Nonsense and Drivel

Visual Development: MMA UK Gym

2011-08-27T11:04:00.001-04:00

A friend asked me the other day about the visual development process, so I thought I'd post the process for this gym from the work I did for EA SPORTS MMA.

First, I met with the Art Director for the title, Peyton Duncan. We talked about the direction he's looking for and agreed on this very typical process:

1. Reference gathering. This is an important step that is often overlooked. I submitted images I gathered off the internet for things I thought could be cool, and the Art Director sifted out what he wanted and didn't want.

2. Thumbnail sketches aimed at capturing the fighting style and country of origin. Originally these were going to be black and white, but I ended up adding simple color splashes in to help convey the textures more.

3. Feedback on the thumbnails was given to me by Peyton, and then I did a larger color sketch of the gym. Most of these were just one shot, but the UK gym needed a bit more description. Peyton wanted to go with something that felt like a repurposed pub, warmly lit, older structure and somewhere in the middle of the UK urban jungle.

4. An environment modeler took my sketch and modeled the gym in Maya, solving and fulfilling layout solutions according to the needs of the game.

5. I set up a few wide-angle shots in Maya and rendered them out for the Art Director to choose from. Each gym needed at least 2 shots to show the whole floorplan, and the UK gym had a loft that also needed description. I then rendered the chosen shots in Maya using flat shading and painted over them in Photoshop. One of the useful things from using this process is being able to render objects separately, which saves me the time it would take to cut them out of a single image in Photoshop. Also, I can use an Ambient Occlusion render to quickly put some values in.

The paintings were used as a visual target sent to outsourcers to finish the in-game environment artwork, as well as visual targets for the lighting department. The bottom strip of color swatches is the color script from this gym, which describes the color for the final look of this area of the game.

Remind me to get some in-game screen captures of this gym for comparison of the final. I am my biggest art critic, but please feel free to comment if you found this process description helpful at all!

Robot Sketch

2011-05-14T01:02:00.000-04:00

I haven't been keeping up with artist blogs that I used to visit, and that needs to change. I get really motivated to create artwork when I see what artists like Nathan Fowkes, Erwin Madrid, James Paick, and Goro Fujita are doing. I know with hard work I can become better!

Here is what I did tonight. There was absolutely no development of this character, just a doodle and paint up. Even though there are things I would change about this piece, I had fun, and it was a good exercise!

Website Update

2011-04-11T01:57:00.000-04:00

I have updated content on my website, http://www.digitallunatik.com/

Feel free to explore it and let me know if you find anything amiss!

Color Study

2011-04-04T10:12:00.000-04:00

Another color study from the other day. Click on image for full resolution.

A Study

2011-03-31T20:19:00.000-04:00

A sketch I finally finished. Been awhile since I've painted...

Click to enlarge.

2011-03-15T21:11:00.000-04:00

From a live session a little while ago.I think this pose was for about 40 minutes.

Figure Drawing

2011-03-13T21:17:00.000-04:00

Another quick gesture from life

Figure Drawing

2011-03-11T20:25:00.000-05:00

Just a quickie. My blog's been somewhat neglected as of late...for those of you still reading, what would you like to see in future posts? A dissection of the fallacies of modern art in a post-modern world? Funny things my kids say? Perhaps a discussion on why Mountain Dew Throwback should be the new Pepsi flagship drink? The world is my (your) oyster...

Some Figure Drawings

2011-02-23T21:15:00.000-05:00

Just some recent studies from figure drawing sessions.

EA SPORTS MMA - UK Sketch

2011-01-26T21:14:00.000-05:00

Here is a sketch I did awhile back for EA SPORTS MMA. The UK gym was fun!

EA SPORTS MMA Gym Sketches

2011-01-11T21:39:00.003-05:00

Here are some exploratory sketches for training gyms in EA SPORTS MMA that came out late last year. If you're a fan of Mixed Martial Arts, please check out the game! It's very well done and the fighting system is very deep.

Japan

Thailand

USA

USA Medium Licensed

Color Script

Instant Concept!

2010-10-26T12:00:00.000-04:00

I think the photo ref was somewhere in China. It looked more like Pandora. Can you spot the Instant Concept?

More to follow... :)

Industrial Complex

2010-10-25T12:00:00.000-04:00

The sky is too plain, but again architectural complexity nabbed all of my time. This one felt better, even though it's the only one that I overlayed any photos into so far...

Snowy Arches

2010-10-24T12:00:00.000-04:00

Love the contrast of the snow on red rock...

Autumn

2010-10-23T12:00:00.000-04:00

Since the trees here in Florida don't turn this color, I had to paint them. My wife really likes this painting, but I think the composition could use some work...another one from photo reference where I probably should've improved that part of it...

Value Problems

2010-10-22T12:00:00.000-04:00

I haven't bothered to fix this one, but there are some definite value and color issues. Any advice?

Chalk Brush Strikes Again

2010-10-21T12:00:00.000-04:00

I found this one extremely satisfying in its simplicity.

Sunset Sky

2010-10-20T18:00:00.000-04:00

So, in case you couldn't tell, I've really been digging my chalky brushes. There are two or three that I basically use for everything. Maybe I will show them sometime, but right now my Photoshop brushes window is acting up on me...

Little House on the Prairie

2010-10-19T21:21:00.000-04:00

30 Min, 1 Hour, What's the diff?

2010-10-18T21:17:00.002-04:00

Well, there is quite a difference when painting architecture as compared to a natural landscape. This was one that got away from me, but I revisited it to finish it up and ease my mind.

Another Study and What Not To Do

2010-10-17T00:19:00.002-04:00

The bottom image is the original, but I really disliked the wall along the bottom. This is an example of the problem of blindly copying photography, you also copy anything bad in them like this composition!

Another Study

2010-10-16T00:15:00.003-04:00

Another one of these, which are all done in Photoshop using photo reference as a color and speed exercise. This one probably went to 45min-1hr or so....still working on the speed and simplification to hit the 30 min mark.

30-Min Color Study

2010-10-14T20:14:00.005-04:00

From a little initiative at work, inspired by the inimitable Robh Ruppel. It's a new thing, and I want to make it a habit. I've learned a lot already! These are all from photo reference. In the future I want to start collecting dramatic cinematography shots to paint from as well.

Some of these ended up taking a bit more than 30 min...

Also, hop on over to my talented friend Tom Schmuck's blog to see some of his studies from the same initiative!

Stay tuned for more...

Sketch

2010-08-20T00:36:00.002-04:00

Saw this image and was bitten by the drawing bug. It's been too long!

HOLGA!

