I appologize for not outing my name in this thread title it is Nick Rothe, I am looking for a critique but also looking for a job through my portfolio.how can I edit the thread title to this if it's a issue?
Title currently reads as "Untitled Document" probably want to toss your name up there.
Could probably get away with a center tag on this site, might look better.
Replace the About page with a proper Resume. Also dark gray text on a dark gray background doesn't read.
Fix this right now: The page is scaling all of your images to a unified scale, but the images are all different sizes. So they appear distorted and scaled. Looks really bad in some images.
Tossing a diffuse into Crazybump and getting default settings normal and spec maps does not yield a portfolio quality result. Learn to sculpt, hard surface modeling and/or high detail modeling for baking maps. This is a fundamental skill you have to understand to get work. Crazybump does have value, but it has to be used right. Leaving all that shape recognition on is silly.
The Train Station is clearly the best scene. However, the assets alone could use some work. I thought the train was just a yellow building. In the Misc section, the train asset is just awful. The modeling seems ok, but this just slapping that material on there kills it. All in the previous paragraph.
Lightbeam in the bathroom scene don't make much sense. Look more light cobwebs. I'd just delete them from the scene OR import the scene in UDK and use some of their light beams. There's also no light source in the room even though there a light coming from above the sink.
Based on your current work you will be unable to get a job in the industry. I believe your best bet would be to take what you learned from your previous work / scenes and move on with some new content. Apply what you have learned from your old works and add each new piece of work / scene when it is completed. Only have your best work in your portfolio.
Also, when you refer to Unreal Development Kit, it is best to refer to it properly. Unless you truly are using the original Unreal Tournament Editor, which is probably not the case.
Hard work is the only way you will land a job. I suggest looking for a modding group that you can create assets for in your spare time.
Can't I make this really good? I feel like I allways have to just start over with a project and I have worked with groups in the past but mabey its bad luck or miss comunicaton but they get no where. I try hard and really want this and if I have to toss it so be it. Would it be best for me to do a whole level in UDK and have a main center prop? Almost everything complex be high polly baked?
Can't I make this really good? I feel like I allways have to just start over with a project and I have worked with groups in the past but mabey its bad luck or miss comunicaton but they get no where. I try hard and really want this and if I have to toss it so be it. Would it be best for me to do a whole level in UDK and have a main center prop? Almost everything complex be high poly baked?
Do not think of it as 'tossing' out your work. Everything you create you should be improving from. Your next model should always be better then your last. I am a big fan of 'moving on' from work. If you stagnate on one scene or object, you tend to over work it and it becomes more of a mess and less of a learning experience. That is why I suggest you move on. Chalk all your success and failures of your previous scene up to experience, and apply them going forward.
Finding the right mod is very tough. You have to find the mod that has a management oriented leader, otherwise it will probably be a mess. BUT, contributing to a game/mod is your best bet at landing a job. So try try try, to make stuff for actual games.
As for your question to make a prop or a whole scene. The only reason you should just make a stand alone prop is to learn something. If you have to learn a new technique for high poly modelling, or have to learn how to bake a flawless normal map, use a small single object for that. HOWEVER, it will always be best to have a cohesive scene as the pillars of your portfolio. Show that you can create visually interesting scene with many different elements in it and you will fair better when you apply for a job in the future. So create a small prop to learn, but put that prop in a full scene to get the job.
make a few small prop pieces to get you foot in the door of proper workflow. A nice high detail mesh (modeled or sculpted). Some simple shape and material control. Each one gets it's own thread, learning what you can from feedback. Then step up to a hero piece (larger env focal point). It can be a portfolio piece, and if you plan it right, a unique UDK scene with the aforementioned props.
I can try the ideas, I appreciate the help in I can polish the heck out of different objects and keep a theme. Plan it out as you said to make a hero scene. I guess I will have to think of a environment to make to showcase this idea,what color theme I will want and the layout. I hope you guys do not think I am a bad artist or anything. I appreciate the help and crit.
