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View Full Version : creating realistic rocks for Stonehenge reconstruction - keeping down render times

snkz
05-08-2006, 12:57 PM
I am currently working on a project at Uni where I have chosen to do a reconstruction of Stonehenge in its original state. I am trying to create objects that look like rocks from a distance although up close is not too important because it is on such a large scale. I have tried adding lots of segs to a box and then adding noise but the result is not amazing and the render time just for one block is about 30minutes per frame.

Any help would be much appreciated and I will aim to post the final result here in the next two weeks.

thanks in advance

[edit] I am using 3d studio max 7/8
Xion-Cajou
05-08-2006, 10:34 PM
The way you started sounds like the way to do it...
Perhaps using a chamferbox as base and applying displacement,
or simply a bump map for this large scale will work.
Check out this (http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=341502) too.
kingmango
05-12-2006, 01:47 AM
In Maya I use a fairly high poly primitive and then create a lattice box around it with the appropriate number of handles to create the deformations I am looking for.
Then I'll reduce certain sections by selecting poly faces. Or even sometimes I get lucky with an object level reduction, but more often than not this creates long skinny triangles. bleh
In Maya a lattice box is found under the animation menu set so maybe Max has something similar.
dapeter2
05-12-2006, 04:10 PM
Try using mental ray along with mental ray dispacement. Make the boxes very basic, then use a Subdivide modifier to add some extra triangles. Use this mesh plus displacement to give you the coarse surface of the stone.

Or, you could make very basic meshes for the stones and do all the look work in a shader, maybe using a normal map.

A reference photo of what look you're going for would help. Creating high-poly boxes and adding the noise modifier is probably not the most efficient way to go, but if I knew what 'look' you were going for I could point you in the right direction.
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