Blacksmith Scene [Blender] [Beginner] [Critique]

Alexios22

This is a blacksmith scene I'm working on, I modeled out everything myself and I'm using some of the pieces in the scene for my portfolio, and eventually when this scene is done it will go into my portfolio too. I just wanted to get some fresh eyes on it and maybe get some feedback, when your the only one looking at something sometimes you don't see the mistakes or ways to improve, any feedback will be helpful.
Some of the things I was planning to fix are adding more stuff to the tool board, painting textures on, everything. The scene still feels a bit empty but I also know you don't want to over clutter it.

kanga

Have a look at real world examples by using google and then looking under images. You havent given information on what the scene is for so just a general comment. The scene looks cramped and very small. The camera is way too close to the end wall to give any impression of space. It looks like everything is crammed into a shoe box. You haven't done any material work so the impression is very basic atm.

One of hundreds of examples.

hwaminjung

What is your goal for this project? What style are you going for?

I would gather more reference and plan things out more. I would also maybe scale down the scope of the project, and see if you can make a single prop look good.

Fabi_G

Hi! Some good points already raised.

I think currently the models clash a bit: Some are lowpoly/facetted (weapons), others smooth (anvil, wall), pedestal has smooth curvature + hard edges. Finding an artstyle to use as guide could help to keep everything visually consistent.

Agree with hwaminjung about setting the scope right (small). Once you figured out things with one asset (modeling, shading, textures), you can apply your learnings to other elements, instead of the attention being spread too much.

When going with non-facetted/flatshaded lowpoly, I would consider deliberately setting hard edges to control the shading, opposed to simply relying on the angle steepness (works for certain objects).

Keep it up!

Korbology

I agree with everything said above, but I do have some tangentially related advice I would have liked to hear in my first year of study:

I noticed you said you're modeling everything in the scene. That's good! That's what I did for my first project too--which took forever--but keep in mind that it's okay to use assets and textures you didn't create to pad out a scene as long as you're clear about who made what. This is important advice for two reasons.

1. It stops you from getting overwhelmed so that you can focus your energy on whatever skill you're trying to develop on a given project, (which should be a hyper specific + attainable goal) and

2. Because it helps you finish projects faster. This is good because, somewhat counterintuitively, people who focus on quantity when learning new skills tend to develop faster than perfectionists who focus only on quality.

In other words, don't get stuck in the weeds. Set goals you must reach, and cheating on anything else is fair game. If you just want to learn the fundamentals of 3D modeling on a bunch of fun props like I did though, go for it. Hope that helps!

Alexios22

hwaminjung said:

What is your goal for this project? What style are you going for?

I would gather more reference and plan things out more. I would also maybe scale down the scope of the project, and see if you can make a single prop look good.

Sorry for the late response, my dad lost his job recently and its been kind of hectic. I'm trying to go for a style thats not overly realistic and I'm just trying to put together something that looks good enough for my portfolio, dad lost his job and I really want to take my hobby into something I can actually make money doing. A good portfolio is the first step after all.

Alexios22

Korbology said:

I agree with everything said above, but I do have some tangentially related advice I would have liked to hear in my first year of study:

I noticed you said you're modeling everything in the scene. That's good! That's what I did for my first project too--which took forever--but keep in mind that it's okay to use assets and textures you didn't create to pad out a scene as long as you're clear about who made what. This is important advice for two reasons.

1. It stops you from getting overwhelmed so that you can focus your energy on whatever skill you're trying to develop on a given project, (which should be a hyper specific + attainable goal) and

2. Because it helps you finish projects faster. This is good because, somewhat counterintuitively, people who focus on quantity when learning new skills tend to develop faster than perfectionists who focus only on quality.

In other words, don't get stuck in the weeds. Set goals you must reach, and cheating on anything else is fair game. If you just want to learn the fundamentals of 3D modeling on a bunch of fun props like I did though, go for it. Hope that helps!

Thanks for the advice, I've actually been kind of doing that with some other stuff I've been trying, mostly posing for weapons. I used the Blender Base Mesh the released recently as a kind of mannequin.

Alexios22

This is a quick update, decimated the wall a bit and fixed up the camera angle. Planning to pivot from just a blacksmith workshop to an actual blacksmith shop where somebody would be selling and working in the back.