Need advice - preparing for a CG career

[ltravisjr]

This is my first of what I hope will be many posts in the future. I am looking to shift my career to the visualization field and can’t think of a better place then here to get some advice on how to accomplish it. Let me provide a little background. I am 37 years old and have been the senior CAD drafter/manager for an engineering firm for 16 years. Therefore, I am proficient in AutoCAD and have accumulated knowledge in the building trades. However, being a creative and more artistically inclined person, I have become burned out in my current career and have decided to commit to shifting to a visualization career.

 

I am not formally trained in visualization or digital arts and have not had exposure to much more then AutoCAD, although I have been able to do a few rudimentary renderings using AutoCAD’s built in renderer. Therefore, I really need some advice on how to best prepare myself to break into the field. Unfortunately, since I have a young child, I don’t have the time or money to go back to school to pick up a completely new degree, but I am hoping I can leverage my existing experience and supplement it by taking some visualization /graphic arts courses online as well as learn on my own at home and by doing some personal projects such as rendering improvements for my own house's interior and exterior. I also plan to be involved in groups such as CGArchitect and attend industry events so I can get a feel for the industry as well as start building some contacts. I am aware that life commitments like this take time, effort, and sacrifice, so I am willing to invest a few years learning what I need to know.

 

So, do you think I am taking the appropriate steps? I won’t have an architecture or graphic arts degree, but I am hoping that experience gained in my current career will enable me to be employable once I add the visualization expertise. Does this make sense? Would you say I have a long way to go before I could consider joining the field? Is there any other advice anyone can give me? I would appreciate any and all suggestions!

 

Thanks everyone, I look forward to hearing from you!

 

LT

[Donkey81]

Larry

 

First of all, forget gaining art degrees or the like, probably 98% of people already working in this field don't have any formal training or relavent qualifications. I personally do have some formal art qualifications, but not specific to visualisation. What you need is talent, time and the inclination.

 

Your first step is to learn a decent 3D Modelling program (try out demos etc) and gradually build up a portfolio of work. Iether make up the architecture or blag some real plans and elevations from people you know in the business. Then, post up you efforts here for C&C and you'll soon be on your way.

 

The bad news is that you are one of millions of people who are looking to follow this route as a way out of the current rut they are in. It seems that every one fancies them selves as a visualiser these days, and consequently the market is flooded with poor visuals...but hey, people actually pay money for them!

 

Good luck.

[Iain Denby]

Woops! My son didn't log out...that previous post was from me.

[Scott Schroeder]

Yea I agree, the key here is building up a portfolio. Most studios use 3d Studio Max or Studio Viz for the software. Viz is alot cheaper, so if you are looking to buy a platform, not getting the "educational" version from some dark place on the web, that's the one to get. Viz is basicaly the same as Max with the exception of Character studio, reactor, and some of the more powerfull modeling tools used in games and films. But they are very close so if you know one, then you can easily pick up the other. The key is starting small, a simple one room house modeled properly with proper lighting will teach you more than trying to do some huge project.

 

As far as getting formal training, it's up to you if you have the time. I myself have a degree in Computer Graphics with a specialization in Architecture, from a non-art school. But I know of several people who do not have any degree but just jaw droppingly awesome portfolios. You already having experience in the field helps alot. Maybe look into some night classes, depending on where you are. I've heard out here in Southern California you can take a ramped-up weekend class in 3d Studio Max, it's pricey though.

 

There are alot of tutorials on this website that are very helpfull, and just doing projects on your own will help you gain experience. Good luck!

 

As you already know this area is getting flooded with an overflow from game and film CG people who are out of work, so it can be a bitch to get a foothold. Look around on the web, use this website's company listings, to see what is going on in the indusrty and try to emulate or even beat that. If you can do as good or better than some companies out there then there is a decent chance you will land a job in no time.

 

PS. This is like the 10th time I've plugged this book, and I swear I do not know the author or will recieve any money from this. Get "Digital Lighting and Rendering" from Jeremy Birn. It is the CG lighting bible, and will help you understand how to light scenes properly without using half-crapped radiosity.

[mbr]

That book is helpful, especially from a starting point.

 

I'd suggest getting some magazines, like arch record, interior design, met home, and a few others of exterior architecture. It's good to have photos to reference, as your eye will always make you go too far in any one direction and back again!

 

Read through the threads here about software/hardware, buy something that seems reasonable (Viz seems good since you know acad so well). Buy a book or two and start playing, eventually try to make some renderings based on photos in the magazines. I'd start with modernist designs and keep it simple, focus on the lighting.

 

Good luck.

[ltravisjr]

Thank you so much for the suggestions, folks. I know that getting a foot in the door will be a challenge so I plan to be patient but work hard, and not get discouraged. I am just happy now to be pursuing a path I know I would regret later if I didn't attempt it. I will certainly be using all your suggestions and keeping my eyes open to any more help the group here may provide. I definitely plan to get some Viz training. If there is no local training I could take a course from the Cadinstitute, but since it is not a full semester I will have to purchase a copy or rent it for a week (Autodesk does rent out Viz last I checked). Last I heard, a Maya educational version was free to download so I suppose I could explore that too. Currently I am taking an online course in computer graphic arts simply to become more proficient in digital editing, so hopefully it can all work to my advantage. Hopefully I will be creating some work at some point that I can submit to the group for some constructive criticism.

 

Thanks again for the suggestions and I look forward to whatever the future holds.

[William Alexander]

Your in Illinios, (flat lander)-regional humor

 

Ted (the max god) Boardman has very regular training sessions in Green Bay Wisconsin. Maybe a bit of truck for you but well worth the time. That is if your leaning towards Max/viz. http://www.virtualpartners.com/ (the link for more information and give them a call even, real good people).

 

Artistic training, DV garage has some good training material, 3dBuzz has some also. Primarily conceptual art oriented, however those skills are probably at the core foundation of all exceptional CGviz work.

 

Keep an eye out for future offerings of the "Pixel Corps Online" initiated by Alex Lindsay.

 

Most important, keep plugin away!

 

WDA

[ltravisjr]

Thanks, William - those are some great resources! I will check Ted's training sessions out. As I said earlier, I am willing to make sacrficices so if it will take a bit of a trip to get some first-rate training I am certainly willing to do it. Us flatlanders tend to have to travel longer to get where we want to go anyway

 

Larry