End Of Chapter 2...

Again, this was also meant to be posted a while back....just got caught up with other things! I will be starting Project 03 soon so will begin posting properly again!

Project

This was meant to be posted a while ago but then Xmas etc came along so here is a link to my portfolio and where you can see the final images of this specific project:

http://christymclaughlin892.weebly.com/natural-haven---personal-project-02.html

Sometimes Even The Author Gets Lost In His Own Story... - Summary

So it has been a very, very, VERY long time since I last posted. So long in fact that I have now actually completed this project!

I last left of with my ZBrush model FINALLY being UV Mapped. Funny thing is, I actually have changed this UV Map since then but that will be discussed in a little while. I am going to discuss many of the features and difficulties that I had with this project in this post followed by a post with the final images.

Things Worth Mentioning

Water

Really wanted to get a nice looking pond on the go and after numerous attempts and lots and lots of searching, I found this extremely good tutorial on YouTube. I found this very effective as I had 0 issues with it and understood fully what was going on. It was very well explained.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPmRV1Z9ikY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRnKO1z4WZs

This gives a really nice rippling in the water (which you do not really get the full effect of from the final images - but oh well!)

Skybox

When it comes to these projects, I really want to try make them all my own work, or at least adapted from tutorials etc, so when it came to the surrounding and having a lightbox, I wanted to research and learn to do it for myself. (Increasing my skills and knowledge).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSRsQpRfDlk

This involved me Creating a special type of image that would then be implemented into a skybox.

Surrounding Foliage

One of the main reasons for me not blogging towards the end of this project was due to it crashing lots, which took up lots of time, and therefore I would ignore the blog in order to try and attempt to find out what was going on.
One of the main problems (I think) was having semi-high poly surrounding foliage which the computer just could not handle in terms of video card/memory. So I had to go about making low-poly foliage which I have touched upon before. It was not ideal but it is exactly the type of thing I am interested in how studios etc overcome.

And Finally....Grass

Grass was the main culprit for performance issues I soon discovered. Again, this is another thing I would like to know how games studios tackle. I have a rough idea of LOD's etc but looking at some games I'm just like - what?! But in the end it all came together nicely and looks really good. eerie with the fog (in order to help hide the surrounding area and vines that are magically hanging from the sky...

Personal Notes

So, it has been a stressfull few weeks - not knowing if I would be able to complete my project but thankfully I managed to find a way - will detail further conclusion in the next and final chapter of this project!

The Part Of The Story Nobody Likes... - UV Mapping

It has been a while since I updated this blog but that has come down to various different factors. My last post was from me beginning to model the tree in ZBrush. After spending a lot of time sculpting the tree, I finally got something I was pleased with. I then began to UV Map, which took an insane amount of time but I am happy to say I have now finished UV Mapping!

So here is my finished piece in ZBrush. (The different colours represent the polypaint which gives a rough idea of the UV Map created:

Final Model

I created the UV Map in Maya as I had much more input in what I wanted from it. This process took me an extremely long time but I am now happy with the result. At first I UV Mapped all idiviudal branches so I could place the seams where I thought would work best. Once I did this, I went on to sew as much of them together in order for a seamless piece. The previous image shows clearly where the seams will be. Here is my final model in Maya along with the UV Map:

UV Mapped in Maya

Personal Notes

I am at the point of this project where I am relatively anxious of the final outcome. With this beign a new field to me, I hope I can get it as close to the standards of my last project (which I was really pleased with). I have it all in my head, it's just getting it to come out like that!

My next step is to begin painting the tree and placing it into Unreal Engine 4 - thats when things start to fall into place - I will paint it for the next two days and by then I will called it pretty much finished (maybe come back and edit the texture map at a later date). I want to (next week) start assembling the rest of the scene, starting with the hill, and then adding in some other (much more basic!) trees and bushes. I can then come back to this tree and add some more features to it (ropes, hatches etc)

Here is a quick updated list of what is too follow:

• Place into Unreal Engine 4
• Finish Diffuse Map/Normal Map (Make two and multiply)
• Sort landscape (Hill + Night Sky)
• Begin making various bushes
• Add further features to main tree

Lighting etc will eventually be added to this list...

