poopinmymouth

Hey :)

one more - Is it posible in game industry to work as a freelacer for a companies far awey - for example are you able to work in UK living in US. If yes, than why are you planing your freelance trip? Just to see the places, and for adventure, or it is needed if you wanto to work with some sort of companies?

 

Yes, you can work for any company from any company. I love to travel, so my trip is just for adventure, and the freelance is to pay for it all! Hahah.

 

Of coz, what I really wanted to ask - is it posible for me, living in Poland to work abroad in the future? The diffirences in costs of life in Poland and in US for ex. is so big, that it would be a real great deal for me. But I don't know If companies are intrested in working with someone so far awey, and I don't know how the cash transfer would look like - it could be complicaded as we don't have paypal system, but I have a credit card with bank acount, so meybe there is a way :)

 

Yes, it is possible for you to work in Poland for a US company. It only depends on their willingness to use you. The better your portfolio, and the more experience you have, the more willing they will be. Most US studios can pay by bank transfer, which only requires a routing number and an account number.

 

Here, as I work sometimes as a freelancer (not to much as I'm beginner rather) I can earn sth like 3 $ per hour (30 per day) :) And it's quite good payment in Poland, so you know why im so intrested in this topic :D

 

And Ledyr - I didn't said you screwed it up, I just said you could have pimp it a bit more, dot't take it so hard man :)

Ouch, payment seems so low in Poland. Is the cost of living that much lower there? If yes, I think I know where I will visit for a few months! Hahaha.

HI!

0 - how are you? :)

 

I'm good, but a little tired, thanks for asking though. :-)

 

1 - is there a game which you would love to work on? (do i asked correctly? :D)

 

I would love to work on Kane and Lynch, but it's almost done, over at I/O interactive, makers of Hitman, out in Denmark.

 

2 - do you have your idol/hero in 3d and 2d?

 

In 2d, it's William Bougerou. In 3d, it's Peter Boehme. http://www.peterboehme.com a german artist who is a good friend of mine.

 

3 - what's your favorite movie and why? :D

The Iron Giant. I love how it's about the friendship between the robot and the boy.

 

4 - do you have any pet? :)

 

No, but when I was younger I had a Guinea Pig. My mother has a pug and I like playing with it when I'm home. If I could have one, I'd get a boxer (breed of dog).

 

5 - what do you think about this model, one of max3d's member said that i screwed up the textures, please tell me is he right? :D

http://features.cgsociety.org/gallerycrits/253137/253137_1164321813_medium.jpg

 

I'm not sure what he meant by screwed up. I think the texture looks good, I'd probably add a bit more color variation, but nothing too drastic.

 

6 - do you still enjoy playing games as much as a long time ago, before you have started with the whole business?

 

Well I have to admit, I was never a hardcore gamer. I like to play games, and when I get one I really like, I play it a lot till I beat it. But most weeks I don't play too much. I think I like games more now than I used to. I never had any game systems growing up, I read and played outside instead, haha.

7 - what do you think , what came first, the chicken or the egg? :D

 

??? Is this a polish joke? hehehe.

 

8 - coffee or tea?

 

I like coffee and hot green tea, but I like coffee the best, especially with a little skim milk in it.

 

9 - unfortunately i'm out of questions :/ :D

 

"I'll be back" :D

 

sorry for stupid questions :D

It won't let me end without typing something after the quotes, so here it is.

People up in here probably burn out :P

Last days I remind that around the total war between cgchat and polycount on polycount I saw some status about the Taco town. U know something about it, 'cos I was curous and ... forgot to ask someone :P

 

It was based off a funny commercial where the tagline was "taco town" haha.

 

And one more, a bit more connected with cg industry :P

About freelance, I know few artist bot none of them are working as a freelance. What artist need to have, or do, to become a freelancer? Some titles shiiped on account or maybe few companies he work for and later he still work for them but not on a place. I'm asking 'cos in the future it will be more confortable to me working from home then going abroad.

Thanks for your time.

It really is about your work quality, and your ability to network and market yourself. If you have really good artwork, and you do well with getting your name out there, you don't necessarily need previous experience, but it helps.

