Pwning Noobs Online: 2010

Monday 1 November 2010

Walther P22

Ok well its been a while now since i've posted anything so decided to treat you all with some pics of a gun i started modelling in the summer.

Thursday 17 June 2010

Eagerly Anticipated...

Saturday 1 May 2010

God, i cannot believe it is finally over. This year has been a roller coaster of a ride with several pit stops along the way.

My first thoughts on this year were pretty simple, i was a first year and now i'm a second year. I figured it was going to be the same as before but obviously knew that there would be more work to deal with. I figured being a second year that things would just fall into place and that i would get better at what i did. Part of this is true and the other was a harder lesson to learn.

For those of you that are first years moving into second year, i would suggest you pay attention. Life is a strange thing and can take you along different paths. For me when i first joined first year i can say i was a different person than who i am today. Some changes for the better some for the worse but all i knew was that i wanted to work in the games industry making awesome games and cool artwork. I'm sure many of you thought the same and probably still are thinking the same, the difference being that when i first started i figured that i would instantly start making games that people would play. I thought that by being on this course i would learn what it took to make games and it would be an easy way to get into the industry. I thought i would just learn everything off hand and start producing good artwork. This now looking at it sounds so stupid i wish i backhanded myself and stopped dreaming.

The thing is..i can't really blame myself, and for those of you who saw interviews for the course you know what I'm on about. People like to dream and picture themselves in places they want to be. Dreams are a good thing, they drive us forward but for some, they dream too far to look at the realities of what is in front of them. I was one of those people that never really put thought into what was involved within being a game artist. I just thought i could sit down and do a couple of drawings, get paid and then chill for the rest of the time. Many who decide to join think that its an easy job and that they could do it because "they like games". This was partly why i joined, i liked games and decided to merge it with art. I figured I'd rather go into the entertainment industry since its perceived to be a more chilled out industry. Now for game artists its not as hard as doing maths or physics, but it does rely on a different set of skills and attributes that are just as challenging as other academic subjects. This of course i am now figuring out.

i suppose what I'm getting at is that, second year has opened my eyes to what is involved within this industry and what kind of person it takes to be in it. Many first year students are already figuring this out and are probably changing course which i can understand. I realized this early on in the year, that this course isn't for people that just want to play games all day. That was a simple task and first year shows you this, the harder part is the realities of what it takes. I stayed on to second year because i wanted to carry on and see what else i could learn. I still wanted to be a game artist and thought i could get there. I learned 3dsmax and could produce both digital and traditional art. THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE is that everyone can learn this, its about perfecting the skills so that you are producing work at a higher standard. This i overlooked, just cutting it will not make me a better artist and will not secure me a job at the end of the day. Second year is all about this for me, i realized halfway through that for me to be a game artist i have to work smarter, faster and produce work at a higher level. I realized that i have to learn what makes good art and what people want to see. I cannot sit around and play games all day, if i want to get somewhere i have to work for it. This is the biggest hurdle i think i have passed, the realization that hard work is involved and has to be done by you yourself. Anyone sitting around thinking that by just being on a game art course, you will get into the industry, you will NOT. I know its scary and this is a heavy subject but it is true and i think i have learned it. I know what i have to do now and what changes i have to make to get there i wish i made them sooner. For a few people i have spoken to, this is not for them and they don't see themselves working in this industry which is a good thing. Realizing this now provides the chance for anyone to do what they find is better suited to them, for me i know i want to do whatever it takes to become a better artist. I am not fussed about working in the games industry but definitely want to become an artist.

During first year, speaking to third year students i was told that this course can change you and you will probably find yourself not playing games as much as you do. I was scared of this and figured i would never be that person, games were a big thing for me but now i see what they mean. I no longer have as much of an interest for games as i do for the art involved. For many of you who want to be a games artist, i would say the same thing to you. Work out what you really are interested within this field and pursue that instead. I'm not saying give up games to become a game artist but instead find out what what you find more interesting about them and go with that. Strive to become better at what you do and do what it takes to get there because no-one else is going to get there for you. Even if you are changing course, i would suggest you re-think why, for some you may be changing because you aren't interested in it but for others i know you maybe changing because its hard. For those of you that are finding it hard but would have wanted to carry on, carry on and take the initiative to work harder. I understand now that even if you change course, you will still have to work hard for what you want.

