Thursday, November 13, 2008

Beginning to see the light

From September 30:
"
In the interest of creating SMART goals: By the end of the quarter, I will learn and utilize at least one new method for design visualization in Photoshop, Illustrator, Rhino and by hand."

How am I doing with this? The USB project was a big eye opener for me. Quick but effective marker rendering, using Illustrator for more that solid colors, combining quick Rhino and Photoshop to get some lively images. I have never really used those tools this way, and I found it to be incredibly effective. I am still struggling with marker techniques, as evident by my teapots, but it's getting better.

I regret that I was not able to use all of these tools for our current project. At the time I wasn't comfortable enough with them and used my old, ignorant method of sketch to 3D. We are at the point now where we need final geometry in less than a week, and time does not exist for perfecting the designs by these new methods. I will however, back sketch the shit out of this project using what I have learned. I feel confident that, with these techniques, I will be able to make my HP project the highlight of my next portfolio.

So, I feel confident in what I have learned, but I have not yet repeated the success I had with the USB project. Future prospects look good, but I must develop these new skills through practice.

One of my personal, non-design goals this quarter has been Crossfit. It's a workout plan that was passed along to me by one of my good friends fighting in Afghanistan. Each day, a new workout is posted online, and I am proud to say that after seven weeks I have not missed a single day. These are intense exercises that are normally done "for time," i.e. no breaks between sets. As a result each day's work normally only takes 20-25 minutes, but it kicks your ass. I can already tell how much stronger and more in shape I am, and I look forward to the workouts each day. I would recommend it to anyone, now matter how in or out of shape you may be (scaled versions are posted each day due to the fact that the full workouts are nearly impossible.) Thank you Mason for introducing me to Crossfit.

The same thing goes for Crossfit as design: I'm beginning to see the light, but must force myself to keep at it.

1 comment:

Michael said...

Crossfit looks cool, but it seems like you need a set of weights to do the exercises. Is there a version that I can do at home? (i.e. using my own body as a weight - push ups, sit ups, etc.)