2010-08-16T21:22:00.006-04:00

So, on our recent trip to NYC I bought a HOLGA from B&H Photo Video after being introduced to it by my cousin's husband, Spencer. I was intrigued by the quirkiness of the camera and the images it could produce, so I set about tinkering with the thing. Here are my first two rolls in all their unabashed glory. I do want to point out that I had the frame spacing wrong on the first roll, and the photo place cropped them horribly. They also neglected to scan at least 2 images of the black and white roll, which really REALLY annoys me.

Anyhow, I plan on honing my meager photography skills on this interesting camera.

If you have any tips for me, please share!

Meet Virginia

2010-07-18T16:45:00.002-04:00

Did this quick color study from my sister's dining room table, looking out through the back screen door. It was raining lightly. They live in scenic Roanoke! Love those Blue Ridge Mountains! I need more practice painting trees, too...

Artrage

2010-07-07T21:55:00.003-04:00

Here's another Artrage sketch from today's figure session. It was my first time using my new portable equipment, still trying to figure out the best setup! Got any tips?

Timbuk2 Sketch

2010-07-07T00:33:00.002-04:00

So what if I like bags? Day packs, messenger bags, internal frame packs, climbing bags...you get the picture. Lately I've really been into Timbuk2 messenger bags. I was playing around in Artrage and sketched my new D-Lux messenger bag with laptop compartment. I got the medium size so I could fit my Intuos4 along with my new netbook in it.

Just a Street Front

2010-06-10T00:47:00.004-04:00

This is another one that ended up going longer than I had planned. I should really give myself hard deadlines and stick to them...

Done in Photoshop. Click on the image for the full resolution I worked at.

45-min study

2010-06-03T07:00:00.000-04:00

From photo reference. This started out as a 30-min sketch, but I just wasn't fast enough...I feel like I'm getting better though! Really trying to get the colors to work better.

Liv Sketch

2010-06-02T08:00:00.001-04:00

Another sketch exercise, just over 30 min I think. Trying to get more line mileage and Cintiq time in! So far it's been great motivation to do more work...

30-min Sketch

2010-06-01T12:00:00.000-04:00

Inspired by Robh Ruppel's 30-min studies, but nowhere near as masterful...working up to that.

Sketch

2010-05-31T00:24:00.003-04:00

Just a sketch exercise from web reference, I was really bored the other night and need to do more exercises like this!

El Camino Time Machine

2010-05-19T23:28:00.004-04:00

Just a mock project to motivate me to do something outside of work. A dragon is supposed to end up falling in love with a redneck's El Camino (B)... a story development after the first round of sketches. Which one do you like?

Figure Drawing

2010-05-13T19:52:00.003-04:00

It's about time! I'm helping to get regular figure drawing sessions going again at work. Everyone was pretty rusty but we had some fun drawing in analog. Here is my best 5-min from today.

El Camino

2010-05-11T00:59:00.003-04:00

Some silhouette sketches I got carried away with. Which do you like best? I think they need more style treatment, we're going for a Gorillaz/Brutal Legend kind of look. I don't think these are quite there yet, not edgy enough. Stay tuned for more refinement! This is a first pass.

Validation

2010-05-06T01:03:00.004-04:00

It's been so long since I've posted anything, let alone done any personal work at all! Here's something I did tonight. Used some photo ref, but it was a good exercise. Tried to keep it loose with the chalk brush... I can't wait till figure drawing starts back up at work!

My Irish Kids

2010-03-17T23:05:00.001-04:00

And now, to celebrate St. Patrick's Day and to honor our Irish ancestors, I present my dancing kids.

Just Some Head Sketches

2010-03-08T23:03:00.003-05:00

What's this? A new post?! Just a few sketches. One on right was fun to do with a new Copic marker.

Pardon my long absence from this blog.

My new phone

2009-10-17T23:59:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I've had it for a few months. I am really enjoying my G1 from T-Mobile. It runs on an open source OS called Android and has a full QWERTY keyboard and touchscreen. I just got a new app called "Face Melter" and had some fun with it...

Ok, so it's been awhile...

2009-10-15T23:52:00.003-04:00

I have been in a funk lately. Not producing much artwork I want to share, or photos of the fam. I think I am going to start a separate blog about personal stuff, family, etc, and make this one art only. Not to get too confusing for my loyal few. I'll let you know when I do it. If ever...

Meanwhile, here is a sketch I did today while waiting for my machine to render. It sure would be nice to have a more powerful computer. This isn't "of" anybody, I just wanted to draw a cartoony expressive dude. I have a hard time simplifying the shapes of the head much more than I did here. I admire guys like Stephen Silver and Joe Olson for their ability to convey and translate so much into so little.

Miles Plays Hockey!

2009-08-22T15:48:00.005-04:00

I find when I'm drawing kids that they end up looking a lot like my own. Here is a piece I did last week for practice, though I'm not sure how much I actually benefited from it - I had a vision MUCH different from where this ended up! I probably need to just spend more time getting the sketch right.

Madden 10 Wii

2009-08-17T22:58:00.008-04:00

We worked very hard on the new art style in Madden 10 Wii. Although the reviews are mixed, I think we were successful. Please check out the game and let me know what you think!

Here are a few stadium style guides I did for the game. The goal was to wonkify and simplify while maintaining each stadium's personality and unique features.

These were done in Photoshop and took roughly 4 hours each. It was a fast pace, but lots of fun! Lots of Lasso, Line and Gradient use.

Been Busy

2009-07-02T01:02:00.003-04:00

Dear Loyal Readers,

I am sorry it has been so long since my last post. I've been quite the slacker on documenting my ultra-interesting life. Honestly, not that much has been going on except lots of freelance and family stuff taking up the majority of my time. I haven't done any personal projects in a little while, and have missed it.

The other day, though, my daughter showed me a drawing she did of me. As a vampire. How cool is that? I'll post it as soon as I dig it up off of the ol' memory card.

I have also been craving good Chinese food.

I can't turn off italics now.... bear with me.

Here's another few blogs that have made my mouth water:

This one makes me miss Taiwan. A lot. Though I suppose I should be able to find just as tasty food in NYC or LA. Unfortunately, I am near neither....

Those of you in Provo must go to this place and tell me how it is. We did, however, go to a pretty good Korean BBQ place (although only about half of the Koreans I know think it's ok) and have a Dim Sum lunch scheduled for Friday. I have faith that with enough time, we can find the best restaurants in Orlando for authentic food. I'll be sure to report!

Sincerely,

Your Pal

So, it's been awhile...

