Personal Review of Year 2

My personal review of my second year, towhich I am not going to whine and moan, what I should of done better or what I should of done differently. If you want that review, I'm sure other people will have written that.

I am not much of a fan to write that stuff. This is just a short and sweet blogpost.

On a small reflection, I am thankful for the hardship, challenges and experiences I have overcome this year, to which I have felt great growth and benefit from.  There is still a lot more to achieve and improve on my journey and now I am aiming train smartly in the summer period. That I will be prepared, passionate and to aim for professionalism next year.

Thanks.

Life Changing or Career Building?

Technical skill and fundamentals are the key to learning and developing.

From my own experience and many others alike probably have had the same, but my education of 'Art' has not been what I have imagined.  For when I joined a Art college many years ago, my only reason to go there because I thought we would get taught on how to draw, paint, and the rest that follows. I was sadly disappointed in a way, I joined a First Diploma Art and Design course, which was only for one year. We done many subjects in rota-blocks, such as textiles, fashion, photography, 3D, graphics, drawing, critical studies. It was great learning a range of many subjects getting a taste for everything but in terms of actually learning them? Hardly. It was good experimenting with different materials and trying to be expressive, but learning the fundamentals didn't happen in that year.

So for me to climb up, I went on to the National Diploma Art and Design which was two year course, practically the same course in a way, I did the same subjects with some tweaks, different projects, difficulty and teaching. 

Here's an example, I was lucky enough to have experimented with Photoshop for couple of years, so I had a bit of experience then the rest, but our 'graphics lesson' was really terrible, the teacher was cool and hip, but seriously we didn't learn nothing, I felt I knew more then the teacher and for people who had no experience they were kinder screwed in trying to develop and manifest their ideas, with no technical skill, it just like walking on gravel, it hurts and it is hard.

For myself, I was not doing the work as confidently as I could or had the time to enjoy a project properly because we had so many on the go, it was really annoying to organise and work on a projects. My opinion you just couldn't enjoy a subject without neglecting the others because it was like you was walking on fire, you couldn't stay on something for too long and invest proper time to learn and understand what you are achieving then to blind-faith it all.

The repetitive process made me sick  and bored, it looked like it was not always about the end product or the art, more so the process in  between which is understandable, but it got to the point it was just tick-boxes. So students who had very little ability in art, but did the sketch book research and annotation but their outcome was not strong, always had the good grades.

Students like my self had potential ability, adventured out, tried new things and finals were strong but lacked in organise of sketchbooks or leaving them for a rushy last finish.  Just always didn't get a good grade because the little tick-boxes from certain things didn't meet, even though the teacher clearly understands and know the project was good, had to by, by the 'powers of the box' and so you was given not a good grade.

It was unfair to many people because there was not 'taught' a process to follow or a structure to go by, you just had to try your best to work it out. I am not talking about spoon fed, but a guide for people to take some part from and develop then their own strategies from that. It was like placing us in a desert with no GPS, no coordinates or maps, so you didn't have clear vision or choice of what you can do. You was just left wondering, walking aimlessly, believing what you was achieving is right.

So for one, it put me off art and made it like a chore. I just didn't really like how things were taught and planned. They were all really helpful, supportive, teachers but in terms of actual teaching time, teaching those core fundamentals of drawing, perspective, colour theory and even proper computer skills, it was very small. I did my best to learn what I could in my own time and experiment and develop my skills when I could. I had potential to grow into a beautiful flower, but I lacked the right, sunlight, air, water and soil to do this.

Untill joining Game Art.

This shit just got next level. 

Not only we do not have to go through that horrible sketch-book process. Finally it was all a bout the ART.

The Game Art structure is cleverly constructed to fire up that creative machine inside of you and bring that creative person back out, from after all the previous years of education of locking that person away.