I see many artists struggle early on when trying to learn the craft. Use tons of references as you learn, then when you get comfortable with the process you can start getting more creative with your own ideas.
I agree with quack and cholden. What is it that you want to do in the industry? Environment Artist? Texture artist? Level Designer? From your portfolio i'd say you would want to be a environment artist...making props and assets..From there..who do you want to work for? Having goals pays off a lot...it helps you be inspired and motivated in your creativity. If you dont know who you would like to work for...what games do you like to play. Who makes those games...If you're thinking more of the film industry..what movies are your favorites? What style of movies/video games are you into. Once you figure that out, i'd suggest creating pieces that relate to those styles. For example, if you like to play blizzard games(war craft, star craft) you should make pieces that are hand painted/fantasy or sci fi in the case of star craft.. You like playing call of duty/battlefield...create a war type scene.
If you need inspiration, look up artists...see who's the best..and when i say the best i mean the best to a specific specialty. For example, if you want to make a weapon/gun...google "polygoo". the artist name is alan van ryzin. I personally think his work is one of the best in regards to weapons... Study these artists work..see how they did it, and replicate it. I was taught to be the best, copy the best. Do not be discouraged as you certainly have the potential of being a greater artist
As far as your pieces, make sure you reference whatever your creating. Your shadows in your, outdoor/santa ana scene, are very sharp. Notice if you walk outside, shadows tend to be really really fuzzy. The sun is a lot bigger than you think and the door in your bathroom scene..always keep your sense of scale in mind. the door is as wide as almost half the bathroom. and you have unecessary polygons in the middle of it. You know how to model, but remember that unecessary polygons is a no no and people in the industry will see that. Good luck with your creative career and hope you consider my critique
I want to be a environment artist, I absolutely love RPGs though the ones I play are the Witcher, Atlus RPGs like Shin Megami but I also love adventure titles like Tomb Raider. I don't know if it hurts but I have not really had one particular studio I want to work for, I love what I do and want a step in the door..never really considered crafting a style twords who I would want to work for.
there's a good start...so it looks like some hand painted pieces would be good for you to work on....or look uo some tomb raider concept art and replicate it...get screenshots in game if you have to...check out this artist..
He has a lot of life and personality to his work, I could try to look at a concept art for a game I like. Sorry this has gone so many posts. http://www.goranagar.com/load/May-09-01.jpg I like something like this from tomb raider,but where would be a good place to start. It has alot of potentional in props to make.
Really think about the quality of the props you can make, not how much you can make. If you can make one kick ass statue, that would be a great little piece to show off. The concept you picked is pretty good. It has good composition, with a central focus. I would start off with just a snip of that scene, and if you decide to want to add more to it...feel free to. I would personally stop off at the blue(as shown below) I would start in getting the pieces in red and just makking that little bundle of 3-4 assets just look awesome in a dioarama in itself. Thrown in some good lighting and you got yourself a portfolio piece!
To me...the pieces in red look like they are possibly of greek/egyptian/or even gailic style. But thats the experience of creating these assets by looking up and Googling references of what architectures that may fit that style. Put in a day or two into referencing. I know it may be tedious and the most undesirable part of the art, but its a must
So once you got those pieces in red down and AAA, see if you want to graduate in adding those statues in blue. They look like snakes of some sort... again look up "statues of snakes" in every culture you can think of and see what matches the best to that style. Or even look up "gargoyles"
Let me know if you cant see the picture in this post. And dont worry about this thread being long. I like helping fellow artists out. And its good your asking advise and critique. Just ask away!
thank you for taking the time out of your day to help start a outline, I might warm up starting with that lizard with the metal nose ring.It looks fun to make,one more question when it comes to something like this would a hand painted style be best?How long should it take me to do some of this?I guess I dont allways have the best guess how fast i should be going or getting stuff done.
