Improving the Studio's Hub

dhelmise

everything is embarrassing
is a Site Content Manageris a Battle Simulator Administratoris a Top Social Media Contributoris a Community Leaderis a Programmeris a Community Contributoris a Top Contributoris a Top Smogon Media Contributoris a Top Dedicated Tournament Hostis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus
Social Media Head

FellFromtheSky

and started walking.
is a Top Artist Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
anto said:
Snobalt made leparagon's profile and I merged; congrats on badge! here's a sample if you don't know what to write: http://www.smogon.com/smeargle/profiles/bummer
I know you addressed this to leparagon, but I decided to use it to write up my own thingy. I also included artworks I'd like featured on the profile. Let me know if I did everything correctly.
cutiful.2.resized2.png

Who is FellFromtheSky?

So... I'm a university student studying Mathematics, Ancient Languages (I specialize in Koine Greek), and Art History/Criticism. (To be honest, I wish that last bit was a bit more helpful in the applied part of visual art.) I'm also an amateur digital artist who recently started contributing art to Smogon. While my interests are wide and varied (just look at the degrees I'm pursuing) and I flit from subject to subject (right now I'm on eco-friendly landscape architecture), one thing that's always remained a constant interest for me is Pokémon. While I don't play the games as often as I used to, I still make a point to play at least one of them each generation. My favorite games thus far have been Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness and Pokeémon X. I think I also should mention that I think that the fairy type may have been one of the best things to ever happen to the Pokémon franchise. Anyway, moving on...

Smogon Biography
I've been ridiculously obsessed with Pokemon since Gen III and at some point stumbled upon Smogon. I recognized it at first because of the whole "competetive thing," but quickly realized I had neither the talent nor patience-to-learn for competitive battling. I continued to lurk, however, and eventually stumbled upon Smeargle's Studio. If we fast forward through more lurking... My close friend encourages my to post some doodles I've done here as an art thread, despite my feelings about how easily overlooked my images would be for those of the countless amazing artists here. I did this in early 2016 and while my art recieved positive and helpful feedback, my activity on Smogon dropped off until the Summer of that same year. If we fast forward a little more, I somehow start contributing art and, to my surprise, somehow earn an art badge on August 4th, 2016. As of now, I'm still contributing art to Smogon and hope to continue to do so.

Art Preferences
In terms of medium, I do mostly digital art, though I have, on occasion, done a few pencil sketches and studies. My ancient Wacom Bamboo MTE-450A is my partner in crime and I rely mostly on Corel Painter and GIMP (to remove backgrounds if the image calls for it, I will never understand what Corel has against transparent backgrounds). In terms of style, I like to experiment a lot and frequently try to mimic others style (though it rarely matches up to the original). I usually paint lineless or spend very little time on lines (I have zero patience for vectoring or pen tools) and, at least lately, have been trying to focus my attention on adding depth to my works by studying light and colour.

Links

My Art Thread - All my Smogon related art, and a lot of my non-Smogon related art, is featured here.

Contribution
Whatever is supposed to be here.

swablu migratory 2.fin.png 1-6 out of this gravity.3.resized.png lost in thoughts, lost in snow 1.3 v. touched up 3.png


antoedit: doing it in a bit

er... FellFromtheSkyedit: I've always thought it was so cute how you all do this. Like "tikiedit." anto's is especially cute though because it looks like "anto-ed it." n_n Thank you btw.
 
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Empress

33% coffee / 33% alcohol / 34% estrogen
is a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus

leParagon

I'm still around, don't worry
is a Top Artist Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnus
hey there! real sorry for just getting to it now, but here you go:

Who is leParagon?
I'm just a casual dude who enjoys science, art, music, dancing, exercising, and hanging out. Being a biology major makes it tough to balance it all out, but I make it work somehow, with the help of my all awesome friends and my wonderful girlfriend who supports in everything, even spriting.

