15 Feb 14:54
--haha dude. finn, I hear you. actually I've had a revelation recently that conceptmdesign is not for me. I'd rather take pride in my finished pieces as they are, than be a cog in a capitalistic wheel, and so, illustration and what you were tali0king about is so much more relevant to me now. sometimes shit has to happen for the gold to shine through.
15 Feb 14:42
--Still, you should be able to understand light and colour via applied formula rather than copying. Ideally.
15 Feb 14:22
--funny Jaik, I have emmm had a ref folder called lighting effects, which was a whole bunch of random, but if I wanted a lighting cheme I would just go through that. that wasn't something I could search for. but yeah, the argument isn't google vs ref folders. the lesson should be. BACKUP YOUR SHIT if you like it...people :p
15 Feb 14:08
--e.g. a 3/4 lighting shot with a purple fill light and a warm primary light just won't be google-able
15 Feb 14:07
--like for example, I have a ref pic of a really wicked guy with deer horns and horn based armor accessories that I KNOW is there somwhere. If I were to google "guy with deer horns" I won't get something really cool. I think reference libraries are most useful for things that don't fit with keywords
15 Feb 14:05
--yeah and plus finding a good AND high res pic is sometimes a challenge. It's a guarantee that the best images wont appear in a google search, and some of them like some bad ass character ref, there are no keywords to explain it, but memory banks remind me that I have it
15 Feb 13:55
--ask jonas de ro, whether he has a well organised ref folder, or whether he google trawls every piece. I know the answer
15 Feb 13:51
--it totally depends on the project. sometimes you can over ref when searching and it's just a waste of time because there is so m u ch to sift through
15 Feb 13:51
--I totally do my google trawl every piece, but when things call for generic items like, a sky or ground, or whatever, it's easier for me to pick from stuff I know when I have something in mind, than spend an hour trawling
15 Feb 13:48
--finnjamin, we're going a bit off track here. It's not one vs the other. :) I totally get your sentiment. I guess when your workflow includes some reliance on high quality reference/photo textures and efficiency to some degree
15 Feb 13:02
--The only difference is that the lessons of a single reference image can be easily memorized, but a search engine can introduce pseudo-lateral thinking that can be unique for trillions of searches.
15 Feb 12:58
--Plus needing access to reference images is the same, productively, as needing access to a search engine. Both being external motivators.
15 Feb 12:52
--Also, why does a google image search have to be shitty? That's not a fair argument.
15 Feb 12:51
--Man, I've been having the most up and down day. I drank some coffee for once and it's magnified my neuroses.
15 Feb 12:34
--yeah nous, that's what I'm talking about. one good ref is worth a thousand shitty google searches ^^
15 Feb 10:54
--I mostely categorise anythign I downlaod or screen granb into folders. Using an image asset browser like Acdsee or Adobe bridge is helpful. Even if you don't use half the images you're visual libray knows they're there.
15 Feb 10:50
--Finding good ref is an art - and having it categorised is another. Relying on doing a google image search everytime you have a new project will not cut it all the time.
15 Feb 10:48
--robertsons stuff on alien race was good though and his modo character design was quite innovative.
15 Feb 10:38
--i guess I arranged my ref the way that was most efficient and logical for me. also just having a bunch of random photos from the net isn't very efficient. if you use photo textures in your work, it's just easier having things arranged to your liking. all that efficiency built up over two years is lost. yeah I can start from scratch and maybe keep a backup in the cloud, but all my go-tos are gone. I'm not that worried, it's just more of an annoyance than my original work being lost because it will affect my future work efficiency for a time.
15 Feb 10:23
--As a kid he built high-level soapbox racers, with like working suspension and stuff. He's just not emotionally invested in his character work.
15 Feb 10:19
--But with the internet all images are associated by keywords, ref folders are usually just a bunch of random or numbered jpegs, and Robertson's character design don't -suck- he's got all the basics down, but there's a lack of passion.
15 Feb 10:00
--Use an image browser for ploughing through ref folders. I do find having ref folders far easier to access rather re-downloading them off the internet, wasting more time searching.
15 Feb 09:57
--I've heard it differently from game studios - some want line art over painted images. Robertson suggest integrating 3d and 2d, in aproduction environment not because its necessary but it saves time.
15 Feb 09:15
--Like, I never use my folders unless I'm frustrated and want a slideshow of ideas.
15 Feb 09:14
--Well, realistically, your reference folders never helped you. They just existed in case you needed help and couldn't reach the internet. Now you have both the chance to make a more easily accessed system of reference, and also the opportunity in doing so to review all the reference material at once in terms of potential usefulness. Though I don't get why you wouldn't just recall that facts that the references inform you of when making artwork...
