Portfolio question...

[Hoopla]

So, I would like to have something to show now. I am probably pretty far off from being hired but i would at least like to be able to point people to some of my work.

my question is, what should go up on my portfolio site? my goal is to get a job as an environmental 3d artist at one of the local game dev studios so i would assume that filling it with environments would be a good place to start but more specifically, what does that mean exactly? should i work on maybe one playable level? should i work on a set of assets that show a range of ability and style that dont necessarily go together? should i try to make mods or level for other released games like tf2 and such? i dont have a wealth of things to just plop down that i feel are relatively impressive so, i want to be at least slightly confident that im working on assets and skills that will get me closer to my goal.

any help?
anyone been thru this and come out the other end?
anyone in the same spot?

iv been going for a year now and feel like i have acquired some knowledge but i dont have much to show or it.

should i do tutorials and try to make them a bit different and try to use those as portfolio pieces?

any help is golden here, thanks in advance guys.

[Drav]

Its a tough one this, as environment artists tend to make stuff that goes in other peoples levels, or only really look good once in an engine (trees is a good example of this) Unless you make stuff solely for Crysis or unreal3 or other AAA engines, you end up with a lot of assets that arent really portfolio material. Eventually I would try and make a scene in a AAA engine. This hopefully shows off your assets well, and shows you have experience with game engines, lighting, pipelines etc...

Alternatively you can go down the fire hydrant, mailbox, dumpster route (actually dont do any of those!) of making small props that look very good. Ornate lamposts, or carved stonework is original and can be packed full of detail. This approach means you dont necessarily have to be an expert with specific game engines, which means you can get stuff finished faster.

To start with I'd make some individual assets just to flesh out a portfolio (just make ure they are detailed and a bit original!) then later make an entire scene. Marmoset would be a good idea for the single assets, and either UDK or Cryengine for the scenes.

Good luck!