No more questions? I'm ready for more. Hahah

Um.. hello. I don't know where to start. I'm kinda shy... ;)

1)When did you "discovered" computer graphics? I mean, how long do you do this?

 

I think I answered this previously, but around the age of 14 is the first time I touched 3d. However my first serious attempt to learn was about five years ago. (I'm 25 now)

 

2)And you say you're a freelance artist, so you have your webside, where you sell your models? How does this work?

 

No, I have a website with my portfolio on it. I send emails to studios or talk to friends who might need assets, and show them my portfolio. If they need assets done, they eithe provide me with a description or a concept, and I then create that model for them in return for money.

 

3)Oh, and how did you learned all this? You learned in some art-scool?

 

I think I might have covered this too. I am mostly self-taught, I went to an art school briefly, but almost the entirety of my skillset was learned after school on my own, through practice, experimentation, or asking friends.

 

4) That is a whole lot, at least for me! Even 20USD per hour is very much ;) Grats ^^

Thank you.

 

5)And one last thing: you'll be here on the forum for longer time, or is this just temporary?

Thanks for your time XD

 

P.S. I think, you're really, really good :D Maybe, we'll meet someday ;)

If someone wants my attention in a thread, they can merely send me a PM and I will get an email. I already have a bit too many forums to check on a regular basis, but I'll gladly pop back in if asked.

Hi! it's me again :)

maybe this question is stupid but i think the answer will be useful (at least for me :) ).

Many young artists don't know what should they do when they want to get a job. they usually think they are still not good enough to work in a professional game project and blah blah blah you know what i mean :), and then most of them think that if they wait, maybe someone, someday will send them an email with a job offer...

hmmm So what do you think about that? I mean how good should be for example a character artist to get a job?

 

Cheers.

I think as artists, we are very rarely able to be objective about our art. I think every artist should have a website, with their art on it, and should constantly update it. Trade links with friends sites, post your artwork on message boards. That way, sometimes people will see your artwork before you apply and might send you a job offer. Also, you should constantly check the job boards of cgtalk, gamasutra, gamejobs, etc, and if you see a posting that sounds like you, you'll have a nice easy to send over link where they can see your portfolio. I think it's never too soon to show off your work.

Hi Ben, i should write to ya as "Mr Ben Mathis, my lord and master", but propably that can abash u ^^ I don't have any questions for you, becouse i know yours tuts and your gallery is on the first place, same as b1ll artworks, in my inspiration and tech support folder. I just want to say u hello and give my words of adjudgment. I dont have any art school, but i dreaming about be one of u lad, the good ones, liders of art side of game dev ^^ But those are still just a dream ^^ Well-beeing at ur traveling time and try to meet us at poland. At last, it's good to see an artist, not machine.

Cheers.

 

Ouch^^ Just one question. How can u be so good in 3d and 2d? I practice both of them, but i still have disproportion in my 3d and 2d skills. What is ur advice? :)

 

Cheers once more

Hahah, after seeing your work by email, I would say you are quite good at 3d and 2d. I know I feel my 2d work is far weaker than my 3d work, and I need to take some time to invest in practicing my 2d stuff. I don't really have much advice, other than this: If you have an area you are weak at, don't shy away from it. Dive headfirst and practice that area till it's your strong point.

Hi Ben.

 

I have only one question. have you got any times when you cant do anything? You want but you cant do it. What are you doing then? Where you search an inspiration ? I have this problem... Can you tell me something?

 

Thanks

Cheers

 

ofca

 

 

ps - sory for my english :*

I very rarely have that happen. There are times where I would prefer to come home and play videogames instead of working on art, but at those times, that's what I do! Hahaha. If I ever want inspiration, I just pull out my sketchbook and draw, or I take a trip to a museum. I keep a collection of textures from other people that I find inspiring, and I look through those, or I just browse Conceptart.org or Polycount.com and seeing other good work normally inspires me too.

Hi Ben, it's a pleasure to have you here :)

 

One question:

 

Do you think that without a good school, one can become a good cg artist (with good job) that can compete with professionals ?