2009-05-30T17:33:00.004-04:00

Today was $5 admission to the Orlando Science Center, courtesy of Walmart. We could only spend a few hours there, but I think we had a good time. I need to learn more about photography...the lighting in there was annoying! I really like that out of focus photo of Abbie, though.

The kids had fun uncovering fossils, learning about Mr. Potatohead (?!), and playing with water. The orange picking and processing area was another favorite! Abbie looks grumpy in all of these photos because she now despises having her picture taken...

My Son, the Artist

2009-04-18T21:58:00.002-04:00

All of my kids love the Magna-doodle. It's a great toy, too, I just wish I could keep every drawing they do on it! My son started complaining of an ear ache, and is actually on his way back with Mom from the emergency pediatric place.

We discovered this after dinner. It's an exploding ear...Looks painful!

Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure

2009-04-09T10:45:00.003-04:00

I play this game whenever I have time. It's challenging, rewarding, hilarious, and fun! My pal Jay Epperson art directed it, and posted some of the great work he created for the game here, here, here, and here.

I would've linked to him before, but I think he posted his stuff after I put mine up... so please Check it out! Oh and he's extremely talented and looking for work...

Henry Hatsworth in Stores Now!

2009-03-17T23:26:00.004-04:00

I had the honor of contributing artwork to a game from EA Casual, called Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure. The team was awesome, and they really poured their heart and soul into this great game. I think it's extremely entertaining! Go check it out!!

Here are a few pieces I did for them.

Last of the Mohawkians

2009-03-12T12:18:00.000-04:00

Fat Chin!

Joe Bluhm Caricature

2009-03-02T23:52:00.001-05:00

I was inspired by seeing Joe Bluhm do caricatures at MegaCon. I worked this sketch up in just over a half hour. I need to work on making more interesting shapes...

Super Ultra MegaCon!

2009-02-28T20:31:00.007-05:00

MegaCon is a comic book / anime / gaming convention here in Orlando. Since I can't travel much, the other side of the city is about my limit these days. Sad, huh? I read that Joe Bluhm was going to be there, so I used that as an excuse to drive down there and see what's up. Since my friend Pat introduced his work to me, I've been a big fan. You can see Joe's work on his website. I got him to caricature me, and also watched him draw several other people. It's really fun to watch another artist work, especially a master like Joe. It was great meeting him, his girlfriend, and the ultra-mysterious Dan Hay (holding his book). I bought Dan's book, "Blubber Lubber", and Joe's infamous "Rejects" book. I REALLY wanted to get his sketchbook, too, but my wallet was already yelling at me. You can order these as well as several other great art books at Joe's publishing site, Art Squared Publishing.

When did conventions become costume parties? I went to the Chicago ComiCon back in the mid '90s and I really don't remember seeing anybody dressed as their favorite character. I don't really see the point, but whatever. I wanted to see more artists, but I guess we're too far from New York, L.A. or San Francisco for that... One of these days I might make it up to NYC, tho. It'd be sweet to do a figure session at Society of Illustrators or something.

I snapped a candid photo of the Ex-President of the Colonies, and tried one for Tricia Helfer but was intercepted by the Camera Police. Lou Ferrigno looked a little desperate, which was sad and reminded me of the scene from The Wrestler where the old has-beens are sitting at tables waiting for some fan to pay them $10 for an autograph.

You can view all my photos from the convention on my Flickr site.

ZBrush Sketch

2009-02-27T23:09:00.001-05:00

Did this the other night. Loving my new power machine...

All Growed Up

2009-02-24T21:34:00.003-05:00

As some of you may know, we're looking at making the step towards real wealth. Since the housing market has dropped down to being affordable to us poor people, we're proceeding with a home purchase in Lake Mary, FL. It's a modest 1691 sq ft 3/2.5 with some great features:

- new high-efficiency indoor and outdoor A/C units with heat upgrades
- new windows in all but 4
- plantation shutters to really tell you you're in the South
- a grapefruit tree
- bike path behind the backyard
- hot tub

Now, let the home improvement projects begin! Painting, light fixtures, kitchen, bathrooms....sigh

Another Landscape Sketch

2009-02-07T23:31:00.003-05:00

Done from photo ref. Someplace in China, I think. A couple of hours in Photoshop.

Boba!

2009-02-05T19:04:00.002-05:00

The other day, Anna was trying to explain the treat we had to her Preschool teachers. Boba, or bubble tea, is something I was introduced to while in Taiwan. When I was strapped for cash, sometimes a large cup of papaya milk boba was all I had for lunch. I've found the uncooked packages of the stuff that I can get quite easily at most Asian supermarkets. The kids giggle as they eat the boba, although I don't think Miles likes it very much.

If you live in the Seattle, California, NYC, or Texas areas you may be able to find Boba tea houses with great drinks. You can usually get it without tea, although a lot of places might give you a weird look. I've become partial to boba in chocolate shakes...

Alchemy

2009-01-11T23:56:00.003-05:00

I've heard about this tool before, but just tried it after reading my friend Nick's blog. Turns out, it's pretty cool! Check out a demo by the one and only Android Jones. I am gonna do some more tutorial watching and see what comes of it. Here is what I had fun doodling while checking out different features of the program (click to view larger).

You can go to the Alchemy website here.

Oil Studies

2009-01-10T15:56:00.002-05:00

I had planned to do a lot more than this, but just slacked. I have all sorts of excuses, but I know in my heart of hearts they don't matter. These are about 3.5" x 2.25" and done from photo reference.

Three Cowboys

2008-12-31T14:37:00.004-05:00

Here's a sketch I did today because I was feeling bad about not painting for the last few days. My allergies have been giving me hell, but I think I know how to get it under control.

Hooray for spaceships in the desert!

Also, Happy New Year! I'm gonna make some goals and post them so's y'all ken keep me in line next year...

Tiger PGA Tour 09

2008-12-30T00:43:00.003-05:00

All images property of Electronic Arts.

Here is another lighting target I did for the Wentworth course in Tiger 09. I made the time of day to morning. Personally I think the sky could use some work, now that I'm looking at it again.

Please let me know if these types of posts bore you!

Yet another BW Sketch

2008-12-28T20:38:00.001-05:00

This is a really quick one. Absolutely no thought process, and I don't like the square canvas... but, it is what it is! Let me know what you think.

Family Time

2008-12-26T22:22:00.004-05:00

It's been nice being at home for the holidays. It's also been nice not to be traveling anywhere, though it is always fun being around more family and friends. We are glad for the nice weather we've been experiencing while watching the rest of the country suffer. I need to do some more painting, but here are some of the things we've been able to accomplish so far. Santa gave the girls roller skates for Christmas, and Miles commandeered the sweet pink scooter. Lucas is practicing standing on his own! Most of these were taken at the local library park/roller hockey rink.

