tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3243913446899430702024-03-04T20:15:34.458-08:00Blog of DoodyEDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-67209258438909697052013-02-06T07:49:00.001-08:002013-02-06T07:49:48.698-08:00Thesis: Crunch TimeToday marks the middle of week 9 for RIT's 10 week winter quarter. For me, and many of my classmates, this is time of panic. Our thesis project will be due in 2 weeks on the Friday of finals week. Over the quarter I have been far from efficient in updating my blog. There has been a massive amount of work done on the female character, taking her from an incomplete, round headed model to the more finalized, rigged, and spunky character she currently is. Contrary to the dates of the images I have uploaded, she did not take as long as it may seem. The character has been ready for a number of weeks, but my focus on her shifted to proper rigging instead of rendering her out.<br />
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With all of that said, let us look to the future: what work is left and what will be delivered? For the final I intend to have<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Turntables of the two characters posed</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">High Quality renders of each character (an updated version of the renders on my blog)</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Short animation of the female character performing a number of motions with dynamic hair and clothing (rendered and playblast for presentation purposes) </span></span></li>
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With these available at my presentation, I will be able to sufficiently sell my work, not only as a design challenge, but a technical study of techniques used for the advanced dynamics of a production character. I am well on my way to completing these tasks, but it will still prove to be a rough few weeks. With my goals set, the remaining work can be easily broken down.<br />
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<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Male Character - </span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Any remaining clean up and refinement of texturing, materials, and fine details. </span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Render higher quality single image</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Render high quality of posed turntable</span></span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Female Character (a majority of the remaining work) - </span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Any remaining clean up and refinement of texturing, materials, and fine details.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Re-render high quality solo image</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Render high quality of posed turntable</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Re-targeting found animations onto the skeleton of the female character</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Refine cloth movement based on the desired appearance of the materials.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-size: small;">Render the dynamic animations.</span></span></li>
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In terms of my thesis's direction, I am happy with the path that it took. My original plan was to focus on a single character, his quality, usability, and refinement. The project has deviated somewhat from the original plan, taking on a second character in exchange for some of the more specific skeletal tools like blend shapes and an even more in depth rigging and control system. However, the core of the project remains the same, a usable, refined character study of stylized design and advanced dynamics. With 2 characters the project sells itself far better. This refined form of project produced work that can be more easily seen and appreciated while accomplishing all the rigging needs I currently require. Hopefully I am able to deliver on everything that I have planned.<br />
<br />EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-78232045756929302152013-02-06T02:02:00.001-08:002013-02-06T02:02:46.310-08:00"Rise" : a Frank Frazetta Tribute<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcClKm-TGyCHJ4YNi9YD2Y0lAW3ZF0xS9n0bxxtKmBCxfedumCqFDf7jBQS6N_RQO6Sr6Ay1Em9Ti76p4XJpCM4Qa14mGkemoWak5sTYg3RjLvE_C6UsjnwrIfQiWcCq7J0k5qmCPwBhWX/s1600/Doody-Frazetta.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcClKm-TGyCHJ4YNi9YD2Y0lAW3ZF0xS9n0bxxtKmBCxfedumCqFDf7jBQS6N_RQO6Sr6Ay1Em9Ti76p4XJpCM4Qa14mGkemoWak5sTYg3RjLvE_C6UsjnwrIfQiWcCq7J0k5qmCPwBhWX/s640/Doody-Frazetta.png" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-31066671222953598942013-01-30T10:18:00.001-08:002013-01-30T10:18:19.910-08:00Thesis: The Female Character<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPAIhAh0tX5gvwQ0r3j_RMmbDXWp_marH0ir2Yd2TgceTuwSskyjlvO9dryJEZ826oey6o0XUXd-MqWJ1Y0295j8uyzfBnPXReIMZEzEVKkTaCkPz4FAtphgFCL7BwxvkmofNL24osPGq2/s1600/Female_Week8.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPAIhAh0tX5gvwQ0r3j_RMmbDXWp_marH0ir2Yd2TgceTuwSskyjlvO9dryJEZ826oey6o0XUXd-MqWJ1Y0295j8uyzfBnPXReIMZEzEVKkTaCkPz4FAtphgFCL7BwxvkmofNL24osPGq2/s640/Female_Week8.png" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-49176618359548846702012-12-19T03:29:00.000-08:002012-12-19T07:49:27.540-08:00Thesis: The Female Model<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLeXaQ2omunJ_S9RsjZKTyR_dhajm6Zxcs7K6D8B0xa8QTg3tKF2zSvBFNc4eJM6jS3ONjRFOtrCGs0FhJ42weHrxhaQjZgsu9U7w4Kbr8cwCaFg1oC0y3s4JAH2KYU_zcrTwm5wI3wiEk/s1600/FemaleTestRender3Large_ColorBright.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLeXaQ2omunJ_S9RsjZKTyR_dhajm6Zxcs7K6D8B0xa8QTg3tKF2zSvBFNc4eJM6jS3ONjRFOtrCGs0FhJ42weHrxhaQjZgsu9U7w4Kbr8cwCaFg1oC0y3s4JAH2KYU_zcrTwm5wI3wiEk/s640/FemaleTestRender3Large_ColorBright.png" width="433" /></a></div>
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<br />EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-72165959998468197732012-12-13T06:03:00.002-08:002012-12-13T06:03:38.556-08:00Thesis: An Overdue UpdateHello readers!<br />
This post is long overdue. When last quarter ended I was completely unable to find the time to blog. After that, the idea of actually blogging became increasingly difficult because of the compounding backlog of things I needed to blog about, but here we go. <br />
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<u>The End of Part 1:</u><br />
Last quarter ended a number of weeks ago, right before Thanksgiving break. I managed to create a render of my character before that point. His pose is only temporary, as well as his rig.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw4MJAV5unBydkZFghrnulcHjGJVsozgH7YPtmXQFhyObCjDkdUfETQzdc42rYNKvnB8fHNQTCbJK_yu650MB_WIIajEyXSH4YsrO5WMBrN5eugX3hmfx7sZNwHT1deVYmYsKTqp35I-qK/s1600/ThisisWeek10Render2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw4MJAV5unBydkZFghrnulcHjGJVsozgH7YPtmXQFhyObCjDkdUfETQzdc42rYNKvnB8fHNQTCbJK_yu650MB_WIIajEyXSH4YsrO5WMBrN5eugX3hmfx7sZNwHT1deVYmYsKTqp35I-qK/s400/ThisisWeek10Render2.png" width="225" /></a></div>
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The image come out fairly well, but he definitely still needs work, textures on the shoes, smaller details like buttons, skin texture to add some life to his face, etc. The thesis midway presentation went decently, but I was called out on a lack of direction for the project, which was a valid argument. This project has always been larger than the 20 week class allotted for. The character is only part of a much larger project and because of that I have always been uncertain which direction I would be going in the time allowed; more rigging, more characters, or more environments for him to populate. I was also attempting to learn and use a number of advanced techniques and was uncertain of how long they would take.<br />
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<u>Thesis Part 2: </u><br />
For all the reasons I previously stated, I have changed up my timeline for the second half of this project. Originally, my plan was to focus on more advanced rigging and some animation for the end of the term. Making some adjustments, cutting back on the idea of a completely polished rig and facial blend shapes, I have taken the first 3 weeks to create a second character, a female character. She was a character slated for after the 10 weeks, but she should fit in more appropriately now. Her presence helps in a number of ways: a second character is a more easily measure deliverable, she compliments the first character as a set, and helps focus on my preferred aspect of 3D - the design and modeling. <br />
