Modeling, and How Impossible It Is
by andres on Feb.04, 2008, under Personal News
Please bear with me. Commissions are almost done, and then we’ll be back to our scheduled stupidity.
So we’ve started modeling (finally) and I’ve given the old Maya a few spins. I really wish we were working on 3D Studio Max instead, but apparently the school wants to “phase out” 3DSMax from the program. Which is unfathomable. Then again, I guess 3D Studio Max is about to be phased out anyway, now that AutoDesk has purchased both it and Maya… in a while we’re going to see something called Maya 3D Studio or something retarded like that, and it will be severely far removed from either Maya or 3DSMax.
Or maybe I’m being pessimistic.
Anyway, here’s the first model I’ve ever really accomplished properly that isn’t a lame NURBS rendition of a planet done in Blender. This is actually something I made, though I used a few choice images for textures and reference (thank you, Layne Johnson) so I can’t take credit for everything. I can, however, safely say that because my teacher is mostly incompetent, this model could never be used in an actual video game–not only is it not rigged, but it’s made of the most horrible geometry ever conceived, and only after having completed it did someone let me know that I should try working in only perfect quads.
I was infuriated on learning that I have been learning modeling wrong from a teacher that barely has the capacity to teach. I’m not saying he doesn’t know what he’s doing, or that he’s a bad guy–no, he’s a nice fella, really sharp. But he sucks at teaching. He is an awful teacher. I can’t figure why nobody has complained and gottem hin removed from the class yet–I imagine because they feel guilty because he’s a nice guy. But look: my education is absurdly expensive, to the point where I’m driving my family into debt and am constantly finding ways to scrounge for money. I cannot pay such exorbitant prices every semester and accept not being taught. I am spending way too much for that.
Still, have a looksee and critique if you like. I applies normals and a bump map, which gives the skin a fun bumpy feel, despite the fact that it may never actually work inside a game engine. I had fun making it, to my surprise, and I’ll probably keep trying to keep modeling (my goal for the end of the semester is to make a fox samurai model, which will be interesting) so I can upload final images here as I progress, if you all like.
Without further ado, the images. Leviathan, Lord of the Seas.

February 5th, 2008 on 10:16 pm
Sorry about your teacher. I just thought that I would comment because this semester I am taking a speech class which is required. He is a new teacher this semester and is absolutely terrible. Like your teacher, he is really good guy, but I am learning nothing in that class. I am very serious about school and stuff, and it just bugs me so bad that I am wasting my time and money in this class. Anyways, I know where you are coming from. For what it’s worth, I could never make something like that and at least you had fun making it!
~MC
February 5th, 2008 on 11:07 pm
@MC: Thanks for that. I know how you feel, too–Speech is such a difficult class to get into for some people, and without a good teacher it’s terribly hard to get over speaking in public. I had to take a Speech class, too; and though I already have had public speaking experience in the past, my teacher was so hardlined I almost failed. I don’t have good memories of that class, either.
My modeling teacher’s been doing this job for a while, now, though so it’s severely frustrating for me to have to deal with it.