Have a safe New Year!

A Recent Sketch

2008-12-24T00:30:00.002-05:00

I was doodling around with a few custom brushes and started liking the results. I was inspired by Hans Bacher's focus on composition and basic texture and color. Maybe someday I'll add color...

Tiger 09 Clouds

2008-12-23T00:30:00.003-05:00

My claim to fame for this one is that I painted the sky with custom brushes I made by hand. The bottom one is my paintover, with lighting adjustments.

Madden NFL 09 Stadiums

2008-12-22T00:30:00.000-05:00

I like the UFO stadiums. The Saints stadium was one of my favorites to do, even though there are things I see now that aren't so good. Did I mention these were one of the first projects I did after joining the Concept team?

Lil' Chitlins

2008-12-21T00:30:00.001-05:00

1. I think Anna is playing with a cookie. She is getting more and more beautiful!

2. Lucas managed to eat some of the softened sticks of chalk. He just LOVES getting into things.

3. I just LOVE the devilish look Miles is giving. He kinda looks like Gollum, too...lol! Wife said he was pouring cups of water on the chalk, watching it wash the drawings away.

PS. I think my monitor is too bright, even though I calibrated it. Let me know if these photos look too dark to you!

Figure Drawing

2008-12-20T00:30:00.002-05:00

18" x 24" Nupastel on Canson sketch paper. 10 min figure study at a session at work. I'm a bit rusty, so it was good practice.

NCAA Football Weather Target - Overcast Snow

2008-12-19T00:30:00.001-05:00

All images property of Electronic Arts.

The top image is the "plate" for this painting. It's a screenshot off of the Xbox 360 game. The art director wanted a target for what overcast snowing weather conditions would look like, so this is my concept. This one took a few days in Photoshop.

The Christmas 'Stache

2008-12-18T00:30:00.000-05:00

My manager at work started an initiative to get all the guys on our team to sport moustaches at this year's company holiday party. I was hesitant at first, but decided to see how mine turned out. I started letting it grow the weekend before Thanksgiving, and shaved it off this last Sunday. I don't have a pic of the goatee (if you could call it that) before I started shaving, but here are some photos taken as The 'Stache emerged!

Tiger PGA Tour 09 Lighting Target - Sun City

2008-12-17T00:30:00.000-05:00

All images property of Electronic Arts.

This is one of the first projects I worked on when I transitioned over to the Concept team. I was given an idea of the overall color they wanted for this course,. I was also given the top image as a starting point.

I used adjustment layers to adjust color and repainted some of the light shadows. The time of day is late afternoon/early evening.

The purpose of this piece is to give the lighters a target for color and atmosphere as they light the course they get from the environment artists, as well as set the sky. I am not sure what the course looks like in the actual game, I guess I could go fire it up.

It was awhile ago, but I think these took me a few days to do.

Madden NFL 09 Stadiums

2008-12-16T00:30:00.000-05:00

All images property of Electronic Arts.

These stadiums were painted for Madden NFL 09 intro screens. We did a day and a night version for each stadium. Unfortunately, I didn't get to do the night one for the Cardinals, which is one of my favorites because it looks like a UFO. These images are more like matte paintings in that elements of photos were used, but there was also a good deal of painting into them. We started with a 3D render of the stadium as a guide. The parking lot and street had to be in the same location.

If you fire up the game and watch the intro, there is actually a camera move, which was done by projecting our paintings onto geometry to get realistic parallaxing. I think they turned out pretty nice, considering we only intended for them to be static 2D images to begin with...

These took 3 days each. The Colts stadium was particularly interesting because it was not completed when I had to do the painting. I used whatever reference of the building plans I could find on the internet, so it may not be 100% accurate.

I got a lot better at painting windows by the end of the 32-stadium project (64 paintings), even though I only did 13 of them.

Oil sketch

2008-12-15T00:30:00.001-05:00

This little 3" x 5" sketch in oils took a hefty 2 hours to do. I haven't painted in quite a while, and want to develop more control in the medium. I am far from it, as you can see by the muddy colors and heavy purples in the sketch. I worked from a photo of Otter Creek PA my wife took last time we were up there.

I was having a hard time painting wet on wet and with only one brush (I dislike having to clean tons of brushes!). My friend Steven Geer told me I should be using multiple brushes and paint shadows thinly at first, building up to thicker opaque lighter values, so that's what I'll be working on next time. Wish me luck!

Tiger Woods 09 lighting target - Sheshan

2008-12-14T11:04:00.004-05:00

All images property of Electronic Arts.

This is one of the first projects I worked on when I transitioned over to the Concept team. I was given an idea of the overall color they wanted for this course, Sheshan. I was also given the top image as a starting point. The lighter strip you see on the bottom of it is actually the finished artwork in Photoshop. I added the strip to shift the horizon line higher and make the composition more appealing.

I used adjustment layers to adjust color and repainted the sand traps to have a nice cool shadows. I was told to paint it as a certain time of day, can you tell what it is? I am not sure if I hit it as accurately as I should have...

The purpose of this piece is to give the lighters a target for color and atmosphere as they light the course they get from the environment artists, as well as set the sky. I am not sure what the course looks like in the actual game, but I do have a copy of the Wii game. I wonder if that one looks as good as the 360 or PS3 one... doubtful!

It was awhile ago, but I think these took me a few days to do.

Keep checking back, I will be posting more of these and then some Madden NFL 09 work.

Concept art

2008-12-13T10:34:00.008-05:00

All images property of Electronic Arts.

These are some pieces I did within the past year. The Sand flea/squid was a one day exercise, the subject was simply "Industrial Design". I did a page of silhouette sketches to warm up and explore different shapes, then took the rest of the day to paint it. Props to my co-worker Steven Geer for his paper texture that I now use for everything!

The PS3 background was for an internal PS3 load screen. It was fun, even though it's pretty Matrix-ey....it's what they wanted...

I can't get enough ART!

2008-12-04T22:41:00.003-05:00

Ok, I'm sorry for not posting more regularly. This blog has kind of taken some twists and turns, and mostly been a place for me to post random stuff. Eventually, I may split this blog into two streams of consciousness, one for art and one for everything else....

I am taking a break from furious mouse-clicking to type this blog entry. I am compelled to save artwork to look at and study and draw inspiration from, so I've been going to a bunch of art blogs and saving the images in reference folders for myself to peruse at my leisure. My wife snidely comments on my "stealing" work, but sometimes people's blogs or webpages disappear, or they take work off of it. I love studying other artists' work, and learning from them. I have a LOT of artists blogs in my Google Reader, but I'm not sure how to get a list and link them easily. If anyone has an easy method for this, please let me know!

