Designer Kevin Franklin talks weapons, features and cheaters, at the pre-E3 PlayStation Tweet Up

I’ve had the idea of doing wide angle, unflattering portraits for a while now. It’s an interesting way to see a version of yourself. These are characters that we all have inside and some of us only see them in the bathroom mirror when you’re alone and the door is locked. To get in close and see every pore and hair, every little imperfection is a wonderful thing. People are not perfect and I’m grateful to those who are willing to share that with me.

I hope with these portraits, the subject is able to embraced their own imperfections and find humor in them. I would prefer to capture the awkward moments. The photo that is taken when someone has their eyes half open and in mid spoken word. The worst timing for a photo is what want.

With some faces, I would rather go for the extreme emotion.

The great thing is, everyone has a unique face. With every new shoot I learn what works with their face and who they are. I don’t always get it the first round, and I’m really happy that people are willing to come back for a second shoot so I can get it right.

How these portraits are done technically, is very easy.

Lens – Sigma 10-20mm

Software – Adobe Photoshop using the LucisArt 3 ED plugin for the simulated HDR look. Cross Processing and Bleach Pass done with Tiffen DFX plugin.

The hard part, and also one of the most enjoyable parts is working with the model. Trying to find that character they have inside is a lot of fun. Sometimes the character is right there and all it takes is for them to stick out their tongue! With other people I have to dig a bit deeper. I’ve only asked a couple of the people to participate in the beginning to get the ball rolling. The rest of the people in the collection have all asked me if they could participate after seeing the photos.

Quote:
“motion blur is the new lens flare.”

Years in Industry:
Just over 5 years

What do you consider prerequisites for your job?:
Being able to build ideas like lego, but allowing them to be molded like clay.

How long you’ve been at Slant Six Games?
2.5 years

Best part of the job:
Waking up each morning and knowing I get to hang out with a bunch of awesome people all day.

Morning web surf:
Shacknews and Kotaku usually for game stuff, Gamasutra and various game dev blogs for development stuff, and finally the ‘oddly enough’ section of Reuters for my news updates.

Favorite Work Perks:
Slant Six is a great company to work for, and they’ll go out of their way to try and make you happy. They are constantly try to improve the quality of life here by listening to their employees, encouraging company backed outings, to having a BBQ just because!

What do you like about Vancouver?
You couldn’t ask for a better location, than where Slant is located. Beautiful views of downtown from across the water, Granville Island a couple steps away. Umm, plus the Emily Carr University of Art + Design is really close by. And umm, those Arty girls are pretty. Yeah.

What kind of person do you need to be to work here?
The great thing about Slant is that everyone gets along so well, regardless of the type of person they are. There are no egos here, just a bunch of people sharing ideas while trying to improve themselves and the game they are working on.

What do you do for fun outside the company?
I once met a guy who thought it was really fun to run full speed into a wall with enough force to knock him out… Well, actually it was me. Um, well, actually it wasn’t fun either, I just didn’t see the wall.

What games do you play?
I love playing all sorts of games. One of my greatest pleasures though is playing a game that may be considered a ‘flop’. I love trying to figure out what went wrong and coming up with solutions that I think may have helped if they had the time to implement it.

If I weren’t working at Slant Six games I’d be:
On my own private tropical island pretending I was a survivor of Oceanic flight 815… until I got hungry and heading back to my resort when my chef would have made me a deliciously ginormous meal which I would eat with one hand on a controller.

Fruity Goodness!

In celebration of our new Wellness Program, we kicked off the morning with fresh fruit smoothies. While we all love our Pastry Fridays, this is a welcome addition to the week! Wellness is already an important initiative for the staff since many of us ride bikes, run, do yoga, play on the Slant Six hockey team, or even raise our arms with a pint glass. (That does count as exercise right?). Stay tuned for more information on this program and how we’ll be incorporating healthy options (and hopefully some more smoothie mornings) into our studio.

How many years have you been in the games industry?
Five years.

What do you consider prerequisites for your job?:
BFA , strong 3D Package and photoshop skills, experience in games, highly adaptable.

How long you’ve been at Slant Six Games?
2 years

Best part of your job?
Being Happy!! The people at slant are the best I have ever worked with. Everyone is excited by what we are doing, hard working, and fun to create with!

Morning web surf:
http://www.tastespotting.com/
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/
http://www.cbc.ca/

Favorite Work Perks:
Cypress ski passes! Can’t wait for winter!!!

What do you like about Vancouver?
I was born in vancouver…something not many can say….and there is a reason I have chosen to stay and build my career here. Every time I come back from travelling I realize how lucky we are to live somewhere that is so beautiful, clean, and outdoor oriented. Beaches and mountains…how can you beat that!?

What kind of person do you need to be to work here?
Friendly and Enthusiastic. We work together to make fantastic games. Confidant and independent in your work, knowing what you need to accomplish in the time we have.

What do you do for fun outside the company?
Paint (yes artists still use paint) ,Travel, yoga, ski, and cook

What games do you play?
WoW

If I weren’t working at Slant Six games I’d be:
A Draenei Shaman =P

How many years in the games industry?
1, after 10+ years as a Virtual Reality software engineer

What do you consider prerequisites for your job?:
MSc in Computer Science

How long you’ve been at Slant Six Games?
1 yr

Best part of the job:
You develop games! …and the company actually pays you to do this.

Morning web surf:
geenstijl.nl

Favorite Work Perks
Getting an award from the hands of none other than Seth MacFarlane (yes… the dude from Family Guy!)

What do you like about Vancouver?
The girls are prettier here

What kind of person do you need to be to work here?
You need an immature sense of humour (which is a good thing to have of course)

What do you do for fun?
Excessive speeding on a motorcycle and learning to fly a small airplane.

What games do you play?
Mercenaries

If I weren’t working at Slant Six games I’d be:
Developing Virtual Reality technology for Academia.

How many years have you been in the games industry?
- 5 years

What do you consider prerequisites for your job?
- Eye for detail, good communication skills and ability to offer solutions to problems

How long have you been at Slant Six Games?
- Almost 2 years

Best part of the job?
- Great work life balance

Morning web surf?
-Kotaku, Sportsnet and CBC

Your favorite work perks?
- Tickets to the local pro sports teams

What do you like about Vancouver?
- The weather - warm summers and mild winters… though it can be very wet

What kind of person do you need to be to work here?
- Someone who can consistently deliver results with little or no supervision

What do  you do for fun?
- Golf in the summer and hockey in the winter

What games do you play?
- I like RPGs and FPSs. Currently playing Battle Field: Bad Company

If I weren’t working at Slant Six games I’d be:
- a stay at home dad!