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The female character is proportionately similar to the male and stylized the same. Her personality can best be described as "spunky" and i hope to capture that. I have reworked the facial topology to work better with the expressions I hope to achieve from these character. Her model is almost finished, and I hope to have a render up by this weekend. If I am unable to get her the quality I am hoping for, she will push into week 4 and I have the Winter break for making up lost time. EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-86136482015100756332012-10-24T05:46:00.003-07:002012-10-24T05:46:57.499-07:00Thesis: The ClothingWith the hair a decent place a week ago, this last work week I turned to the clothing of the character. I was having second thoughts about my original designs, but came to like them once again. A change I did end up making was the general size of the clothing. I want them to appear large and baggy on the character. I want him to roll up his sleeve only to have it slip down again over his hands. Where the model currently stands, I need to simply scale up the shirt a little more.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnb4UbWf_xuNyN6lmfN0_wpasW-4m97-RO6W1BNkNHL0XctzaAnbt7ji9GPXwWIaxdpBr5d9iEkttZJ8r6d2oxGNhj4g8Cbe5e9K6bSo7JKAWTb5piQkKflSIB4JFTv8MPjNIVJJ9znRhN/s1600/started+clothing.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnb4UbWf_xuNyN6lmfN0_wpasW-4m97-RO6W1BNkNHL0XctzaAnbt7ji9GPXwWIaxdpBr5d9iEkttZJ8r6d2oxGNhj4g8Cbe5e9K6bSo7JKAWTb5piQkKflSIB4JFTv8MPjNIVJJ9znRhN/s320/started+clothing.png" width="254" /> </a></div>
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Yes, he is missing his shoes. I am slightly stuck on what style of shoes he should be wearing. Sneakers, boat shoes, white, black, brown, I am just uncertain of what will tie into his appearance (most likely just sneakers given his younger age.) As for clothing dynamics I am also at a bit of an uphill battle. I have been searching to no avail for anyone who has any hints for how to properly do clothing deforms on a character without adding hundreds of hours of cloth dynamic cache calculation. I am still looking into it and will get back to you when I get over that hurdle. I will probably be able to figure out the clothing dynamics thanks to the hair dynamics, which are a lot of fun to play with. </div>
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The other task I have decided to tackle this week is Zbrush. With the clothing modeled, I wanted to start sculpting the details in the fabric. I have only used ZBrush once before and that was years ago. Traditionally I use Mudbox for all of my sculpting needs, but the bottom line is that Zbrush simply offers more. It has been a program I have always wanted to get into but never had the drive to devote my time to a completely different interface. First impressions: I hate it. Zbrush's user interface is increadibly illogical from a 3D movement standpoint to a generic program standpoint. Its layout is oddly set up, models are not models but tools, and its difficult to move around an object - a feature that is extremely important to a sculpting program. Second impressions: I really like it a lot. Its interface may still be odd, but with the addition of a plug-in called ZSwitcher my moving troubles have been solved. ZSwitcher is a third party plug-in to Zbrush that instantly changed the movement scheme to that of Maya or Unity, the programs I use the most. It downloads fast and installs incredibly easily. It does cost 30 bucks, but they have a 30 day free trial that I just started. I would highly recommend this route to anyone who uses Maya often and is interested in ZBrush. With that problem solved I could finally start some sculpting, and Zbrush does a phenomenal job at that. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwxWbj2npD0PCwvqDsRZyrqMFYo8A0se4-45Xgd7-8pUtXtWETrcbsT2in-eC-DTLpuKTi0D70nUq5c4qf1eUiOj6aJ3COFXhzfvk727l1O49INNOeAizfRh_3QX6831XeHB50ttmqA_Hp/s1600/started+sculpting.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwxWbj2npD0PCwvqDsRZyrqMFYo8A0se4-45Xgd7-8pUtXtWETrcbsT2in-eC-DTLpuKTi0D70nUq5c4qf1eUiOj6aJ3COFXhzfvk727l1O49INNOeAizfRh_3QX6831XeHB50ttmqA_Hp/s320/started+sculpting.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is just the start point of the shirt sculpting. It still needs a large amount of work, but the speed of that work is increasing rapidly as I learn the tools better. Once the larger wrinkles are in I will be adding stitching and seems. One particular tutorial I was watching showed an easy way to develop your own seamless brushes in Zbrush for designing your own stitch. I should be able to create a few high quality stitch brushes to use on the shirt and pants to give them the look I want.</div>
EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-70077827223203433712012-10-15T07:44:00.003-07:002012-10-15T07:44:45.459-07:00Thesis: The ProgressIt's been a long time, you monster. This post is Long overdue. It is currently the start of week 7, and my last post was the start was way back at the end of week 4 so I have some updates for you readers. For week five we needed a design document and a presentation. The design doc is primarily a collection of pre-production work, what is our thesis project, what research have we done, what are our inspirations, what our initial designs look like, what our schedule is, and where are we so far. I focused on my research into what makes a good character in an animated short, what gives them appeal, and why we as an audience root for them. My document also went into my plans and my progress showing sketches and blocking models. Hopefully I can add a link to download the doc as a PDF on here, I will update that as soon as I look into how. <br />
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Since the middle of week 5 I have been able to get down to the fun parts, actually doing the project. I have been focusing on the head of my model, the shape, the finer details, the general refinement. I was slightly under the weather week 6 and a bit over worked at my job, putting in around 45 hours on top of classes and this project so I did not get in as much work as I would have liked, but I managed to get through the work (sans blogging it would seem). I have been doing a large amount of technical research, reading blogs and watching tutorials, and have been having a lot of fun doing it.<br />
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I have been looking into hair that can be dynamic and attractive. I started with a hood like shape made of lofted surfaces to get the general concept of how I want the hair to sit on the characters head. From there, I drew CV curves onto the surfaces. Those curves were then made into paint effects shapes to increase the number of curves, add thickness, and add some more natural layers of hair. Next, those paint effects were made back into surfaces, and then back to curves once again, giving me a large amount of curves to work with. I created a hair system and applied it to my newly made curves and started to play with the settings of the hair.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFmlwn7ydu024b7ChVKByv_Q6lUm9xT2I8ozq7QwnSTKPCDvmS1Out7PD34MpBRND9pt00dqnsjRViAVYRRg0Kk1OTMkzE3iVW1NwVG7RLRPi7FtojAmrsVNel-TttYe8T7f4rhb9qwOBS/s1600/SkinHairEyesRender.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFmlwn7ydu024b7ChVKByv_Q6lUm9xT2I8ozq7QwnSTKPCDvmS1Out7PD34MpBRND9pt00dqnsjRViAVYRRg0Kk1OTMkzE3iVW1NwVG7RLRPi7FtojAmrsVNel-TttYe8T7f4rhb9qwOBS/s400/SkinHairEyesRender.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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The results were not too bad. This is definitely the more realistic style I am leaning towards. I need to introduce some additional messiness to it as it is currently too clean and neat (specifically on the right hand side ) as well as clean up the back some. The color is not bad, but I may need to make it slightly less red. The good part about the Maya hair system is how easily I will be able to make it dynamic, even though calculating those dynamics may take a while. Hopefully along with a HQ character render by the end of this quarter I can also get a short animation of his head moving to show the dynamics.<br />