 

Definitely. As far as I'm concerned, there are no "good schools" that teach about game art. They are all money making schemes designed to steal money from kids with the promise of working in games and film. I've written an article on my site about formal education, you might find it an interesting read. I'm primarily self taught myself, so yes, it's very possible. It's all about your personal drive and motivation to get better, and showing that drive by working your butt off to make a great portfolio.

If so, please give some advices for hobbyists like me (and a lot of guys out there) that dream about becoming one but don't have enough money to afford good cg education.

 

Thanks in advance,

Cheers

Make as many friends as you can whose art you enjoy and respect. Ask to see their current art projects, and get feedback on your own. Post on message boards like this one and polycount, cgchat, and cgtalk. Get your art seen by others, and absorb their feedback. Practice, practice, Practice! I can't say it enough. The only way to prove you love making art, and not just that you like the idea of making art, is to have a robust portfolio of quality work. Anything less tells the person viewing your portfolio that you are not serious.

elo mr. strange nick name :o.

(1) why u called yourselfe like that?

 

As mentioned before, it's a humorous title from my teenage years, and I thought it would stick out in peoples minds and be memorable. So far it's worked. :-)

 

"I texture in Bodypaint" thats my boy ;) - u see, only I on this forum prefere painting on 3d model... rest of users are traditional painters :\. ( or just dont know that they talking about ;o)

Bodypaint can be scarey sometimes to people who haven't tried it. Try sending people to my tutorials using bodypaint and after they see how intuitive it is to paint on the model in 3d with all the functionality of Bodypaint, they'll be sold on the concept.

 

(2) IMPORTANT > u think too the dodge & burn tool in bodypaint are totaly sux > it only add white\black on texture...

 

I never use Dodge and Burn, not in photoshop or bodypaint. I choose the actual color I want to lay down, and I lay it on fully opaque. That's the way Sargent painted, and I find it to be the most like real painting. That way I have full control over the color changes.

 

(3)maybe u have BP r3 and there is fixed?

 

I don't have r3 yet, but I'm looking forward to it after talking with the Maxon representative at GDC.

 

(4) why dont you use fotos in your textures... i see only hand painted characters...

 

I can use a photo very easily, which is why I don't like it for personal projects. I find it to be a quick way to achieve something I don't fully understand. When I paint something from scratch, it teaches me everything about that material and how it behaves, and it enables me to be faster and more flexible for future materials, and then I'm never limited to only what I can photograph.

 

(5) i seen your tutorial about mapping > u take a part of uv use unfload, then repeat this x times, weld it, after that export 2 deep uv, use realx tool and export back 2 max.... in 3ds 8 you have relax tool in uvw editor... why u still use max7 ? it have the same bugs like 8, 9, x... ;]

 

I no longer use DeepUV, however if you are talking about Unfold Magic, that's not really my process. I use unfold in place of Max's relax, because I find it works faster and more intuitively. For smaller chunks that I don't want to take into unfold magic, I use UVhelp from http://www.microcan.nl which works with all versions of max. I just don't like Max's built in relax.

 

(6) ....................how much u earn working as freelancer? ( i want to compare polish standarts and wordwide )

 

I started making about 20-30 USD an hour, and now I ask for around 60-100 USD an hour. I'm normally paid per asset, so I estimate the hours it will take, and quote accordingly.

 

(7) do u ever hear about polish game publisher? ( people can fly, cd projekt red, techland, Lart, detalion, the farm 51, metropolis ) if yes, say what did u hear...

 

Yes I have, I loved the Painkiller game and expansion pack. I couldn't stop playing, it kept me up all night while playing, and parts of it scared me silly. Such an awesome game. I would love to work with those guys, either freelance or in house. I am afraid I haven't heard of the others, what games do they make?

 

(8) smilar question. maybe games: painkiller, witcher, call of juarez, chrome...

 

I've seen some screenshots from Witcher, I did not know that was Polish. Call of Juarez I was a bit jaded agains, having worked on Gun. I think personally GUN had more unified art, even though it wasn't as techically advanced.

