L'Hydroptere inspired Spaceship

This is another ship design I'm working on and have been working one for quite a while, actually. It's taken me a long time to finalize a theme but I think I've got it: a trans-atmospheric air/spaceship that's, say, circa 2050's based on a Trimaran called "L'Hydroptere." I want it too look a little contemporary but offer a few exotic flairs. Anyway, I know I keep posting profile or dorsal shots of designs but this one I'm obsessively developing so expect more soon. Here's the Illustrator file of what I've got so far:

p.s. This sketch doesn't include wings so expect those elements in the dorsal, ventral, and 3/4 view sketches to come.

A Few Concept Ships

I was sketching today and so far these are two of the better concept ships from the day. The first inspired by the human ribcage and crustaceans. The second started as a modification of the 'frog-leg' ship from a few posts ago and turned into a pterodactyl-like, tri-wing design. I'm not sure if I want to develop any of these any further, but the basic shapes please me.

Prospect Place, Finished

Yesterday morning I got an email that I need to complete the project by the end of the day, thus I very much had to expedite my progress. Below is what I managed to finish and am pretty happy with the results--especially because I was only able to use my own source image for half the plants. No matter, it's finished and I think it's good representation of the landscape design.

Prospect Pl. Progress

This is my progress in the rendering. As you can see I've used some photos from a different angle to add in some of the background houses, as one of my tasks on this project is to trim up the trees and bushes (a task that I'm finding very tedious). Anyway, this is certainly not the final product as there is still much color modification, trimming, painting, and source images to add.

Prospect Pl. Photo Rendering for Flanagan Landscaping Co.

I've recently acquired a job doing a photo-realistic rendering/mock-up of a landscaping project in La Jolla, specifically where Prospect Place dead-ends. Essentially, the two houses at the end are buying a portion of the street and extending their driveways--with plantings alongside.

I'm currently sketching over my photos of the area to try to get the perspectives of new design just right. The only curveball is that the street descends at the very end so my sketches may be slightly misleading. Anyway, this is what I have so far, the project will be finished by the end of the week.

This is the end of Prospect Place as is:

This is my first (loose) sketching of what it will look like:

(Do excuse the orange brush strokes, it helps me to remember that the drawing isn't necessarily set in stone. More to come soon)

'Frog-leg' Spaceship

I've been sketching this basic idea for a few months now and I finally decided I ought to just make some kind of tighter rendering--and this is it. Naturally there are modifications I'd like to make to a few areas, the perspective isn't as perfect as I'd like it to be, and I haven't added color yet. Nevertheless, I'm happy to finally have something to work with. I'm gonna tighten it up in Painter when I have the chance.

The Nautilus

I recently decided that it was a real shame that I hadn't read any of Jules Verne's work considering he's, essentially, the father of science fiction. Seeking to rectify this situation I chose to read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea first and see where that leads me.

Below is my interpretation of the Nautilus. I took some liberties of my own but the ship still closely resembles Verne's description. So far I just have this rough illustration and a bunch of sketches, but I hope to paint some sort of dramatic underwater scene using this model.

Solidworks Helmet

For the last project of my Solidworks class were supposed to design a piece of eyewear. Well, I simply couldn't resist making a (star) fighter helmet based upon an recent sketch of mine--with some Star Wars influence as well. Anyway, this is what I've got:

Even Newer Website Iteration

I haven't even finished my latest website and already I'm starting the design of a new one. My main motivation is that this last one was more of a test for me, considering I've limited web design experience. No matter, here's the design I'm leaning towards right now (I think I may be subconsciously influenced by the Monterey Bay Aquarium site with this, too):

New Website

Well, my new website is up and running, though it's pretty basic and far from complete. My biggest problem is that this is the first site I've made in 6 years, and 6 years ago I was using pre-CS Dreamweaver to do my bidding... suffice it to say I've been studying tutorials like mad. I've definitely got some learning to do and am trying to figure out the best way to browse through images (i.e. trying to learn flash and/or fireworks). Here's the site:

http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~mdsoto/Portfolio%20Website/MSoto%20Portfolio%20Site/index.html

Thorin's Throne

Alas, my models class is finished and, naturally, the first thing I decide to do afterwards is start building a model--and a very large one at that. This one's 1:12 scale and the primary materials are mdf (medium density fiberboard), leftover birch plywood, and my broken cedar desk chair... This first picture here's my source image from T. Rueping's site, though I'm making a few modifications that both facilitate construction and, in my opinion, add more visual interest:

For those unfamiliar with Thorin, he's the Dwarf King from the Hobbit--the King Under the Mountain, to be correct. The end model will emulate stone, I hope. (FYI: this model's pretty heavy...)

Drone Fighter Model

This here's my latest 'Models' project, a robot that happened to take the form of a spaceship/airship. This models was made by cannibalizing F-14, F-101, and Soviet Suchoj-Su 22 model parts with the addition of balsa and foam parts made from scratch. I'm moderately satisfied with the paint job, though I'd love to spend a solid month touching it up. No matter, I had fun giving the ship battle damage...

'Caudillo' Percussion Trade Show Booth (Model)

For my first assignment of my models class I was to build a trade show booth and, thus, this was my end product. Funny enough, the original support beams I worked on for weeks broke and I had to build these ones in a week. Some luck, eh?

The 'Caudillo' logo is roughly based upon the 'Zildjian' logo.

Website Pics

And these are the sample pictures I'm gonna use on my site. I've still got to get some better pictures of past projects and to get really nice shots of projects from this semester. I hope to get at least 10 projects up on the site.

Website, Take 3

I'm in the process of making a website and this is the latest iteration of the layout, though I still think it's missing that little certain 'Je ne sais quoi'...

Business Cards, take 2

I'm thinking these are most likely the business cards I'm gonna print in the summer; I'll probably change 'em up a bit, but good to have some anyway.

Creative Websites

While searching the internet I've come across a few unique and beautiful websites; these are just a few of my favorites:

1. The Art of Ralph McQuarrie

http://www.ralphmcquarrie.com/

The art of McQuarrie really sums up what I look for in my own art. He so freely and beautifully explores fantasy and scifi to a degree the makes me awestruck, beyond jealousy. This site sticks to a nice grid design and is easily navigable. Furthermore, I feel a more personal connection to Ralph McQuarrie what with his picture being on the opening page.

2. Blutsbrüder (art, design)

http://www.blutsbrueder-design.com/

This site I love primarily for its images and image organization; the pop-out window and minimalist tabs help you quickly and efficiently get to the juicy images.

3. Art of T. Rueping (concept/matte painting)

http://www.trueping.com/

As a wanna-be matte artist I absolutely adore this site. I always find something new looking at her paintings and think the layout site theming are very creative. I could only hope to have as nice looking a portfolio as T. Reuping.

4. Reuben Rude (artist)

http://www.reubenrude.com/

As a favorite artist of mine, this personal site is charming and packed full of nice photos/artwork. It's a breeze to browze and there's always something new.

Website and Business Card Ideas

In the hopes of re-branding myself, my website, etc., I've developed these business cards and website layouts. Took a bit of doing, but I think I may just have a logo, as well! Once I've got them finalized I'll apply them to this blog and the website that I'm working on.

SoundCast Design

Working from the design of the Outcast I redesigned the SoundCast(the indoor, wireless-speaker system equivalent).

OutCast Final Design

Well it's been a while, but these are the finished OutCast Packaging. Funny enough, this model of OutCast will most likely only be sold in limited quantities, replaced by the OutCast junior--a smaller but nearly as powerful model that sells for around $350 (not $700).