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So along with the modeling (nicely modeled ear for example) and hair, I have been researching into skin rendering. The above image is a solid start for me to work off of. The subsurface scattering is currently a little too heavy as the algorithm scale conversion is at 8, what it should be around 10-12. This essentially means that too much light is shining through the characters body. His ears are too red because the scale is too small and too much light shines through. I foresee a problem with his cartoon style that may require two skin materials with different scale conversions as his hands will only be slightly thicker than his ear. <br />
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I got slightly off course with my schedule, working on hair and skin before finishing the cloths of the model. Because I was never completely confident in the clothing design of my character, I haven't been able to commit myself to finishing the clothing models. My quarrels with the design seem to have calmed a bit more so I will likely be moving forward with those this week.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-78822729718015174502012-09-26T03:32:00.000-07:002012-09-26T03:32:28.053-07:00Thesis: The Blocking ModelThis week, with many aspects of pre-planing getting to their final stages, I started to work in Maya. What I was creating is known as a blocking model for my character. A blocking model is relatively basic and used to establish the general shapes and sizes of what a modeler is trying to create. This helps us get a feeling for what the final model or scene will look like. I started with very basic shapes to get the size and placement of head, torso, arms, and legs all based off of my original drawings. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-hnqiX41ECgMgAyzC8mW10RCHXH2la7Qt54R_w-5Jd31P4k8AC2bqMUloRMsk1fGHrkCZkr6zAcLlJo5-uk3XOHq7Clwaf7oJg8M9MI_OGwQQQ8j5CaJWBNbJ6o1hQwdq5_bKhEEZS1ts/s1600/Blocking+Model+Screen.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-hnqiX41ECgMgAyzC8mW10RCHXH2la7Qt54R_w-5Jd31P4k8AC2bqMUloRMsk1fGHrkCZkr6zAcLlJo5-uk3XOHq7Clwaf7oJg8M9MI_OGwQQQ8j5CaJWBNbJ6o1hQwdq5_bKhEEZS1ts/s320/Blocking+Model+Screen.png" width="320" /></a></div>
Once I had my shapes and placement established, I pulled away at the primitive objects and added in more and more detail. The image above is the more detailed result. This is slightly beyond the blocking stages and into the actual modeling stages: connecting body parts, adding hands, creating a detailed head. Setting up the primitives helped me get the shape of the body to better proportions. <br />
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This is far from a final model. The body took between 4-6 hours and represents the boys body under his clothing. Hopefully I can get his clothing to drape around his body well. The face took closer to 9 or 10 hours. Traditionally I model in a realistic style. It is shockingly difficult to create a stylized head that is not "scary beyond all reason." Much of that 10 hours was just slight sculpting back and forth. The slightest changes to the model would make it look far better, or drastically worse; it is not a style I am accustomed to. The head still needs a fair amount of refinement, and the body is still closer to a boxing model. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfrrmXaRKEPRzgNUBt5dPiJD9c4keD3V37rtTHOF8SfEqNI8kW1jXjrG9QQTv-HdhkFJ6E-4f9lLle1KK9YkB1cxxeLt_1Eqi9iFuHZw_NDEOzWWTv0Jq66ZKFUB06VrLknahqUKQLl7Ve/s1600/Blocking+Model+Colored.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfrrmXaRKEPRzgNUBt5dPiJD9c4keD3V37rtTHOF8SfEqNI8kW1jXjrG9QQTv-HdhkFJ6E-4f9lLle1KK9YkB1cxxeLt_1Eqi9iFuHZw_NDEOzWWTv0Jq66ZKFUB06VrLknahqUKQLl7Ve/s200/Blocking+Model+Colored.png" width="200" /></a></div>
I was so uncertain of the way my model was turning out that I decided to test if my character had become a hideous monster, an abomination, a crime against humanity. To test his appearance, I took the image of the model into photoshop, used the hair layer from the initial drawing, and added some color to simulate what his skin may eventually look like. The results to this test are shown in the image to the right. It seems there is hope for him yet. This gives me a good idea of what changes need to be made to the model in order to get the look I desire.<br />
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Week Breakdown<br />
Body - 5 Hours<br />
Head - 10 hours<br />
Blog - 2 Hours<br />
Research/Planning/Design Docs - 2 hours <br />
EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-82262637117158773082012-09-16T15:19:00.000-07:002012-09-16T15:32:58.333-07:00Thesis: The Character<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhci9YCVYvB5TIbTDYUdeaI-gX13-YkmtDp8eGaVqhoasgCp0ldEGNki0lSrSprJytVgcueTXR_8EYHW-lx80Mutxi2NJctjnEFwOaHqmdiD1aRvcdbUyl3948soqmJgT7F9qQMLW__4u2y/s1600/Character+Painting3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhci9YCVYvB5TIbTDYUdeaI-gX13-YkmtDp8eGaVqhoasgCp0ldEGNki0lSrSprJytVgcueTXR_8EYHW-lx80Mutxi2NJctjnEFwOaHqmdiD1aRvcdbUyl3948soqmJgT7F9qQMLW__4u2y/s640/Character+Painting3.png" width="378" /></a></div>
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<br />EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-69197174700027449562012-09-16T13:56:00.001-07:002012-09-16T14:09:56.440-07:00Thesis: Inspiration Images<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHbkaJ9jK1o6Q1Krpppj-2xg1rFHhPxp_c9OuTqxMXkx3Pye4RvmYrEE7k1ptC9e91UiKUqSNnFE0IP55kCfL3eGSPyk3BUQRFNq0kGUoZGjt80dnyP_vNBea29SofNDZNI5be2kBIgHV7/s1600/La+Luna+1024_2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHbkaJ9jK1o6Q1Krpppj-2xg1rFHhPxp_c9OuTqxMXkx3Pye4RvmYrEE7k1ptC9e91UiKUqSNnFE0IP55kCfL3eGSPyk3BUQRFNq0kGUoZGjt80dnyP_vNBea29SofNDZNI5be2kBIgHV7/s640/La+Luna+1024_2.jpg" width="640" /></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtxD3lre1t5MtgiYbfgYUYaiiDElXJ4aIcIRFOfdRxqzcmkNiSyI2__pzgQCrl6E8Or0NlFgMb1D433AmtjjHVdWkYnXn883yR1uXNtuBM_MYrnbKG1YeNa59TFyHRGd4fkTdNN8fGe-iS/s1600/How+to+Train_Small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtxD3lre1t5MtgiYbfgYUYaiiDElXJ4aIcIRFOfdRxqzcmkNiSyI2__pzgQCrl6E8Or0NlFgMb1D433AmtjjHVdWkYnXn883yR1uXNtuBM_MYrnbKG1YeNa59TFyHRGd4fkTdNN8fGe-iS/s200/How+to+Train_Small.jpg" width="163" /></a>One
of the largest inspiration on the design of my characters come from the
most recent animated short from Pixar, "La Luna" (Shown at the top and
bottom of the post). In the short, a small boy sets out on a job with
his father and grandfather. Through the short, the boy gains confidence
and obtains a new level of individuality and personal understanding. The
young boys wide set eyes, soft lighting, and variety of facial
expression create a cute, relate-able, underdog of character that the
audience feels for. This is the overall feeling I hope to create with my
own.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsMG1Cdm6m9XIODucVoZShrpiuDG1sNhjmLPVctZibs1aR7ofbxJxrnPUU8AMfEPfXCykEmZ-EVuYUEFoOVSQX42NkLNhId-QMATajiR2_-DN4cOOueMmFP24Iyuv7ZGwWHwl6oaQ4mw5/s1600/Lightning_Small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsMG1Cdm6m9XIODucVoZShrpiuDG1sNhjmLPVctZibs1aR7ofbxJxrnPUU8AMfEPfXCykEmZ-EVuYUEFoOVSQX42NkLNhId-QMATajiR2_-DN4cOOueMmFP24Iyuv7ZGwWHwl6oaQ4mw5/s200/Lightning_Small.jpg" width="163" /></a>Although
I intend to use a similarly proportioned character, the "La Luna"
characters use modeled hair rather than hair physics. Even though its
far more difficult and may take me some time to get right, I plan on
creating more realistically rendered hair. The image on the left comes
from Deamworks full length feature, "How to Train Your Dragon." The
movie was stylized, but had very high quality rendered hair. It also
doesn't the main character of move, Hiccup, has a hair style similar to
the one I imagine for my protagonist.<br />
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<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3M1bBHGKI52rNvsmOczpdAzZAuo68jUozEiOcSZ6ksYhGGdWLb9CiE3ppAymsMxD4p__ObZpbmrCSUj5iwVDBmzqfvF215d5YZaKReibV1u3Mggr5ii4w0YDm_ZOjo8EnxXdh_Sq4FUPM/s1600/Tangled_Small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3M1bBHGKI52rNvsmOczpdAzZAuo68jUozEiOcSZ6ksYhGGdWLb9CiE3ppAymsMxD4p__ObZpbmrCSUj5iwVDBmzqfvF215d5YZaKReibV1u3Mggr5ii4w0YDm_ZOjo8EnxXdh_Sq4FUPM/s200/Tangled_Small.jpg" width="163" /></a>The hair style of my character is more important than just the appearance of the character.
