How did you get started?

Submitted by Aven on
Forum
General Chat

just a little thing that i have always been interested in. what made you want to become involved with digital art, or programming? just write a little about how you started. as for me. i loved drawing when i was very young. i can honestly remember drawing fairly well (for a little kid), before i can remember learning to write. i grew up with a strong love of drawing, yet i wanted to find new ways of drawing. my cousin introduced my to computers and gaming when i wa about 8 (can't remember when exactly). the first game i would have played either would have been Galaxians on the table top arcade or Frogger on the Atari 2600. i never caught on to the Spectrum, Amiga age, instead i went to the 8bit console era. had a Mater System, and later i was given a Genesis 2 for my birthday. i really wanted the Genesis as i used to read a lot of Sega mags and loved the artwork that was apearing on the Genesis. i loved the graphics in Sonic. while playing my Genesis, i still read even more gaming mags then ever and started to learn about visual and computer specs. using screenshots from mags i would re-draw the screens using coloured pencils and grid paper. this taught me a lot about pixels. we soon made the move and bought a a second hand 286 (when 486s were supreme). we had a whole 40mb hdd space and a monochrome monitor capable of displaying a black background with neon green text. that is why i hate the matrix effect, if it were any other colour scheme i would probably find it as cool as what others do. at that stage i couldn't really do too much arty stuff, but i did used to make ASCII art for headings for school assignments. we soon upgraded the monitor to a CGA monitor and got Windows 3. started using Windows Paint and just doing simple art. my cousin gave me a shareware copy of Neopaint (like Dpaint) and i started getting into sprite based painting. kept on upgrading systems and getting more into digital art. Paintshop Pro came along, soon gave way to Photoshop. learnt Flash, and just kept on leaning. i first saw 3D with Virtual Racing (as i said, i'm a big Sega fan), and knew that i wanted to go there. kept on learning about all things computer and all things visual about them. colour depth, resolutions, refresh rates. started to learn a lot about 3D from Quake. what a mip map is, polygons, everything. started using milkshape to get used to making things in 3D. i had already heard of the AIE andd knew that i wanted to go there, but i was only in year 9 so i had to wait a bit. in college, my art teacher helped me to get a student liscence to 3D Studio Max, and i started learning how to use it. went to the AIE, and the rest is history.

Submitted by Blitz on Sat, 25/10/03 - 6:25 AMPermalink

I saw games like tomb raider and DOA and thought "I'm gonna get me some of that" so i took up game programming.
It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.
CYer, Blitz

Submitted by Aven on Sat, 25/10/03 - 6:48 AMPermalink

quote:Originally posted by Blitz It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.

you gonna have a hard time competing with DOA-X :p good luck though. Sexy Beach 2 is a good place to look for breast physics as well :D

Submitted by Kane on Sat, 25/10/03 - 8:36 AMPermalink

i started programming when i was about 15, using BASIC and messing around with Gameboy programming, which somehow managed to totally munt up the family PC...

ive just always wanted to know how PC programs and games worked...so i started learning programming seriously at the start of this year and so far i am loving it all!

i am almost finished making a Battleships game in Java for my TAFE course, and i am pretty happy with it...

Submitted by Happy Camper on Sat, 25/10/03 - 10:39 PMPermalink

quote:Originally posted by Blitz

It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.

That will take alot of research[:D][:p].

Submitted by Daemin on Sun, 26/10/03 - 5:26 AMPermalink

quote:Originally posted by Happy Camper


quote:Originally posted by Blitz

It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.

That will take alot of research[:D][:p].

Which male here wouldn't want to do that kinda research?

Submitted by Kane on Sun, 26/10/03 - 5:40 AMPermalink

is that a rhetorical question?

Submitted by inglis on Sun, 26/10/03 - 6:06 AMPermalink

i think i started out with a spline object...

Submitted by inglis on Sun, 26/10/03 - 6:17 AMPermalink

the extended version:

got my first computer when i was in grade 10..started making webpages with frontpage express and graphics in paintshoppro. learnt a couple web languages- started coding websites and using dreamweaver and photoshop. was doing small web/graphic design jobs in grade 11-12. first shown 3dsmax around the middle of grade 12. started using it last couple weeks of school. got into a 3dcourse that i would start after i finish school. course turned out to be quite a waste of money- but gave me a year to teach myself a lot of 3d. spent the first few months of this year working on my skills. got into the industry. completed a contract, was asked to stay on but had to leave for reasons. went back to demoreel. that is where i am now. it is getitng close to complete. then i will look at moving abroad.

reason i picked this..seemed to be the thing i was best at. and would make money at. sure i enjoy it...but its not my "dream" career-
if i wanted that id be an F1 or champcar driver :) but ill just have to settle with my elite gokart skills lol [8D]

Submitted by Pantmonger on Sun, 26/10/03 - 7:27 PMPermalink

Nutshell version

I started drawing in high school
It was when I was at Uni studying psychology that I realised that I really wanted to do something creative for a living.
Over the next few years I studied art and acting. During this time I got a bit of freelance art work (some of which I need digital art programs for hence my introduction to photoshop 4) and was performing on stage at least once a week.
It was not till I got the scholarship with Qantm that I decided to fully dedicate to art, rather then acting. It was also then that I realised that art for video games was something that I might be able to do for a living.
Now I work as an artist for Half Brick.

Pantmonger

Submitted by sho nuff on Fri, 31/10/03 - 2:09 AMPermalink

I got into drawing because of cartoons. Cartoons then lead to games. Games then lead to wasting heaps of time but fortunately school has brought me back into personal development. But now i do more PD than play games.Hopefully in the end it will work itself out.