We were finally get taught and learn the fundamentals and do projects base round that. Though it was not spoon fed to us at all, you had to do everything yourself, learning and understanding, practising was only down to you, if you didn't then you will fall behind and fail. The first year I struggled a lot, with my commitment and engagement as well breaking out that old programmatic self I once were. Though I know from the beginning of the course and to now my ability in everything Visual Design, 3D and Critical studies has improve.

 From the 3 years at college, I have improved 5x as much in the space of two years. In technical skill and fundamental understanding, my drawing, confidence, learning, absorption, creativity understanding and biggest thing my attention/ commitment have improve and we have all become one embodiment, I feel enlightened and gain much awareness. It might seem late to others, but I have finally feel I have my connection back to my studies and my a clear view on my life journey path of the right one.

So what does this mean by my own experience? Well you need structure and fundamentals. They might appear boring or long to some, but with time invested into it, you will be enhance so much more in what you are doing. They are the hardest and always have infinite development in mastering them, You will appreciate them as they will appreciate you. 

ART taught in schools, colleges and uni's need a good re-think on what is needed to be taught. Because as it is at the moment, the expressive experimentation side and all of that is fine, but it's like building a house with no idea how to. No planning, no research, no any idea how to, theres only so much growth you can gain from this.

If we can grow into Game Artist on our course after we leave and the student work we can produce is fantastic, then just think if we prepare this in schools and colleges, yeah, we would have to experiment with other materials for creativity but gave that fundamental, hard work practise, then things would transform a lot more.

Creativity, the talent myth and craft

Creativity to me, is something that can start from a belief, a willing, a determination, something that 'you' manifest into reality.

I would like to say, that society and the system manufacture us into, a one systematic way, robotic way. It hindles the human creative expression of whom we all are.

It's obvious now that there are people that orchestrate and engineer this (the world in fact). You can imagine that it is a dark-light room that they sat around a table and said 

'Right, what we need to do is to, find some way of getting young people see the world, the way we want to see, so  by the time they become adults they are completely following the reality we want them to believe. So heres a plan, what we do is we can create and have a system that takes the children from their parents at least 5 days a week all day, from about the age 4 or 5 and so 'education-system' have control of their minds until they are about  16-18"

Sadly to say  that it's not education more like indoctrination.

(small artistic video that is pretty symbolic of the system)

How are they able to do this, enslave us and manipulate us?  apart from subliminals, Tv, beta brainwave state (suggestive state) etc.

A good way to get an understanding of ourselves how we and the brain function, is that
we have two hemisphere of the brain.

The left-side of the brain is considered to be adept at tasks that involve logic, language and analytical thinking. The left-brain is often described as being better at:

The Left Brain
Language, Logic, Critical thinking,Numbers, Reasoning

According to the left-brain, right-brain dominance theory, the right side of the brain is best at expressive and creative tasks. Some of the abilities that are popularly associated with the right side of the brain include:

The Right Brain 
Recognizing faces,Expressing emotions, Music, Reading, emotions, Color, Images, Intuition Creativity.


There are research has shown that abilities in subjects such as math are actually strongest when both halves of the brain work together. See you can't be to much left or to much right, there shouldn't be a war but both need to be back to that wholesome brain we have. 
It's amazing to see how children act or animals, they are so spontaneous  exploration, inquisitive  creative that as we do grow up, we do lose this part of ourselves in many different forms or express this in a other alternative because when we leave our systematic life-style working 9-5. People need this release. Instead of being conscious and use your energy correctly,  a lot of people are not connected or not conscious of their actions so you can get people who are rebellious (not in the right way)  drinking, smoking, drugs taking, sex, violence, that as well  food, bad health, diet that has an impact on all of this. That my point is, it's all that  energy used in a negative way, but if that was directed and use properly, no doubt that this world would change drastically for the better.As the left brain, has a perception of this reality, words, thinks it thinks in logic, visualized, taste it, see it, touch it , it's must be real then and the right, with creativity, inspiration and connection, artist of people who doesn't see limitation and 'sees' through the heart as well the mind.