By having the hair in front of his face, he can hide his gaze from
others. This is a tactic used to display the insecurities of a
character. It is used to display his low self esteem and self
questioning. This is the root of the of the characters inability to be
creative. The image on the right is from the video game Final Fantasy
XIII and is another example of high quality rendered hair. <br />
<br />
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In terms of skin, my characters will have softly lit skin using subsurface scattering. This style of skin has been used since
the first toy story. It gives a softness to the character and to the
animation that I want my film to have. The Disney film Tangled, shown
left, also displays the type of softness of hair and skin I hope to
obtain. The movie is more stylized to the tone of a traditional hand drawn animation given the company's history.
This created a clean, soft, bright tone with expressive characters.
Tangled, being a movie entirely centered around a girl with long hair, is another great example of rendered hair. <br />
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=324391344689943070" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisyINusIjWyaLIXCIbblJcUcDDEtK_D56c_0n9IU4nHa9ten1vIn3r9L3Dl6UJPGFzIVOp4qx_mng0mCX7u8-r5NwuP1BUUgXGLG2itxE2V5TjHqYdK1r9hccwOCFAYl1UEU84bp-BjWd-/s1600/La+Luna+1024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisyINusIjWyaLIXCIbblJcUcDDEtK_D56c_0n9IU4nHa9ten1vIn3r9L3Dl6UJPGFzIVOp4qx_mng0mCX7u8-r5NwuP1BUUgXGLG2itxE2V5TjHqYdK1r9hccwOCFAYl1UEU84bp-BjWd-/s640/La+Luna+1024.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-64767973621057497772012-09-15T12:27:00.002-07:002012-09-15T12:27:40.652-07:00Thesis: The 20 Week PlanMost of my posts about my thesis have been about the overarching project as a whole. Here I would like to breakdown my plan for thesis class which consists of 20 weeks. Initially, I had intended to create the storyboard and animatic of the entire project, but I worry these may get in the way of the focus of the in class project, the characters. In the first 10 week section of the thesis, I want to focus primarily on the character that will be the protagonist of the film. My next post will be my inspirations for his design, color pallets, and possibly some of my own sketches. Once his design reaches completion, I will model, texture, and rig this character. I'll be putting a large amount of focus on his skin, hair, clothing, and facial rig.<br />
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I want this character to display an extreme amount of production quality, the type of quality shown from the larger production studios. The skin will use sub-surface scattering to help create the softness desired. The hair should look and move in a visually pleasing and realistic manner, even if it is a stylized or exaggerated realism. The clothing should also move fluidly and realistically as it hangs of the characters body. It will have to move with him as he twists and bends in different ways. Finally, the rig. I will be putting a huge amount of effort in developing/finding an effective, easy to use facial rig that lends itself to easily develop many varied expressions. Because so much of the film relies on the main characters expressions, this rig will be vital. <br />
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Hopefully I will be able to accomplish most of my goals for the main character in the first 10-14 weeks. If I am able to complete him within the 10 weeks, I can use the remaining time work on the remaining characters. Once I refine the techniques used on the main character, I will be able to implement them more rapidly on the remaining characters. EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-51763924042648335512012-09-12T09:37:00.005-07:002012-09-12T09:40:10.984-07:00Thesis: Full Synopsis<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span id="internal-source-marker_0.9804330037839353" style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This
is a full synopsis of my planned animation. I am going to reiterate
that this is the planning for a full year project, not only my 20 week
thesis. My 20 week thesis will be aspects for this much grander project,
characters, skeletons, skin, hair, and possibly some animation. This
will be a bit of a lengthy post, and for that I apologize. I am trying
to be as thorough as possible so that I can organize shots and assets,
and so you as the reader can envision yourself the completed animation
that I have in my head. Thanks for reading.</span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Full Synopsis:
The animation follows a young boy who struggles to be creative that is
tasked with the assignment of doing so. The short opens in a classroom,
early in the day, with the camera nearly parallel to the wall with the
entrance. Two young girls enter the room, chatting to each other and
with a bounce in their step. Shortly after, a young boy enters the room,
he is small, head down, and has a large backpack encumbering him. The
camera follows him as he enters. He stops, looks up for his seat, and
proceeds toward his desk moving toward the camera and falling out of
focus. The camera continues to pan and the same speed as when it started
across the front wall of the classroom. It moves up and zooms in on the
chalkboard with the message and title of the short, “Today’s Lesson: Be
Creative.”</span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Jump
cut to a shot of a blank desk which then has a paper slapped down onto
it. The camera rotates up to show the young boys face. He looks up from
the sheet, opens his mouth and raises his hand as if he is about to ask a
question, but holds back. His eyes fall back to the
blank sheet of paper and his left hand strums its fingers across the
desk. The camera jumps to the paper again, now from the boys
perspective. His hands begin to show nervousness, tapping his pencil
against the page and fidgeting. The camera then jumps to the image of a
ticking clock, using the classic clock fade to show the passage of time
(5 minutes). The camera returns to the protagonist’s perspective. The
page is still blank, and the pencil is now dull because he has been
tapping it for so long. The face of the character is then shown again.
He sighs, slumps back in his chair, and closes his eyes, head tilted
down. As he opens his eyes again, the characters eyes are glancing back
and forth.</span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The
character catches his eye on the boy sitting to his right. His face
lightens and peaks with curiosity. He pushes himself up in his seat
slightly with both hands to get a better view. The camera shows the boy
to the right of the main character, from the protagonist’s perspective,
drawing frantically. Much of the second boy’s paper is covered by his
arm, but the left corner shows spiraling scribbles that tilt toward the
center of the page. The camera zooms in on this corner as 2D become 3D
(kingdom hearts 2 intro). These squiggles transform into a massive slide
3D slide that the 2nd boy begins sliding down. As he spirals around the
camera at least one time, the white page changes to a light blue sky,
filling in like a watercolor painting. (find an example.) The second boy
launches off the end of the slide into the air and lands into a cartoon
plane with a similar style Snoopy’s. The plane swoops off as the
camera attempts to follow. It does this for a second before reappearing
smaller, flying horizontally from the left side of the screen traveling
to the right side of the screen. ⅓ of the way across the screen, the sky
fades out revealing the classroom as the small plane flies directly in
front the main characters face. The main boy watches the little plane
with awe as it putters before him, and poofs into a puff of smoke. The
boy continues to stare for a moment as his face shows the excitement of
an idea popping in his head. His head quickly drops to draw intensely
and the camera follows to show the top of his head and his pencil
moving.</span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The
camera once again shows the clock. More time passes as it cross fades
between two times. The camera returns to the drawing boy. He raises his
head, looking pleased with himself, and exhaling as if tackling a great
challenge. He lifts the paper to view the fruits of his labor only to
find a well diagrammed mathematical graph (something along the lines of a
sine wave or more complex image that would not be considered creative.)
