As a freelance guy working from home most times and a parent, the kids school summer holidays are always a combination of walking barefoot through hell and a trip to Disneyland wrapped up in a wrapping paper of overwork and too many long hours. (Although being busy trips anywhere are out of the question unfortunately.) While I love my kids to bits, the idea of my 6 year old son Kane being off school for nearly 7 fucking weeks still terrified the life out of me, as I also have to get work done as well as be 'daddy' 24 7. Now when I was a kid it was 6 weeks, so I can only assume that teachers are taking the piss with the extra week lol. Thankfully though the school holidays are almost over.
It's been a busy one this year as I've been pulling very long hours and doing more stuff than may be immediately apparent. At the core of this is the FXPHD advanced environment modelling course I've been teaching. As all kids around where I live are off school as well (obviously) this means recording anything during daylight hours is a no go unless people want a soundtrack accompanying it that sounds like a kiddie riot. So lots of being awake till 4am and then up at 7am with the kids. This is not the best way to live trust me. It takes its toll and I can be a bad tempered old bastard at the best of times lol.
I also found time to do some stuff just for me. In fact I did something I very rarely do which is sculpt from another artists concept art. It was from some art by Feng Zhu (if you don't know who Feng is....you should). Some of the characters on the sheet of concepts he'd posted 'jumped out at me'. Without asking, or even thinking I felt compelled to sculpt at least one of them.....so I did. Now this is very naughty as your supposed to ask people before you do a 3d version of their 2d work... but when I've driven...I'm driven. I explained this to Feng and showed him the results and he liked it and was cool with me sharing it.
I do intend on texturing this when time allows and taking it to a final render stage, but I've got much on my plate at the moment that I'll have to wait for a gap. Apart from changing the tentacles it's all Feng's design and I can take no credit for it whatsoever. All I did was bring it into 3 dimensions. I've been a lover of his work from long before I did 3d professionally and it was nice to work with some a good bit of concept art by undoubtedly one of the great master concept artists of our time.
Well I've just spent all day uploading week 6's videos for the FXPHD course and am giving myself until Monday before starting on the next one. (Which is damaging the entire cathedral stone work in a sympathetic way ...in other words not making it look like it's been through the battle of the Somme, the battle of Leningrad combined like we usually do as digital sculptors for portfolio pieces to make them 'look cool' lol).
I may also get some time to finish off / continue with a few things I'm working on, on the programming side with any luck. Fingers Crossed.
