- open in tabs- fail
- go easy forwards and backwards in the browser - fail
- open multiple images as background tabs - fail
main page says "untitled document" so I assume you used dreamweaver for the HTML generation just fix the title you can do that easily in the source code as well.
I liked the animation alot - and the creature you created for it. The zombie was a bit boring. All in all I think that the pieces are all a little bit smal and show just a tiny bit of what artist does. Maybe try to make actually a bigger and more complete project- like something with a actual design goal in mind and multiple objects (not just 1 or 2) that follow that design direction to form a whole scene and or environment. All the projects look like class asignments in compressed time- even bigger projects even at uni's (or perhaps schools) can take longer as just a week or 2.
but I think you are already in the right direction
Dang. I love what I can see of that Redtide map. I think you should definitely go the way of being an environment artist. That definitely seems to be your thing.
Not sure how much risk it might present for you, but maybe you could upload a .zip file of the map.
- First page should be your game art, not a chatting info page
- Are you a character artist? Environment artist? Animator? If you're going to apply to larger studios (30+ dev's) you should consider focusing in one area.
- Agreed on renderhjs crits about he the art itself. Some of your wires show some wasted tries (like the metal sign).
- If you're going for enviro stuff I'd like to see more high res work / hi poly bakes, etc.
thanks for the crits. I guess i can re-present everything and use lightbox or something like that with next and previous buttons instead of opening them all in a new browser.
I'm Envy art and Animation... I mean you guys said you liked the animations, and I have alot more on my plate, so i'm going to present both. The goal is to get enough content of both, that way i can apply to an animation or an envy art job, whichever comes first.
Yea i agree the zombie sucks... i'll be replacing it very soon with better environment art, hopefully by the time it's all said and done i can take the squig, the zombie, and that fence off and replace it with something better.
Animation dept will be getting better much quicker as I am talking with some people to let me animate their characters.
edit* Does anyone know any good flash software to use for image viewing on a webpage?
To be brutally honest, your current portfolio probably does not set you apart from the rest of the pack enough to land you a job straight out of school. However, you definitely show talent and potential. If you don't manage to land a gig straight away, try not to get discouraged and keep working on your art. You definitely have the raw talent to land a job in the industry eventually, providing you have the dedication.
Thanks for the honesty Astro, Yea i think that my stuff needs work. It's all school related mumbo jumbo that has to be rushed.
I think im' going to start work on a new project here soon. Something that keeps a cohesive style and shows i can follow things to a design.
So what do most people do in the interim from graduating school to the game industry? i'd hate to finish up and not have something to do, that would be so degrading :-(
So what do most people do in the interim from graduating school to the game industry? i'd hate to finish up and not have something to do, that would be so degrading :-(
Unemployed for several months, six weeks at Fry's and a year working as an admin monkey for Early Head Start (which was actually an awesome experience that I absolutely loved and led me to meet my wife). You gotta make a living, just don't lose sight of your goals and dreams.
Hey man, couple of crit's and comments. I would ditch the zombie, it is the weakest piece in your portfolio. I agree with gamedev, try using using less poly's and really optimizing your existing geometry. I was also looking at your texture sizes, and from what I understood, you are using 6 - 2048 maps just for that zombie!? If that is true, then that is crazy for just one character. Overall I think you have talent, but you need to work on your portfolio more then blanket the country with applications. I graduated from AI - Chicago 6 months ago and just found a job doing 3d work so all I can say is work on your portfolio everyday as long as you possibly can and don't give up. Good luck.
Squig: Fun model, but I'm can't see the effect of the spec map. I would take this into UT3 and get a nice shader with reflection, heavier spec, some very subtle fresnel and a couple of detail maps for normal skin detail. Diffuse texture-wise you have not got enough color variation in there, the whole thing is basically the same tone all over. Another thing missing are the smaller skin blemishes like cracks, chicken feet and pores. They are there on your ref, but you need to exaggerate them a bit in your texture.
I suggest that you take a look at some textured ref for more ideas, this isn't good enough.
A couple of examples:
Maps: Fairly basic modeling and texture work, nothing that shows that this is what you want to do above prop, character or animation work.
I like the mood in Tranquility, I would not mind playing a slower paced adventure or rpg game in there so you would have some time to take in the environment.
The first image of Angkhan could be from a more interesting angle, right now there is to much focus on the floor, wall and roof which is the weakest part of the piece. Some fallen stone blocks and irregularities in the roof and floor model would help.
Props: Once again I am having trouble with seeing the spec (except for on the corrugated plates on the pier) and it seems to be an issue with your lightning. Something is also up with the final textured models, they lack contrast and appear to almost having a gray filter over them.
Zombie: Remove it, the texture work is very basic. Unless you have made some great animation with this model, it will only drag your portfolio down.
Work on your presentation, you preset the same model over and over again in the same image which makes each instance fairly tiny and hard to appreciate on its own.
To add to what everyone else said : You do seem to have potential so don't forget that.