 

(9) the same... maybe polish game artist ? u know someone?

 

:* pozdro.

I'm afraid I don't know any polish artists, except for one that I met at the Prague Massive Black Concept Art workshop. I forget his name though! hahah.

Hi Ben, nice to see you on max3d.pl

I was very depressed when i saw your work about two years ago on your website, It was extremely good:)

And a question

1. how much time do you have for one standard model for a game (for example First Person Shooter), today and next-gen. And how much time in % do you spend on sketches and preparing to modeling &texturing.

 

Well, the short answer is "it depends". Because there are so many factors. I spent about 50 hours on Mr Mint, and he is old school, but I was really focused on making it just right. However the next-gen voodoo doll on my 3d page only took three days, or about 30 hours. It all depends on the map sizes, the polycounts, how difficult the materials will be to get just right, and how complicated the details are. Normally a good estimate is about four days for an average current gen character, and two to three weeks for an average next-gen character.

 

 

 

2. Do you ever sketch in 3d, by just moving vertices are maybe you always have paper/digital sketches and photos as a starting point?

 

Bye

I sometimes work only in 3d, but very rarely. I am so much faster in 2d to sketch, so any time I have a problem or design to solve, I do it as a sketch on paper first.

Hello,

 

I want to ask you for your beginning with CG

When did you start modeling, where did you learn? and how should i start to be a good artist?

I watched your tutorials, they were great, but i can't make as cool models as yours, most of them make me unhappy :(

 

Thanks,

I first did any 3d when I was fourteen years old, but it was just playing, nothing serious. I would say my first serious modeling attempt was when I was 21 in university. I learned primarily through experimentation, and working with friends who I respected as artists. Practice and passionate projects are the best way to become better.

People try to do not ask dumb questions. Before U ask something maybe firstly U will check his site and then say something.

I don't have any branch questions to ya,'cos I know everthing HAHA (joke).

I would like to take this opportunity and thank U for this old, and almost forgotten of most of people in time of next gens, video tutorial - Mass Blocking.

It was IMO one of the best of your tutors. Big thx for it ;)

 

No problem, I too think it's a very important part, especially if you haven't done mass studies at the concept stage.

 

And I must say that I was always wanted to say to U, U are born with wacom and max in the basket. Man in Your age have such a big experience, skills and shipped titles !! And I'm only one year younger. Thats creepy XD Most artists I know, or had an opportunity to talk is almost 30.

I think its all from me, hope to met U some day on E3 or GDC.

 

Cheers.

Hehe, thank you!

i mean an artwork ofcourse :)

Well the first thing I do is think about how I will tackle the asset. If it doesn't have a concept, or the concept isn't good enough to model off of, I'll either create one myself, or gather photos to use. I try to think of the creation process all the way through, and concentrate on making the asset as efficient to make as possible.

Hello Ben, its really great to see you here :)

 

 

- what are the most important things for you when you start a new project?

 

Cheers

Hmm, not entirely sure what you mean by this, could you clarify? You mean when I start a new piece of artwork? or when I start at a new company?

hello Ben, nice to see you on max3d.pl :)

 

Yeah, I need to thank you for the tutorials you have on your webside, I started my modeling learning with those :) You did a real great job for the community making this :)

 

Thank you very much. I'm glad they have helped you.

 

ok, for the questions:

- I saw that you don't do to much of next - gen models, I mean that most of your work is not normall mapped and you don't use to much of photosource textures. Why is that? In your expirince, is it better to concentate on next - gen things for porfolio or is it better to make some "old school" models to?

 

Well, the main reason is because I prefer old school models and textures. I have enough of a portfolio to get a job at the studios I wish to apply, so my personal art is only to fulfill me as an artist. If I was wanting to get work in today's market, I would make more next-gen assets. That, and there are also still studios doing current-gen stuff, and I'd prefer to work with them. It's always good to focus your portfolio towards what you would like to be employed doing.