 The corpus callosum has a massive part in this. As you can see on the images, the irony for it to looks like the shape of Horus the eye of ra? So one could say that is not a god it is a location in your brain, where your amygdala, corpus callosum, pineal, pituitary, and thalamus are housed more information 
http://www.thethoughts.co.uk/thoughts/symbolism-in-history-ancient-lost-knowledge/

We only use fractions of our brains, why is that? the other thing is the system does it by turning our left brain , putting through information through schools, college, uni's, into the left brain and then ask at the time of a exam, to give it all  back, and if you tell them  well enough what they told you, you will pass the exam and be very successful.

If anyone takes any of that in the right brain and question it through it in the exam. They will see that as a disruptive influence

This what happens to you to become a doctor or overwhelmingly a politician, a journalist or some one often in the industry. Professions that controls, like lawyers and on and on we go. We have to go through our young live, constant taking information through our left brain and regurgitating it on exam papers. To become a teacher you have to go through that same process and then you have to go to a Teacher Training College where you taught how to do it for others and  let lose all of that on the children.

http://stuartbramhall.aegauthorblogs.com/2013/02/20/indoctrination-the-real-purpose-of-public-schools/

The whole system is run by left brain system. Subjects like music and art, run by the right brain stimulates are constantly cut-back in favour of left brain curriculums.

Things do really need a change and people are understanding and seeing this now. As I said, we are 'creator-being' all in us are genius's it's a bout time we use this and not waste this, you could say this is the talent, a gift that has been given to us by birth-right, it's whether to harnish and use this ability.

I don't normally watch TED talks at times, because I have came across some of the information else where but it's always nice to see other opinion and perspective on the subjects.

Recently watch it again with a James, of Sir Ken Robinson

His very clever and wise on how he speaks and put's across his information, though his points are very valid and right.

As for myself, an artist. It is wise to understand, how we can use our creative ability and get the best out of it, learn it, develop it, master it.

I have had this book for many years now and not really read it fully or did the exercise but it is something that I will go back to, first time I got introduce to knowing that there are two different sides of the brain and when you draw it's a bout trying to trigger and shift yourself to the right side of the brain (the left obviously have it's importance) and it's a bout balancing the both in a way, but the right seemed to be used a lot more with some of the importance attributes it gives artist. The exercise she teaches, has prove that it works and validates the hemisphere on it's differences.

Well, it can be strange and a hard question to see how some people just have that, talent, gift to certain things or do certain things but in a way that is the magic illusion for people to not understand that the person probably have sweat for hours, working it all out, but they see the full package of all of that manifest as one.

For myself, I do feel I have the potential and the ability to achieve anything I wish to do so and so anyone else can. It really just takes that determination that development, that evolution of mind, body, and soul to achieve what you must achieve, no other way about it and for myself to where I am at the moment, In art in what I have achieve from my own small learning and just started to take it serious now in University and from the person who I used to be, I know I have achieve a lot of my self and I have a lot more to give. I know I have a lot of raw talent in a lot of things, but I do tend to prolong my ability of being too lay-back and a bit lazy at times of actually learning and studying and missing those vital fundamental informations by I should be putting all my love and effort into it then seeing it as a chore at times. I have learnt to deal with my distractions and chopped them down a lot and the university course has been a smack in the face of this, so I thank it. Totally wake up call, to take this stuff serious, flourish and to have better discipline.

Some people on the course may look they have that 'raw' talent in one way they might have but in other way, I see that they have spent longer practising and studying or introduced earlier to the subject as a child where the magic can happen fast. The course is proof that it is not talent that just gets you there, it's hard work and determination, as there are many examples of students that proves this and normally you find the talented students at the start may look good and impressive but over time the hard-workers can achieve this and surpass them, because the talented students can become lazy and have a ego which can let themselves down, because when they do use their ability, you can see some magic!

