Top 5 Programs I've Learned This Semester

Well, the semester is almost over and i can definitely say it was a good one. THR 216 has taught me more than I ever thought I'd learn in a Visual Arts / Media class. The reason why I was able to adopt so many principals and ideas was simply because they were from sources that I visit everyday. Facebook, Youtube, and Photoshop are all outlets that I visit everyday however this class was able to present them in a different manner than the usual. We either traveled more in-depth on the subject or traveled in a different direction all together. As a result, I put together a list of the Top 5 programs i've learned this semester and how we were able to use them in a different environment.

1. Google Sketchup - Combining 3D space with our own personal work. Google Sketchup is an amazing program and I hope to learn more about it in the future. It allows a user to import, export, and move through a space that can be filled by anything. Cities, cars, schools, and museums are just a touch of what I was able to work with when creating a 3D space.

2. Photoshop - I've used photoshop many times before but each time I do, I learn something new and valuable. This time, it was filters and color. I was able to take a vivid picture from the past and bring it back to life by using different filters that come pre-loaded with the program. In the process, I developed a new taste for photo editing and how you can bring a picture back to life.

3. Gary's Mod - If it weren't for this class, I would have never found this program. Not well known, Gary's Mod puts you in a world that you control yourself. Similar to a video game, you have a character that you are able to give commands to walk around a given space. The coolest part is that you can ultimately hack up a kinect and use it to move your "physical" self around in the 3D space.

4. Blogger - Never would I have ever thought I would have a blog, or need one for that matter. It was brought to my attention, however, that companies are now looking for people with blogs so it has become a great hobby to have. Being the tool of the future, Blogger has made me think, learn, and act on ideas that I may never have thought been possible Enjoyable and able to reflect, writing on a blog lets me think about my day and simply release it for others to hear.

5. Java Programming - Not taught in class however the class made me add to what I know. I am a computer science major and knowing some programming, I was able to look around some code to try and find solutions for the xbox kinect. During the process, I learned some very valuable things that I have not learned in programming class.

I can easily say that I will continue to use and explore all of these programs. They are tools that are going to help me come out of this tunnel that I am in and hopefully help me see the light. Whatever it may be, experimentation is the key to success and until we achieve that state, I will continue moving and acting until I get there

Home @ Bayside [sketchup] part 3

I added a couple things (trees, stree light, 'stop-ahead sign', clothes rack...), and made a minor modification on the length of the street. I will keep modifying and updating my sketchup building

Home @ Bayside [sketchup] part 2

It takes me a really long time (about) 5 hours to render a 1 minute animation. Enjoy :)

ICity

Playing around with the model downloaded from sketchup warehouse. I simply stretch the buildings in the center and on each corner. Also, I build a spiral constrution around the building, and a airport on a building. I am guessing that the "I" in the ICity means, isolated or island.

My First Sketchup – house in Pingdong, Taiwan

I am not kidding. This is my FIRST art work using Google SketchUp.
Before introducing my SketchUp work, I want to tell some of my background information, so that everything, like my work and me, is more understandable.

I was born in Taipei, raised, and had lived in almost every major city in Taiwan- Taichung, Kaohsiung, etc. Then, I moved to the United States on Aug. 15th, 2005 and continued my high school education in Cary, North Carolina. Pingdong, a rural area located in the southern tip, is actually where my mom was born. And the reason why I choose this rural place instead of Taipei, the big city, is that, Pingdong is the place where my childhood memories were filled – Happiness.

The program, SketchUp, was roughly brought out to the class on the very first day of the semester. On the 3rd class, Feb. 14th was formally introduced and demonstrated with some of the basic function, like drawing linear line, curve line, square, circle, and some other way to view SketchUp by using orbit, etc. It really caught my attention because I am interested in 3-D/ spatial design. From my perspective, spatial art gives strong and immediate impacts at the very moment for the people who are viewing the art work. Besides, it also gives clear, vivid ideas of what the artist wanted to express. Thus, I started my work on the following Saturday, Feb. 19th. Here’s my unfinished work (, and I am not going to finish on this one.):

I am pretty much just playing around with ‘whatever-sketchup-can-do’, to see what kind of visual impact I can get. This takes me about more than half hour. You know, I am a newbie to SketchUp. While I was playing around, I realized this is not what I want; since everything is not proportional, I decided to make a new one. And I am just going to put all pictures I rendered here at once so that you can see the progress.




Finally, the entire work was done few weeks ago (Mar. 16th-ish?). I use V-ray, a Sketchup Plug-in, to render my work so that the outcome looks more realistic. By using V-ray, I can put extra light and the light bulb will actually glow. Besides glowing, V-ray also offered couple more lighting option like: diffusion, emission, reflection, and refraction. You just simply have to make some adjustment, and you can see the master art piece you just did.

First City Edit In Sketchup