#the lack of things like helping with composition or how to study art correctly just art hack to save yiur loife‼️‼️‼️

[precurea3]

In my kooleen hating era....

[bobbi971]

Funny how a lot of things can change in a few years (and a few tweaks)...

This is something I drew a while back as you can see in my signature. I made this back in 2017 (I feel old now).

At that time, I really thought it was a masterpiece. Needless to say... it wasn’t. Not the worst work I produced but.... not the best, anyhow, from my perspective today. Looking back at this, the choice of clothing for my character was not great, the colours are sad and the image just hard to read. The lines are too thick and although I wanted a realistic feel, I probably took inspiration from the wrong references. Not that they were not good as artists, I just feel better with what I produce now... 

Anyhow, my point is, sometimes we think we need to change a lot of things in our art even though we don’t. There are just little things that we can change that would make us feel so much better. I remember wanting be to be like a wole lot of other artists that I used to see, so, I tried learning so many skills and followed a lot of people. Probably the reason why I gave up learning after a while. I just didn’t know how to get better and told myself that I probably just wasn’t good at art.  

Looking back at this, I realise that for me, it was just the lack of texture that made my paintings not so great. I didn’t use the correct brushes or rather, I gave up trying to use them because I found it too hard to understand. In 2017, I started grasping the notion of “textures”. Even if I tried incorporating them in various ways, my art always seemed to lack something. 

Without doing much, on the copy of the original drawing, what I did today already looks a little bit more professional and clean. All that because I finally put myself to learn how textures work and what effect I really want in my paintings. This is in no way the finished product but I was happy, by doing this quick test, to see that I’m getting better at textures and colour selection. 

It takes time to get better at something but not giving up after thousands of trials helps! So, if you’re about to give up just don’t, keep going. Find artists that help you get better. You don’t need a ton, just a select few that help you understand the notions that are hard for you. Sometimes people can repeat something a lot of times and you don’t understand, and then this one person pops up, says one word and you finally understand everything. Same thing goes for models. Watch, learn and practice. Do this even if you think you know something and if you ever feel stuck, try switching things up and going. My last advice is, don’t follow artist that are too far from what you desire to achieve. For sure, you’ll always learn a trick or two but really, a mangaka will never be able to really advise you on realism, I’m not saying that he doesn’t know about it but his style is Manga. And no matter what, if you want to get better at something, follow people who are masters at their art. If you’re into manga, follow mangakas. I’m into semi-realism and I follow semi-realistic artists because, that’s just where I’m comfortable. They’ll give me advice specific to this style of painting that I’ll be able to apply. 

Not everyone you admire deserves to be followed or be set as an example. You will always learn from them but not as much as you learn from a master of your art style.   

Here are a few artists that I’ve been following for years:

- Bluefley (or Marc Brunet): He’s my number one, I enjoy his art and his tutorials. I learned so much just watching his videos and practising what he thought ESPECIALLY when it comes to the creation of bodies and composition. 

- Sycra: Probably the best at colour theory. I loved his videos and he is the first to have thought me how to select my colours correctly. 

- David Belliveau (Paintable): I always go back to this reference because of how good the tutorials and information are. The artwork is great and the instructor is just as it. 

- Sinix Design: This one is recent. As I started back painting and looked for a few art tutorials to help me get better, I happened to stumble upon his videos. I really like his laid-back personality as well as his liberal view of art. I really got to understand colour theory and thanks to him, I understood the necessity of art study (haha). So, yeah, even if I haven’t been following him for really long (maybe just a few days- cough) his advice are definitely interesting and I’ll probably keep on following his work. 

So, overall, just keep working and learning new things to get better. Don’t limit yourself to just one artist. Get to know others and always study. I used to think that study was only about practice but it’s also about observation skills. Then application. Learn to watch and learn then apply. 

Which artist do you follow that has greatly inspired you to get better at your art?  

[brielikethecheeese]

Tee Wasn't Here

"Ugh! That’s why I don’t like your kind!” She stormed out of my room, and slammed the door behind her. Stunned, but knowing that twenty-four shocked faces were watching to see my reaction, I struggled to keep my composure. It was the first week of my first teaching job in my first classroom, and I’d just had my first run-in with a student. “Great, my first write-up” I thought grimly to myself. All I had asked her to do was write a word that described her. One word. I’d been met with neck rolls, “I don’t like people telling me what to do”, and “I don’t feel like it.” She had her reasons for her mistrust.

