Fast Xmas tree

[harkyman]

It looks like snow is getting caught, but it's not acting like real snow. Real snow clumps together. Know what else clumps together? Metaballs. Make a metaball. Duplivert-parent it to your particle system, so your system uses metaballs as particles. Play around with the weighting on the master metaball until it looks just right!

I've used this technique for spraying water. You might want to experiment with a really small system first, though, maybe enough to cover one branch, as that many metaballs will slow things down pretty drastically.

BTW, that's a really nice pine. Did you use Arboro?

[CDI3D]

Hrmmm....looks like it was clumping up in the top most branches, but maybe Im wrong.

If I dupli-parent the metaballs are still gonna act like meta balls (ie deform to the tree.)?


And yup, thats Arbaro. Im lovin that lil app!

Im a WCS user as well and Im gonna try and get it working in conjunciton with that app.

[harkyman]

The metaballs won't deform to the tree - they will interact with, reinforce and merge with each other, giving you clumpy snow that globs together with itself if there's enough of it.

[Apollux]

I wish I could play with metaballs more often, but even my brother's state-of-the-art computer doesn't seem fast enought to handle them. Not even think about by old 2.4P4.

You now, if you crank up the dammpening value of the deflector it will cause more know to built up in the branches. And for the "only on top" problem, try casting sknow from multiple directions, not just from straight above.

[CDI3D]

Thanks Ap. I may try that here after lunch. I was afraid to turn the dampening up too much as I was afraid the particles would go shooting off in random directions.

(I hate working on 3D at work. I always have people looking over my shoulder. My boss is like DeeDee from Dexter's lab...."oooooo what does THAAAAT do?")

Harky: I tried the metaball thing but I couldnt even get them to deflect form a simple cube! Does the deflector have to be parented to the emitter also???


Anywho. More later.

[CDI3D]

Well...crap.

I can get the sim to run on simple objects but my frikkin fir locks it up every time.

Wonderful

[Apollux]

Well...crap.

I can get the sim to run on simple objects but my frikkin fir locks it up every time.

Wonderful
Told you!! Metaballs are evil! evil !!!

But, actually they can be disciplined a little bit (just a little bit).: In object mode ajust the wiresize to the maximun and the uptdate to "fast" or "never". Then you do whatever you need to do.

Remember to re-ajust the wiresize before rendering.. and hope for the best.

[CDI3D]

LOL Hope for the best. Thats about all I can do right now.

[Apollux]

Now that I remember, about 2 years ago there was an unofficial Blender Christmast Post Card contest, and one of the guys came out with a snow covered tree... it was pretty convincing and all it used was a texture trick. The bad is that I am not sure where the contest was... here or at elysiun ? :shrug:

Comming back to your non-metaball particle approach. You can improve it if:
- You increase particle's life. The more the merrier.
- Snow is casted from multiple directions
- Snow is casted at very slow speed
- Tree's dampeing value is increased.
- Permeability could be increased to help for a more even distribution (so it doesn't accumulate on the top branches only).

Also, don't forget to model some kind of realistic ground around the tree.. just to not trow away the unused snow.

[CDI3D]

*chuckle* Ok Ap, howzabout a Newbies guide to particles? I asked about one over at elysium but...*shrug* Apparently everyone else understood them and one lil Noobs need for info wasnt enough to warrent a tutorial.

[Ollarin]

*chuckle* Ok Ap, howzabout a Newbies guide to particles? I asked about one over at elysium but...*shrug* Apparently everyone else understood them and one lil Noobs need for info wasnt enough to warrent a tutorial.Particles documentation (http://www.blender.org/modules/documentation/htmlI/c9291.html)

[CDI3D]

LOL Thanks ra, this is the same answer I got at elysium.

[CDI3D]

Well...Im about ready to give up.

I have the particles behaving the way I want. I have the needles of the tree set up as defelctors.

Issue: The particles arent sticking to the needles. They bounce off.

Things Ive tried: Increasing and decreasing the damping and permeability. Perm had no noticable effect. The lower the Damp got the more particles failed to interact with the tree. The higher it got the more violently they bounced off the tree without sticking.

Is it impossible to get them to stick to a non planer surface?

[theeth]

Told you!! Metaballs are evil! evil !!!

But, actually they can be disciplined a little bit (just a little bit).: In object mode ajust the wiresize to the maximun and the uptdate to "fast" or "never". Then you do whatever you need to do.

Remember to re-ajust the wiresize before rendering.. and hope for the best. Actually, you can leave the wiresize as it is even when rendering as it uses the rendersize property for that.

Martin
PS: Don't speak too loud of the evilness of meta elements, jiri might be listening. :D

[CDI3D]

LOL @Apollox.

Well the metas have their pros and cons.

Instead of using a particle emitter and deflector (which I never could get to work right (theeth can you pass on ot the coders the possible need for..well for lack of better work a "collector" for the particle system....something that the particles will stick to?Hell Im not even sure such a thing is possible.) I just plopped the metas all around the tree manually.
I can adjust how much the tree is covered by the meta settings.

Anywho heres the tree

http://www.blenderman.org/modules/coppermine/albums/userpics/10259/normal_firsnow3b.jpg

[Samo]

Merry Christmast Blenderheads !

[Apollux]

Admiting that I have never seen the real thing (snow isn't that common in the tropics).. but isn't this a little bit overdone?

I mean.. snow is frozen water, and that amount of water wouldn't bring down the tree?

:shrug:

[CDI3D]

bring down? How do you mean?

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