As the camera cuts to his face, his expression drops to an expression
that says “well crap” (hard to describe, easy to picture). The paper is
set down and the character erases vigorously, blowing away any leftover
eraser shreds. He places his cheek in his left hand, his fingers
covering his eye, shaking his head, eyes down. As he opens his eyes and
parts his fingers to see through, he looks to the girl drawing next to
him. The camera focuses on her as it did the second boy. On her paper is
a bright pink sky with flowers on the ground. As the camera zooms in,
the drawing flows into a complete scene, and from under her arm resting
on the page gallops a muscular unicorn, with an eye patch. The tone of
the scene changes to a more intense war-like feel as the girl, mounted
on the stylized beast whirls her sword cackling in the style of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Invader Zim</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">. As the laughter grows, a loud “thud” sounds, and the camera focuses on the main characters face again, eyes wide with terror.</span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Once
again defeated, the boy looks down at his page. His expression matches
his sadness, and he begins to very slowly doodle. The camera moves to
his point of view to show his drawing as he finishes it, it is a sad
stick figure sitting on the ground on a blank page. The camera very
slowly zooms into the drawing as it morphs from the stick figure into
the protagonist sitting alone on a blank page. As the camera continues
to move in on the sad figure, there is a thud on the desk. The camera
zooms out to the characters point of view and the stick figure returns
to its original form on the page. There is now another arm on his desk.
The camera follows the arm up to show a young girl leaning over his
desk. His face is one of surprise as he watches the girl, who remains
out of focus on the right side of the screen. As she finishes what she
is doing on his desk, she leaves to the front of the room to turn in her
own paper. The boy looks down slowly at his own page. The camera shows
his page again, now with a girl stick figure holding her hand out to the
sad stick figure. As the camera zooms in, they change into the actual
girl and boy. She helps him up, with him not breaking gaze with her, and
they begin to walk. As they do, the world begins to populate with
trees, flowers, and a sunset colored sky in a painterly fashion. In the
background of this scene is the second boy’s plane in the distance, and
the first girl riding her mount off into the sunset. The scene fades to
black, credits begin to roll. As they do, the classroom wall comes into
view, slightly darker as if behind a black screen. On the wall is a
bunch of drawings hung, the pink unicorn, the airplane, and the two of
them together along with all other drawings done that day. Just before
the animation finally fades one last time, the boy and girl can be seen
just as they exit the room. </span></div>
EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-44296497206037440762012-09-09T17:03:00.001-07:002012-09-12T09:39:26.141-07:00Thesis: The ProjectFor a number on months now I have been planing my thesis project, most of it in my head and some in documents scattered around my laptop. Against my own advice, I have decided to do a short animation. One of the most common problems that plagues college students working on projects is ambition beyond obtainment. We get in our heads a great idea and we refuse to modify it regardless of anyone's opinions. I have done my best throughout the years to keep my projects goals obtainable but polished. In short, if someone tells me they are going to attempt a few minutes of animation for their 20 week project, I will advise against it, but have chosen to do one for my own.<br />
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I plan to create an animated short that would be most closely related to the animated shorts created by Pixar. The title of the animation is "Today's Lesson: Be Creative." The short story depicts a young boy in a classroom who is faced with the open ended task of being creative but struggles as those around him make quick work of the assignment. Yes, the story is derived from personal experience. <br />
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One of the most important features of the animation are the young protagonists expressions, as it is a film without voice. I want the viewers to ex<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">perie</span>nce some form of emotion while they watch it. I want them to worry about the outcome, truly feel for the character, and feel relief if he succeeds. Emotion and storytelling is the primary driving forces of the Pixar animations. It is what makes them successful and is what makes them great. It is also not an easy task to accomplish in only a few minutes. <br />
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A full rundown of the story, followed by the shot list and storyboard will be in the next couple of blog posts. <br />
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I am going to forward about my ambitions for this 20 week project: I know with a high level of certainty that I wont have a completed animation by the end of the course. Although I will be creating the layout, storyboard, anamatic, and plan of the entire animation, I will be focusing on the main character, his rigging, animation, lighting, skin, hair, clothing, and blend shapes. With this, I will have an important foundation that I will build my animated short around over the next year.<br />
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Hopefully I can pull it off. EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-25210627739437468102012-09-09T15:02:00.000-07:002012-09-09T15:02:33.333-07:00And we're back. After a year and a half without any updates, I am finally back to share what I have been up to and my upcoming projects. Since last we spoke, Kona's Crate was released on IOs and Android devices, I have continued to work with Darkwind Media with some new stuff soon to be released, and I have completed yet another year of schooling. I am now back at RIT for one last year before graduating and working on my "thesis project." For us, the thesis is not a long winded document requiring a defense, but a 20 week long project to demonstrate the skills we have acquired while studying here. This will be the focus of my blog for now, to document my progression, voice my opinions on it, and maybe even get some feedback from all you readers out there on the interwebs, (by "all you readers" I naturally mean my only fan, my mom. Hi mom!)EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-85716516035031258172011-05-09T20:19:00.000-07:002011-05-09T20:19:28.248-07:00Production Pipeline: Tiki-Totem UpdateI have been making a lot of progress on the Tiki-totem. With the original totem concept art, the team at Darkwind was having some uncertainty with the color they received from the artist. The totem was very dark and would prove very hard to see in a small, game environment. It was put upon me to recolor the totem to what a felt fit the game, and also would be easily visible and recognizable. I planned to combine the newer concept art with some of the earlier designs from the game, while keeping it clean and understandable.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJX91aI6Z1w2ZDPfd4eWrNaK0JKgTkJL3tE6Yi2ebfjJbdXw2Uwgx1MBsVxrM_9sgqKc-UWjfbjI7YgWqZ6w60DBYZvSAuIJJs390OtCkWv6zfV9RfK3j1SG5ZmUnxnSJXE9fv6l50Xq-P/s1600/TikiTotemRecoler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJX91aI6Z1w2ZDPfd4eWrNaK0JKgTkJL3tE6Yi2ebfjJbdXw2Uwgx1MBsVxrM_9sgqKc-UWjfbjI7YgWqZ6w60DBYZvSAuIJJs390OtCkWv6zfV9RfK3j1SG5ZmUnxnSJXE9fv6l50Xq-P/s320/TikiTotemRecoler.jpg" width="152" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My re-imagined version of the Tiki-Totem Concept art.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>With the coloring aspect of the Totem, I ended up lightening a lot of areas while adding the stone texture from other parts of the Blocks game. Adding accents to the face and using colors from the Tiki-man helped greatly.<br />