I have to finish this with one last thing...Mike, you said earlier this year that second year really tests students. At the time i thought it was a generalized term and that it wouldn't affect me at all. I thought i would never question my decision about what i wanted in the end. Although it is still the same, i found that i want it even more now and i did question my self several times. You went on to mention the group project to be make or break and that it would be enlightening. Again i thought i would blitz through it without a single problem. all i can say is that you were right and the experience has been very rewarding. I hope third year has more to offer and that, i am willing to show for.

BTW as before, here are more artists that one should aspire to be as good as or better...
http://www.voidart.co.uk/portfolio.html
http://www.wesleyburt.com/galleryfecal.html
http://www.sparth.com/

Friday 16 April 2010

Unreal

Well Easter holidays are now coming to an end and its time to start presenting the work we have done this term. As far as Visual Design is going, I have greatly enjoyed the way in which my work has improved since last year and even last term. I have two posts of digital paints soon on the way, of projects I have been working on in whatever spare time I have at the moment. I am finally confident in showing some of my work with 2D seeing as it is starting to please me and I am more motivated to create more of it.

In 3D, with the group project also coming to an end, I am pleased to say I have enjoyed the experience and learned a lot from it. I am glad I chose to do the unreal work for my group since I have learned a lot about the process involved when it comes to taking the initial idea to a 3d asset and finally placing it within a working engine. Setting up the BSP (*Binary Space Partitioning) was a bit of a challenge for me to begin with. I understood how to use them but found that it was difficult to construct a level such as ours and trying to keep it as true to the building it is based on. The reason I later figured was that certain shapes are a nightmare when it comes to the unreal engine. Unreal is powerful but tends to like to work with straight walls and floors rather than diagonal ones which ours has. It was a complicated process trying to match up the entire walls including diagonal ones to create a complete shell for our environment. A shell I know I can remake more confidently now after five previous attempts. From here I also learned how to export the existing shell into a 3D construction package such as max. I was also able to figure out how to set the workspace of max to match up that of unreal for effective workflow. Something I realise now is at the top level for importance. Using the setup, the shell and assets were built to a decent scale for unreal (20% larger than real life) to ensure that the level looked right. 20% larger due to the first person view. Real life looked to small when viewed through game play.

-BSP’s are the tools used to create rooms, walls, floors and solid shapes within unreal. They are subtractive or additive depending on the building technique used.

Unreal also opened my eyes to features such as the kismet system which enables interactivity within the level. I was most pleased due to achieving a working lift door system that allowed the player to open and close. I cannot explain the sheer joy that comes from seeing something like that work and knowing that you did it. The future possibilities with this software would be unimaginable…that is if I can get my hands on it. A major thing I have now learned is the importance of a decent setup. I struggled with the unreal side for a while due to a lack of resources outside of university. Although the software and tutorials are readily available to anyone, unreal is a resource hound and my seven year old pc took a beating. If there is one thing I want to invest in at the moment, it is a bloody good computer that is capable of controlling a microwave toaster from the moon. I cannot stress the amount of times I wanted to throw my pc out the window or if anyone has seen Office Space…going to town on it with a baseball bat.

Without being able to work on Unreal stuff after lab closing time, even after 9.00pm, I decided to also build assets for the level. I regret the selection I gave my self considering the existing amount of work I was doing. Building features such as a staircase, piping and covering assets that still needed to be done; I have been working hard trying to assemble any amount of what I think is credible work. Frustration hit me when I realised that certain assets that needed to be build had not been done and was left to me to try and pick up the pieces. This benefited me however since I have been forced to work at a faster rate and sped up the time it takes me to model and texture an asset. Something I am hoping to work more on during the summer.
I have planned to build my portfolio over the summer since third year is hopefully upon me and I am sure that will fly by very quickly. I think for me it is safe to say, with all that has gone on this year I am now more keen to get somewhere with my art and do not regret the so called second year slump that hit me last term.

Wednesday 17 March 2010

Reflections and Inspirations

Long have i been sitting at the same seat staring into a window of hope, waiting to become someone i know i can be...