New Plot Line - The route of ZBrush

So after switching to ZBrush I spent a while (again) familiarizing myself with it's interface and controls. I have been looking at many tutorials in order to find something decent that can help with my next project. Eventually I found this one which I am pretty much following step by step except instead of a monster, I'm creating a tree! (It's more exciting than it sounds)

http://www.digitaltutors.com/tutorial/1536-Indie-Game-Development-Pipeline-Volume-5-Boss-Character-Modeling-and-Texturing

So I am onyl at the early stages but already, this tree is looking much better than my last attempt and there are still plenty of steps to go through before the final model (lots and lots of iterating).

So to begin with (much like my last method) I began with using ZSpheres to create a basic shape model which I then converted to a low poly skin:

Using ZSPheres to Create Initial Skin

In order to improve from the last model, I am really taking my time with this as I am aware it should be a lengthy process. I imported this adaptive skin into Maya in order to tweak it and add some further geometry:

Modifying the Base Mesh in Maya

As you can see, I used Maya to add simple stumps and finesse the branches a little more. This is purely a base mesh and I will now take it back into ZBrush to sculpt further.

Personal Notes

I am much happy now I have a pipeline example to work to. It really helps when you are not too familiar with a package or the correct approach to take with it. I am taking it slow and so I am going to do a little touch up in ZBrush today then start the major sculpting tomorrow and Friday.

Accidental Red Herring - Mudbox to ZBrush

So after playing around with Mudbox, I couldn't help but think how much easier a tree would be in ZBrush - considering it can be built from scratch in it using ZSpheres.

After finding a trial version that should last long enough for this project I decided to go ahead and use it.

Here is my first attempt at a rough tree and then a further attempt at the main tree using ZSpheres:

ZBrush Start

I was happy with this progress until I started to sculpt. I felt my mesh was getting really untidy and have began to worry about the UV Mapping stage and using a low res piece with high res texture maps as I am not too familiar with this.

After searching around I found a few good tutorials and info that might help get through this:

UV Master
A useful approach to UV Map your model

http://pixologic.com/zbrush/features/UV-Master/

Using DynaMesh
An effective method of sculpting a rough layout before final sculpt


The Pipeline!
This digital tutors tutorial shows an effective pipeline. The only thing is it uses a software called Topogun which I have never used. Never-the-less, I can still follow this and retopolgize in ZBrush (even if it is a longer approach)

http://www.digitaltutors.com/tutorial/901-Professional-Series-Game-Boss-Creation-in-ZBrush#play-22456

Example of Tree Tutorials

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIoIdt54wF8

http://www.digitaltutors.com/tutorial/598-Creature-Concept-Sculpting-in-ZBrush#play-12150

Personal Notes

Tomorrow I will be trying to find a suitable method to complete my tree. Whether that involves; ZSpheres, DynaMesh or anything else. Once I have figured out the best way to do this I will begin on my tree.

Sadly I am now a bit behind where I wanted to be but hopefully it will be for the best!

Part 1 - Continued

So just a quick update relating to my Mudbox practice...

So I have had a half decent go at modelling a tree much like I sketched out:

Practice Tree

So I have now a good idea of how to sculpt and finish a good tree. I have also found a good looking tutorial on Youtube regarding workflow between Maya and Mudbox:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SR-p1qQ_tY

From watching this I have gathered the following order of workflow:

1. Model in Maya
2. Take into Mudbox
3. Increase Resolution
4. Sculpt
5. Paint
6. Extract Normal Map using High Res Model
7. Transfer all new maps to Maya (Maybe a higher res model too)

Personal Notes

So my rough plan is the following:

1. Sculpt a final tree in two weeks (Maya Week 1, Mudbox Week 2)
2. 3rd week will be to set up scene and the basics (hill - maybe pond)
3. 4th week start on surrounding foliage

Again, this is a rough guide but it would be good to stick to it in order to finish it by Christmas!