Quote from SkjalgExcactly, and by having two randomly placed in a garden isnt what i call funneling
Fair enough. I moved/removed the barbed wire and added displacement to the buildings edges for snow and created a little snow trim overlay as a substitute for modifying all the textures in my map 
[Blocked Image: http://danielmiede.com/scrapyard/ps_snowstorm_rc110014.jpg]
[Blocked Image: http://danielmiede.com/scrapyard/ps_snowstorm_rc110015.jpg]
Quote from duxOh thank god you lined them. I couldn't be bothered to click the link to go look.On initial inspection I'd criticise the light. The top is bright while the bottom is secluded in shadows and rather dark. I'd pitch the light down more to brighten, and liven it up some.
Your welcome 
Looks good in the thumbnails. It is a bit more courteous if you link us to the full size images though, so that we dont have to grab them off a different forum. So I hope you don't mind but i linked them here for the others.
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So for the crits:
I like the deep red color in the first screenshot, but the broken wall could use for some detail (more triangles for a more convincing break, and maybe some displacement for rubble)
I am not sure if I like the fog so much (might be the color, maybe make it more yellow/orange for sand/dust)
Third shot, can't tell what the dark area is on the ground, I am guessing its the road, but it looks odd from this angle)
The rest of the outside is looking rather nice, though some areas under the shadow seem a bit dark
Definitely love the bridge, I dont know if thats a custom model or what, but it looks great.
And for the last shot, the area where the bridge meets the displacement cliff looks a bit odd. I suggest adding a little platform it connects to, rather than stopping abruptly in the cliff.
Quote from SkjalgI think the barbed wires should go, they look out of place in the middle of the ground there.Barbed wire fences are used to block of areas not 2 feet
Well in war time, or at least in WW1, they used barbed wire to funnel enemy troops into MG fire, so they could be used to force the flow of enemy troops. I am working on desaturating the brick textures at the moment. I should have something soon.
Ahhh, I see what you mean. That's brilliant. Again, I will have to modify HL2 textures, but I think Valve has other worries.
yeah, i see what your saying. It's mainly the angle I think, but I will rotate the barbed wire anyways.
Looking cool so far. Could look better if you edited the brick textures to add snow between the bricks and do some color correction.
Yeah, I was thinking about that, but since these are mostly HL2 textures, isn't it illegal to modify them and distribute them outside of the GCF? I guess I could try creating a snow overlay. That would allow me to use it on multiple textures actually, making it a better option. Any ideas on how to give it a really cold feeling besides using Color Correction? For some reason CC doesn't work with FA:S. I made the environment lighting blue to try to give it that feel without being too saturated. I am also contemplating adding some fire to that destroyed truck to add a red/orange lighting to contrast the blue.
Here is an angle from the other side.
[Blocked Image: http://danielmiede.com/scrapyard/ps_snowstorm_rc110011.jpg]
Map I am working on for FA:S
Yeah, I should export the broken wall outline to max and make a the gradient there as well. I think it was more just laziness, didn't want to have to go through that step and was hoping people wouldnt find it too odd.
There is, but I guess I need to increase the brightness of my light spots. You can tell I have light spots in there by looking at the bottom right corner and look at the shadows. I will try upping the brightness.
Well I updated my TC_Rubble pictures to show off more of my lighting abilities.
[Blocked Image: http://danielmiede.com/images/rub/rub_2_full_danielmiede.jpg]
[Blocked Image: http://danielmiede.com/images/rub/rub_3_full_danielmiede.jpg]
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Crits?
amazingly detailed worked there. Superb.
Quote from cardoI agree with Ginger Lord but in the same way I think it gives your maps a very clean cut style that you don't always see in maps anymore. Sometimes I think levels become too cluttered with props and decals even if it does make it more 'realistic'.. but then again maybe I just miss the good ol' Quake days
Either way, awesome work!
Thank you! Although, I hope my maps don't become noticed because they lack detail and remind people of an old engine . I am also going to see if I can compile some maps of previous partial work I did for mods, just to add variety. Do you think people will want to see partially complete work?
Alright, so add more ground detail, like more props? Or do you mean brush based detail? Right now, these are older screenshots (since the maps are currently undergoing some reworking of the layout due to recent large scale testing). This is the current state of snowstorm (i had to increase the size of the middle and add additional routing).
Hey mapcore,
I haven't posted here much, mainly because I have been busy working on levels for FA:S and so its not really personal work that I can show off (even though I could definitely use some tips). Well, I am going to be applying for some temp jobs/internships for the summer and I was wondering if you could all give me some constructive criticism on my portfolio. So please, have at it.
http://www.danielmiede.com/portfolio
It would be much appreciated if you could let me know, sort of, where I am at as a level designer and how I should improve. I have some tough skin, so please be brutally honest.
very nice portfolio. Only suggestion I have right now is that on your haj_radar page, the last screenshot on the bottom right doesn't really shows barely anything. The only thing it does show is a lack of detail and bland lighting. I would recommend removing that shot since all of the other shots are beautiful.
http://www.gingerlord.co.uk/portfolio/radar.html
Reminds me that I need to make my portfolio soon.
well even subtle curves would make this stand out more. currently it is looking rather "boxy".
I agree with the above two posts. I would go even further though. Add some curves and maybe some sort of interesting mechanical arm to grab the sodas. If you are willing to add my polies, you can make the front glass see-through and have holograms of the sodas on there, while you can see the actual bottles/cans behind it along with the mechanical arm and what not. But now my imagination is taking me else where. If you just wanted to do a texture modification, just do what Skjalg proposed, and maybe make the buttons gradient across.
only suggestion, right now, would be to add lighting around those neon street signs. Other than that, its looking good.
Quote from Satyre
Wow! Those shots look great! You could definitely add some interesting lighting in that area. Like mentioned previously, either spotlights or even some fire could light that area up nicely. Or maybe some of those lamp post strewn about could still be lit.