 (what do you use?)

http://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/competitions/left-brain-vs-right-brain/story-e6frg46u-1111114517613

http://stuartbramhall.aegauthorblogs.com/2013/02/20/indoctrination-the-real-purpose-of-public-schools/


To finish this blog-post of, a FengZhu video again, as he has a lot of videos containing a great wealth of information not to long ago, he did a video of students work before his school and after a few weeks or months. He does seemed to be fully aware on how to 'educate and teach' people to use their own creativity. As I guess just like my self and many other people, we go a bout life, or ourselfs doing it the wrong and harder way, but not the right and smarter way (smarter that can be hard but has more of a multiplier of grow)

Well there are processes and specific 'rules' you could say (which aids the growth of development and creativity) in which in art, the fundamentals are them.

The building blocks to get you to where you can unlock and create mastery! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7rI6q6bv7do

An introduction to the Game Industry From generalist to specialist?

Since this course and maturing into more of a Game Artist from whom I were back in College. My direction and aims in life has changed, I was still unsure where to go in my career of being an artist. Though since doing Game Art and even with the hard work you have to put out and growing to love and becoming more of an embodiment. I still believe that this direction is right where I am leading into. Which is being at the moment a 'concept artist' (leaving it open) which allows me to absorb a lot more then to narrow it down now.

So as for the Game Industry, personally I felt lucky that when Mike Pickton came and did a few seniors back in the first semester, he spoke about his time in LockWood and explained a lot of what happens in Lockwood which would be very similar in many other companies.

He spoke about specialization, outsourcing which is undertaken other contractors working either in the EU or US countries that labor are at lower rates and  the pipeline process

So where does leads me? Well a lot of options in a way because the Game Art course creates you into a versatile person, learning, practising fundamentals of drawing and painting Traditionally and Digitally then we have 3D modelling with using engines and then critical studies, for documentation skills, research and development that prepares you knowledge of what you need to know and where to go.

Just like our course out there, Feng Zhu school of design, also prepares you fundementally for the industry. In many ways like how we do things on our course, we have the bonus of 3D and as it seemed to be known, the industry are looking for a lot of 3D artist. Due to concept artist being very competitive to get a job in, you can say that it is wise to gain both high skills in both areas because both can aid you towards getting a job as either one or the other and using both as a means of expressing your concepts and ideas.

So here's a great video on illustration and industrial design process from FengZhu

Very informal and a eye opener for being an artist in that field.

So as the industry grows and expanded, enormously from the yesteryears. Back then a few people could be doing most of the roles when creating and designing a game. However there are specialised roles more so now and for specially for large game companies with the big titles.

Being a game designer, to me in modest and humble way, is a fragment  of what a 'god' is. That we create things just like the creator-gods do.

So a Game Designer designs the content and rules of a game in -pre-production and designs gameplay, environment, storyline and characters during post production. A good way to understand a game designer is compare them to a director of a film: the designer is the visionary of the game and controls the artistic and technical elements of the game in the fulfilment of their visions. So it requires artistic and technical competence as well as writing skills. So  management, scheduling and research skills and more can be a lot to control and handle so for bigger projects more than one game designer may be needed to overlook for the projects.

From our 2nd years group project, we had a taste of how it could be in the industry of the collaboration and the communication. Yes some groups may been better than others, just as you may get this in the industry, however it is required to enable a smooth flow of the process.

For everyone in the group project, we all had our specific job titles and roles for us all like;

 Lead manager,

Art Director

Colour Artist

Technical Artist

Concept/ Modeling Artist.

http://www.gamasutra.com/jobs/board.php?category=9

and so we all worked on the roles and task which was given, as I was a regular artist doing both concepts and assets, I really enjoyed this job because I experimented in both 2D and 3D applications. Whist another member in our group was a Technical Artist, so his job were purley more a bout the Engine and getting technical fication like scale and size of assets and rooms. He also did model and concept pitch a few things at the beginning of the project.

So here are some titles that exist in this area as a job.

