My main ideas and intentions that I was trying to express in the project were:
I wanted to come up with a design that captured a spooky mood while also challenging myself by building an accurate representation of a house from multiple photographs.
The methods I use to develop my ideas were:
I experimented with various different lighting techniques to create a ghostly feel to the house. These included using fog and volume light with different light types. I looked at various existing, spooky looking houses and found one called the Carson Mansion that had many different photographs taken of it at different angles. Looking at different board games of the same theme helped me develop my design.
I took a risk by trying something new.
Experimenting with different lighting techniques was new to me and took up a lot of time trying to get the effect just right. I also looked into using Vray to see the kind of effects I could get. I found that it creates nice renders but they always seem to be in perfect sunny surroundings, which is useless for my haunted house.
Some of the unexpected problems I had to solve while working were:
I didn’t realize how long it would take to create the house design I chose, as the complexity was underestimated. Also the rendering took allot longer than I initially expected and I have taken note of this for the future.
The decisions and choices I made to help solve these problems were:
There wasn’t really much I could do to solve these problems, as I wanted to keep the quality of my design. To keep the same quality of work and also have it in on time, I used several computers at one time to render the visualization, as well as stepping up my work flow to the point of spending many sleepless nights modeling.
The most interesting or challenging thing that I achieved was:
I enjoyed building the house from different shapes and watching it slowly take shape. For a long time at first it didn’t look like a very good representation of what I was modelling. I stuck at it and after the main bulk was done I began with the details and finally saw it come together.
The things I have learnt from this particular project were:
I learnt that I need to calculate how long things are going to take based of this experience. I’ve also got the grasp of how lighting can materials can create an effective mood. I used volume light for the main light source to give the design a fogy appearance and volume fog on the ground for the mist
If I were to do this project again I would change or do differently:
If I were to do this project again, I would calculate how long this are going to take and manage my time more effectively.
A new project that might grow out of my experience maybe:
I’m thinking of going in another direction as now that I’ve achieved what I wanted from this design, I wouldn’t mind testing my skills at modelling concept cars or alien worlds.
I have achieved the following learning outcomes for this module and my evidence is:
I’ve learnt many different 3Ds Max techniques that show my personality in my work. This can be seen in the spooky fog and volume light effects as well as the attention to detail when modelling and mapping the haunted house.
I’ve understood the importance of time management when deciding on how long to take on certain areas and how long this will take to render. This can be seen in my reflection of my work.
I can see my self becoming more confidant when approaching 3D design briefs. This can be seen in the complexity of my work compared to my last project.
Showing posts with label Yr2 Board Game Visualization. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yr2 Board Game Visualization. Show all posts
Saturday, 20 December 2008
Thursday, 18 December 2008
UVW Mapping
I used a variety of effects when mapping the house ranging from using bump maps on the wood, trees and walls to adding raytrace effects on the windows. I did some experimenting with vray material libraries, but found I could get the desired spooky effects I wanted. Vray, I've found, is very good at making realistic models in perfect environments, but not so much at creative atmospheric environments.
Building the House
Before starting the 3D build I draw a quick sketch of the house to look at in detail the different angles and how they relate to each other. I’ve begun building the house using simple boxes and shapes to get the main angles and proportion right. Once I’m happy with the basic layout I can then start adding the detail and begin creating the woods around it.
Haunted Carson Mansion
This is the look I want to create in 3D using this mansion. As you can see I’m not the only person who thinks this mansion would make a brilliant haunted house. This is a design created by Daniele Montella using the technique of painting over existing photography to create and completely different scene.
The Carson Mansion
The Carson Mansion, California is the most photographed Victorian house in California and has the ideal look for the haunted house in my game.
Due to the fact that this mansion is well photographed, I can find many different angles to help me create my 3D haunted mansion in 3Ds Max.
Tuesday, 11 November 2008
Research: Haunted House Games
Solve the mystery with this super fun Scooby-Doo Haunted House 3-D Board Game! Move around the haunted house as you try to reach the top. Secret booby traps like a moving ghost knight, a creaky staircase, and a haunted moose head are out to get you! Be the first to reach the top to uncover the villain and win! For 2-4 players, ages 4 and up.
This 3D haunted house board game came out back in 1962 and was packaged in a box twice as big as your average sized game today. The main aspect of this game that made it appealing to children is the fact that it's a board game and a toy in one. Mouse trap is another game which had the toy appeal due to the pure fact that it was 3D.