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From here I proceeded to sculpt the model in mudbox. I kept the model in separate chunks and simply repeated them 4 times around. The normals were not as intense as the tiki-man's making the coloring very important. Again using the normals as a template, I colored the textures in photoshop.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzefjAJ17j_YBIzQIlJbsS55Pe6c67miIRYHJIcQ68TtIUjF4oUzbC6SK1c824HN5T0r_uuWYtwfGAd1_6tD4UoN66-5hHLFu-V5dUSxKfjQ0lTfWejPEOLLmrMHJSA7PIPXpgt9tvITfs/s1600/TikiTotemWNormal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzefjAJ17j_YBIzQIlJbsS55Pe6c67miIRYHJIcQ68TtIUjF4oUzbC6SK1c824HN5T0r_uuWYtwfGAd1_6tD4UoN66-5hHLFu-V5dUSxKfjQ0lTfWejPEOLLmrMHJSA7PIPXpgt9tvITfs/s320/TikiTotemWNormal.jpg" width="166" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Tiki-Totem Textured and normaled.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The model came out well and the Darkwind team seems pleased. It will be shorter than the Tiki-Man in game, and will likely light up when the Block is delivered to the island. I'll be using the higher resolution texture and normal map when I get a chance create a glamor shot of the Tiki-man and his totem together on an island.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-18043993690573550942011-04-30T13:50:00.000-07:002011-04-30T13:50:38.616-07:00Production Pipeline: Tiki-TotemThe Tiki-Totem has already been modeled. I will be bringing it into mudbox the same way I did the Tiki-man textures. I was originally hesitant to do this method and instead find a simpler method. However, I do plan to render these for my own reel at a high quality. If I plan to do this, I would much rather use the actual normal map over the color map I made for in game use. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYutyKnC03pKrrd1oqmPyhe0bMYer5DpYtlLo87lXrYo8dI-oFY7jsPsS3HCUyVWZZRuRfjoTZPMtiVauyPXKrh9kKX5K3eUbd7Y2wJCb7aTw_u0y6tpX6-uK6YKx-kn_MDYTdYq7nVHtA/s1600/TikiTotemModel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYutyKnC03pKrrd1oqmPyhe0bMYer5DpYtlLo87lXrYo8dI-oFY7jsPsS3HCUyVWZZRuRfjoTZPMtiVauyPXKrh9kKX5K3eUbd7Y2wJCb7aTw_u0y6tpX6-uK6YKx-kn_MDYTdYq7nVHtA/s320/TikiTotemModel.jpg" width="156" /></a></div><br />
On a side note, I am excited to say that was able to see the tiki-man actually moving in the blocks mobile game. He starts the level with a big stretch and dances upon completion.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-18323077813752480952011-04-30T12:43:00.000-07:002011-04-30T12:45:01.312-07:00Shatter Project: Removing the Arm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">For two weeks, I have been editing footage to remove the actors arm and remaking whatever would have been behind it. This has been a very tedious and difficult job. Last week I was easily able to completely mask out the arm, but naturally this left a large arm shaped gap in his body as it crosses over. This last week was the far more difficult part, rebuilding his body behind it. I tried a series of methods to find the most efficient and best looking manner of recreating the lost areas of footage only to have all of them fail until I went back to the basics. Using morphing tools and motion paths in After Effects, I couldn't get a fluid and realistic looking transition as his cloth and fringe moved. The most efficient and best looking method turned out to be recreating the body frame by frame using Photoshop and its animation tools. Using the information from framed before and after the arm passes over a section of the body, I could recreate what needed to be there. I had to make some assumptions of the flow of his clothing by carefully studying the footage.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxAoFDzOrXrllTENFITYhmzs53nBfr3MVhwg_ygMZNb3Q-Zh_cwMpkJwCKC3gGNKKyc4NjKI2pSe3AWOwnZNg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> Here is the original video captured running at 24 fps.</span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyzrGrhLaHHB0BY6ZmUb9A4XL5oi_lRHxiP-dcr4YB51P3ZPIGGdpiuhU4UE53Fee6PBXL0dRob2MOh-Ec' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The same video after I edit out the arm.</span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here you can see the result of this method. All in all I was able to do a decent job of removing his arm from the footage. Although there are some minor jitters, specifically toward the end with the yellow fringe, these areas should smooth themselves out when the video is run through the Optical Flow effect to slow the footage down.</div>EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-57060630789889244912011-04-26T23:03:00.000-07:002011-04-26T23:03:42.944-07:00Video Composite MaskingNow that my primary function as a modeler for the group, it is my job to help other area that need it. One of the jobs that I have been working on the last 2 weeks has been masking and cleaning video. The first scene I have been working with is the scene where the man's arm shatters. This is an extremely hard scene to try to mask because what I have to do is remove the mans arm from every frame and then rebuild/repaint anything that would be behind his arm including the other mans hand, his chest, clothing, belt, left hand, legs, floor and make sure that these frames are not only clean but also work as a fluid animation. This process is still not complete as I have removes his arm, and rebuilt his hand, the other mans hand, the floor and a few other pieces that were needed, however the remake of his body has proven quite a challenge with the movement of his clothing. Next post should have images of the completes composite. <br />
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The second scene that I have had to clean for the final video is the initial establishing shot. I had to remove the lights above the actors heads and also remove the track from the floor that the camera dolly rode on.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7BmNcPfACp9EB2ZZJQvp-M-TXZ54ikUJG3x5n5SpqBBn56t_0cHI6E7CyF2sDlO-rjvV9r5KuvfJj0rLslcOL576X8ZwccASECLHhCj4vxAhdQz7Uu9Hgq6ZfYfVAW-VQA8RobjG7idz_/s1600/4-27+Compositing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7BmNcPfACp9EB2ZZJQvp-M-TXZ54ikUJG3x5n5SpqBBn56t_0cHI6E7CyF2sDlO-rjvV9r5KuvfJj0rLslcOL576X8ZwccASECLHhCj4vxAhdQz7Uu9Hgq6ZfYfVAW-VQA8RobjG7idz_/s320/4-27+Compositing.jpg" width="284" /></a></div><br />
I remade the floor as closely as I could in Photoshop. From there, I used that image and placed it over the shot in After Effects. Initially it was quite a challenge to attempt to match the cameras forward motion, but using AE's motion tracking and simply tracking the tips of the camera's rails, I was able to get a motion that matched the original footage well.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-49148021977076691712011-04-26T17:29:00.000-07:002011-04-26T17:29:13.814-07:00The Tiki-TotemIt has been a while since my last post. I have been extremely busy with work and simply haven't had a chance to post on here. Since last time, I have been working a lot for these two projects and a very fun camera tracking project for my Tangible media class that I may also end up posting on here.<br />
