Originally Posted by Redrobes
Reply With QuoteI was the one who was unaware of the challenge- it's partly because I was new to the forums, and used to seeing banners on other forum home page indexes that announces big news and events - kind like at http://forums.cgsociety.org/ - I'm a visual person, so advertising with big text and pretty pictures usually gets my attention better than a thread subject.
For me the challenge is something to explore and work on my skills as at the moment I don't have any other maps lying around to work on. So a sketch someone else had done was a perfect start to test myself.
I'm not 'in it to win it' - just to develop and learn and there is a fantastic variety of entries which help us all. I find it very interesting, educational and inspirational to see how someone else approaches the same task and I have got a few ideas by other people's entries to try new things and the like.
I'm also only interested in the larger maps, not the D&D maps of inside buildings and caves and stuff so that's why I jumped on this challenge and not the previous one. So if the next one is one of those, I won’t be making an entry. I think they style Challenge is a great idea, and would be interested in seeing it as perhaps a different thread where every month a sketch is created by a forum member .
To anyone worrying about their standard may not be good enough - some words of help (I hope)
The thought of not being good enough will never go away - no matter how 'good' you thing your work is. The positive side is you know you want to improve. Improvement comes with practice. Practice only comes from effort, and It's a healthy thing because the day you feel you 'know it all', is the day you stop developing and improving. There will always be someone better than yourself, but there is only one you. You have the potential to create wonderful things too and there is room for everyone and everyone's efforts have equal validity.
The only difference between you and the stuff you feel is beyond your capabilities is mostly time. Each day, hour, minute to delay out of fear of not being good enough is nothing more threatening that one day, hour, minute away from achieving the level you aim to be at. As for the artists who's work has a touch of divinity - they started life as a kid drawing stick people too, they' just been working at it longer than the rest of us - and these same artists doubt their own abilities - it's a matter of perspective.
I feel all talent is, is the result of being passionate about something - or at least have at spark of interest in it. I certainly don't feel I have 'talent' or am 'gifted' If you are interested you will be enthusiastic, from which come the effort put into something, with that you grow and improve. Everyone who has joined this forum shows interest and therefore has potential.
Fear is the thing that stops us. God knows I have many, many artistic endeavours that are unfinished or not even started because I fear I may not be good enough to create the result I want. But I know if don't do all that work, I won't improve and I'll stunt my growth. This is easier said than done (and I'm reading a book on the 'fear of art' for myself in fact!)
Just by doing this challenge I feel my style improved an inch - and that's what I loved about this challenge - it's about style and every entry has something to offer. With style we are all equals and you make it your own. With any challenge, if you enter you wont ever fail and you will learn something and be that bit closer than to your desired goal than if you didn't.
But it must also be said that CG is a great place to develop because everyone is very supportive, helpful and friendly - a very healthy place to develop!
Sorry - went off subject a bit.
jez