Check out the illustrations on the side of the box, they reflect the illustrative style of the decade.
The Haunted Theme Board Game
The Ghost Train
I initially thought of a Ghost Train themed board game as I can imagine it filling personal criteria that allows me to improve the way I create a mood within 3D software. I can imagine building an old train would also test my ability to model in 3D, whilst also experimenting with the animation of the trains movement.
Another criteria covered would be the fun aspect as I can imagine it constantly running around a track killing players off as it goes.
The Haunted House
Another idea I like is a haunted house board game, as this would my ability to create texture and mood even further. This game would also expand the range of ideas for the game play, like being able to collect objects to solve a mystery, or just trying to escape from the house.
Typical imagery that comes to mind when I think of a haunted house is the trashed, neglected look, covered in cobwebs and dust. This I feel would be fun as well as a challenge to create this look within 3Ds Max.
Building a haunted house also gives me the opportunity to look at the outside scene. This will give me a broader range of textures and shapes to work with, while also keeping the same haunted look.
I was originally inspired by the animation Beowulf, where at the beginning the camera pans thought the scene giving a sense of a cold, winter environment.
I initially thought of a Ghost Train themed board game as I can imagine it filling personal criteria that allows me to improve the way I create a mood within 3D software. I can imagine building an old train would also test my ability to model in 3D, whilst also experimenting with the animation of the trains movement.
Another criteria covered would be the fun aspect as I can imagine it constantly running around a track killing players off as it goes.
The Haunted House
Another idea I like is a haunted house board game, as this would my ability to create texture and mood even further. This game would also expand the range of ideas for the game play, like being able to collect objects to solve a mystery, or just trying to escape from the house.
Typical imagery that comes to mind when I think of a haunted house is the trashed, neglected look, covered in cobwebs and dust. This I feel would be fun as well as a challenge to create this look within 3Ds Max.
Building a haunted house also gives me the opportunity to look at the outside scene. This will give me a broader range of textures and shapes to work with, while also keeping the same haunted look.
I was originally inspired by the animation Beowulf, where at the beginning the camera pans thought the scene giving a sense of a cold, winter environment.
Monday, 3 November 2008
Thursday, 30 October 2008
The Art Of Seeing
Objective:
To go around the city, observing a series of materials and surfaces that interest me.
Wooden frame from a poster advert outside the orange tree bar.
I chose to look at this material because of the nature of where it is. I found it being used in a frame for a bill board outside The Orange Tree bar. It caught my attention because usually metal clips are used as frames for bill boards, where as this has the likeness of a wooden picture frame found your home, which adds to the bars image
It has a smooth, worn down feel to it with dark ridges travelling across it.
Brick wall
This is a close up image of a brick wall at the bottom of north Sheerwood st. Brick is always an interesting texture to look at due to the variety of colours and patterns. I took this image to highlight that usually when brick walls are created either on paper or within software, assumptions are made saying that bricks are perfect rectangle blocks, where as you can see from this image, they're obviously not.
Car Paint
This image was taken as a contrast to the prior pictures. I wanted something completely opposite to the rough texture of the brick and the naturally worn effect on the wooden bill board frame. At first you can't really tell what it is, as the reflective surface destorts an image of the buildings around it. Even this reflective, smooth, man made surface isn't without blemishes.
To go around the city, observing a series of materials and surfaces that interest me.
Wooden frame from a poster advert outside the orange tree bar.
I chose to look at this material because of the nature of where it is. I found it being used in a frame for a bill board outside The Orange Tree bar. It caught my attention because usually metal clips are used as frames for bill boards, where as this has the likeness of a wooden picture frame found your home, which adds to the bars image
It has a smooth, worn down feel to it with dark ridges travelling across it.
Brick wall
This is a close up image of a brick wall at the bottom of north Sheerwood st. Brick is always an interesting texture to look at due to the variety of colours and patterns. I took this image to highlight that usually when brick walls are created either on paper or within software, assumptions are made saying that bricks are perfect rectangle blocks, where as you can see from this image, they're obviously not.
Car Paint
This image was taken as a contrast to the prior pictures. I wanted something completely opposite to the rough texture of the brick and the naturally worn effect on the wooden bill board frame. At first you can't really tell what it is, as the reflective surface destorts an image of the buildings around it. Even this reflective, smooth, man made surface isn't without blemishes.
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