2D versus 3D

Now, in my last small post, I talked about the concept of learning 3d modeling. Some of the important skills that a person needs in order to get to the top of the game can be summed up as:
(1) Good spatial orientation skills
(2) Rich and diverse imagination
(3) Good 2 dimensional drawing skills
In addition to the above, you would definitely need the following
(a) A powerful computer with a decent graphics card, adequate amounts of memory, storage, a good processor,and a problem free operating system.
(b) The necessary software required to remain in contention in this ever increasingly competitive domain.
I will elaborate step by step

GOOD SPATIAL ORIENTATION
This is the ability to appreciate the space around us, the relationship between our bodies and the distance and placements of objects around us. In certain types of brain disorders and injuries, this ability may become compromised, but hey guys, I'm not trying to scare you by talking about neurological disorders and their implications, I'm sure I could write a 100 page project on the topic if I wanted to, but that would be side tracking. Just to make sure we're all safe do this simple test : Touch the tip of your nose with your eyes open....most people would be able to do this but not all. Now repeat the test but this time with your eyes closed.Again most can do this, but if you had difficulty doing it with your eyes open, and this difficulty became worse with the eyes closed, then there could be a problem. Run to your doctor now
In 3d modeling you are shaping a 3d universe that exists only on your computer screen. Your ability to navigate the real world effectively would reflect on the quality of work you produce on that screen.

RICH AND DIVERSE IMAGINATION
There are no limitation as to the objects you can create in 3d, apart of course to the offensive which I would not recommend. Your imagination becomes the fuel that triggers your fingers into action when creating those 3d world and characters that exist within your minds eye. Lets just say you decided to model a machine gun for a war game or something. Obviously, the polygon count would restrict you in the amount of detail you an and can not put on that model.....(.thats another discussion entirely by the way). Now a standard riffle like an AK-47 would have to look like the real-life article, but lets say that in your game, or video short film clip, the soldiers mess was raided by a group of aggressive aliens from some distant or alternate universe, all armed to the teeth ( I'm assuming they have teeth)....how would your minds eye model the weapons they wield? The answer is there are no real rules to how complex their weapons can look. Within the boundaries of your polygon count, and the other tricks to get more detail in, you can usually allow your imagination to run amok.

GOOD 2D DRAWING SKILLS
I never went to art class during my school years. I was well known for liking subjects like maths, physics, chemistry and biology. Yes I reckon I was in the nerd category. I had a little secret though, which would stay with me, linger on,and eventually shape the person I am today, and that secret,...(wait for it world) was I loved reading comics, and I found out at an early age that I had a gift of being able to recreate ( with a fair amount of accuracy) the characters I saw, on a piece of paper.I was so confident that I was able to sit for a secondary school art examination in both drawing and painting ( and pass) without ever attending a single lesson. One thing I had always admired about good 2d artists was their relative ease of representing a 3d object on a 2d medium. In other words, the way they manipulated perspective. Generally objects which are further away would appear smaller than those nearby. In a close up shot of a character on screen, you may be able to see a tall building in its entirety, in the background.
Also if the comic artist drew a person being punched with the punchers fist closest to the camera, then that fist would dominate the scene. I really should illustrate these basic concepts with some drawings. I promise to do that in later posts.The next and possibly the greatest skill of a 2d artist and painter is the ability to represent light, where its coming from and where its going. The use of highlights and shadow in a picture. This may seem basic, but its what could differentiate a good picture from a not so good one.
2d drawing skills are a must have, to separate a fantastic modeler from an ordinary one, but a learner or inexperienced modeler can overcome this to an extent depending on the type of software you use, its inbuilt renderer, and certain tricks you an employ to get the highlights you need on your final model.
In 3d rendered images, there has to be a light source to render the image this light source can be used to your advantage in creating useful textures.I will stop this post here because Ive run out time for now, the next time, Ill be elaborating on the types of software out there, both free and commercial which can be used. I will focus on free and value for money software that you can use to create your models.