Having said that, there's a lot of "rookie mistakes" in your pieces such as not being sure how many textures is too much, and when geometry isn't worth having. But the good news is, we all make this kind of mistake before our first job, It's at work we get the feel for this stuff.
You seem like an open minded guy that's taking in everything everyone's saying in here without getting defensive. Keep taking this kind of advice, addapt your site and pieces, and I think you'll get a good start.
And definitely, if you don't get a job fast, keep working on better newer portfolio pieces in the meantime until you do!
site looks good to me except that I wouldn't have the contact open a new window, and I wouldn't have the resume go straight to a pdf. Have the resume on a readable html page with a link to a downloadable pdf and word doc on that page ideally. Also ditch the demo reel button until you put something in it.
The site looks cool. In addition to the "previous" and "next" controls you have while going though your images I think an "index" choice which brings you back to the main page would be helpful. Going by the "you're always judged by your weakest piece" advice that always gets thrown around, I'd recommend removing images 17, 18 and 19, imho they are not as good as your new temple stuff. You might want to show off that UE3 parallax shader tree with the skulls that you posted in the temple thread, I thought it was pretty cool. I also hate to say it but I'm not a big fan of the vertical cutoff thumbnails, they work for some of the content but not all of it. Anyways I hope that helps, keep up the good work
Replies
- go easy forwards and backwards in the browser - fail
- open multiple images as background tabs - fail
main page says "untitled document" so I assume you used dreamweaver for the HTML generation
I liked the animation alot - and the creature you created for it. The zombie was a bit boring. All in all I think that the pieces are all a little bit smal and show just a tiny bit of what artist does. Maybe try to make actually a bigger and more complete project- like something with a actual design goal in mind and multiple objects (not just 1 or 2) that follow that design direction to form a whole scene and or environment. All the projects look like class asignments in compressed time- even bigger projects even at uni's (or perhaps schools) can take longer as just a week or 2.
but I think you are already in the right direction
Not sure how much risk it might present for you, but maybe you could upload a .zip file of the map.
Also, that Squig animation is hillarious!
- Are you a character artist? Environment artist? Animator? If you're going to apply to larger studios (30+ dev's) you should consider focusing in one area.
- Agreed on renderhjs crits about he the art itself. Some of your wires show some wasted tries (like the metal sign).
- If you're going for enviro stuff I'd like to see more high res work / hi poly bakes, etc.
Cheers,
Tyler
I'm Envy art and Animation... I mean you guys said you liked the animations, and I have alot more on my plate, so i'm going to present both. The goal is to get enough content of both, that way i can apply to an animation or an envy art job, whichever comes first.
Yea i agree the zombie sucks... i'll be replacing it very soon with better environment art, hopefully by the time it's all said and done i can take the squig, the zombie, and that fence off and replace it with something better.
Animation dept will be getting better much quicker as I am talking with some people to let me animate their characters.
edit* Does anyone know any good flash software to use for image viewing on a webpage?
I think im' going to start work on a new project here soon. Something that keeps a cohesive style and shows i can follow things to a design.
So what do most people do in the interim from graduating school to the game industry? i'd hate to finish up and not have something to do, that would be so degrading :-(
Especially with this economy, its going to be a fucking jungle out there.
Unemployed for several months, six weeks at Fry's and a year working as an admin monkey for Early Head Start (which was actually an awesome experience that I absolutely loved and led me to meet my wife). You gotta make a living, just don't lose sight of your goals and dreams.
I suggest that you take a look at some textured ref for more ideas, this isn't good enough.
A couple of examples:
http://wire.ggl.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/squig_10-08_01.jpg
http://www.warhammer-guild.co.uk/SquigHerder_06.jpg
Maps: Fairly basic modeling and texture work, nothing that shows that this is what you want to do above prop, character or animation work.
I like the mood in Tranquility, I would not mind playing a slower paced adventure or rpg game in there so you would have some time to take in the environment.
The first image of Angkhan could be from a more interesting angle, right now there is to much focus on the floor, wall and roof which is the weakest part of the piece. Some fallen stone blocks and irregularities in the roof and floor model would help.
Props: Once again I am having trouble with seeing the spec (except for on the corrugated plates on the pier) and it seems to be an issue with your lightning. Something is also up with the final textured models, they lack contrast and appear to almost having a gray filter over them.
Zombie: Remove it, the texture work is very basic. Unless you have made some great animation with this model, it will only drag your portfolio down.
Work on your presentation, you preset the same model over and over again in the same image which makes each instance fairly tiny and hard to appreciate on its own.
Having said that, there's a lot of "rookie mistakes" in your pieces such as not being sure how many textures is too much, and when geometry isn't worth having. But the good news is, we all make this kind of mistake before our first job, It's at work we get the feel for this stuff.
You seem like an open minded guy that's taking in everything everyone's saying in here without getting defensive. Keep taking this kind of advice, addapt your site and pieces, and I think you'll get a good start.
And definitely, if you don't get a job fast, keep working on better newer portfolio pieces in the meantime until you do!
www.virtuosicstudios.com