Reflection on first year...

Well uploading this is somewhat late considering the date. Having experienced the first section of second year my reflections on first year have been somewhat solidified.

If I think back to how I was when starting the course I am very pleased with my progression not only in ability but in mindset, thought process and ambition. The work I produced in first year is definitely nothing to impress anyone however it gave me the fundamentals of what I'm doing now. First year was a year which really showed me what I enjoy doing and what aspects of art I enjoy. My brothers influence on me is still overwhelming and I am drawn to the technical and logical. I also am starting to realise that what I really enjoyed doing at A-level and before was Design and Technology, Art had just seduced me. I am still happy with my wheelie bin but realise the issues with it. I think I may have to give it another go sometime soon. With the first years coming up to their tree project I think I may try and revisit the tree assignment which was most certainly my worst project last year. I need to improve on making foliage...

I feel that, being brutally honest, the 3D skills that I learnt last year could have been learnt in a significantly shorter time and because of this I'm slightly annoyed that I didn't teach myself anymore outside of University work. I am trying to take this thought process and apply it to now. With every project there are a couple of things we will be taught by the course and I want to try and learn as many other things which are related to the project as possible. Even with projects that aren't explicitly directed towards the area of the industry I want to enter I want to make sure I learn as much as I can. With the current Vehicle and Character project I am trying to learn elements to use in other areas. For example my whiteboxing ability and understanding needs improvement and so with the vehicle project I am trying to work on this. The modelling of the vehicle has helped my modelling speed. I'm going to try and continue this.

I am incredibly keen to do all that I can to get into the industry, it is because of this that I am going to build my portfolio as much as I possibly can. I am also going to apply for as many internships as possible and try to get my work seen by people in industry. I do not want to limit myself to the games industry but at the moment that is the area that I am most keen to explore. With the BMW art test I am doing all I can to make this an environment that I can both use for portfolio and to enter into the art test. For this reason I am trying to stick to AAA game type budgets so that I am still being considerably restricted with tris and texture sheets but I am also making something impressive.