 Game Designer

Staff Programmer

Web Game Programmer

Level Editor

Scriptwriter

GUI Designer

Illustrator 

Storyboard Artist

Graphic Designer

The typical stereotype scenario of  people creating games  in a basement has been quiet for some time as I am aware of, though in a way, There are many kinds of specialised art areas that take on a specific role, such as concept artist, environment artist, vehicle is a typical titles that many people are aware off, though at times now there will be artist within the job role of a character artist for example that one guy might work on modeling and the other on texturing, which in a way, can be good or bad in my opinion. 

So there are

Creative Manager

Art Director

Lead Artist

Concept Artist 

Vehicle Artist

Environment Artist

Character Artist

Technical Artist

3D modellers 

Animators

and more

A good website for seeing any employability 

http://www.gamasutra.com/jobs/board.php?category=9

A great website of news a round the world of the industry.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/

So how does all this affect me? Well it has broaden my scope of specific areas and roles if I wish to  choosen to go into. Though at the present moment, I believe to be a jack of all trades, knowing as much as you can in time of our training getting a feel to what connects to you best and what you believe yours 'key' strengths are. Though to only purely be good at one thing, is my opinion is quite of a limitation in a way. The person who knows a lot more and modestly good at everything and probably not as fine tuned as the guy good one thing, can exceed more, when given the chance if he does put more time in one of the areas he wishes to improve then he has much other wealth of information and skills across a broad range that he can put into and  improve that aspects, like everything can be connected and transferable.

Though it can be hard to explain in my opinion what is better, because it's down on the individual because anyone can exceed well in either being and feeling better to know more and do more or other people feel better in specifically  and enjoying one thing and becoming as good as they can in that.

Me personally I am an all-rounder kind of guy, pretty balance, though without me trying and knowing a certain thing, I don't think I could improve as much as I could in another area. For example, if I didn't do 3D modeling, I wouldn't create and train my brain to understand see things in 3D (maybe) and as well learning 3D technical terms, this enables me to transfer that language across when  I do my 2D drawing/ painting.

However, I am enjoying experimenting at this stage and it is wise to narrow down in a way and use your strengths that will get you a job in the industry, but never reflect the weakness you might have and if you have time, build them up to the strengths of your other skills.

Elements of Game Technology, Part Three: Interaction Design

Interaction within video games is nothing new. There have been consoles which had a interaction factor back before the 2000's and on the retro and older retro consoles.

I'll be using some of Angry Video Game Nerds videos for reference because if it wasn't for him showing the past of games and consoles, probably wouldn't took any consideration in the past.

What he reviews is a lot of Pong Consoles and there were a lot. Even a simple game like Pong, the interaction was quite strange to see many different consoles having different joy pads, sticks and buttons commands to press.


For example the one of the left, how bizarre this is for a Pong console, yes there were some other games on there, you could say this was not a 'solely pong console' but it did have it. So even in the really early stages apart from the arcade Pong Machines, there were many variations that was developed for home console interaction.

In the 70's or 80's you could say was an age of the wooden 'finish' alot of console seemed to be having a wooden design to it. lol.

 The worlds first game console 

Another video review from AVGN.

Well the Magnavox Odyssey is the world's first commercial home video game console. It was first demonstrated in April 1972 and released in August of that year, predating the Atari Pong home consoles by three years.

The Odyssey was designed by Ralph Baer, who I remember researching a bout, from the Pong consoles blog back in year one, however  it began around 1966 and had a working prototype finished by 1968. This prototype, known as the Brown Box.

I am not going to go through all the old generation consoles from first to second etc. But there are a lot, really a lot. There are a few to blog a bout because they seemed relevant and even in the present, people may think this is 'new technology' but infact these interactions from video game consoles has already been developed and test years back even if it not to the standard of the technology advancement of today, it was the trial steps back then gave us what we have today.

I do find it  amazing how the competition has now narrow it self down to only a handful some companies, like Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo being the main big three for game consoles and interaction.

Massive list of older generations of consoles

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_video_game_consoles

This is the virtual Boy a table-top video game console. It was developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was the first video game console, that was supposed to be capable of displaying "true 3D graphics" out of the box, in a form of virtual reality. You could say in hindsight this was a study, to see if something like this can work, the theme of virtual reality and the 3D graphics side (even though it's nothing like what we have these days) that just like the 3Ds from Nintendo having the feature of pushing the graphics in 3D.