Unfortunately, her history with women had not been a pleasant one. Her mother was in and out of her life for thirteen years, leaving her behind with a grandmother to manipulate teenage-hood. She’d been labeled with Oppositional Defiant Disorder; she was angry, defensive, and defiant, for lack of a better word. She went to great lengths to annoy others, and seemed to take pride in stirring the pot. She walked into my classroom for the first two weeks, unprepared and unmotivated. She’d roll her eyes to the ceiling--- remind me of how ridiculous my class was, how writing was dumb, and that I think I’m better than her. She was quite the challenge.

Kids are brutal sometimes. They say mean things, sometimes on purpose and sometimes on accident. Their emotions are all over the place. Some days they like you, some days they don’t. Still, I worked very hard to make sure that my class was an enjoyable experience, constantly creating unique lessons and activities in order to cater to 96 ever-changing, adolescent personalities. I took pleasure in watching them walk in, “too cool for school”, and accidentally enjoy my class. I sang, I danced, I connected real-life issues to mandatory standards and concepts, and I had fun with them. In turn, they respected our classroom and their teacher. Tee was a different story, though. She did not find my faraway tales of my past life funny, my singing voice annoyed her, she didn’t care that my weekends were spent traveling on the road with my rock band, and no “Parts of Speech “Whip and Nae Nae” song and dance would change her mind about me. We were nearing fall break, and I felt that I had connected with every student except her. It hurt my feelings to think that she’d leave my class for the holidays with nothing—and it really pained me to know that in years, I’d be a distant memory—of someone she despised. It annoyed me so much that I spent my entire break contemplating a different approach.

It was our first day back, and I was ready. I was exhausted from six class periods before, but it was time to perform. I saddled up, poured on my loveliest persona, and stood by my door, ready to greet my less-than-eager students. “Hey Ms. Boyce, why’d we have to come back?” One questioned, rhetorically. I smiled. “Your hair looks different.” Another examined me up and down. “I was absent the Friday before we got out for break, did I miss anything?” “What are we doing today?” I took it all in. Oh, how I had missed the questions. In walked Tee, slowly, dragging her feet—she took one look at my newest wig and smirked. “Good afternoon, Tee!” I flashed my brightest smile. Nothing. She waited for the last moment to step one foot in the classroom. The tardy bell rang. She defiantly made eye contact with me, daring me to send her to the office to retrieve a tardy slip. “Excuse me”, I said in my most Disney-esque voice. I gently nudged past her and closed the door. She raised an eyebrow in surprise, as her eyes scanned my face for any trace of sarcasm. I didn’t break. “Welcome back, guys!” I sang enthusiastically. Open your journals and begin writing. I started the timer, and my kids eagerly began recounting their days spent away. She yelled out, “I don’t have a pencil.” I happily placed a brand new pencil on her desk. “Keep it.” I said. “I left my journal in the band hall, and it’s closed for the day.” That’s okay, I have extras—just for you!” The children giggled at her failed attempts to get out of work. It came time to share, and we laughed at some of the ridiculous stories being told. “Tee, would you like to share?” “No, all I wrote was I hate this school, and didn’t want to come back.” I jumped at the opportunity to play devil’s advocate. “Well, we’re glad you’re here, right everyone!” “Yeah!” They played along marvelously. She growled and her brows furrowed. “Well, I hate everyone.” She trailed off meekly, the first time I’d ever heard her sound timid about anything. I smiled to myself.

The next few weeks, I dedicated my time to spreading positivity among my classroom. If Tee yelled out something meant to bruise my ego, I’d divert my attention to someone behaving correctly. Even her tiniest efforts received my praise. I asked for twenty-seven lines, she’d give me seven. Still, I found something wonderful to brag about. My students began to catch on, and pretty soon the energy was contagious. For one journal entry, they had to choose a classmate to write nice compliments about. Everyone was excited to spread joy. Tee wasn’t. “I don’t like any of these kids”, she complained. “Well, we love you in here, and I’m writing a letter to you!” Cami assured her. That day, three students wrote letters to Tee. I watched as she lifted her head off her desk, glanced at the folded pieces of paper, distinctly marked with colors and stickers, and slipped them in her jacket pocket. “Bye,” she mumbled as she walked out of the door. The first time she’d ever spoken a kind word to me. I nodded, “Have a great day.”