Posted by Aven on
Forum
General Chat

just a little thing that i have always been interested in. what made you want to become involved with digital art, or programming? just write a little about how you started. as for me. i loved drawing when i was very young. i can honestly remember drawing fairly well (for a little kid), before i can remember learning to write. i grew up with a strong love of drawing, yet i wanted to find new ways of drawing. my cousin introduced my to computers and gaming when i wa about 8 (can't remember when exactly). the first game i would have played either would have been Galaxians on the table top arcade or Frogger on the Atari 2600. i never caught on to the Spectrum, Amiga age, instead i went to the 8bit console era. had a Mater System, and later i was given a Genesis 2 for my birthday. i really wanted the Genesis as i used to read a lot of Sega mags and loved the artwork that was apearing on the Genesis. i loved the graphics in Sonic. while playing my Genesis, i still read even more gaming mags then ever and started to learn about visual and computer specs. using screenshots from mags i would re-draw the screens using coloured pencils and grid paper. this taught me a lot about pixels. we soon made the move and bought a a second hand 286 (when 486s were supreme). we had a whole 40mb hdd space and a monochrome monitor capable of displaying a black background with neon green text. that is why i hate the matrix effect, if it were any other colour scheme i would probably find it as cool as what others do. at that stage i couldn't really do too much arty stuff, but i did used to make ASCII art for headings for school assignments. we soon upgraded the monitor to a CGA monitor and got Windows 3. started using Windows Paint and just doing simple art. my cousin gave me a shareware copy of Neopaint (like Dpaint) and i started getting into sprite based painting. kept on upgrading systems and getting more into digital art. Paintshop Pro came along, soon gave way to Photoshop. learnt Flash, and just kept on leaning. i first saw 3D with Virtual Racing (as i said, i'm a big Sega fan), and knew that i wanted to go there. kept on learning about all things computer and all things visual about them. colour depth, resolutions, refresh rates. started to learn a lot about 3D from Quake. what a mip map is, polygons, everything. started using milkshape to get used to making things in 3D. i had already heard of the AIE andd knew that i wanted to go there, but i was only in year 9 so i had to wait a bit. in college, my art teacher helped me to get a student liscence to 3D Studio Max, and i started learning how to use it. went to the AIE, and the rest is history.

Submitted by Blitz on Sat, 25/10/03 - 6:25 AMPermalink

I saw games like tomb raider and DOA and thought "I'm gonna get me some of that" so i took up game programming.
It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.
CYer, Blitz

Submitted by Aven on Sat, 25/10/03 - 6:48 AMPermalink

quote:Originally posted by Blitz It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.

you gonna have a hard time competing with DOA-X :p good luck though. Sexy Beach 2 is a good place to look for breast physics as well :D

Submitted by Kane on Sat, 25/10/03 - 8:36 AMPermalink

i started programming when i was about 15, using BASIC and messing around with Gameboy programming, which somehow managed to totally munt up the family PC...

ive just always wanted to know how PC programs and games worked...so i started learning programming seriously at the start of this year and so far i am loving it all!

i am almost finished making a Battleships game in Java for my TAFE course, and i am pretty happy with it...

Submitted by Happy Camper on Sat, 25/10/03 - 10:39 PMPermalink

quote:Originally posted by Blitz

It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.

That will take alot of research[:D][:p].

Submitted by Daemin on Sun, 26/10/03 - 5:26 AMPermalink

quote:Originally posted by Happy Camper


quote:Originally posted by Blitz

It is my career dream in life to engineer the best boob physics ... EVER.

That will take alot of research[:D][:p].

Which male here wouldn't want to do that kinda research?

Submitted by Kane on Sun, 26/10/03 - 5:40 AMPermalink

is that a rhetorical question?

Submitted by inglis on Sun, 26/10/03 - 6:06 AMPermalink

i think i started out with a spline object...

Submitted by inglis on Sun, 26/10/03 - 6:17 AMPermalink

the extended version:

got my first computer when i was in grade 10..started making webpages with frontpage express and graphics in paintshoppro. learnt a couple web languages- started coding websites and using dreamweaver and photoshop. was doing small web/graphic design jobs in grade 11-12. first shown 3dsmax around the middle of grade 12. started using it last couple weeks of school. got into a 3dcourse that i would start after i finish school. course turned out to be quite a waste of money- but gave me a year to teach myself a lot of 3d. spent the first few months of this year working on my skills. got into the industry. completed a contract, was asked to stay on but had to leave for reasons. went back to demoreel. that is where i am now. it is getitng close to complete. then i will look at moving abroad.

reason i picked this..seemed to be the thing i was best at. and would make money at. sure i enjoy it...but its not my "dream" career-
if i wanted that id be an F1 or champcar driver :) but ill just have to settle with my elite gokart skills lol [8D]

Submitted by Pantmonger on Sun, 26/10/03 - 7:27 PMPermalink

Nutshell version

I started drawing in high school
It was when I was at Uni studying psychology that I realised that I really wanted to do something creative for a living.
Over the next few years I studied art and acting. During this time I got a bit of freelance art work (some of which I need digital art programs for hence my introduction to photoshop 4) and was performing on stage at least once a week.
It was not till I got the scholarship with Qantm that I decided to fully dedicate to art, rather then acting. It was also then that I realised that art for video games was something that I might be able to do for a living.
Now I work as an artist for Half Brick.

Pantmonger

Submitted by sho nuff on Fri, 31/10/03 - 2:09 AMPermalink

I got into drawing because of cartoons. Cartoons then lead to games. Games then lead to wasting heaps of time but fortunately school has brought me back into personal development. But now i do more PD than play games.Hopefully in the end it will work itself out.