Here are just a few of my favorites (legendary status) lately:

John Nevarez
Hans Bacher
Nathan Fowkes
Robh Ruppel

Sorry, no pix! I'm feeling WAY too lazy and I'm also grumpy at Blogspot's lack of layout tools for the non-HTML nerds.

Pix

2008-11-23T20:46:00.005-05:00

I have a new little snapshot camera, which I bought from a friend for a few bux and need to get a replacement battery door cover. I just like how small it is, but I need to get the manual to figure out some stuff. Here are some pictures I've taken lately! Abbie's school had an event called "Donuts with Dad". As with any publicized event with free food, there was a mob of hungry dads and kids. Apparently, last year the event didn't have nearly that many people. When we walked into the cafeteria, I noticed 4 or 5 Krispy Kreme boxes and some drinks, and noted the fulness of the cafeteria. We were lucky to get any Donuts at all, and they were the backup Dunkin Donuts that showed up 5 minutes before school started...

I won some tickets to the Magic vs Raptors game last Tuesday. The company's season tickets are in the lower bowl, and great. I had a headache but went anyway and it was a great game.

The picture of Lucas was taken at the park when I took the kids for a half-hour romp yesterday. The weather was great and he liked to hang out watching the other kids play.

I am truly blessed!

Fu Man Chu

2008-11-22T19:54:00.003-05:00

FYI, that's not me, I Googled "asian moustache"...

My manager at work started a movement for all the guys on our team to sport moustaches at the company Holiday party. I was a little hesitant, but I want to see how far I can go now. I guess I'll have to take a pic or two, but let's just say I don't think it will come in very thick. The middle of my upper lip probably won't grown any moustache at all, and I am pretty interested to see how it is going to turn out....

I did find one pic that is probably how I'll turn out.

Exercise!

2008-11-09T21:08:00.002-05:00

I've been going to the gym more, and I've been loving it. I go at lunch, with a few of my co-workers. I used to do some push-ups and what not at home in the mornings, which I should get back to doing if I could just get to bed and wake up earlier. Here is what happened the other night when the kids wanted to do some exercise!

Caricature

2008-11-08T00:59:00.004-05:00

Some of you may remember my attempts at caricature back around April Fool's Day. I finally have some free time and hate to just sit around watching TV, even though I enjoy the diversion. It's just that nothing really gets accomplished by sitting on the couch, so I choose to watch shows at my computer. At work, I usually have a show running in a corner of one of my monitors while I paint. I've tried listening to music, and while it works, I enjoy listening to people talk more. I guess I'd like XM radio, but I haven't gone there yet. Just ask the Dear Wife how much I enjoy good talk radio. Too bad Florida barely has any! (no offense if you're reading this, Lex and Terry).

Anyhow, my manager keeps saying how much he can't wait to see color in the caricature I did of him back for April Fool's Day, and I finally got around to it! The secret method is simple - Photoshop adjustment layers! I flatten the entire image as I work. I used to be very anxious about losing layers that I might need later, and there are still instances where you might want to keep layers separate for awhile, but it's always easier working on a flattened image when doing color work. It also gives the piece more life, variation, and refinement. Here is the tonal I started with, and where I'm at now. I'd say I'm about 75% done. I'll have to get some fresh eyes on it...click on the images to view them larger!

More thoughts on Voting

2008-11-01T20:48:00.002-04:00

The Woman has been begging for the Flip Ultra, a "video camera for dummies". And let me tell you, it is! Abbie will be using this in no time, without our permission of course. It has no removable memory source, but can hold 60 minutes of video at 640 x 480 resolution at a pretty decent picture quality. It saves movies in AVI format and comes with some simple software that I have yet to use. Best yet, is the low low cost of this product, a mere $125 from Costco. That sure beats the Canon DV camera that I bought over a year ago and have used 3 times! The thing is, capturing and transferring off of DV is a pain... I know the quality is better, but for me the purpose and hassle isn't worth it.

We drove by the local library today to see how long the early voting line was. It went out the door and along the sidewalk and parking lot, so we just went to the park and then Walmart instead. Here is an impromptu interview The Woman recorded on the way. It's always weird seeing and hearing yourself on video...

Vote for Sale!

2008-11-01T10:23:00.000-04:00

Make me an offer!

ZBrush Resurface

2008-10-25T21:56:00.003-04:00

Fear not, faithful readers. I have not forgotten you! It does feel like ages since my last post....

I did a gesture sculpt in ZBrush, using ZSpheres for the first time ever. I should have saved that in an image somewhere, so you non-industry people will have to use your imagination. The results actually held up pretty decently, but I forgot the ears so I just jumped ahead to resurfacing the mesh in Maya. I used the sketch from a previous post for reference. Now I am ready to push around some more digital clay and finish out this head! Stay tuned for more updates...

In other interesting news, Autodesk buys XSI from Avid for $35 million. The end of innovation? Perhaps. Autodesk is now the Microsoft of the 3D software industry, as it now owns the 3 most used software packages in the industry (Maya, 3dsmax, XSI) as well as Mudbox, which looks to be stiff competition for Zbrush with their upcoming release.

It's as if Microsoft just bought Apple...the End of Days?

Art and Abbie, the Author

2008-10-05T11:36:00.008-04:00

This head study was done with raw Super Sculpy. It's the first sculpture I've ever done, and the only one I've ever finished. I hope to have more time to do more sculpting, but I am still learning and want to try some different materials that require some more equipment. Super Sculpy is ok, but kind of gummy. I used photos of a Polynesian football player for starting reference, but wasn't going for a likeness, just having fun!

Abbie is a very intriguing little girl. She's way ahead of the curve on her reading, and loves to draw. She isn't quite as imaginative as Anna, but she loves to draw from life. As I was taking some pictures of my sculpture before it got too old, she decided to draw it. Not bad, eh? She also wrote this story, perhaps somewhat reflective of a common household event...

Sketches

2008-09-25T19:36:00.004-04:00

Today I worked on designing a stylized character. Props to my coworker for the paper texture, which I use all the time, and also to Hadi Tabasi, my inspiration for this small project. I think you can tell which one I like the most, although the one on the end is nice at 3/4 view, I couldn't get a profile I was happy with.

Photoshop, as usual. For those who care, I used 3 adjustment layers to add form on top of the line work - 2 curves to darken and 1 curve to lighten. I used 2 custom brushes, one that looks like marker on watercolor paper for the sketching, and one that looks like an oil brush for the tonal work.