It was an unspoken alliance turned game between her classmates and myself to use every opportunity to make Tee’s day. It seemed as if we were breaking ground, but still, she stubbornly held on to her negativity. Where she went, a dark, solemn, sarcastic cloud followed. One Friday, I had taken a day off to attend a new teacher conference, and returned to my classroom to see that the students had turned the white board into an art project, marking their territory with loopy shorthand, hearts, and Instagram handles. “Baylei wuz hur”, M.N. loves E.J., Have a nice weekend, Tee wasn’t here. I paused, and squinted. Were my eyes deceiving me? Nope, there it was– tucked away in the left-hand corner. Written precisely with no scribbles, no extras, simply “Tee wasn’t here.” Well, okay, I thought. It was definitely the pessimistic approach to tagging herself, but it was a presence. A very small one, but a presence, nonetheless. I smiled to myself. I had broken through a tiny crack in the foundation of hostility, aggression, and mistrust that she’d brick and mortared her life with--- but it was enough. Her walls were crumbling, and our girl was showing her Achilles’ heel.

Her vulnerability reared its ugly head when she thought her world was ending. I had been struggling to get them interested in topics, so I decided to turn a journal entry into a text conversation. I presented them with a scenario: “You’re on a plane that has crashed. You have seven minutes of battery life before the plane will be fully submerged. Send a text message to family and friends.” (5-8 lines) Most students looked for loopholes in order to live—naturally. However, Tee accepted her fate, and began writing furiously, her pencil scratching into her composition book—head down, foot tapping, and furrowed brows that cast three wrinkles across her forehead. “Beep!” “Beep!” The timer went off. “I have news to share,” I began somberly. Eager eyes followed as I slowly walked around the classroom, pausing to look sadly into each face as I allowed the silence to fill the room. “The plane has gone down. Your phones are now water-damaged. I hope that you guys can stay afloat.” A few kids gasped at the solemnness of my tone, “..for a few seconds because…”

“No… no… no… “ I heard a soft voice growing louder and louder. “Help is on the way!” I yelled flinging my arms triumphantly. A cheer rang out through the room as students realized they’d be saved and their last letters were null and void. “DANGIT MS. BOYCE!” Tee slammed her fist on the desk. “I exposed myself!” A hush fell over the room, and she buried her head in her hands. “Why did you have to save me?” I walked over to her desk, and would have laughed out loud, but I was afraid of embarrassing her. Before me was a masterpiece. “Woe is me.” It began, followed by the predicament that she had been unfortunately placed in. She’d neatly and matter-of-factly listed each person that she loved and admired, telling in great detail why they would be missed. I couldn’t help myself. “Tee, this is beautiful,” I wiped a fake tear from my eyes, as her curious classmates chanted, “share, share, share!” The corners of her mouth peaked upwards, and for the first time I saw her teeth. We have a study hall every evening for the last thirty minutes of the day. That evening, Tee poked her head in my classroom. “Can I stay with you today? I think I have some work that I need to do for you.” I didn’t recall giving out any work, but I agreed. This continued every day for about two weeks.

I recently assigned a poetry project, and she approached me for my help. “I think I’m moving soon and I want to write a poem for my best friend, Emily.” “You’re moving?” “Yeah, I’m glad,” she shrugged. “I hate it here.” There goes that wall again—I had learned by now to refocus the conversation. I helped her with her poem that day, and thought nothing more of it. I have at least one child a day tell me they "hate the school" and are "moving".

Two days ago, Tee walked in my room during my third period class. Her face was red, and her fists were clenched. Given her history, I figured she must have gotten into a fight and needed a safe place so I met her in the back by my desk. She handed me papers—“I-I-I,” she could hardly get her words out through shaky sobs. “What is it?” I glanced at the yellow and white pages before me. Printed in black ink read the words, “Official Withdrawal Form” She crumpled in my arms, and I did my best to console her. After what seemed like hours, she pulled away from me. “Be good.” I said, “You know where to find me if you need me, and please be nice to people.” She laughed, and shook her head up and down. After I signed my name, she gave me one more hug, went and fished her journal out of her class period bin, and left me with my other students.