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As for my work with Darkwind, I have the next model that they will be needing, a Totem pole that will be on the island with the Tiki-man. I have the initial concept that they have decided on, and will be receiving a color rendition soon.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtYXxWX4MCuAAC7smHwdly6I2emYXEOsMW0fYXVFW9QMcHRI57rAnrmbJwQUhhM74t3wja84Z8Ru0Y4x203F0HeLnk3sShFmkTnyiS2cH4q042oMGmgk4rkVOf0RdpqOI8PDrgAYqXYtM5/s1600/TikiTotem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtYXxWX4MCuAAC7smHwdly6I2emYXEOsMW0fYXVFW9QMcHRI57rAnrmbJwQUhhM74t3wja84Z8Ru0Y4x203F0HeLnk3sShFmkTnyiS2cH4q042oMGmgk4rkVOf0RdpqOI8PDrgAYqXYtM5/s640/TikiTotem.jpg" width="244" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As with the Tiki-man this model will be extremely low poly. I may follow the same technique I used with the Tiki-man, but I predict something like this being far easier to model with few polygons in comparison.</div>EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-3747503982096666372011-04-19T08:08:00.000-07:002011-04-19T08:08:13.005-07:00Shatter Project: Body CollisionNow that the base models have been completed, I have been working on setting up a collision mask for one of the bodies. To create the shatter effect we are using dynamics applied to a pre-shattered model, and when these pieces break off, they will also generate particles. When the particles go flying, we want them to collide with the body for a more realistic effect. To do this, a simple body was rigged and skinned and it was then my job to animate the body to match movement of the actor.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMQcy09u9zALtjMG5p-7AXCyRpVzTKRVIObDlkrvS0HuZszU2g51a9JtHsSdNGabux-T_Szxs4HgOgYzye9FsnmzosgLwujdWT2FGDE7ZftCgRV5y3fVNZVIZNINCHSaYz7vHgjeUB1yP/s1600/CollissionSilhouette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMQcy09u9zALtjMG5p-7AXCyRpVzTKRVIObDlkrvS0HuZszU2g51a9JtHsSdNGabux-T_Szxs4HgOgYzye9FsnmzosgLwujdWT2FGDE7ZftCgRV5y3fVNZVIZNINCHSaYz7vHgjeUB1yP/s320/CollissionSilhouette.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
The silhouette this time did not need to be perfect, but at least follow the movement of the body decently. I personally am not too worried about the precision of the collision given that with direction of the impact and gravity effect applied, its unlikely particles will collide with the body, and the few that do collide will not be noticeable due to the amount of action in the shot. Regardless, I matched the body to the best of my abilities. From here on, I will be working on composting, removing the arm from the footage in After Effects.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-21765221914518620752011-04-18T12:48:00.000-07:002011-04-26T17:29:46.313-07:00Tiki-Man Color Texture<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ-1je3Ax6TGkYyhad0tV3gIhv7xxxcrZuZIWayOZu1wfaXDeykQakgM_zjYhgRMSqFhIMVqyqhEhgbFcT9CSCWWdkKn_NdWNgwGVmhxfmRSj22E52imghfW-xV6UFHoe4ZLpJjXjUHTtV/s1600/ColoredTiki.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ-1je3Ax6TGkYyhad0tV3gIhv7xxxcrZuZIWayOZu1wfaXDeykQakgM_zjYhgRMSqFhIMVqyqhEhgbFcT9CSCWWdkKn_NdWNgwGVmhxfmRSj22E52imghfW-xV6UFHoe4ZLpJjXjUHTtV/s400/ColoredTiki.jpg" width="285" /></a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Above is a screen shot of the Tiki-man with his color texture applied. Using the normals' red and green channels, I generated a gray-scale texture for the Tiki-man. This gray-scale texture became a template for coloring him. The gray-scale texture was also used to create the illusion of depth within the diffuse texture. Using photoshop, I was able to use the template I had created to paint in the colors where they were needed. I attempted to remain as close to the original concept art as possible.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-2069137383719440182011-04-13T00:34:00.000-07:002011-04-13T00:34:07.493-07:00Digital Studio: The BodyThere has been a ton of progress on the body model over the last week. I initially modeled the Body from the orthographic images that I gathered when the team was filming. The body did not have to be a perfect human replica because, given that it only needs to work under the same circumstances as the arm, it just has to silhouette the actor's body from the final footage.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDNetBeDYnR7lF4hLc-mmzbbGM0ehr7dvTXnz9E7u2lXmXGT1QUbgjR-Ad0rQ8DkpSzC4uPalFiv82jahYj3trBkV7YfSRvDAqTCOq0l0dNozZ_evgZRETtJgXPo416NCATrUJu6lfrrU-/s1600/BodyModel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDNetBeDYnR7lF4hLc-mmzbbGM0ehr7dvTXnz9E7u2lXmXGT1QUbgjR-Ad0rQ8DkpSzC4uPalFiv82jahYj3trBkV7YfSRvDAqTCOq0l0dNozZ_evgZRETtJgXPo416NCATrUJu6lfrrU-/s320/BodyModel.jpg" width="272" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Body model of actor made from orthographic references</td></tr>
</tbody></table>One of the primary issues that I faced making the body was keeping it simple so the poly count was reasonable for the shatter effect without generating too may particles to calculate. Another issue that I have never encountered before on a more realistic proportioned human was the extremely baggy and lose uniform. The cloths made the model hard visualize proportionately and also harder to pose. Once the model was complete, I UV mapped him, created a simple skeletal rig, and positioned him to silhouette the film.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1mkzfLgksKmtH0oAG87AvHvbNf9iZvfztknVKF_qoCGwQG_21rRuXiltaVuX-6wFhKweKeSSG4e7C_sQJQe5PHA1wsJjMfOIFnYN7pJ5PDMfnk7UWiil_at5aw7kc6J0EEaa9uDZAvhX/s1600/SilhouettingTheBody.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1mkzfLgksKmtH0oAG87AvHvbNf9iZvfztknVKF_qoCGwQG_21rRuXiltaVuX-6wFhKweKeSSG4e7C_sQJQe5PHA1wsJjMfOIFnYN7pJ5PDMfnk7UWiil_at5aw7kc6J0EEaa9uDZAvhX/s320/SilhouettingTheBody.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wireframe of the model in position showing the silhouette process.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Positioning the model I faced a number of additional challenges. One of my major concerns was that the model needed to be positioned to match the shot shown above and an additional long shot. Because they are the same shot but done twice and at slightly changed times, the torso and legs do not properly line up, and because we do not have a scene that contains both cameras in the correct position and moving the right ways due to time constraints, it was much harder for me to get them to match. The second major concern i had was the focal length of each shot. The close up shot (shown above) is shot at 20mm focal length, and the long-shot in which the legs are matched is shot at 50mm. I was told to model and align the images in the front prospective which is unaffected by perspective and worry that when the shots transition from the closer shot to the longer shot that things may appear distorted. I was assured that this would be alright, and also agree believing that things at this point in time will be moving far too fast for anyone to notice such a slight change in the model.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXUV-AedbJ6bZcZdWo8vnlIHAPUcQfhxmuHu0OX47sQUYCfvahwLXXZ6hyphenhyphenz4sDgS9yiD03awwaQHOWJKPwnAnv1j9xCvrJKy05H7laBi3wgTLZEVaMnwUgpM7w_-rgb4jgyK_CyfnhKGTs/s1600/BodyRenderPlanarMapped.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXUV-AedbJ6bZcZdWo8vnlIHAPUcQfhxmuHu0OX47sQUYCfvahwLXXZ6hyphenhyphenz4sDgS9yiD03awwaQHOWJKPwnAnv1j9xCvrJKy05H7laBi3wgTLZEVaMnwUgpM7w_-rgb4jgyK_CyfnhKGTs/s400/BodyRenderPlanarMapped.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Test render of texturing and rendering process.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Above is a test render I made for myself. The image is of the positioned and silhouetted body model with a screen of the actual film applied in a planar map down the front access. This test shows that the model matches the actual body reasonably well with only a few minor adjustments needed around the hands. The texture only works from this angle however, if the camera rotates around the model the texture fails.<br />