I will be modeling the head in the near future using ZBrush and Maya.

My Sweet, Sweet Car

2008-09-12T21:38:00.003-04:00

So, I had another vivid dream last night. It was kind of weird, but I wanted to record it anyways... I guess it's just because I remember most of it now, so why not?

The coolest thing about the dream is the car I had. I'm not a car guy, but this car was pretty cool. It looked almost exactly like this GTO. It was sitting in my garage, only the doors, hood, trunk and body panels were laying on a work bench. I was packing the car with as many of my belongings as I could, getting ready for a long relocation and life on the run from something, the police perhaps? I'd place bags or throw shoes into spaces in the car, and when it was full I would put the body panel back on. Not like using secret cargo holds, the panels were off to make for easier access throwing stuff inside.

I was living with roommates, and they didn't know what was really going on. I had flashes of memories of what happened earlier, I think the night before. I was driving in the snow, swerved around a corner and hit a guy, and I told everyone he died. Even though I don't drink, I was a little tipsy at the time this happened. Supposedly I was off the hook for some reason, but the real sequence of events was quite different from the story I told, and that was why I was getting out of town.

In another feature-film-like sequence of shots, I came swerving around a corner as I told in the story. However, the man I said I hit, looked at me with wide eyes as I came toward him. I knew him to be the man I was sent to kill. I slid to a stop, fishtailing the back end in the snow. Running out of the car, I tackled the guy as he tried to escape, sat on his chest and put my hands on his face until he stopped moving.

That was why I was getting out of Dodge. It was just a matter of time before the investigation by the police would lead them knocking down my door...

Then I woke up and poured some Kix for a confused Miles and whiny Anna (what happened to the Rainbow Cereal??). A little sprinkled sugar on top solved both problems.

I hope my dream doesn't disturb anyone, but I would love to hear some interpretations.

Some more DS Sketches

2008-09-06T20:23:00.006-04:00

The b/w sketches were done at the mall today while the kids were running around in the play area. It was really crowded...

I need to paint more on my DS!

Figure Drawing Demo by Nathan Fowkes

2008-09-05T20:07:00.002-04:00

I have a lot of art blogs in my reader. I love to see what people are doing, and be inspired by talented artists. Nathan Fowkes is a recent add, and I am in constant amazement of his prowess. He has two blogs, one for landscape sketches and another for more figure drawing. I just wanted to share this demo with all you artists out there, because Nathan inspires me with every post.

Good Eats

2008-09-04T21:08:00.002-04:00

When we got married, my wife informed me that she didn't know how to cook. Of course, I loved her anyway and told her it didn't matter.

But it did.

Growing up, my mother cooked all the time. She baked Christmas treats until she realized she was gaining weight from mid-production sampling. She made strange Chinese food and green bean casseroles with crushed cracker topping. She baked red bean cookies and meatloaf. I am sad that she doesn't cook as much anymore, now that all the kids have left the house, but I will always have fond memories of the food we enjoyed there.

I used to sneak my Dad's cranberry juice after he had his kidney stones.

I also used to stuff my mouth full of food I didn't want to eat, excuse myself to the bathroom (with a full mouth), spit out the food in some toilet paper and flush it down. Yeah, I'm not proud of it, but it is what it is.

Despite all the complaining my siblings and I did, I secretly enjoyed her cold Ginger Chicken and Sunday Macaroni Soup.

Here are some of my other favorite things my Mom made, in no particular order:

- Pasta Carbonara (learned authentically from an Italian woman), which we called "Bacon and Egg Pasta"
- Zhong zi
- Soy Sauce Eggs
- Beef Tongue (just kidding - that was gross. Like french kissing a cow)
- Early morning hot breakfast waiting in the heated oven (I can't believe she got up at 5am to make breakfast!)
- Roast beef on rye
- Almond Jello
- Chinese Tapioca
- Turkey stuff with sticky rice and cooked with Chinese spices
- Lobuo soup
- Paperstick (inside joke)
- Bao zi

My wife's cooking now has tremendously grown since we were first married. We now know how to boil eggs, and some other pretty cool stuff too! If you don't believe me, just go here and check out the cool food she makes for us to enjoy.

Even as I type, she is making Molasses Spice Cookies (aka Gingersnaps). They are to DIE for.

Calling all Geeks!

2008-08-30T19:31:00.004-04:00

Ok, so I'm not really going to be writing an Ode here. In fact, I'm so lazy that I'm not even going to Google "Ode", because I really don't know what an Ode exactly is. I am, however, going to describe to you how old my computer is. I have had this machine for over 3 years now, and it was an old workstation from a previous employer that I purchased. At the time, it was pretty spiffy and not a horrible machine. In fact, it's still a pretty decent machine. However, I am trying to work more on hi-resolution digital sculpting, and for that I will need some beefier hardware.

I've created a wishlist on Newegg for my Dream Machine. Q6600 Quad Core processor, 4gb DDR3 RAM to start with, and a nice overclocking motherboard with dual graphics card compatibility. Does this sound greedy? I don't really care. I need power! And I need it to last for awhile, even though Intel is on the cusp of a new age.

To fund my dreams, I am trying to get some freelance gigs. I've done a few logo designs for family and friends, but I'm really looking for more lucrative projects. So, if you know anyone who needs a high-end concept painting or 3d Model/texture, please send them my way! My portfolio (outdated as it may be) is here.

Also, if you have comments on my selection of computer parts, please recommend something to me! Believe me, I wish I could afford a high-end Mac (with dual boot for WinXP of course!) and those lovely screens. I think the Samsungs I have my eye on should be ok... I am so sick of only having one 19" CRT at home. Seriously, how can you live with just one screen? It's so much nicer when you have the real estate for reference photos, multiple applications, and sweet wallpapers.

Here are some links for some of the things on my wishlist:

ASUS Rampage Extreme LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard
or
XFX MBN790IUL9 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 790i Ultra SLI DDR3 ATX Intel Motherboard

XCLIO Windtunnel Fully Black Finish 1.0 mm SECC Chassis ATX Full Tower Computer Case
or
Antec P182 Gun Metal Black 0.8mm cold rolled steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

POWERCOLOR AX4870 512MD5-H Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card
or
BFG Tech BFGE88512GTOC2E GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

ZBrush 3.1 : The Adventures of Captain ZApplink and PSBoy!

2008-08-29T19:51:00.010-04:00

I got to work on my Beast of Burden for the first time in ages. I used the ZAppLink plugin on ZBrush 3.1 and Photoshop CS2 to start painting the texture for this bad boy. ZAppLink allows you to take a projection of a 3D model from ZBrush and paint on it in your program of choice. It then projects what you paint back onto your model, using whatever UVs it has already. Generally a pretty nifty tool, because you don't have to worry about seams along UV edges. And who wants to paint in anything but Photoshop and Painter?