The rest of the day went by slowly, as tearful children greeted me with the same news. The air was heavy, and our journal entries seemed dull without Tee’s commentary. When I thought about her throughout the day, I said a little prayer, hoping that something resonated with her during her time in my class. Like she’d foreshadowed that Friday on the white board, “Tee wasn’t here”, and we all missed her. This afternoon, I was cleaning and walked past my bulletin board; my eyes caught sight of a new sheet of paper that had been hung with a tack. I recognized the handwriting—but to be sure, I turned it over to see her name written neatly. A few days prior, I had asked them to find a quote that represented their struggle. She had announced, “I hate people.” I remember saying, “Well, you need to find a quote to remind to love people.” Written precisely with no scribbles, and no extras, simply,”Not everyone thinks the way you think, knows the things you know, believes what you believes, nor acts the way you would act. Remember this, and you will go a long way in getting along with people.” –Arthur Forman. I laugh at the irony of Tee embracing me for the first time on the same that day she withdrew. I could be wrong, but I think that she took more away from my class than she let on, as evidenced in the quote she chose to proudly display. She nailed it… to a tee.

#compassion #kindness #love #blog #blogger #teacher #teacherblogger #anonymous #funny

[mi5016jackheslop]

I first discovered the process of animation when I was about 7 years old. My school gave my year group a lesson using a program called 2animate and at the end of the day, when everyone had left I was still in the classroom at the PC. I was just engrossed in the couple seconds worth of moving images that I had created and couldn't pull myself away from the screen. The teachers noticed this and my parents bought me a copy of the software which quickly started to consume all my time at home. Ever since then I've been fascinated by motion and the way things move and I was especially fond of animal run cycles. In recent years 3D animation has really caught my eye and more specifically photoreal CGI. Being convinced that something totally impossible was actually filmed and not just added with software in post truly fascinates me. In this video I'll be discussing lighting and compositing. These are a couple aspects of the VFX pipeline that I have only recently started to understand the importance of and some of the skills required to find a job in these areas of the industry. I also will use the techniques I learn about to try and create my own VFX composition.

The first job that I'd like to address is that of the VFX supervisor. One of the key roles of the VFX supervisor is to ensure that the filmmakers have an appropriate set up while recording the initial photography to save time and money or so that it won't require weeks of prep/paint afterwards in the rotoscoping or retouch departments before advancing further down the pipeline. What interests me most about this position though is the lighting reference they take care of. When filming a shot that will contain VFX a matte grey ball and a shiny chrome ball is commonly used. The grey ball is used to help the cgi artist understand the light direction, intensity, temperature and to gauge how harsh the shadows should be. To achieve this the artist would recreate the matte ball in cg and by comparing it with the image of the real one try to replicate the lighting conditions in the software with those that were present on set during filming. Once correct the light would then be applied to the model. The chrome ball however is used to understand how reflections are picked up on certain materials such as the shiny metal on a vehicle or something similar. It is also replicated in cg and is used to align what is known as an environment light or HDRI. This is basically a 360 degree photo that encompasses the 3D scene to give the models realistic reflection and lighting. The VFX supervisor decides where the balls should be placed and whether or not to move them during filming based on differences in light around the set. Some claim that it's old fashioned but from what I've seen many directors still prefer to use these quick and easy methods of lighting reference. A Macbeth chart usually accompanies the two spheres but this is used as reference for consistent colour correction rather than for lighting.

One of the best movies I can think of that shows brilliant use of lighting was the first Transformers movie. Scenes like this where you'll notice in the fog the light being blocked by Bumblebee, very cool stuff. Or how in this scene not only is the environment being reflected off Optimus but also Sam and Mikaela are reflected here. I couldn't find information on how they did this scene specifically but usually when you needa subject like people for example in a reflection they are usually filmed from the required angle or are actually modelled, textured and animated. This method can produce much better results if done well but is much more costly and time consuming. I also like how the animators matched the movement of Optimus's legs to move behind Sam exactly as he blocks the light. Little things like this are often planned by the vfx supervisors sometimes even at the time of filming to make things in post easier.

