Which DVD should I get?

Hello,

I'm really interested in buying 2-3 DVD's from The Gnomon Workshop. But I'm not sure which ones to get. I'm trying to focus on creating concept art (ala Star Wars), I want to expand myself and not just stick to cartoons There are some nice perspective DVD's from Scott, but I don't know if they are too technical for my purposes. But then at the same time, I don't know if Ryan Church's DVD's expect me to know what Scott is teaching. So I don't know how to begin. I don't have money for all of them, so I need to be picky on the ones I pick.

Any recommendations?

Thanks,
Leo

You should definitely get the Feng Zhu DVDs, they are awesome, great content!

Well Feng is ok, but I'm not a big fan of his work. Ryan is very nice to listen, he has a nice voice and it's not boring (other's may be a little). I doubt you have to watch Scott's lessons to be able to follow with Ryan. What you really need to know is a basic perspective drawing, that can be learned online for free, than you can go with Ryan. All of his DVD's are great, I prefer the architectural though.

Ehh one thought - maybe try to buy some of them with a friend or something, to save some money, after watching them and learning the stuff, they are quite useless, but they do look good on your shelf next to your computer

Wrong.

Seeing Scott do those things will explain everything to you. The firstScott Robertson DVD feels like more than 2 hours of lectures. Then get one of Ryan's Architecture DVDs and the Int. Architecture.


Also don't judge an artist by their style, but their expertise. Sure, I haven't watched Feng's DVDs but from the screenshots on the site, I can expect a throughout explaination of the creative process. Too bad it's more than 2 DVDs..

Well that's your opinion, I don't see anything what Ryan does there, that can't be done with some online(free) reading about persp drawing. Sure Scott can teach you more but that wasn't the point. This guy is trying to save some money, it's not cheap so I'm trying to help him a little.

Of course, of course!

I was talking specifically about the DVDs. They pop up in ebay from time to time as well.

Of course you can learn all that through books and online tuts. It's just so much better and faster when you see it right there in front of you. We artists are visual people after all

After seeing your "Retired Pirate" piece, it's hard to recommend a title, as you can already create pleasing illustrations. I think everyone should get Scott Robertson's first dvd if you feel lacking in perspective skills, I continuely refer to it and it's been price reduced quite a lot. If you feel you need more drawing or rendering skills take a look at Neville Page's four volumes. They are fan-freakin'-tastic. I am eagerly awaiting more volumes from him.

This might may be an unpopular suggestion but my favorite dvds and the ones I learned the most from were the Carlos Huante set. It's hard to say why I like them so much. It might be that I'm a huge fan of his work or how he simply states "You don't have to be a production person... you can be an artist." They are very inspirational. I wish he'd put out some more.

I just got two of the Dylan Cole dvds (Volume 1 and 3). Haven't had a chance to view them yet. I find I struggle with environments so I'm hoping they will help. If you do order some wait till tomorrow (July 27th), they are releasing a slew of 3D dvds and I'm hoping they'll announce some more analogue titles.

Good luck.

Thanks guys! Excellent recommendations

Dr. Ira Kane was pointing out my biggest concern. Do I NEED those videos? That was the question I kept asking myself. I can draw basic objects and buildings (nothing too complex) in 1 or 2 pt perspectives but that's about it. So I don't know how that compares... is that knowing very little (where I would probably want to invest in Scott's DVDs) or is that good enough?

It seems like all the DVD's are excellent... which does make me feel better (any that I choose in the end will be worth it).

Btw, thanks Rogfa for complimenting my work

- Leo

Well if you want to do Star Wars style concept art and
you're looking for a DVD that concentrates on concept art
you get one of Ryans. He does a good job at explaining
his workings on a concept art image, for example keeping
the image constantly readable, so if deadlines suddenly
change or sumthin, he can give the picture away at any
time and whoever gets it is able to understand it and
find all the vital elements for the concept from it.

Get just one DVD at first and decide if you want more after
that. Try one of Ryan's architectural (hi-tech city or
the low tech city siege images) videos, for example.

You might well know that Ryan, Zhu and Dusseault all
worked for Star Wars , Episode III , and all got their
own DVD's. Usually there's just the makings of one
image per video, but Dusseault (Dusso) makes five
images on one DVD, so that's a good buy.

Yea Neville Page always deserves a mention, wowskillzz..

I can find you the exact names of the DVD's later
if you want to.


.

Thanks Squibbit! Coming from a cartoon style background, I definitely need to improve on realistic lighting and shading. I was thinking of getting Ryan's first DVD on rendering matte objects, but it seems most of you recommend the architectural ones first, so I might just get those.

So, so far this is what I'm getting (I think lol):

1 - Feng Zhu - Volume #3 - The Fundamentals of Shot Design for Enviroments
2 - Ryan Church - Volume #5 - Rendering Architectural Interiors (I think it would complement Feng's nicely)
3 - ?

Just to point out, more than likely I'll be using Painter IX exclusively (I can't afford PS CS2), so if that makes a difference, let me know Although all these, use Painter... but there were some that didn't like Dusso's that seemed good.

Also, I have zero skills when it comes to drawing aircrafts in perspective. I can draw them freehand, but they are out of perspective lol. I know it's fundamental for any concept artist to know how to draw these (like x-wings and tie-fighters), so I'm thinking maybe a vehicle drawing DVD might be necessary. I saw one of Scott's tutorials on the web, but man... he gets into techinical stuff. I can understand if I was designing a vehicle how important this would be, but for conceptual art, is it important I learn this? Feng has one on quick sketching aircrafts, I'm not sure if Ryan's DVDs just show you how to render, or if they teach you how to sketch them too.

Let me know what you think.

- Leo

yea I mentioned the architechtural DVDs because of what Ryan says
about concept art design on those. I do have the Rendering Matte
Vehicles DVD too, but I haven't watched that yet

In the DVDs I've watched so far Ryan church uses Painter ,too,
while Neville Page for example, works on photoshop. They've of
course both used both programs and tell you that each has its
advantages and that on the videos they use the programs they
prefer more.


.

Didn't Dylan Cole also work on Star Wars? I have heard very positive things about his DVDs. I heard Dusso speeds stuff up immensely and just voices over and that it's too advanced for people who're just starting off.

I wasn't that impressed by Carlos Huante's DVD.. but then again I haven't seen the second one.


1 - Feng Zhu - Volume #3 - The Fundamentals of Shot Design for Enviroments
2 - Ryan Church - Volume #5 - Rendering Architectural Interiors (I think it would complement Feng's nicely)
3 - Scott Robertson Vol.5 - Enviroments. Lotsa them.

Thanks AngryScientist for your direct recommendation Quickie, between Ryan's 3 ArchiDVDs is there one that stands out? I just picked the interior to go with Fengs...

- Leo

The interior dvd is an excellent choice