OK I have a technical question, I am doing the stone lizzard withe the gold ring. I made a high and low baked normal map for the body. For moss,divets. Extra.. would I make those into alpha maps and run them through crazy bump? Or do I just have moss and Duvets on same texture as the stone?
not sure what your trying to ask...as for your high poly...all your cracks and divets and n e thing that would be unnecessary to model(all the little details) should be in your high poly. Looking at your bake, it does not seem like you have those details in there. Your high poly right now is just a low poly with lots of polys. Have you learned how to use ZBrush? Xnormal? Zbrush is really good for making high poly stuff. Some people use ZBrush more for organics, and don't like using it for hard surface...I personally like it better for modeling out my high poly. It's whatever your preference is, and lets you have a good and efficient work flow.
What you have now,(in the case of the workflow i use) is a good base mesh to take into ZBrush and really sculp out the nice details in there. If you don't know ZBrush, i suggest you watch some tutorials, which you can find here on polycount or on pixologic.com I know it's like 600$ so if you don't have that kinda cheese to buy the program, I believe you can have a trial version from the website...not exactly sure. check it out.
If you don't know XNormal, I suggest you learn that..i think it's a must to know this program. it's free...just google Xnormal and you'll find the website. and check this guy out for a mini tutorial on it...
check out his work too...Simple yet effective how he uses modularity(which is a whole other aspect in environment art)
And i think i know what your asking if whether you should place the divets and cracks and moss into the texture...I personally like baking my Ambient Occlusion and cavity maps into my diffuse. They make my details pop more. With the moss...yes you can, and that would not be bad to do but i would use a shader network that utilizes vertex painting. I only know how to do that in UDK.
And to answer your question...how long should you take to complete this? There's not a real answer..at least not yet...you do whatever it takes to make your stuff look good and to get a job. Get the job first and then worry about time contraints. And i think you stick to make a more of the tomb raider style of art, not hand painted..But again...this is your piece, but when your making something out of a painted concept art...It's important to stick to the concept
Badger500- I have seen your portfolio being presented in many places already for the past 1-2 yrs with the same content. The bathroom has been reworked over and over again.
Sure now you have the train station. On previous forums lots of people have given tons and tons of critiques with little to no increase in quality. So what am I getting at is...
Posting on forum threads will not get you where you want. You need heavy study and discipline.
This work will not get you a current game gig. Especially one worth being in.
So here is some reading material or viewing material. Sure some of it you might need to pay for or acquire by some other way. Lets put it this way if your not able to make the concrete pillar your going to have very little luck getting into the industry. This concrete pillar is super easy compared to the stuff you will do in a real game company making huge environments.
I think some people have little idea what it is involved being an environment artist.
Every company differs a bit. But in most case you are going to be responsible for large sections or whole levels that involve game-play. Building great art is the easy part, building great art with game-play in mind is true talent. So the best suggestion is to make environments that involve a bit of level design this will give you a better view of what it is to be a true environment artist.
Good luck,
-RO
Just saw this was my first official post in polycount. damn I am a lurker...
Thank you rogelio for the advice, I hope I do not come across as a bad artist. I will look into the articles you posted. I have tried to get better and improve what I do.
can't I fix it with max scale ? there has to be easier ways than just restarting projects over or should I just go even smaller with something small like? http://eat3d.com/pillar I feel honestly lost right now. I put time between working to do this art and it is never good enough, but I guess its all part of learning. I do not mean to come off as winning or complaining, I guess I just might be frustrated and have to learn to not get too attached to a project.
I understand doing a full environment is daunting for newbies like us. I am struggling with my scene that I am working on now too...
I am not sure if I am the right person to give you a tip but I think doing that pillar is a good start for you. I would suggest you to try to mimic that pillar as close as you can and learn all the next-gen asset creation process. Once that is done, move on to something more challenging..
Everyone here gave you exactly what you need to become a little better. What you need to do now is the spring up some passion and motivation to actually improve. Its going to be tough, and its going to be overwhelming, however if you start small and work from there you will start to surprise yourself and everyone else.
