 or 2.
I have a behance of stuff i've been doing and I'm still pretty happy with it. I feel like I have a way better understanding of topology now but it's form and observation/workflow where i feel like I'm lacking always feel like I'm doing things the wrong way even though i don't think that's the case. The Key and tablet I did on my own but struggled allot for the key in terms of getting the shape down etc. The bike I really don't think I'd be able to do over again without intense struggle as it was done during a course i did.
I am starting to break down things i want to learn now into smaller steps so that's one thing, but i feel like I'm going to be haunted by this for a very long time and it bugs me everyday I just feel like I'm running on the spot if i can't get the foundational skills down to approach multiple different assetts. I'm a huge car guy but I haven't even attempted to do one due to being overwhelmed just thinking about it. I've completely bailed out of applying to a few viz jobs due to fear and knowing I could well be screwed on the first thing they ask me to do. Job wise after putting in 4 or so years now, giving up would be pointless but and I might aswell keep building on what i have that and I have no idea what else i'd do. However this is where i'm at might take about a month of see if i come back to it or just leave it behind and think about what else to do.
I feel if i can get passed this, i'd be allot more confident in my self and really start loving it.
Here is the behance i mentioned above: https://www.behance.net/jacklocke
It's been a long post, but it feels really good to get it all into words finally and express what I'm feeling. If you read it all and stuck with it cheers.
EDIT: Think i might go through the weekly hard surface challenges and see how i get on over time.
Anyway I've posted here a few times over the years and I put a post up about whether i enjoy it or not , after doing some digging around and writing some stuff down I've come to the conclusion of the lack of motivation, getting stuck in big ruts etc is really just my feel of lack of progress/understanding core fundamentals and not learning the building blocks to approach different assetts which is my downfall.
So a big issue with me is taking something from 2d and applying it into 3d it's really hard to explain but sometimes I seriously struggle and after a good 4 years or so of this now i feel like It's just a flaw with me and it's never really going to go away, I've done multiple courses of all sorts,watched all sorts of tutorials but you know how to make that one thing but is pointless to keep doing that because everything is different. I have moved off of that now and I am doing my own stuff but some days I'll seriously struggle to transfer what i see in 2d to 3d regardless of the amount of references I have available to me I just can't seem to do it get overwhelmed and give up for the day because I'm so mentally drained.
So let's say a knife for example I can get the blockout down but really struggle with edge placement to make the blade and so forth. I am aware of concepts I've read here in terms of blocking out cube,sphere,cylinder and so forth it's just the stage after that with the refinement and details i get hung up on and I have no idea other than keep trying which i don't feel like is working for me at all considering it's been a long time. I think stress esp for me plays a big part I don't think i could go a week without opening up maya and doing something it's just impossible but when i do i feel this wall of self doubt and stress hit me like a brick wall and stop me in my tracks. I start thinking how am i going to do this part, model this, model that etc and i just explode with overwhelm and think 12 steps down rather than step 1 or 2.
I have a behance of stuff i've been doing and I'm still pretty happy with it. I feel like I have a way better understanding of topology now but it's form and observation/workflow where i feel like I'm lacking always feel like I'm doing things the wrong way even though i don't think that's the case. The Key and tablet I did on my own but struggled allot for the key in terms of getting the shape down etc. The bike I really don't think I'd be able to do over again without intense struggle as it was done during a course i did.
I am starting to break down things i want to learn now into smaller steps so that's one thing, but i feel like I'm going to be haunted by this for a very long time and it bugs me everyday I just feel like I'm running on the spot if i can't get the foundational skills down to approach multiple different assetts. I'm a huge car guy but I haven't even attempted to do one due to being overwhelmed just thinking about it. I've completely bailed out of applying to a few viz jobs due to fear and knowing I could well be screwed on the first thing they ask me to do. Job wise after putting in 4 or so years now, giving up would be pointless but and I might aswell keep building on what i have that and I have no idea what else i'd do. However this is where i'm at might take about a month of see if i come back to it or just leave it behind and think about what else to do.
I feel if i can get passed this, i'd be allot more confident in my self and really start loving it.
Here is the behance i mentioned above: https://www.behance.net/jacklocke
It's been a long post, but it feels really good to get it all into words finally and express what I'm feeling. If you read it all and stuck with it cheers.
EDIT: Think i might go through the weekly hard surface challenges and see how i get on over time.
Replies
Thank you for the reply, Yeah it's severe self doubt honestly I'd say I've failed in multiple things in life throughout and I can't seem to move past those and always think it'll repeat so my confidence has been shot to be honest and it's easy to doubt my self. Yeah 4 years is along time to be faffing around aha i just had no idea where i wanted to go. I think after some reflection today it won't be games but probably more on the viz side product or maybe even trying out archviz. I think I'm going to list out what i need to learn and do weekly/monthly goals and progress so i can see where I'm at and go from there.
I think the other big issue at times is burnout, not taking a break and just trying to push through with zero breaks 10+ hours a day just messing around with stuff. I'm more of a introvert so i really need to get out of the house more aswel and do other things rather than just this. I think just making a decision at this point is better than staying stuck where i am. So i'm going to go all out at viz and can always pivot years down i guess if i wanted to do something else but atleast i tried it, stuck with it and did it. The old phrase of if you don't do it you'll never know comes to mind, i really need to get out of my head and just push on.
As far as cars or any complex model in general, start by modeling the whole shape of the car. Model Its outer boundaries as a single model, from a simple box or polygon. Then duplicate that, and try to separate the big areas. Car skeleton, doors, wheels. Then into smaller pieces, windows, handles, then even smaller and smaller etc. The problem with people is that they want to do things faster than they take. Do you know how much time your first car may take you to model? 2 months MINIMUM, and it better not take less than that. Every smaller part you model needs the same amount of care as the bigger ones. A car's skeleton might take you a week to get it right, a weel might take a whole day or two. You need to give love and attention to every piece you model. Don't think that "the car's wheels are not so important, or should not take a lot of time, it is just a cylinder". No. Do it properly even if you try stuff for a week, just to make that tire right.