241-270 (Originally written August 2017)
Another month that flew by. I had a ton of issues with time management for these past 30 days which exposed some flaws on my part.
On the flip side, I found a few workarounds which I'm sure will inevitably help me when I'm a Pro. Time was tight, energies were low and I burnt out more than once so finding ways to get my dailies out to a level which is acceptable (in relation to my current skill level) is reassuring. I'm pretty confident that when I'm running on empty I can still deliver the minimum rather than not deliver at all. In the not too distant past that would not have been the case.
I drew only once this month - Drawing traditionally is usually the quickest way for me to complete a daily so I will take time to reflect as to why I did not do more particularly as I had time constraints. Also, I did notice my drawing skill has weakened due to the lack of frequency of sketching. From doing them daily to now monthly. I miss it so will get back to it shortly.
I did spend more time designing this month as it is an area of weakness and something which should always be kept sharp and I feel it's getting there. I spent more time considering form and placement - at times I fail and shit looks confused other times I feel I get close but this is something I really want to master above all else. I'd be more valuable as a designer with a great sense of design rather than simply having superior technique. Ideally, I'd want both but I know which one I'd choose.
23 out of 30 of my pieces utilised 3D most of the 7 that didn't, came in the first week of the month.
So it appears I find 3D quicker or to complete a piece of work currently. Which is cool as the industry is so dependant on it. Though I don't want to be a slave to it.
I kit-bashed a ton this month, with one model used 8 times. Kitbashing saves time and is great for exploring ideas but I'm not elegant with it yet so some designs do look like random objects clumped together.
Rendering- I have started to use Octane. I appreciate the power and potential of it but it is taking me a bit of time to get used to it. What would take 1hr of fiddling in Keyshot took me and about 5hrs in Octane. One GPU is clearly not enough so perhaps I need to invest. One thing though I fully see the benefit of is playing and experimenting with shaders and I can see the potential of understanding them will suit me well in time.
So, this month was intense. Next month should calm down a touch but only time will tell. I have taken a step back from looking for jobs as the first wave of applications led to unanimous rejections. I think my skills have improved and the portfolio is a bit sharper so I think I will try my luck again and see what happens.
I'm curious for the next month of everydays as I have no idea what I want to do expect to push my work further. Let's see how it turns out.
✌🏽