I'm pretty happy with the progress so far. One of the things I wanted to challenge myself with was making this texture fully hand-painted, or in other words, not using photographs to overlay or add detail. To do this, I made a few new Photoshop brushes, which you could download from my website if my FTP server were working... For those few of you interested, email me and I'll send it to you personally. I also used a pretty standard soft and hard circular brush. Shown below are the images I used for my brushes, so if you're adventurous you can play around with the custom brush settings in Photoshop and get something unique. See if you can tell where I used each brush in the texture!

Working in Videogames

2008-08-26T22:09:00.003-04:00

I work at a very well-known videogame developer, so I play games all the time. 24-7. I am a master at every videogame we make, because I can exploit every glitch and secret in the games to the fullest possible extent. Plus, I'm Asian. You got Served, Bee-yotch!

I like my job. A lot. Well, a lot more than I did a year ago. Why wouldn't I? I get to draw, paint, and use my creative juices every day! It comes to no surprise to me that people envy my job. I try to play it down, but yeah, it is a great job (when the pay finally catches up to me). I just don't understand one thing. Why is it, when I tell someone where I work, they assume I'm a Programmer?

Not to insult the Programmer race, but they can be a strange lot. They get paid exponentially more than we Artists, and have quite interesting behaviors to study. Take, for instance, the level of caffeination a typical male Programmer achieves each day. After two cups of coffee, a soda with lunch (biggie size it!), several "energy" drinks to sustain the exorably draining chair-sitting posture and furious typing, and it's no surprise to witness a jittery Programmer stammering over his description of matrices utilized to calculate multi-vector automated animation sequences.

At 9pm.

It is also not uncommon to witness an Artist's eyes glaze over when technical jargon crosses their ears. Sometimes all it takes is mentioning the word "pipeline" to make an Artist shudder. On the other hand, websites containing concept art or paintings will attract Artists like Programmers to a coffee machine.

Standing around like onlookers at an accident where no one knows if anyone got hurt or killed or did those EMTs shock-paddle that guy or whose fault was it? That poor girl I bet she doesn't even have insurance! And HE looks like he might have a gun in the car... That guy sure can paint. Bastard. I bet he ripped that off a photo. Those are great shapes! That one looks like your Mom! This guy worked on that film? Is that a Photoshop brush?

Paint Daubs FTW!!

There are two breeds of Artists, and they tend to butt heads. There are Fine Artists, and Illustrators. Don't let the names confuse you, though. Fine Artists aren't necessarily "more" artistic than Illustrators (though that's not what they'll tell you!). I've heard of actual fights breaking out between the two. Now THAT I'd like to see!

Focusing on art is what I love. I can accept the technical prowess required of digital artists these days, but drawing and painting and sculpting is where it's at. I decided long ago that I didn't want to feel trapped by my occupation. I wanted to do something that I would look forward to, and not dread going into work. Artwork has now become my life long passion and quest. It is the creation of images and ideas that is so rewarding.

So go out and do something you love!

PS. If you are a Programmer and disagree with my field notes, please feel free to leave a comment!

Spumoni!

2008-08-24T22:00:00.000-04:00

I have a confession. The new love of my life is not the mother of my children. It is ruined in the summer sun, yet a virtual drop of ecstasy on my quivering tongue! Oh! Spumoni!

A few months ago, when the MIL (Mother in-law) was visiting, I bought some ice cream. The grocery store had a 2-for-1 dealio going on, and my adventurous spirit kicked in. My eye lit upon a colorful carton with an intriguing name - Spumoni! I had never before heard of such a thing, but when I saw it had a layer of Pistachio ice cream, I was sold. And boy, was I!

A quick Google search and I have learned a few interesting things about Spumoni. Traditional Spumoni, or Spumone, originated in Italy but is rarely seen there now. Instead, it seems to have followed Italian immigrants to Argentina and the USA. It is a dessert typically made with 3 layers of ice cream - chocolate, cherry, and pistachio, separated by whipped cream, nuts (often hazelnut), and candied fruit. These can also be mixed into the ice creams.

What's not to love? I suppose the Haters out there will point out that Pistachio ice cream sounds gross. Too bad. More for me! According to wisegeek.com, Neopolitan ice cream evolved from Spumoni for all the Haters. Also, the Banana Split may have even come from the dessert. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if all modern cuisine has evolved from the creation of Spumoni!

I was sad to discover that I had just missed National Spumoni Day, August 21st in the USA. Canada's National Spumoni Day is November 13th, though! Good luck prying my fat, sticky fingers from my Spumoni-loaded spoon on that day!

Those Damn Chinese

2008-08-23T22:00:00.001-04:00

I am proud to be an ABC (American-Born Chinese). I am proud of my pure Chinese blood and American citizenship. I haven't been too proud of the Chinese government, though. Actually, who except perhaps a Chinese citizen would say they ARE? I have a special place in my heart for the People's Republic of Taiwan, and I'm glad China let them cross the Strait unarmed to compete in the Olympics. Is it just me, or does it seem like the Olympics are becoming more and more about Politics?

China seems to have gone on a mission to use the Summer Olympics to show the world how awesome they are. So intent, in fact, they even used special effects in the televised opening ceremony. The controversy surrounding the ages of their gymnasts also raises eyebrows. I suppose it is kind of nice to have the bad sentiment angled away from the USA, but we still get our share.

On gymnastics .... why did they have to complicate the scoring? How about we just do audience decibel level. The level of cheering at the end of each gymnast's routine. Maybe even a few cheerleaders holding huge plastic cones to their ears. Since the scoring was obviously biased and inconsistent, at least this way it would be more fun.

I also would like to see a few new sports added to the Olympics:

1. Ninja Warrior! These guys are amazing!
2. Mixed Martial Arts
3. Competitive Eating (Japan wins?)
4. More Women's Beach Volleyball

PS. If you are offended by this post, please leave a comment and I will read it and ignore it. Or maybe even respond!

Creative Juices

2008-08-22T21:12:00.000-04:00

This is where I got my Creative Juices.

Also, I need to draw. I'm thinking 18 x 24...

Another Dream

2008-08-13T00:16:00.000-04:00

This blog post will probably nearly be as incoherent as my jumbled dreams.