During my research I came across Erik Winquist, a VFX supervisor who I found particularly inspiring. He graduated Ringling College of Art and Design with a degree in computer animation and started his career in 1998 when he was hired as an assistant animator at Pacific Data Images. Fast forward a few years and he's working at Weta Digital and has been involved in the making of huge films such as The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, War for the Planet of the Apes, Peter Jackson's King Kong, Avatar and many more. He claims that every show is completely different from the last and as a result a lot of problem solving is required, especially when you have no idea how you're going to accomplish an end goal at the outset. Erik says he and his team are constantly jumping in and out of Maya and always have a Nuke session open for one thing or another. This brings me onto my next point, compositing.

Compositing in its simplest form is combining multiple assets that were created seperately into one scene to make it seem like it was all shot together. One of the challenges a compositor must deal with is the tracking of the clean plate. This is so that the digital camera within the animation software is moving around the model in a way that matches the tracker footage. There are a number of softwares that can be used to track a camera through 3D space, After Effects, SynthEyes and 3DEqualizer just to name a few. I'm going to focus primarily on Nuke though later in the video since it was mentioned by Erik Winquist and is easily accessible.

I was encouraged to try and utilise the knowledge and techniques that I've been researching and give 3D compositing a shot myself. If I take the necessary steps it should allow me to bridge the gap between 3d animation and the real world.

So first thing I did was take a simple video with as little shake or movement as I could manage so that Nuke would be able to track it easily. The software tracks specific points on the footage and uses the data to calculate a 3D space and the movements of a camera through this space.

This is a character I created who's supposed to be made from a material with similar properties to diamond or glass. I chose him to be my Guinea pig in this particular experiment because I thought his transparency would react with lights in interesting ways. Within Maya I created square lights above the model in the same formation as those within the room I filmed in to make the lighting as accurate as I could. Despite this you'll never really be able to perfectly replicate the lighting conditions without recreating the environment within Maya to simulate how the light actually bounces around the setting.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to capture a great quality environment light. HDRI stands for high dynamic range image and is basically an image that shows a greater range in luminance levels compared to a standard image by reducing the loss of detail in the highlights and shadows. This is often achieved by creating a blend of several images that were taken at different exposures. I only had my phone and an app I downloaded to help create the image so it didn't turn out great. Not that this matters much though since I'm just using this as an opportunity to learn more about VFX processes and on top of that I didn't know how to correctly apply the hdri image to the scene and I encountered quite a few render problems while trying to work around this. In the end I decided to just render out what I had and this is the result. Unfortunately as you can see the model doesn't look convincingly embedded with the image. I assume this is partly due to the absence of environment lighting or the lack of scratches and imperfections on the model that you would expect to see on a real object which would otherwise reflect light differently. I actually think biggest reason though is the noise levels of the plate versus that of the clean model. The contrast really ruins it for me. At the end of the day though I got to experiment with some new software and while I don't yet have access to all the necessary tools that are required to create the convincing VFX shots I'm after I still think it was a decent first attempt. I'm excited for next semester to learn more about compositing.

Now what to possibly do with all these newfound skills? While researching career paths I tried to stay away from the hugely successful, international companies like Weta Digital or ILM and look for smaller, more local and UK based companies. I came across a company called Milk which I'd never actually heard of but was suprised to discover that they're an award-winning independent vfx company based in London that have worked on TV shows and movies such as Doctor Who, The Martian and The Chronicles of Narnia to name a few. They are currently advertising a lot of available roles at the studio, one of which being compositors. Some of the qualifications they list to become a compositor include a good working knowledge of Nuke, a degree in related fields of film, communications and art, and ideally at least two years experience in feature films. Some interesting statistics about the industry include Closer to home still is the company...

I've often thought about how an independent career away from a studio might play out. There were several guest speakers who came in to talk to the animation department over the semester about possible roads to go down when searching a career. At the moment not many interested me but the one that stood out was James Beavers. He created a YouTube channel mainly focused on gaming with over 2.5 million subscribers. What's interesting though is he studied the animation course at Northumbria university as well and has gone on to create this really sucessful channel. Owning a popular YouTube channel has always been something I thought was pretty cool and it made me think of alternative career paths that I could go down. Another YouTube channel that I'm fond of is Corridor. They have actually taught me a considerable amount of what I know about VFX and they make videos like this, similar to what I could one day produce with the knowledge and skills I develop.

[ddinvestresearch]

Interview with Nines

What does success as an artist mean to you? When will you class yourself as successful?