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-E.DoodyEDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-12314495125048123952011-04-09T17:31:00.000-07:002011-04-09T17:31:55.966-07:00Digital Studio: Shatter Project - Silhouetting the ArmBecause we have not heard back from the Dreamwork's mentor, the "Dreamworks Project" shall, for now, be referred to as the Shatter Project. These past weeks I have been working on a few separate sections of my part in the project. First, I have been working on the Body model for the actor that needs to shatter completely. That model will most likely be posted here next post over the next few days. Secondly, I UVed the arm model that I had created a few weeks before so that it can be easily textured in the next part of the project. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrNMiSal8s4b8SIt7lXh0VNEA25VAezOVsEXiM4IXOOS40MXzttJcP4f20EovC_boA-SQ_gwkKC0_tzlNHJLjlkBRVyq6yvwXUZV3vXKAXtLjzoGBSX0jBRhyphenhyphen6EkKiDIMoMFKEruUlnTrl/s1600/outUV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrNMiSal8s4b8SIt7lXh0VNEA25VAezOVsEXiM4IXOOS40MXzttJcP4f20EovC_boA-SQ_gwkKC0_tzlNHJLjlkBRVyq6yvwXUZV3vXKAXtLjzoGBSX0jBRhyphenhyphen6EkKiDIMoMFKEruUlnTrl/s320/outUV.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I UVed the hand open before I closed it for its final position to make it much easier and avoid any overlapping UVs. The final part that I have been working on is silhouetting the arm model to match the arm of the actor in the actual footage.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMonATK9RhguTac5lqMDTPJ2V_IB5p_z4-ACy0KCBWbt5QYqk-GZwG3tkke0GfUv9sErIYqw9Eda26ITHoqe39DZwFLq0Lczqazg2UFC_EBtQUiLrck39oT1tjZCoEmfVoUa9YX-_BfypH/s1600/silhouettingtheArm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMonATK9RhguTac5lqMDTPJ2V_IB5p_z4-ACy0KCBWbt5QYqk-GZwG3tkke0GfUv9sErIYqw9Eda26ITHoqe39DZwFLq0Lczqazg2UFC_EBtQUiLrck39oT1tjZCoEmfVoUa9YX-_BfypH/s400/silhouettingtheArm.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Here is a shot of the wireframe model over the actual arm. Using this, the texturing team will project the film over the arm simplifying the texturing process.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-57168082113820315022011-04-02T12:53:00.000-07:002011-04-02T12:53:18.903-07:00Production Pipeline: Tiki-Man NormaledIt has been a long week of texturing, sculpting, and normal mapping. I have completed the Tiki-man normals. The normal maps transferred better than I had even hoped. Also, I finished the staff that he will be holding. I have sent the files to Darkwind Media where they will rig and animate the model. The original plan of having them rig him and then me animate has changed. Because they need more assets for the game in a relatively tight time span, I will instead be finishing the colored Tiki-man textures and completing a number of other models for the game. Here is an image of the model with normals applied next to the exact same normal with a flat shaded wireframe.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomEC5d2POAOFeOSM-BclgHXr335QoatCyO9VPR-cmGfD8pVTKqEKcAo79UlZNmNpUTHloObmIIOcWbSXv8NDAexbF_7GiiltZEn0myE8HB_SZubXqBDxnSiE_AGVPRodeD96B7qNXNpMA/s1600/4.2+NormalAndWireframe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomEC5d2POAOFeOSM-BclgHXr335QoatCyO9VPR-cmGfD8pVTKqEKcAo79UlZNmNpUTHloObmIIOcWbSXv8NDAexbF_7GiiltZEn0myE8HB_SZubXqBDxnSiE_AGVPRodeD96B7qNXNpMA/s400/4.2+NormalAndWireframe.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
On the left you can see the model with normal map and transparency map applied, the right side image is the actual geometry of the model. Normal maps are a fantastic way to add detail and and give depth to a much simpler model. From here I need to take the normal map and generate an actual colored texture for him.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjOh3-_PenMSRONOXyOB_jW5hHDloGsNtO_Rc3ECkldzRryP-3uSWVA3vZBFu1vWRjwNkDggDWMHW-sTMJeKWTUU6wGNtO8pH9jNTxv9GWBfQDexbaZZXh7EU33GIB3ZVSICLGuAitzHc/s1600/TikiCombinedNormal2048.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjOh3-_PenMSRONOXyOB_jW5hHDloGsNtO_Rc3ECkldzRryP-3uSWVA3vZBFu1vWRjwNkDggDWMHW-sTMJeKWTUU6wGNtO8pH9jNTxv9GWBfQDexbaZZXh7EU33GIB3ZVSICLGuAitzHc/s320/TikiCombinedNormal2048.png" width="320" /></a></div>Above you can see the combined normals which will give you a good sense of the UV layout on the model. The model was kept to a single UV map to optimize the process required to load the model and textures in a real time game engine. <br />
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Until next time,<br />
-DoodyEDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-324391344689943070.post-30053332502345701242011-03-28T08:20:00.000-07:002011-03-28T08:20:28.599-07:00Production Pipeline: Texturing WorkflowLast week I was able to unwrap the Tiki-man model's UVs. Once the UVs were laid out to the best of my ability, I decided that I would generate normal maps using Autodesk's Mudbox. In Mudbox I created an extremely high poly version of the model and was able to sculpt in the details that I want seen on the simple version.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9MW9vg5SpTNxR520u6qFRMA1sL7tvT5ypA9TiSV5Wq8PjNgPYgEenMe8RBJpL-DPN1LH_Rm99MZgfqXZD-zr1JI3S7v-IigzYtI93g7fTogIIxfUN127UrqBY7coiiGJ8vmrEXQ8CNrXg/s1600/TikiSculpt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9MW9vg5SpTNxR520u6qFRMA1sL7tvT5ypA9TiSV5Wq8PjNgPYgEenMe8RBJpL-DPN1LH_Rm99MZgfqXZD-zr1JI3S7v-IigzYtI93g7fTogIIxfUN127UrqBY7coiiGJ8vmrEXQ8CNrXg/s400/TikiSculpt.jpg" width="347" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">High-poly model within Mudbox.</td></tr>
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One I had finished the detailed version of the mask, I attempted to export the normal map from the high poly model for the low poly version. Time and time again, Mudbox is unable to correctly export a good quality and clean normal map for me. As I often am forced to do, I had to bring the high poly mesh into Maya and pray that the program doesn't crash. With the model in Maya, I used Maya's texturing tools to calculate a normal map. And here is the result.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTisBBgdOZqRR9OyUxzOnInlbv_NrthQk0sZQYUuENTxdqcgyxSbJcfffoJ3tpCYVIvG7vLLGLl5OALkEqwZDcuZjRh4vHy8EsW8IUFRbQbK01jS31oXc2fpeRzq_ZIzKpN5WfFOW3Mb7U/s1600/LowPolyNormaled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTisBBgdOZqRR9OyUxzOnInlbv_NrthQk0sZQYUuENTxdqcgyxSbJcfffoJ3tpCYVIvG7vLLGLl5OALkEqwZDcuZjRh4vHy8EsW8IUFRbQbK01jS31oXc2fpeRzq_ZIzKpN5WfFOW3Mb7U/s400/LowPolyNormaled.jpg" width="295" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Low-poly model with the normal map applied</td></tr>
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I was able to generate a relatively clean normal map within Maya. The normal map needs some cleaning in Photoshop but this process should save me a great deal of time when texturing. With normals, I am able to get the detail I would like to see in a high poly model using only 160 or so polygons. This normal texture will also serve as a map for when I create the diffuse texture for the model. Although the Engine the game will be played in is unable to support normal maps, I will attempt to bake the shadows of the normal map to give a greater depth to the simple model. With the mask done, I will be using the same kind of technique for the remainder of the body.EDoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04955438959151044337noreply@blogger.com1