Smogon Biography
I was contacted by the famous Layell through DeviantArt. I was already spriting long before that, so I found it easy to work on Sun/Moon sprites for Smogon. People here were really nice to me and they gave me an artist badge not long after I joined, and it was something I was rather happy about and proud of. I plan on watching some more threads here on Smogon and see if there's anything I can contribute in. I might even try out for CAP some day.
I'm not new to competitive battling, but I prefer just playing casually. Doesn't stop me from giving advice to my friends when they're on Showdown, though :P

Art Preferences
I'm mostly known for my sprites. I started sprites with Pokemon, but I learned how to sprite fighting games and high-rest stuff a bit after. I also taught myself a bunch of different techniques and shortcut for spriting aside from the common "scan-trace-sprite" method. Spriting feels really natural to me, so it takes only a few minutes for me to make Pokemon styled sprites.
I did, obviously, start off with pen and paper when I was young. I still draw with it a lot. I also recently transitioned into digital art with a tablet I got back on my 18th birthday that my girlfriend and close friends surprised me with. It was no Wacom, but it got the job done. I'm still learning new stuff with the tablet, but I've already dabbled in Sugimori style, vector art, and some other styles as well.

Links
leParagon DeviantArtSun/Moon Sprite Project
 
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dhelmise

everything is embarrassing
is a Site Content Manageris a Battle Simulator Administratoris a Top Social Media Contributoris a Community Leaderis a Programmeris a Community Contributoris a Top Contributoris a Top Smogon Media Contributoris a Top Dedicated Tournament Hostis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus
Social Media Head
hey there! real sorry for just getting to it now, but here you go:

Who is leParagon?
I'm just a casual dude who enjoys science, art, music, dancing, exercising, and hanging out. Being a biology major makes it tough to balance it all out, but I make it work somehow, with the help of my all awesome friends and my wonderful girlfriend who supports in everything, even spriting.

Smogon Biography
I was contacted by the famous Layell through DeviantArt. I was already spriting long before that, so I found it easy to work on Sun/Moon sprites for Smogon. People here were really nice to me and they gave me an artist badge not long after I joined, and it was something I was rather happy about and proud of. I plan on watching some more threads here on Smogon and see if there's anything I can contribute in. I might even try out for CAP some day.
I'm not new to competitive battling, but I prefer just playing casually. Doesn't stop me from giving advice to my friends when they're on Showdown, though :P

Art Preferences
I'm mostly known for my sprites. I started sprites with Pokemon, but I learned how to sprite fighting games and high-rest stuff a bit after. I also taught myself a bunch of different techniques and shortcut for spriting aside from the common "scan-trace-sprite" method. Spriting feels really natural to me, so it takes only a few minutes for me to make Pokemon styled sprites.
I did, obviously, start off with pen and paper when I was young. I still draw with it a lot. I also recently transitioned into digital art with a tablet I got back on my 18th birthday that my girlfriend and close friends surprised me with. It was no Wacom, but it got the job done. I'm still learning new stuff with the tablet, but I've already dabbled in Sugimori style, vector art, and some other styles as well.

Links
leParagon DeviantArtSun/Moon Sprite Project
Illl do this
 

Bummer

Jamming to the beat
is a Top Artist Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
*kicks open sarcophagus*

Been a while. Happy to see that people are still interested in this project and all the recently written HTML! The hub has mostly been on auto-pilot for some time, mainly because it's been a good place to redirect new users with questions and just general info, but also because so many pages are written already so it's easy to get satisfied. However, there are still a few things I want to do with it before I can step back and take it all in with a content smile.

1 ) Create art for the pages! We're an art studio, so the fact that so many of our info pages are lacking illustrations is quite the irony. However, I can understand why not many would make art without knowing if that's required or not, so just to be clear: every page on the art that has no illustration is open for someone to make a picture for. Since it's technically on-site, approved and bacged artists are the ones allowed to placehold, but I wouldn't be opposed to non-approved artists doing something nice if they're determined about it. Check the second post in this thread for a list of pages to illustrate, no set deadline as of now but do expect me to check back with you to see how the progress goes. I also encourage you to VM / PM / hound me down on PS or IRC and talk about how you want to set it up.

