Showing posts with label characters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label characters. Show all posts

Monday, December 15, 2008

A Big Update

Added a great deal to the site today, including all my final pieces for this term at university such as the 3D city created in Autodesk 3DS Max, my character designs and storyboards and several new illustrations. I also moved some older works into the archive area, and tidied up the site a little. With luck, I should be able to do more commission work over Christmas and the New Year over my break.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Autodesk 3DS Max

One of our modules at university this year is on 3D Animation and Design, using the Autodesk 3DS Max software. At first I was terrified of it - a completely new experience with completely new software, but over the last few weeks I've found myself soaking up more and more of the lectures, tools and commands that 3Ds Max offers, and it's slowly slipping into place. I have ordered a tutorial book, and am writing up my notes as I go along to keep it fresh - I must admit, I've never found 3D as interesting as 2D design and animation, but I am definately warming to it now.

The best parts of the software for me so far gave been using the extrude tool, while grouping up the shapes and creating more complex shapes - before lighting them and setting up cameras to view it from different angles. I'm so used to almost instant results when I draw or paint, that the wait is strange, but worth it once something is finished.

I have been thinking about my USP, my "Unique Selling Point" in my PDP recently - It's hard to say, really. Learning so much at university has made me think and rethink what I do, as well as the fact that I really enjoy writing in my current job and believe I have the skills to take that further. When it comes to Illustration, though, I think my main selling points that make me unique and interesting to potential clients is definately my imagination and ability to sketch out designs and ideas fluidly and quickly, as well as expand on these in a variety of medias - not only using pens, ink, pencils, paints and washes, but also in photoshop or flash - even directly with a graphics tablet.
Character design is definately my favourite, and I love exploring other cultures, costumes and designs people wear, as well as thier unique surroundings. 3DS Max can help me with this - mainly just for the surroundings of characters and mapping out areas, homes, cities and the like, and visualising things both small scale and massive. I know I'd like to work in the gaming industry - but ideally for conceptual work, illustration, background painting, character design, weapon design, costume design etc, so bringing my ideas from pencil or pen sketch to exciting 3D models and environments.

Nest week I must remember to create some textures and flat images for use in my current ideas (either from my own photos or sketches), to import them into 3DS and see how they can be used successfully.

Sunday, November 4, 2007

More Illustrations

Added three new illustrations to the site, these are mostly my personal works in my free time. I like to spend my spare time practising exploring my figures and creating characters and ideas. I hope I will keep progressing and learning new styles that I can exhibit in my portfolio and be seen as an illustrator, designer and artist that has a broad and exciting range with bags of imagination!

Every Thursday I attend a life-drawing class, and I will post some of my favourite figures on the site in the life drawing section, and use the rest as references to create more fuller works. I hope that by attending these classes, and expanding on the drawings I can greatly improve my knowledge of different anatomys, lighting and drawing at various speeds.