"Which came first?". A chicken odyssey.
Hello there!
My name is Alvaro Claver and here is the breakup for my space chicken piece.
Astronaut? Check! Chicken? Check! Bad joke? Check!
This work resulted final project for my first semester at Think Tank Training Centre. The idea came up as a joke but I couldn't be happier with the results :)
At this moment I was on my third month at school and it was expected from me to deliver a still frame render. I never did a production quality 3D piece, not to mention in such a big scale. I was responsible for all the process including concept, model, textures and lookdev.
I din't have much experience before so I had to catch up with all the software needed, in this case Maya, Photoshop, Mudbox and V-ray.
Here is the process I went through:
My name is Alvaro Claver and here is the breakup for my space chicken piece.
Astronaut? Check! Chicken? Check! Bad joke? Check!
This work resulted final project for my first semester at Think Tank Training Centre. The idea came up as a joke but I couldn't be happier with the results :)
At this moment I was on my third month at school and it was expected from me to deliver a still frame render. I never did a production quality 3D piece, not to mention in such a big scale. I was responsible for all the process including concept, model, textures and lookdev.
I din't have much experience before so I had to catch up with all the software needed, in this case Maya, Photoshop, Mudbox and V-ray.
Here is the process I went through:
Concept.
The first step for the project was to look for a concept art to recreate in 3D, but I opted to do my own. I must say it was kind of a not-so-good choice. When you choose a good concept, this is clear and well detailed, there is not much of a doubt: you stick to what's in it. But when you only have the idea and a very rough sketch as the one above that I did, things get more complicated. I had to stop many times during the process to figure out parts, materials, details and shapes.
The first step for the project was to look for a concept art to recreate in 3D, but I opted to do my own. I must say it was kind of a not-so-good choice. When you choose a good concept, this is clear and well detailed, there is not much of a doubt: you stick to what's in it. But when you only have the idea and a very rough sketch as the one above that I did, things get more complicated. I had to stop many times during the process to figure out parts, materials, details and shapes.
Planning.
When you have a given time (in this case one month) it's mandatory to create a planning. Most likely it's going to change at some point but, if you don't have one, chances are you are not going to deliver on time, plus the stress graph will raise off charts ;) I found it extremely helpful even though I changed it several times before finishing it.
*Note that in this example I was already one week into modeling.
When you have a given time (in this case one month) it's mandatory to create a planning. Most likely it's going to change at some point but, if you don't have one, chances are you are not going to deliver on time, plus the stress graph will raise off charts ;) I found it extremely helpful even though I changed it several times before finishing it.
*Note that in this example I was already one week into modeling.
References.
Next step I did was gathering references and studying them. I was lucky as there are many hi res photos from the original space suits in the NASA website. I anotated in almost all of them and studied how the material feels when it comes to thickness, textures and folds because I didn't have the opportunity to actually see and touch one in person.
Next step I did was gathering references and studying them. I was lucky as there are many hi res photos from the original space suits in the NASA website. I anotated in almost all of them and studied how the material feels when it comes to thickness, textures and folds because I didn't have the opportunity to actually see and touch one in person.
Modeling.
Now with all the cards on the table I was able to start modeling. In this video you can see how I made one part of the suit with Maya. I got used to the marquee menus and on my that speed up my process so much! You can also see me using several tricks to optimize the geo that I learned from Adar Bronstein, my modeling teacher.
Now with all the cards on the table I was able to start modeling. In this video you can see how I made one part of the suit with Maya. I got used to the marquee menus and on my that speed up my process so much! You can also see me using several tricks to optimize the geo that I learned from Adar Bronstein, my modeling teacher.
Seeing the big picture.
Several times during the process I did clay renders to check proportions and general feeling of it. It's very easy to get lost in the details (where the devil is as they say), so it's better to be safe than sorry.
Several times during the process I did clay renders to check proportions and general feeling of it. It's very easy to get lost in the details (where the devil is as they say), so it's better to be safe than sorry.