As wasabi said, Follow that tutorial Step by step. Create exactly what they create and post it here. It says in the tutorial that its about 3.5 hours, don't be discouraged if you end up taking a lot longer than that. It is all apart of the learning process.
Don't even worry about doing a full scene for now. That will come later.
hmm I do not have the cash to buy the tutorial, should I just work alone and tool at what I have for now till I can afford it? I want to say thank you to everyone who has helped me out!
if I can not do the tutorial for now, I can try to fix the scale of the objects in the tombraider scene and push the textures and modeling more to the point of it looking modern gen. I know I can do this, I have confidence.
Replies
Could probably get away with a center tag on this site, might look better.
Replace the About page with a proper Resume. Also dark gray text on a dark gray background doesn't read.
Fix this right now: The page is scaling all of your images to a unified scale, but the images are all different sizes. So they appear distorted and scaled. Looks really bad in some images.
Tossing a diffuse into Crazybump and getting default settings normal and spec maps does not yield a portfolio quality result. Learn to sculpt, hard surface modeling and/or high detail modeling for baking maps. This is a fundamental skill you have to understand to get work. Crazybump does have value, but it has to be used right. Leaving all that shape recognition on is silly.
The Train Station is clearly the best scene. However, the assets alone could use some work. I thought the train was just a yellow building. In the Misc section, the train asset is just awful. The modeling seems ok, but this just slapping that material on there kills it. All in the previous paragraph.
Lightbeam in the bathroom scene don't make much sense. Look more light cobwebs. I'd just delete them from the scene OR import the scene in UDK and use some of their light beams. There's also no light source in the room even though there a light coming from above the sink.
Also, when you refer to Unreal Development Kit, it is best to refer to it properly. Unless you truly are using the original Unreal Tournament Editor, which is probably not the case.
Hard work is the only way you will land a job. I suggest looking for a modding group that you can create assets for in your spare time.
Do not think of it as 'tossing' out your work. Everything you create you should be improving from. Your next model should always be better then your last. I am a big fan of 'moving on' from work. If you stagnate on one scene or object, you tend to over work it and it becomes more of a mess and less of a learning experience. That is why I suggest you move on. Chalk all your success and failures of your previous scene up to experience, and apply them going forward.
Finding the right mod is very tough. You have to find the mod that has a management oriented leader, otherwise it will probably be a mess. BUT, contributing to a game/mod is your best bet at landing a job. So try try try, to make stuff for actual games.
As for your question to make a prop or a whole scene. The only reason you should just make a stand alone prop is to learn something. If you have to learn a new technique for high poly modelling, or have to learn how to bake a flawless normal map, use a small single object for that. HOWEVER, it will always be best to have a cohesive scene as the pillars of your portfolio. Show that you can create visually interesting scene with many different elements in it and you will fair better when you apply for a job in the future. So create a small prop to learn, but put that prop in a full scene to get the job.
ALWAYS USE A REFERENCE.
I see many artists struggle early on when trying to learn the craft. Use tons of references as you learn, then when you get comfortable with the process you can start getting more creative with your own ideas.
Good luck man, can't wait to see some progress!
If you need inspiration, look up artists...see who's the best..and when i say the best i mean the best to a specific specialty. For example, if you want to make a weapon/gun...google "polygoo". the artist name is alan van ryzin. I personally think his work is one of the best in regards to weapons... Study these artists work..see how they did it, and replicate it. I was taught to be the best, copy the best. Do not be discouraged as you certainly have the potential of being a greater artist
As far as your pieces, make sure you reference whatever your creating. Your shadows in your, outdoor/santa ana scene, are very sharp. Notice if you walk outside, shadows tend to be really really fuzzy. The sun is a lot bigger than you think
http://www.shawnell3d.com/
Hes a friend of of mine. As a peer, his portfoilio is one of the best. Hope you can find some inspiration through his site. He has a mixture of styles
http://i1126.photobucket.com/albums/l615/omgifarted/bvc/TombRaider.jpg
To me...the pieces in red look like they are possibly of greek/egyptian/or even gailic style. But thats the experience of creating these assets by looking up and Googling references of what architectures that may fit that style. Put in a day or two into referencing. I know it may be tedious and the most undesirable part of the art, but its a must
So once you got those pieces in red down and AAA, see if you want to graduate in adding those statues in blue. They look like snakes of some sort... again look up "statues of snakes" in every culture you can think of and see what matches the best to that style. Or even look up "gargoyles"
Let me know if you cant see the picture in this post. And dont worry about this thread being long. I like helping fellow artists out. And its good your asking advise and critique. Just ask away!