For months now i have been trolling through the web to find the best of the best in terms of artists i would like to aspire to be better than. I have watched many a tutorial and seen many ways in which art can go to the next level. I find that i am in a trance waiting to become better but only to find that it just doesn't happen like that. I have to sit down and fight the barrier i have created in order to make art happen for me. The problem however, is that once i have seen something good too many times i cannot see improvement in my own work. I rate my work very low and am scared of producing more. I wonder if Picasso and Renoir ever had a similar thought as do many artists out there i'm sure. There comes a point in which change has to be made and i think i can finally say... i want that change. I want to play the game everyone plays. The game we have been playing since we were young. The game that decides who is better than the other.

I know it can sound pathetic or low, but to be honest...the reason i became good at art was purely due to the fact that i wanted to be better than my friends. Back in middle school i found i had some skill in art. It wasn't much but was something people noticed early on. As i entered year 7, i found that the friends i had around me also had a similar skill and from then on we always tried to better one another at art. Slowly and not realizing we actually became fairly good artists and enjoyed what we did. It all stopped during A levels when i moved sixth form and rarely saw my old friends. We ended up joining everyone else in deciding to change to pursue a career in a standard job.

This was where art was going to become a hobby that old people have to pass time. The kind of people you see at hobby craft or on a rolf harris documentry. It was until i regained my inspiration after re-thinking how i wanted to live life. I see life as a roller coaster of experiences, a chance to do the things you want to do and not what you have to do. Obviously, at times you do have to do the things you have to do, but this comes with the reward of being able to do the things you want to do.

Before my A levels i would never have thought of working within the games industry, i always thought i had to get a job doing something i didn't like. something that fit the norm. Coming from an Asian background, there are usually only a few routes to take, become a doctor, dentist, lawyer, pharmacist, work in IT or just get simple shop or desk job. Relatives and family friends still to this day cannot understand what is involved within the entertainment industry. It is now that i look back and see what i am aiming to get. I DO NOT WANT A JOB, something i do to pay the bills. I want a profession, something i can wake up to everyday and enjoy it, something that leaves me wondering what project to do next and not how much i earned for what i did.

I want to leave you with some of the inspiring artists i have found in both 2d and 3d that make me want to become better...

Timur Mutsaev is a concept artist. His work with weapons and characters is something to look at especially when it comes to presentational techniques.
http://www.timurmutsaev.com/

Alessando Baldaserroni is both a 2d and 3d artist and has worked on a few major titles such as xmen, mass effect 2, dante's inferno halo wars and a few more.
http://www.eklettica.com/Illustrations.html

Maciej Kuciara is a 2d artist working with digital paint and matte painting. his environments are a personal favorite of mine.
http://www.maciejkuciara.com/

Rafael Grassetti is a 3d artist who works for games, films, sculpts and toys. His digital and traditional sculpts are outstanding.
http://grassetti.wordpress.com/

Keep Posted for more artist links

The Run Down!!!

So....to begin, as of late i have been working on a group project for uni. It is a time on the course when all the previous learning is properly tested and the first time artists work together. The project in mind is to re-design a current university building into a survival horror based on resident evil.

My role within the group has been "The Unreal Guy". The job...basically making the shell of the level and importing all the assets, textures and lighting. In layman's terms, putting everything together. Being the first time we get to use unreal, i was eager to get my hands on it, to learn all that i can. It has been a struggle every now and then but has always left me with joy of success in the end. Since the start of the project i have been filled with ideas (most of which are crazy) in how to make the most of the engine and task in hand. I have enjoyed the constant drive i get to ensure that the project runs smooth and looks good. Unreal has allowed me to consider the direction i could go in, in terms of jobs within the industry. Setting up levels has been something i have enjoyed a lot and found to be right up my street.

i am now looking forward to my third year and the ideas for my FMP. I have so many thoughts i hope not to get too carried away by.

Friday 5 February 2010

This Is Trash

Trash project that was set by Blitz originally for 3rd year students. 500 tri limit and one 1024x1024 texture sheet.

Tuesday 2 February 2010

Wheelie Bin Mad!!!

Render of low poly wheelie bin in max using new presentation techniques. need to attempt with a high poly model of something as well. Wheelie bin was just under 600 tris (being the limit) with one 1024x1024 diffuse texture sheet (only), also used Headus UV unwrap for the first time to help create the UV's. I can say i absolutely love that program, very user friendly and does the job in half the time.

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