UV unwrapping.
After modeling it comes that moment in which you have to accept that the next days are going to be mechanical work, unwrapping the model. So I grabed a cup of tea (no, beer doesn't make you productive) and my favourite music and went for it. It's not that bad, it just takes some time!
After modeling it comes that moment in which you have to accept that the next days are going to be mechanical work, unwrapping the model. So I grabed a cup of tea (no, beer doesn't make you productive) and my favourite music and went for it. It's not that bad, it just takes some time!
Working with references.
I kept at least one reference next to me when modeling and texturing to check at all times what I was doing. That's why it's a good idea to have at least two monitors.
I kept at least one reference next to me when modeling and texturing to check at all times what I was doing. That's why it's a good idea to have at least two monitors.
Composition test.
After creating the basic maps for all the objects I started cheching the composition to see if things were working as expected. At this point I realized that the space ship didn't add anything to the scene so I changed it. The sky didn't feel right either but that was relatively easy to fix.
After creating the basic maps for all the objects I started cheching the composition to see if things were working as expected. At this point I realized that the space ship didn't add anything to the scene so I changed it. The sky didn't feel right either but that was relatively easy to fix.
Sculpting and organizing.
I manually sculpted the foldings and projected the base texture for the cloth and the cables in Mudbox. In this test you can see how they were working on the first pass and how I separated the materials by color id.
I manually sculpted the foldings and projected the base texture for the cloth and the cables in Mudbox. In this test you can see how they were working on the first pass and how I separated the materials by color id.
Creating the shaders.
As my render of choice was V-ray, all my shaders were V-ray materials. This shot shows the first metal pass for the locks and valves on the front part of the suit.
As my render of choice was V-ray, all my shaders were V-ray materials. This shot shows the first metal pass for the locks and valves on the front part of the suit.
Baking the maps.
The baking process was not easy to figure out. I did it in Mudbox and it took me more time than expected to be able to get rid of the errors. Because things can go wrong very easily :)
The baking process was not easy to figure out. I did it in Mudbox and it took me more time than expected to be able to get rid of the errors. Because things can go wrong very easily :)
Figuring out the head.
Finding the main shape for the head was not very easy, but thankfully I had the help from my colleages in the school. I played with forms and silouettes until I got what I was looking for. It had to be funny, right?. I also realized of the importance of the eye expression for this.
Finding the main shape for the head was not very easy, but thankfully I had the help from my colleages in the school. I played with forms and silouettes until I got what I was looking for. It had to be funny, right?. I also realized of the importance of the eye expression for this.
Going too far.
At this point I modeled a GoPro that turned out not to be included in the final frame (as I changed the composition). It was a complete waste of time! I could have used that time for improving the textures or something else, but oh well, next time I will plan better :)
At this point I modeled a GoPro that turned out not to be included in the final frame (as I changed the composition). It was a complete waste of time! I could have used that time for improving the textures or something else, but oh well, next time I will plan better :)
Final touches.
At the end I create the lights for the scene, choose the camera angle, plan the render passes and fine tune the shaders.
At the end I create the lights for the scene, choose the camera angle, plan the render passes and fine tune the shaders.
Final comp.
So this is the final render. I changed the framing and put the camera where the selfie one was to give it a more realistic touch. It worked out so much better in every aspect like this!
So this is the final render. I changed the framing and put the camera where the selfie one was to give it a more realistic touch. It worked out so much better in every aspect like this!
Final thoughts
Oh this was such a great accomplishment. I struggled like never before as I did not only had to do a lot of stuff, but also because I had to learn new software and troubleshoot at the same time. This is when having incredible friends and colleagues around makes the difference.
I hope you enjoyed the breakup. Thank you for your patience and for reading it!
And if you liked the article, please share it on your favourite social media ;)
I hope you enjoyed the breakup. Thank you for your patience and for reading it!
And if you liked the article, please share it on your favourite social media ;)