2 ) Finish each artist profile. Gonna make an effort soon to contact all those who have yet to write one, and offer to write something myself if I can't contact them / they don't know what to put there. Although the more that can put down a piece of themselves, the better, I'm a very slow writer. :(

www.smogon.com/smeargle/gallery/specialevents/santa/2014
www.smogon.com/smeargle/gallery/specialevents/santa/2015

*plays with Bummer's soul*

it's finally done!!! address post where i asked you about that thing pls. otherwise it's all finally uploaded (i think?) since snobalt updated MAC
Very cool, although my one gripe is that I'd rather see the request info before the picture, since right now you see the image first and might wonder "well, what's the context for this?", and then you read on and go "ah".
 
Sorry to be "that" person, but I was checking over parts of the hub and had some observations/suggestions I wanted to share.

The hyperlink colour used across the hub is rather pale and not very legible. Personally, I feel that the default colour looks fine, but if we're looking for a different feel, a darker shade of the same colour should work.

Another point is the side menu, which is lacking consistency at the moment. As examples, the Artist page seems to be missing some links compared to the others, and the Resources page has a green arrow icon that's absent on the other pages altogether. Lastly, I find it somewhat disorienting how the menu's title changes from page to page... instead, it could say "Smeargle's Studio" or "Navigation Menu" or even just be blank on all of them, as the web address and page heading are there to identify which page the person is on.

Forgive me if I'm a nuisance, and I hope that this can help.
 
I'd be up for doing something for the Rules and Etiquette page. Got some free time over the next weekend so that's probably when I'll get to it.

edit: didn't forget about this! I have a messy sketch done, will post a wip/ throw bummer a pm once I have actual serious progress.
 
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Litra

Desire Sensor's favorite plaything
is an Artist Alumnus
Oh, so I finally get around to doing this. I will put my profile in the hide tag and let you guys do the rest.

ZoruaID.png

As an overly angst-ridden Mewtwo in an existential crisis once said, “Who Am I?”


My name is Alice, and I am a 23-year-old (soon to be 24, but I stopped keeping track) from the United States, currently living what could be delightfully described as a cesspool of a small town in Kentucky that I will not name for privacy reasons. Aside from the obvious, my hobbies range from watching documentaries related to ancient history, various things involving the occult, pushing my friends' buttons for giggles, and overall dabbling in whatever happens to catch my fancy. My overall dream is to move out of this place to somewhere more pleasant (thinking Canada) and establish a career as an artist. My favorite Pokemon is hard to peg, but they generally fall into those that can play like tricksters while fitting the aesthetic such as Gengar, Whimsicott, and Zorua and my favorite game to date in the series is Pokemon White or Alpha Sapphire. My overall favored game is Tales of the Abyss, but Devil Survivor 2 has a chance to rival it.



My Brief Smogon Backstory


Officially, I joined the forums while the sixth generation was getting started only eight days shy of my birthday. However, I didn't really establish myself as an active member of the community (I am still not outside of chances to do art), spending most of the time lurking and posting in Orange Islands until dropping off the face of the forum some time later. When I came back, I had the equipment to do digital art and put most of my focus in Smeargle Studios (and sometimes the old Islands) until eventually becoming approved by a certain Swedish Quagsire and applying myself to the Smogon Flying Press where I would eventually become acquainted with lovely people such as anto and Tikitik. I'm not as active due to real life being as intrusive as airport security [/i]b[/i]ut I still take time to look around on PS and such.


My Art Preferences


I have a huge, huge predilection for experimentation above everything else and actually advise doing it yourself since there is a lot to gain from breaking out of your comfort zone. I have used several art programs over the years but I eventually settled with simply Paint Tool SAI and Clip Studio Paint Pro in addition to a Wacom Intuos Art Tablet. Lately, I have been taking interest in some other programs but that is another time. I will often simply put in my favorite music to tune my head out and just draw. I like to do things like paint over the lineart after merging everything to achieve a painterly vibe or go crazy and abuse layer settings between art programs to get what I want. There is no set thing I do, but I do make sure to stay consistent on quality. It's kind of long-winded but that is to be expected from not have a set-in-stone style.

Links

My Tumblr
My Twitter
 
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Andrew

beep boop
is a Top Artist Alumnus
sorry im really late to this
who am i?

