Personal Reflection of Second Year

Final Blog post of the year! 

YAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Second year of University flown past already! Its crazy to think how fast the time has passed here, it seems even more so than the first year.

What really hits home now reaching the second year, is how much my mindset about the course has changed and resolved itself at this point. No longer am I stubborn in my annoyance of things and programs I find difficult to use... Now I just crack on with stuff, and focus on the things I need to learn that are relevant to ME and the direction I want to head in for my future career. I think that part of this is due to my sudden confidence in 3D work that i didn't have before.... since starting here its always seemed to overwhelm me, I've not really ever enjoyed doing it... it always seemed like once id finally learned something about it something else would pop up to undo all my hard work. Now however, I actually think about the stuff I know ill NEED and focus on that  Like at this point I'm pretty much set on becoming a Character artist... the fact that i got my first 'Good' grade really showed me that if i even end up in the games industry that's the only thing i know ill be happy doing. And I say 'if', because I know at the heart of it all ill always be more comfortable and happy working in 2D and so I've come to the conclusion that ill gladly take on a career as a general illustrator at the end of this course if that's what it takes to do something that I've always loved doing. I don't look at it like a 'plan B' or as a lesser option, but... games have always been something I've been passionate about and so has creating artwork.... but if i don't end up making artwork for games it wont be the end of my world :)

University has changed me a lot I think... college made me more confident with other people and my own work,  but in a way Starting over at Uni has kind of de-constructed all of that and made me stronger, both in my confidence, my work and where I'm going in the future. And i think that's what University's are ideal for... they put you into a path to your own future that your forced to mould yourself, without anyone else to hold your hand through it... you have to deal with the responsibility on your own and it makes you ready for the job you've always wanted. 

I think I've always put up with 'making do'; I found I was good at graphics so I stuck with that even though it wasn't necessarily a career I wanted to follow. But I'm hoping that at the end of my three years stint studying Game Art, I'll be able to achieve the things I want to do weather its in Game Art or otherwise, I want to be able to be able to go into work and everyday look forward to it with a passion. I think that's the most important thing, and i think that Universities are still capable of instilling that certainty in students who are unsure or who are just going by the motions. 

I definitely need the summer break to rest up from a years full of hard work, but I actually cant wait for the third year where I can finalise my time in education and step out into the real world. Its been 7 years coming, and I cannot wait :)