Whereas most video games use monocular cues to achieve the illusion of the three dimensions on a two-dimensional screen. The Virtual Boy creates an illusion of depth through the effect know as parallax. In the manner  parallax. In a manner similar to using a head-mounted display, the user looks into an eyepiece made of neoprene on the front of the machine, and then an eyeglass-style projector allows viewing of the monochromatic (in this case, red) image.

This was released on July 21, 1995 in Japan and August `3, 1995 in North America. The price for this console was $180. It become a commercial failure and so it was not released in the PAL market. Nintendo discontinued it the following year.

The Nes Accessories

Here is another review from AVGN reviewing many accessories for the Nintendo Entertainment System!

Even on the older consoles with limitation, it's amazing how many variation of accessories you could get for consoles.

In this case NES and there were good relevant accessories and then some pointless ones, which makes you think, how did this get marketed and sold, yet most of them were pointless.  Begs the question did anyone tested the product before it got released.?

One that was heavenly market was the "Power Glove"

A clever idea but lacked wisdom. It reminds me of an spacesuit, at most times it didn't really work to well,

As you can see there were a motion sensor that you had to place either end of the television, you could say that this could be a step towards the Wii Motion sensor!

There was a movie that I bet it got all the children in that decade, crazy and excited!

It's called ' The Wizard' and in short it's  a 1989  movie About a  boy and his brother run away from home and hitch cross country with the help of a girl they meet to compete in the ultimate video game championship.

 In a way it was a chance to market and advertise a lot of products in a subliminal way. There were one big  gaming championship event at the end. For the first time that Super Mario Bro's 3 was shown before it was released. So a preview on the big screen, no wonder kids went wild and as well shown a few tips on how some parts of the game!

AVGN review of Super Mario Bro's 3 and The Wizard.

Nostalgia Critic - The Wizard movie review.

Roar of the Worlds Project - # 2

I made a quick 3D sculpture, (still unfinish) which I didn't really mind if it was unfinish because I was able to create a concept when painting from it but it was something good to go by.

Some quick  idea thumbs of my creature in location. I do really like them all. I quite admire the white contrast of the middle one and it kinder gives a sense of movement and speed to me. The third one, sits well and can be quite open for a dramatic scene like placing police, army, helicopters in the scene.

So I decided to go with the first one because I want the front of the creature to be capture. So I lined art over the thumbnail, and then started to repaint over with 100% opacity to define some shapes and bulk. But I realised by doing this, I kinder lose the organicness from the sculpture.

I'd then decided to totally change the perspective of the buildings that was in my previous development. I thought to be loose and sketchy with the buildings because they are all 'damage and decade'. The contrast helped to push that out, because of the shape of the silhouette

It got a bit stagnated where it was left at and I needed to move on, so Mike told me a bout using a gradient through the layers, which was really useful because it allowed me to get this kind of lighting and colour by accident, then just had a massive burst of 'knowing' and really felt confident on the next stages building it up for a dramatic effect.

Final :D

Roar of the Worlds Project - # 1

War of the Worlds project, it was an awesome project, quite flexible and expansive.

I was very unsettled in deciding on an idea, but I am happy with the experimentation and the amount I have learn't from this.

It was pretty cool to listen to this old fake radio that they created up, it actually tricked many people and they  believed this was actually happening. Listening to it and how it was done, still can sound convincing and since there was limited access to information, it was hard to de terming or to check up if this was fake or real.

I believe on another perspective  this was also a test and a study to understand and to see, how the public handle 'information and a event' such as aliens invasion and see how they respond and collect data. On one agenda the hoax and  acting this out, you could say a piece of art and all that setup but there is always two sides to the coin and you could say this was an great opperchunity to 'observe' the masses.

Anyway, on towards my concept work :) !