 I guess many people may consider being a successful artist as being a famous or popular artist. Certainly it is an attractive achievement. But when you start working as an artist, at least in my experience, being a successful artist means make a living with your art, not to be well-known. That's in my opinion. Starting studying arts may be an exciting dream coming into truth but as soon as you approach to real labour world, the frustration starts to consume you. Because it is hard, really hard. There are not many jobs, there are many artists, you usually need to be freelance and it's really difficult to live doing arts. Because it is not well-paid usually, clients doesn't realize how much does it worth. Because lack of work or industry (here in Spain specially, art is not the best option to get a job). Because you need to be the best. Very best. Many great artists may not found a proper work even with an amazing portfolio. Many artists may dream working in Pixar or Blizzard. But the reality is that not everybody can do that dream job, and getting popular or living off of that popularity it is not easy to reach.

 I don't know how to be popular, neither successful as famous artist. But I know how to be hard worker and professional. Although luck helps a lot too to get a job, life it is not really fair even if you are doing every step correctly and doing your very best. Not always. But sometimes may work, not giving up and trying with patience and a lot of effort. Contacts also help. If people know how do you work, you are not just a good quality artist but a responsible worker, efficient, resolute and professional, they may count on you for work.

 Nowadays I am finally working as artist freelance, supplier for an advertising agency after trying so hard, improving my art and professional skills, getting experience and being trusted by workmates who tested me with some work in a tight deadline. I guess I passed the test. My “dream” job would have been working for videogames as concept artist, for example. But working as freelance illustrator and being finally paid as I deserved may make me think that I have been succesful as an artist as I can live from my drawings, even if they are in the shadow.

 And, what do you invest into your work? Is it just money, or is it your time, further education and research?

 There's a lot of sacrifice to work in arts. It may depend on the artist, in people. Some may need a lot of studies, some may learn on their own. Some may have a better skill than others. But it may be really similar in the end, in general. In my case, for example, there are a lot of invest: money, time, education, research and a lot of will and work, I may add. I've been all my life drawing because it was my passion, but I never thought about it as a job or professional way. I studied  Audiovisual Communication Bachelor Degree at University for four years, where I could learn about graphic design, image composition, visual narrative skills etc, and then I studied, meanwhile I was working as graphic designer, Graphic, Artistic and Digital Creation private degree – ESDIP (Professional Drawing Superior High School), for another four years. I had a lot to improve and learn about drawing as art in those years. But all my little salary was just for my education, so I couldn't earn a penny for myself, just it was an inversion for my studies.

 So, for now we can see there's a lot of money and time and education invest. I finished my studies in 2014 and I was really looking forward to improve my career and salary getting an good art job. But my applications weren't successful in that time, meanwhile I had to work a lot and being really bad paid as graphic designer (some laboral explotation in Spain it is sadly the “usual” thing since economic crisis). During that time I collaborated in some indie games for free, and I tried to do some commissions and freelance works too, for illustration and 3D, not earning so much, but never giving up and improving my skills.

 I left my graphic designer work in the starting of 2016, and from that time until now I had good and bad experiences: bad paid freelance work, 4 dream months working as 2D artist for a unsuccessful smartphone videogame, being unemployed and sending a bunch of portfolios to everything related to arts or design... I was certainly desperate. Until I got this unbelievable chance, because I was so pessimist that I couldn't believe I would ever earn more tan 1000€ per month. And now I get paid enough to live as a decent human being.

 So, since I finished University (2009), until now (2018) there's been about 9 years:  5 years of art, 3D and design learning and working in the meantime, and after that another 4 years of self-improvement since I finished art school in 2014, doing several freelance work, self work to test myself and improve my skills and speed, with some temporaty good works in the meantime. May sound really frustrating, but I bet some people were luckier than me and they may got their “stable” well-paid art job sooner. But at least this is my experience.

 Furthermore, there's a lot more to pay as freelance! It depends on the country, but you sure need to pay your freelance fee and taxes, beside your equipment among other expenses.

 After all this, well, if you can reach it then it is because you really love being artist and you don't defeat yourself until getting it after a really hard way. I would like to sound more opptimistic but the reality is that it is bit hard sacrifice to reach your successful art “dream” job. Anyway, if you want to, you may get it. Just don't give up and keep working hard. That makes the difference of (humble) success.