28 yrs old
just moved to New Mexico
a chronic job hopper
jazz trumpet player
favorite book is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
favorite movies are the Christopher Nolan Batman Trilogy, and the Emperor's New Groove
just bought some really comfy sweat pants

Smogon Backstory?

Came to Smogon in 2013 and started drawing for the Battle Free For All thread, got hooked. Eventually started drawing Art for Articles and The Smog and various others and got an Artist badge.

Art Preferences?

clean lines, messy lines...
use FireAlpaca art program and an Intuos Pro tablet

Links?

https://twitter.com/tankingoneArt -twitter
http://tankingone.tumblr.com/ -tumblr
http://kingtankone.deviantart.com/ -dA
 

MiniArchitect

Detail Disoriented
is a Top Artist Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnus
Finally forced myself to write something down for this. Forgive me for putting it off for so long!
Who is MiniArchitect?

I’m a graphic designer and illustrator. I’m a recent college graduate, hopeful for a career in the design industry. I live the life of a hermit in an apartment on my own near Washington, DC.

As far as my investment in Pokemon, I’m not much of a battler; I never had the mental capacity to invest in learning all of the intricacies of the competitive scene. I play through the games casually, and my admiration for the franchise is predominantly expressed in my artwork.

Other fun facts include:
- My favorite game is Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
- Diglett is objectively the best pokemon
- I’m no architect, but I am pretty short

Smogon Biography

Before I ever even knew the Smogon forums were a thing, I regularly hung out in the Trivia Room on Pokemon Showdown. Over time, my friends from there began migrating over to Smogon, and I decided to follow them. Happening upon the Smeargle’s Studio forum was a pleasant surprise, and not what I would’ve expected to find in a community renowned for its competitive nature.

My first actual post on the forums was an entry to a contest for the Pokemon Showdown Art room. From there, I found it fun to look into the other artists around the forums, browse their threads, and provide some feedback where I could. I eventually found the confidence to begin contributing artwork of my own to Smogon’s various media outlets, including The Player, The Competitor, The Smog, and Pokemon of the Week posts. Inspired by the work of Zracknel, I also found Smogon a nice outlet to try my hand at logo design, and fulfilled a few different requests for teams and tournaments across the site.

Art Preferences

I’m a perfectionist, which is both a blessing and a curse.

I have a tendency to scrutinize my own work harshly, and focus in on little details to make sure everything is as perfect as I can make it. This is great for design-oriented projects, like logos and banners, in which little blemishes are easy to notice and hard to forgive, but it tends to make illustrations come along at a plodding pace. Lately, I’ve been making strides to find a happy medium between relaxation and pedantry when drawing.

My go-to tool for any serious projects is Adobe Illustrator. I have an affinity for vector graphics; working with them comes more easily to me than trying to draw on a tablet. Most of my work does, however, start out as a sketch with pencil on paper.

I do occasionally use other programs too, including Adobe Photoshop, After Effects, and Affinity Designer. When I’m not doing digital work, I’ll often use plain and colored pencils.
And the artwork to place on the page:
I'm not sure what size the pieces need to be for the portfolio, so if I need to resize them myself, go ahead and let me know!
 

ant

⭐️⭐️⭐️
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Admin Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
Sorry to be "that" person, but I was checking over parts of the hub and had some observations/suggestions I wanted to share.

The hyperlink colour used across the hub is rather pale and not very legible. Personally, I feel that the default colour looks fine, but if we're looking for a different feel, a darker shade of the same colour should work.

Another point is the side menu, which is lacking consistency at the moment. As examples, the Artist page seems to be missing some links compared to the others, and the Resources page has a green arrow icon that's absent on the other pages altogether. Lastly, I find it somewhat disorienting how the menu's title changes from page to page... instead, it could say "Smeargle's Studio" or "Navigation Menu" or even just be blank on all of them, as the web address and page heading are there to identify which page the person is on.

Forgive me if I'm a nuisance, and I hope that this can help.
i've never played with the links on a side, but I can fix 'em if no one else wants to do so!
i changed the color of the links though


www.smogon.com/smeargle/profiles/andrew Andrew feel free to share art for your profile
www.smogon.com/smeargle/profiles/litra Litra
www.smogon.com/smeargle/profiles/miniarchitect MiniArchitect
 

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