[Portfolio] Kyle Meininger

bob4life10

hello Polycount,
iv been working with blender for 3 months now, and I'v been making mostly weapon models for a game me and my friends are working on (first project was canceled, second one being worked on ATM). we are still in the storyline and concept stage.

my portfolio: http://kylemein.carbonmade.com/

I need crits. on everything basically. i have this vague feeling that something is amiss, or that i am doing something wrong with my models. so fire your criticism at me, post-haste!

I work with:
Blender
Zbrush
aaaand thats it

also, as you can see, there is a major lack of texturing. this is because I dont have software to help me texture (yet. saving up for Photoshop).

also lookin for work to keep me preoccupied (and earn me some much-needed cash) while the game progresses into the programming stage, which will hopefully begin this summer.
so if you are a super cool person who needs a guy to model for you with a pay-by-model plan (or something along those lines) shoot me an email
kylemeininger@yahoo.com

thanks for reading!
-Kyle

jordan.kocon

First off your models look pretty good. However you really should show some wire frames. As for rendering I don't ambient occlusion renders are bad, however I think if you setup a proper 3 point lighting setup you could really show off your work a lot better. Otherwise keep up the work.

Autocon

http://www.artemstudios.com/2010/tutorials.htm

Use this tutorial on how to render your HP stuff. As just crappy AO clay renders suck.

bob4life10

i don't have 3ds Max, mate. I only have blender and Zbrush.
thanks for the tutorial though. i might need it in the future if i do get it

actually, in hindsight, this is a BS excuse, but right now, the models are just bare so i dont have to fiddle with the materials when i am ready to texture it and get it game ready.

Matty_b

I see a lot of WIPs (works in progress) on your portfolio website which is not so great. I can see that you have the skill to create the model but I would love to see a finished piece textures and all. I see you don't have Photoshop but, much like Blender, there are free alternatives to PS. I hear about GIMP a lot, though I can't comment on how great said program is I recommend trying to find an alternative asap. Its hard to recommend work to you because you haven't shown yet that you can complete work!

Sorry if this sounds harsh, I'm certainly not trying to be negative about your work, I'm just trying to get across that right now we can't see what work your capable of. Hope you understand!

Some variety in your pieces would be great too, I see you have a boat and a lot of weapons (I got a ton too I know!) But a strong consensus on portfolios is variety is awesome. (So do as I say not as I do!)

Also if your looking for a job I would recommend putting a Resume up on your website! The resume will help sell you from being random poster #332454 to being Kyle Meininger, 3D Modeler.

Hope this helps Kyle, good luck.

Darkmaster

Matty_b has a really good point. Employers HATE, and I mean HATE to see WIP shots on websites. For blogs it is appropriate, but if you are displaying this as your portfolio they typically won't take much interest in any WIP work. I'm not trying to get on your case, I'm just telling you what I have experienced in having my own portfolio reviewed. I'm not saying this is your case, but what employers see in portolios like this is that he/she doesn't finish models all the way out to completion. It would be beneficial to put some finished shot's on there of your weapons.

UDK is an excellent tool to be rendering your assets in, and it would be more than beneficial for you to learn the engine. It is impressive to employers, and you can really make your assets shine! Keep workin at it, and keep us updated with what you're modeling!

bob4life10

thanks for the advice, guys!

Matty, i see what you are saying. what i might do is take the models off the site, then repost them when they are textured and presentable. I also have GIMP on hand, but i want to save up my cash for Photoshop and use that instead, since its pretty much the industry standard. if i become desperate enough, I will resort to using GIMP.

also, i have a giant project in progress with a team of guys, which i need to help fund as well, which delves quite deeply into the wallet (matter of fact, we are using UDK!).

and at this moment, I am just using Carbonmade to show off my work to everyone. im quite new to this whole thing, and i was hoping to get some feedback to whether i was doing this right or not. im starting to learn how to use exponentially less vertices and polys in my models, and im starting to begin to model them to help aid in animation, which i have not considered until the beginning of the giant escapade that i have quite foolhardily thrown myself head-first into

also, i have no previous experience whatsoever. iv just decided one day that hey, i want to make models in 3d.
and so it has begun.
pretty boring resume if you ask me, lol

also trying to understand the UDK engine and how to use it and how to make environments, and trying to self teach myself C++ to help my team's programmers any way i can. its rather annoying that the only tutorials i have at my disposal consist of youtube videos, lol

Mike Yevin

along with what others have said, i have one thing to nitpick in particular

please please please put a little more time into the text on the site. you know, capitalize the first words of sentences, the city and state in your location, etc. it looks to me like you just threw it together in a matter of 5 minutes, and while it may not be the deciding factor on whether or not someone will hire you, im sure it would look a lot better to be a bit more professional grammatically. on forums or blogs, its not as much of a big deal, but your portfolio is basically an online representation of you. idk, just my .02

bob4life10

I've taken your advice, and heavily edited my portfolio.

Yozora

The models look boring, partly because of the subject matter and partly because they are poorly lit, untextured low poly models which never look that interesting regardless of what they are.

If they were high poly and had lots of details and better lighting/presentation then it still could look visually interesting.

The layout of the portfolio is fine, but I'd say it's not worth showing what you have shown.
If you still want to show what you've been working on then a blog would be a better format for this kind of thing. Work on a proper portfolio when you have some finished pieces that really show off your skills.

bob4life10

the portfolio is, really, only for showing off what i have done, and to get some advice on how to improve on it. I'm not really looking for an employer at the moment, nor am I trying to get one. in other words, the portfolio IS my blog.

I know i wont be able to attract any employers at the rate i am going, seeing as how i am only 3 months in to using Blender with no previous experience. I'm just looking for some constructive criticism to help me out so i can start making high quality models for use in the project i am working on, and other projects in the future.

i was offended at first, thinking your comment was a thinly veiled "F*** you", but i see that you were only trying to help me attract employers

I will improve on the stuff i am working on, and re-post it. right now, I have a lot on my plate, but one of my top priorities is to learn how to UV map efficiently (which is a pain in the ass when almost all the tutorials on youtube are composed of people unwrapping a grand total of 8 vertices). I have no idea how you pros do it, but i guess I'll have to keep trying till i figure it out.

thanks for the advice

Yozora

Well if it IS your blog then you really should actually use a service that is designed for blogging like wordpress/blogger instead of one designed for portfolios like carbonmade.

Anyway when people post their portfolios up on here to be discussed, the goal is usually to make their portfolio look more professional and presentable in general, with the ultimate goal of applying to companies.

The fact that you offered your services like some kind of freelancer told me that you were ready to seek for some kind of job, and a portfolio still matters whether it's a studio job or a freelance job.

As usual people should refer to this "guide" for the main bits of advice. There are a lot of tips on there that would help you.