It was strange but I just couldn't settle on a idea, I believe I done about four different concepts.  Each concept attempt I approach it different from drawing, painting, silhouettes, perspective drawing and more.

Here I started out with silhouettes, creating random shapes, but I thought to start out with the lasso tool and then fill it with black. I was trying to discover to see if I can visually create something from seeing the sharp angles.

Then I added some variation of tone and line, but just felt indecisive but noneless I took certain elements that was successful and moved on to the next design. 

I decided to go with one of the silhouettes which inspired me into concepting an alien creature.
I was trying to work out and understand the creature anatomy. I think I should of research some skeleton prints of animals or creatures, to give me a idea and better understanding, for when I create from it, I am able to go a bout painting my alien with a stronger foundation.

However I thought I didn't do to bad, I really love what I concept out and the improvements I made from my first one. I just decided to stick with more the tripod theme and if I had time can go back and finish him off.

I did some more fast silhoettes and then gave it a value change, quite like the over all idea but from my previous concept on which I could of research more a bout skeleton structures etc. I thought to learn from my mistake and so it I led me to pursue spiders and create something base from them.

Here is where I got big inspiration from. He is a Peacock spider, really super small. Has beautiful colours and design.

Nature is the best artist!

I decided to study spiders in it's 3

Here are some of FengZhu student works, great reference angles they are in.

I'd then decided to do attempt of a drawing in perspective. I did do a lot more but can't seem to find the files :( but yeah it was tricky, since I am only just learning perspective but I am happy with this :)

By taking some inspiration from the peacock spider and then just making the rest up, I eventually came up with the next lot of concepts.

These were pretty random but still I enjoyed painting them and coming to a small design final. The names are a inside joke, though creative :D!?

Story Book Character Project - Mirrrrrrior Maaan! Update # 2

Just some 30 seconds speed sketches of poses I was visioning. They are pretty terrible but they were useful for myself to flush out my ideas and get an idea of what I wanted.

I decided on some poses I liked and combined some from my 30 second poses.

I also didn't go with the  faces above just didn't really fit my 'idea' of Mirror man.

On these pose sketches, he does look a bit like Gandalf which was not intentally but that is what I thought of what Mirror man could potentially have some similarities to him.

I decided to do some extra prep-sketches. The first I decided to do something different, which was good really, because I broken away from the 'thick jacket' and gandalf look, I thought an fabric ripped skirt, bag, hat and bomber-jacket.

Second one I carried on from my other prep-sketch and improved it, given it better proportion and some extra detail, however I got feed back from James Teeple and he recapped me by saying he doesn't fit the story of an frail elderly man and suggested to look at elderly people, which they can develop hunch backs, which was an great idea!

So the third one, was working well and finally getting some where. The head was perfect, got his posture and pose more fragile and elderly. Looking back a bit to much of an hunch back but I did see some people have that lol.

I decided to redesign his clothing adding a long jacket with another piece of cloth underneath (the idea came from my previous prep-sketch!) then adding in those jeans with rips, then his feet with wear and tear socks and then his staff with some small shards of mirrors dangling.

This was a semi final of a stage I got up to, was indecisive on a background, whether to place him in a location of a town or have him in an abstract background.

I'd decided to place him where he rightly belongs, on a city street going about his daily routeen.

I found a great reference which I could of just place as a backdrop, but I decided it wasn't right.

So I was able to create a good likeness base from the reference. I decided to add in a character to fill in the empty space, so looks an everyday street :)

Woops, I only notice, I forgot to give that guy a hand >.>

Though I am proud from my achievement by going from right at the concepting stage, making errors and figuring my way through it all, then finally deciding on a certain few, then changing my mind and then eventually back on track, that everything all worked out.

When I do have time, I will improve this painting  I need to make the flooring neater, although I am impress with the texture detail from doing all this only with the default Photoshop brushes, also clothing folds and the details of them needs an touch up, I would want to give extra design to the staff and improve  the other guy values. Then the rest of the values of the image.