Batman zbrush sketch

[JohnCleary]

Originally Posted by greenzombie

Really Erick? Cost that much to print a statue? I thought with the large amount of people and producers going digital, the technology would be more affordable by now.

And I loved your Bats concept the face expression is terrific, looks something they would use in a 3rd Gen video game! Super cool!

Best,
Andre

Ericks right man,
these digital prints can get very expensive! 1/4th scale, full figures? Your talking thousands!

[Matches Malone]

That is a fantastic piece Erick! Man I love your stuff!

[greenzombie]

Originally Posted by ZKULPTOR

Printing in itself is cheaper than hiring a traditional sculptor indeed, but what they do not tell you is you still have to hire a cg artist do model your character... that can range, depending on the sculptor etc.... but yeah I would say $1200-$1700 for printing, depending on accessories, extra portraits or if you want your portraits in HD resolution ( better, much more detailed prints like what I use for Industry clientele ). Plus most 3-D printing places charge an extra fee for engineering ( dissecting your character with keys etc), and most do not clean the print for you, which requires a lot of sanding depending on the resolution. The higher the resolution, the less build lines on the sculpt's surface the less sanding is involved.

www.ownage.com is a great place to go, they print, clean, and engineer for a decent price, but they keep quite busy. There's also www.moddler.com and http://www.jasonwiresproductions.com/ Jason has a top of the line printer with Hd capabilities just like Ownage does, and his prices are very competitive.
So yeah, there are a few hoops to be jumped, but from my experience there are a lot of great Cg artists and they keep getting better...check out the works of Brandon Lawless..just wow!
plus the 3-D printing technology is getting to the point where it is matching the level of detail found in the original models....so yeah the next 3 years will be very interesting.

Anyway, a traditional sculpt in 1/6th may end up being cheaper after all is said and done... but it may take longer....(so there are drawbacks either way).

That being said...let's say I was commissioning an original character I had made up like my "Space Host" character, and say I wanted it done in CG, I would probably look for customers to help me pitch in for the printing, molding and casting costs, dividing said costs by the number of customers so it becomes less of a burden...otherwise it defeats the purpose...a bit expensive...unless you are rolling with cash lol.
Hope this helps

Erick, thanks for your time explaining the pros and cons on digital pieces, that was very enlightening.

Much appreciated. And Keep Rockin' meng!

[Alex Pereira]

I hate you SOSA!!!

[carlito1978]

ok dumb question. but how does digital sculpting work? you do the sculpt with computer programs and then there are "printing" shops that will sculpt the statue based on the digital image? i'm just curious.

[PMACK]

Originally Posted by EPang

Man, is there any medium that you don't just dominate at? Clay, wax and digital- a triple threat.

Seriously.. Props to you for picking this up in a relatively short period.

[greenzombie]

Originally Posted by JohnCleary

Ericks right man,
these digital prints can get very expensive! 1/4th scale, full figures? Your talking thousands!

I guess this must be only a good advantage for big companies with needs of large production scale, which need faster prototypes to get done.

Thanks for the info John!

[greenzombie]

Originally Posted by Alex Pereira

I hate you SOSA!!!

Alex, stop crying man, you're a freaking digital sculpting machine who makes incredible stuff! You're part of the big league, dude! lol

[DaviDPereira]

Great job Erick!.

[Kdawg59]

Doesn't get much better than this Erick. You are an inspiration in any/every medium. You are an amazing artist my friend... It's easy to see why you continue to be among the most respected and busiest guys in the game. Awesome job brother.