The other night I dreamed about a few of my friends and I trying to smuggle a sought-after child out of a city/concentration camp. There were human-like captors containing people in buildings that seemed like giant schools. People still scurried about in the streets, but they were being patrolled and the Captors were looking for this child. It was a little girl, someone I didn't even know, and my friends and I knew we couldn't give her up. Only one of my friends I can remember, it was a classmate from animation school. He had a unshaved jaw yet smelled of aftershave, and wore a brown wool jacket (WWII?). We resolved to ride motorcycles out, but I was nervous because it was wet and snowy and I had never ridden a motorcycle before. The motorcycles were older bikes, like WWII...

Fade to black. And, "Daddy, can we have breakfast now?". Also, "Anna is eating cookies!".

On an unrelated note, I am proud to have sold some stuff on Ebay today. I'm trying to scrape together some cash to build a new computer... Gotta love Capitalism!

Art is Easy

2008-08-01T14:26:00.000-04:00

This is very similar to what goes on in my work life. Enjoy!

http://view.break.com/542649 - Watch more free videos

More DS Sketches

2008-07-22T21:14:00.000-04:00

I am loving my Nintendo DS. Unfortunately, it is contagious. Abbie and Alissa have both been requesting more 1-on-1 time with my dear DS. Alissa plays Brain Age and occasionally Mario Kart, while Abbie plays Mario Kart or paints in Colors!, which is what I originally got the DS for.

Can you tell which paintings are hers? I am immensely proud of her. The simplified digital painting is non-messy, which I like...

I posted all my stuff to the Colors! Gallery, my work linked here.

We just got back from the 3-week long vacation in PA with Alissa's family. It was fun, hot, and nice to just be able to relax. The kids love running around the spacious yard and open toolshed!

As Alissa would tell you, I like to go to movies when I'm on vacation. Here's the quick breakdown:

Incredible Hulk - Great film. Some of the CG needed to be re-evaluated, though, as well as the bizarre airbrushed muscles on the soldier dude.

Iron Man - I saw it for the 3rd and 4th times with brothers-in-law. Need I say more?

Hellboy II - Not sure what to expect, but I liked Pan's Labyrinth. Hellboy was excellent. It didn't take itself too seriously, had some witty humor and good effects.

Dark Knight - Had enough comic book movies? No, not really. This one was as great as the hype. Probably one of the best films I've seen in a while. We actually had to watch this one twice, as the first showing (midnight) had a reel put together wrong (skipping the middle 1/3 of the film!), but it was worth it.

Wanted - Pretty good show. Some wicked action sequences, but I wish there were more of them. Still worth your money, though!

I still need to see the new Indiana Jones movie, and Prince Caspian.

Dreaming

2008-07-01T23:16:00.000-04:00

My wife makes fun of me for my dreams. She's so supportive, I know. The truth is, I have some pretty frickin' sweet dreams. I think she is just jealous.

For instance, this morning I mentioned that I had a cool dream. She told me that she dreamed we were making out and it was pretty hot. I one-upped her and summarized my dream of zombie-slashing end-of-the-world heroics in 30 seconds.

I regularly have dreams that are pretty much like movies. Sometimes I'm fighting an unseen opposing force, or escaping captivity. Quite often, I fly around or hover. I have never tried to discern if these dreams mean anything, but I've decided to start recording them here, naked for all the world to judge me. No, not literally. I haven't ever had dreams like that...

Last night in my dream I rescued a friend who had unwittingly avoided a grisly death of being chewed to little pulpy bits by a horde of undead. The friend had gone upstairs to his apartment to get something he had forgotten, and come out of his front door to witness a bloodbath by the complex swimming pool. Luckily for him, I was running by and grabbed him to safety after slashing a few zombies with my shiny samurai sword. I somehow knew the zombies were infectious, so when a piece of glass from a slashed window sliced through my cheek, I was horrified at the prospect of becoming infected with the Zombie Virus. Nevertheless, we got to eventual safety in a top-secret hideout.

That's all of my dream that I can remember right now. I probably should have written it down this morning, but better late than never I always say!

Wall-e and kids

2008-06-28T16:39:00.000-04:00

Just got back from Wall-e. Pixar doesn't fail to disappoint, everyone thoroughly enjoyed the movie. I think it could have moved along a little faster, and the live action inserts (abomination!) kind of offended me, but it was still a great film.

Anna fell asleep on the way home. When Mom asked about it, she said "I wasn't sleeping! I was just resting my eyes...".

Miles likes to sing a special song. He sings happily, "S - T - E - L - L!! I wee wee love to spell!!". Cracks me up every time. The kid is just so cute!

PS. Florida is HOT. I seriously get a heat stroke every time I mow the lawn...

New Project: Frogman

2008-06-25T00:29:00.000-04:00

I've been missing 3D lately, so I started a new project. Well, more like revived an old one. The very first character I created in 3d was a Frogman, and I've always wanted to recreate him in a manner befitting his coolness. I also need to practice!

Not much went into concept, since he is mostly designed. However, I should probably do some artwork. I got excited and jumped into modeling the head already. It's really rough, but the shape is mostly there, so I guess I could count it as an exploratory digital maquette.

I first modeled a super rough shape in Wings3D, then took it into ZBrush for gestural sculpting, not worrying about the topology. Then I took the model into Maya and resurfaced it for ideal topology, but didn't finish out the mouth. I wanted to play more with the model in ZBrush with nice topology, but my computer sucks. I rendered out a turntable anyway, because it's so easy to do from ZBrush. Basically it is what came out of Maya, smoothed in Zbrush and nothing else.

My next step is to do more detailed concept work on exactly what I want this character to look like. I've got a good head shape, now I need to figure out the body and the all the details of the face. I found some really cool frog reference photos on the Interweb, so stay tuned for some frog studies!

Happy Father's Day!

2008-06-15T20:17:00.000-04:00

I love being a Dad. There's nothing quite like seeing the joy in your kids' faces after a long day at work, or hearing them squeal like little piglets. I am quite good at the Tickle Game.... Being a parent is a huge responsibility, and I'm learning a lot about patience. My wife spends all day with them, so I can only thank her for that sacrifice - the sacrifice of her sanity. Please, no sharp instruments!

Also, Dad = Jungle Gym. They climb and do acrobatics off of my limbs. Sometimes I get them to walk on my back, which is nice until they decide to jump when then get to my head. I remember doing some of those things with my Dad, too.

Dads mow the lawn. That is, until they have a teenage son. I have invested in two of them, and they better not let me down! I'm all about child labor. I'm about ready to get myself a riding mower until then, though. This heat is killing me...

I am grateful for my Dad and realize now how hard it must have been. We kids sure were nuts...

Thanks, Dad!

Here are some random pix off of my camera.