[Eli Paddle]

MLA degrees are usually intended to be research focused rather than preparing you for entry as a junior LA. If that is your intent then it is a good idea to augment your learning with some CAD, illustration and perhaps GIS learning so that you have the entry level skills that makes you a profitable employee. Generally MLA degrees don’t cover these areas.

[Eli Paddle]

With your background, skillset and interest and given that you are in Canada, you should look at the MLA program at the University of Guelph.  Sustainability is a major focus (have a look at the research done by the faculty there for more info) and you do not need a BLA to do an MLA.  Bear in mind that an MLA is a research degree and is intended to be more theoretical.  While some that practice question the value of theoretical education, there would be little to apply the practice without research. 

[Eli Paddle]

Depends on the school and the program.  My students get CAD every semester (and Dynascape and Land F/X).  Most university programs cannot or are discouraged from teaching practical skills in favour of theoretical learning.  We had a…1 CAD class…not a semester, ONE class in my MLA program.

[Eli Paddle]

To achieve what you are after you could create marker materials in SketchUp.  I have drawn out the swatches myself with Chartpak markers but never got around to scanning them and making them seamless textures.  I have done it with pencil crayon as well.  Anything that you can take a photo of can be made into a material in SketchUp.

In response to the comments on Photoshop rendering, with skill and the right tools (wacom tablet) you can achieve results that look like they were done with traditional media BUT you can easily fix your mistakes and take advantage of all the other things you can do with Photoshop (layer blending etc).  It is just a matter of skill and time.  Unfortunately real world budgets don’t allow for time…that is often why Photoshop gets used and the result is dictated by that to a great extent.

If you really want the look of traditional media, an even better option than Photoshop purely for rendering is Corel Painter or even Painter lite.  Painter replicates marker, coloured pencil and pretty much any other media with shockingly real results…and the ability to “UNDO”…although mistakes can be great sources of inspiration.

I love both traditional and digital media, I teach both and I think in most cases the best results are hybrids of the two.  While you can replicate the look of traditional media with digital rendering apps, it is hard to replicate the character of hand drawn graphic line work. You can however even scan your own line work with your favourite pen and use them in SketchUp as well, but there is still just more humanity in hand-drawn graphic line work.  

[Eli Paddle]

Definitely looks like Vue to me for the atmospherics and plants. Likely 3DS MAX for hard scape although you it could even start as Sketchup and be exported into Vue. Many ways to skin a cat and end up with a photorealistic render these days!

[Eli Paddle]

I too have noticed many job postings asking for 3DS and Rhino and as a professor who teaches this subject area, I respond by adding these to what is taught in my program.  In addition we also teach Vue as a final part of our landscape visualization workflow.  The base of this workflow is SketchUp with IRP programs (i.e. Twilight Render) and many plugins.  In my opinion hand drafting and tradition illustration skills don’t suffer nor does our design, but these are taught in separate classes and not as part of studio.  I try to give my students as many tools as possible to use and they choose what they become experts in through self exploration and find their own “voice” when it comes to design visualization.  In their final years of study they are able to visualize the design work they do in whatever fashion they choose from static hand graphics to photo-realistic animation.

If you are learning on your own Rhino will be much more accessible than 3DS.  The learning curve is steep for 3DS.

While these skills are certainly not ones that an LA cannot live without, it is nice to be conversant in these applications so that you know what the capabilities are, but you also don’t want to get type-cast as the “3D guy or girl”.

[Eli Paddle]

That was who I was thinking of actually

[Eli Paddle]

I know of one here in London, Ontario…I will look for his contact info if that would be helpful

[Eli Paddle]

The reputation of the school is important to an extent…but what some perceive as a good school can be turn off to others.  In some cases programs built their reputation in the past and are no longer as good as they once were.  This is a time of great turn over in academia with many faculty retiring or about to retire and consequently programs are changing dramatically.  Some programs were built around the strengths of one or two great profs who are no longer there.  New programs are building strength around new faculty.  The focus of the program is also important…if you want to do ecological work and you chose an urban design oriented program you may be in for a frustrating ride.  Some programs are very artsy while others are very science oriented. 

In deciding where to do an MLA, the major focus is research therefore I think finding faculty whose research interests you, is current and with whom you would like to work with (find out if they can take you on as a student) is most important.  Look at their recent publications, what funding they have recieved recently and the work of the students they have advised.  Most schools list this info for their faculty. 

I think in most cases finding an advisor who is mid-career is the safest route…they are still enthusiastic but also know who to get a student through their thesis.  Talk to students current and past, talk to profs and do some research regarding who you may want to work with.  Also beware of sabbaticals…ask whether your dream advisor is planning on taking sabbatical or has recently.  They often don’t offer this info up and it can cost you a year of your studies…

[Eli Paddle]

In the program I teach in, I use SketchUp as a starting point for 3D modelling and from there we use external rendering plug-ins such as Twilight Render or Shaderlight, as well as using Photoshop for layer blending, filters and general post production.  As my students progress to upper years I introduce Vue Infinite (through SketchUp export), 3DS Max (with Vue xStream) and Adobe After Effects for video effects.  There are so many great tools out there but what is most important is not what you use, but how you use it.  Find some precedents that you like, dissect them and then freestyle to come up with your own aesthetic.

[Eli Paddle]

Great idea

[Eli Paddle]

Interesting discussion and I agree with your premise.  As a professor how teaches both traditional and digital illustration technique (as well as the best of both worlds…hybrid techniques), I “walk and talk” what I teach.  I demonstrate every technique for my students be it traditional or digital.  Not everyone does, there are certainly many who just talk, (I was taught by talkers) but I had the benefit of a fine arts undergraduate education. 

There is one complicating factor to consider though, in some instances, in university programs, technical skills are not supposed to be taught.  The focus is supposed to be theory, with technical skills to be taught technical schools or colleges here in Canada.  Fortunately I teach in an applied degree program so I get to teach both.

Its not easy at times to draw or render with an entire class of eager students watching, but it is essential.  Sometimes you have a bad day, but I think the students actually enjoy seeing that we don’t produce or expect perfection every time.  This fear forces those of us “doers” to be sure we really know how to do what we are teaching.

[Eli Paddle]

You might also want to be sure that you are exporting good quality image right out of SketchUp. When you export your 2D graphic use the “Options” to adjust your resolution and the size of the image.  Make the dimensions of the image larger than what you intend to print the image at, bump the resolution up to a tleast 300dpi and save the image as a TIFF.  This will make it take a bit longer to produce the images but they should look good no matter what you do with them in post-production.

[Eli Paddle]

sounds like a great idea…I would love to have my students enter.

[Eli Paddle]

I read your original article in LAM and while I understand how you have viewed your experience as an MLA student, I my opinion, had you researched MLA programs as thoroughly prior to enrolling as you did after becoming disenchanted with your experience, you could have avoided this experience altogether.  I do not think many MLA programs market themselves as a vehicle for providing greater professional competency as a practicing LA.  Rather MLA programs are, in my experience, intended for those who want to do academic research, not become better designers or more skilled practicing LA’s necessarily.  Your research may hone your practical skills peripherally but usually the focus of the MLA program is research once they have managed to get the first professional degree students up to some sort of reasonable competency during the first year.  As far as employability goes, in many instances it is harder to get a placement with an MLA than a BLA.

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