What you have now,(in the case of the workflow i use) is a good base mesh to take into ZBrush and really sculp out the nice details in there. If you don't know ZBrush, i suggest you watch some tutorials, which you can find here on polycount or on pixologic.com I know it's like 600$ so if you don't have that kinda cheese to buy the program, I believe you can have a trial version from the website...not exactly sure. check it out.
If you don't know XNormal, I suggest you learn that..i think it's a must to know this program. it's free...just google Xnormal and you'll find the website. and check this guy out for a mini tutorial on it...
http://thiagoklafke.com/
check out his work too...Simple yet effective how he uses modularity(which is a whole other aspect in environment art)
And i think i know what your asking if whether you should place the divets and cracks and moss into the texture...I personally like baking my Ambient Occlusion and cavity maps into my diffuse. They make my details pop more. With the moss...yes you can, and that would not be bad to do but i would use a shader network that utilizes vertex painting. I only know how to do that in UDK.
And to answer your question...how long should you take to complete this? There's not a real answer..at least not yet...you do whatever it takes to make your stuff look good and to get a job. Get the job first and then worry about time contraints. And i think you stick to make a more of the tomb raider style of art, not hand painted..But again...this is your piece, but when your making something out of a painted concept art...It's important to stick to the concept
Sure now you have the train station. On previous forums lots of people have given tons and tons of critiques with little to no increase in quality. So what am I getting at is...
Posting on forum threads will not get you where you want. You need heavy study and discipline.
This work will not get you a current game gig. Especially one worth being in.
I suggest to study, and study hard.
Here is some reading material.
(-Textures-)
Hardsurface texturing - http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?f=46&t=373024
Overview of diffuse, spec, normal and the real function of these maps - http://www.iddevnet.com/quake4/ArtReference_CreatingModels#head-4152af2ebdcdf51e21eaf84fd7ea3f511a7a1fab
Texturing for next gen - http://eat3d.com/texturing
(-Modeling & texturing-)
Eat3D tutorial on zbrush texturing - http://eat3d.com/free/zbrush_tile
Fountain modeling and baking - http://eat3d.com/fountain2_lowres
Concrete pillar modeling, baking, and texturing - http://eat3d.com/pillar
So here is some reading material or viewing material. Sure some of it you might need to pay for or acquire by some other way. Lets put it this way if your not able to make the concrete pillar your going to have very little luck getting into the industry. This concrete pillar is super easy compared to the stuff you will do in a real game company making huge environments.
I think some people have little idea what it is involved being an environment artist.
Every company differs a bit. But in most case you are going to be responsible for large sections or whole levels that involve game-play. Building great art is the easy part, building great art with game-play in mind is true talent. So the best suggestion is to make environments that involve a bit of level design this will give you a better view of what it is to be a true environment artist.
Good luck,
-RO
Just saw this was my first official post in polycount. damn I am a lurker...
I am not sure if I am the right person to give you a tip but I think doing that pillar is a good start for you. I would suggest you to try to mimic that pillar as close as you can and learn all the next-gen asset creation process. Once that is done, move on to something more challenging..
As wasabi said, Follow that tutorial Step by step. Create exactly what they create and post it here. It says in the tutorial that its about 3.5 hours, don't be discouraged if you end up taking a lot longer than that. It is all apart of the learning process.
Don't even worry about doing a full scene for now. That will come later.
Good luck!