 

- Why such a nickname? :D (allweys wanted to know this :))

 

It's from a joke in high-school, and when it came time to pick an online nickname and URL, I wanted something memorable, so I went with the shock value. :-)

 

And if you ever visit a Warsaw, It would be a great honor to meet you and have a nice glas of beer talking about low - poly :)

 

 

Cheers :)

Great to hear, and thank you!

hello Ben , could you tell me what kind of soft do you prefer for modeling, uvw and texturing ?

I model in 3dsmax 7 (8 is a bit buggier for me), I UVW in Unfold 3d magic and max, and I texture in Bodypaint and photoshop. For an overview of how I use these programs, download and watch my new video series, Delilah, from my website.

Hi

 

I'm not in game-art but I'd like to ask You one question. Do You prefer working as a freelancer or in a studio ? And what do You think are most important things to know about working as a freelancer artist ?

I really like working in a studio environment. You get really close to your fellow workers, and it's a great atmosphere to be creative in. Right now, I just want to travel even more, and everywhere I visit, I will be staying with fellow 3d artists, so I hope to capture some of that same comeraderie as working in house.

Most important thing to know? How fast you are, how much your time is worth, and knowing you can do a good job.

Hello, and thank you for the opportunity. I always wonder when I see hits on my site from Poland, where they are coming from. Now I know. :-)

I'm in the process of moving from full time in-house artist at Neversoft, to a freelance artist traveling the globe. I won't have a reliable internet connection, but I will check as often as I'm able. I appreciate your patience, normally I'm online 24/7, hahaha.

Also, I very much want to visit Poland in my travels, so anyone willing to hang out, or even host a wandering artist, please get in contact with me.

Onward to the questions!

Hi Ben!

I'd like to congratulate you for everything you have done, it's all great :D and also I'd like to thank you for your tutorials, they were very helpful for me

 

and my questions:

 

 

1. the most important question - How do you do so realistic cloth wrinkles? :D They are my nightmare!

 

Fabric is very difficult, and I find it interesting you ask how I create realistic wrinkles, as I still find them to be my weakest material type. Whenever I try to render a material, I gather as much reference as I can. I try to study what makes that material read as it does. What color are the shadows, the highlights, the transition area from light to dark? If it's a foldable surface, how do the folds behave? Are the large round folds, small sharp ones? Examining each material in this way helps me to figure out how to render it.

 

2.it is really so hard to get into studios like neversoft as a frelancer?

Well Neversoft only hires in house artists as full time employees. They are very picky in who they hire, in order to only have a work force of strong employees. If you have a good portfolio, that's the biggest hurdle, but I know right now, without a US visa already, the hiring process can take over a year, which makes very few US studios willing to hire foreigners right now. Your portfolio would have to be leaps and bounds better than any other applicant for any studio to go through that process right now.

 

3.what do you think about the future of games. The difference beetwen low and hi poly is disappearing so fast, aren't you afraid about that?

 

I'm not afraid, so much as saddened. I don't know if you have the phrase in Polish, "Can't see the forest for the trees". But it means getting caught up in the details and not looking at the bigger picture. I see many games today where you can see the pores of the persons skin, but the face doesn't have a solid structure, and then when you look at the game from average camera distance, nothing looks any different from older games, becase no one paid attention to full screen shaders or unifying the art and colors. One thing that lower poly games forced you to do, is create a unifying art direction. Look at Final Fantasy XII. I think it looks better than any next-gen game I've seen, and it's running on a PS2. It's not about more polys and more textures, it's about better artists and better processes, with better art direction. High poly is so technical, it's really like putting the horse before the carriage. That said, I enjoy doing high poly at times, but my real love is in low poly and hand painted textures.

4. Do you have some good advices for young character artists like me?

Practice. Practice practice practice. The only way to accelerate your progress, is to practice more hours a day. There will always be experienced artists wanting to move around, at the same time you're applying. They've had paid practice for fourty hours or more a week, for however many years they've been working. Plus they've had the benefit of working in a team environment already, and their resumes are more attractive for having shipped titles on it. The only way for a young inexperienced artist to usurp him for a job, is to have a way better portfolio, and you're only going to get that by making your life mission to get better at 3d for a few years.