Meet Ewan, a 3D texture artist from Scotland with a passion for CG. He's been dabbling in Blender since 2017 but truly dove in over the past few years. Motivated to improve, he joined the CG Cookie community 1.5 years ago and found it to be a game-changer, especially with the instructor's feedback and community support.
Since then, Ewan has leveled up his skills, particularly in texturing, thanks to courses like TREAD.
His business with his brother has flourished, providing daily work for both him and his brother, and the CG Cookie community has played a big part in his growth. From learning to price his work fairly to polishing his portfolio, Ewan's journey has transformed his hobby into a full-time gig.
Can you introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your journey before joining the CGCookie community?
What motivated you to join the CGCookie community 1.5 years ago, and how has your experience been since then?
You mentioned learning a lot of cool tricks and techniques—could you share one or two that had the biggest impact on your work?
How has the CG Cookie community contributed to the growth of your texturing business, and what role did the community play in turning your hobby into a full-time gig?
Could you describe a specific moment or piece of advice from the community that really helped you improve your renders for clients?
Getting my portfolio set up and looking decent has helped me land more work.
You mentioned that your business has grown to include daily work for both you and your brother. How has working together influenced your projects and workflow?
Can you share a recent project of which you’re particularly proud and how the skills you learned at CG Cookie were applied to it?
The most challenging part was keeping it all manifold, but with the add-on 3D-print toolbox, I managed to convert the non-manifold model to a fully printable model that will make a great addition to the client's costume.
How has your approach to creating and delivering work for clients evolved?
- The most crucial part for me was setting boundaries with clients on how fast I would work to avoid falling into a pattern of working too many hours per day. I used to work from wake up to sleep if it was requested, and that led to burnout more than once.
- Another way it has evolved is the attention to detail I put into the work now. When I first started out It was just a hobby so I would take shortcuts to get it done quicker for people. But now I understand that detail is more important than speed in most cases and that clients appreciate a detailed piece of art rather than a rushed one.
What are your future goals for your business, and how do you see CG Cookie continuing to support your growth?
I would love to get into the Product animation and design space one day. Right now we focus mainly on cosplay and painting guides but I think that our skills could be put to good use in that area.
CG Cookie will always be my go-to place for advice, whether that be with software or more business-oriented questions. The vast range of backgrounds of the members really helps get perspective on almost anything I could need help with.
You mentioned eventually adding more to your website—what plans do you have for expanding or enhancing your online presence?
My plan at the moment is to update my Instagram with all the new work we have created and the same for the website. I
I would also love to get into YouTube and make some tutorials on my workflow and how it can be used to help others make a living doing Texture and rendering for clients.
Would you like to share any advice with others in the CG Cookie community who are looking to turn their passion into a full-time business?
My best advice is to keep on pushing forward. Don’t let others put you down. If you really want to do it, you can. It will take time, effort, and some sacrifice, but in the end, it's worth it to do what you love.
- Visit their business - https://vault3d.co.uk/
- Instagram Page - https://www.instagram.com/vault.3d.services/