3d career

[gahn]

lo peeps

I work in IT, as some of you probably know this area is pretty dead at the mo. I was made redundant last June and have been temping ever since.

I've been thinking about a change in direction and moving into 3d modeling. I know that i've only just started out, but with out wanting to sound big headed the general consensus (from here and other forums) seems to be that i protentially have a future in 3D. What i would like to know is what are the odds of me being able to get a job in this field with out a Degree in it?
I have been on a 1 day MAX course (with BlueFX) and have another one lined up, but that is about all the training i am going to be able to get as i can't afford anymore (luckily I got the 2 days training from some work i done for a game demo so it didn't cost me).
I don't have a problem with teaching myself as the online community for 3D is huge and there's lots of helpful peeps. But all I really have going for me at the mo is bags of enthusiasm (sp?), an xwing and some board game peices. (i gave up quake 3 as it was taking up too much of my time, i now spend more time modeling :) )
What are the odds of getting like an apprenticeship/sponser for 3d?
If need be i'll carry on in IT for a few years to do 3d in my spare time till i get a decent portfolio built up, but it would be nice if i could make the change to 3d now, i am 27 after all.
I'm going to join a few MODing comunities to see if i can get some experience from that too.
I live in the South east of england if that makes any difference.

bit long winded i know, but any comments/tips would be appretiated.

TIA

gahn

(PS i've heard that most graphic artist have problems with spelling etc, as you can see i already have this covered :) )

[kuman]

i think the most important thing is to have a good demo reel. i'm workin full time in the industry now as a 3d artist working for a company in boston developing a real time 3d engine.

i graduated from johns hopkins with a degree in biology, so i don't think the degree is all that important. in one of my internships i was at a game company and the all the artists would look at demo reels together in the conference room for hiring and all that mattered was the demo reel. no one would even look at any sort of paper in terms of a resume or cover letter before they looked at the reel. it was pretty harsh, a lot of reels were just ejected and thrown away right there. there's plenty of sites about how to make a good reel, almost all of them have it right. i'd definitely follow the advice i found there.

to me 3d graphics is all about practice really. i don't know where talent comes into play and its definitely not a measurable thing, but i do know that the more 3d you do, the better chance you'll be a good artist.

good luck
-k

[greatbigphil]

I agree with kuman absolutely. Skill is everything, and skill is derived from experience. I'm not talking years of experience, but the experience you get as you are modeling or doing other aspects of 3D. I reccomend going to school just because you're forced to practise those things and having an education helps if you want to work in another country.

But if school is totally out of the question, do comps and lots of tutorials. My favorite modeling tutorial is found at www.thehobbitguy.com It's specific to Maya but can be a helpful tool if you're using Max.

I believe artistic skill is important, but so are your obervational and problem solving skills.

Hope this helps,
Big Phil

[gahn]

cheers peeps,

so basically i need to get a demo reel together and get it as good as possible with as many examples of different techniques as possible, i've got a long way to go it that case, better get my xwing finished and start something else :).

My main weakness at the moment is in texturing, i will obviously try to improve this, but as it's the modeling i really enjoy, could it be worth doing a reel of models that haven't been textured or do you have to show that you can do it all?
I'd hate for my modeling to be over looked becuase or bad texturing.

cheers for the link, my next project will be a poly modeled character so that should come in useful.

ta again