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View Full Version : My most first-modeled object ever. :|

usernamelolorz
06-20-2006, 08:51 PM
Hi!

I'm brand-new to 3d-graphics, trying to learn everything about it that I can so that I can make whatever I want to. Everything that's come before this has been little experiments that went nowhere, never had a finished object that actually resembled anything before. In the course of trying to make some organic characters for use in a scene, I was totally stumped about how to model cartoony, Pixar-like characters such as them - so I thought, well, make the scene, or props for the scene, first, then see if it gets any easier or you find some new tutorials or helpful input or anything.

So anyway - I really, seriously don't intend this thread to "show off" (certainly the lack of the model's quality rules that out even if I wanted to), but I figured, it's my first model ever, I'd better ask for a critique of it in order that I start off on the right foot, correct problems now, etc. To explain the model, which might seem a little peculiar without some kind of context given: the scene I intend to create has a kind of Biblical/ancient/medieval reference/motif, and in the shot I've planned a wooden cross featured prominently. So I decided to start with that object. The distortion of the cross' dimensions is intended for the purpose of accentuating perspective and camera-lens distortion - which I, as of now, still have no clue how to do, hehe. ;~)

Anyway!, here's the link.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e102/thelastusernamenotalreadytaken/modelcrosstest.jpg

I worry the object looks more "stone" than "wooden", but that could just be because it hasn't got a texture...? Also, I wish I could've sub-divided it more, but despite my having 3 GB of RAM, Zbrush stopped me at level 4 sub-division. As it is, I probably won't use this model in the final scene, come to think of it, because it still strikes me as a bit boring overall - only if the camera distortion really does what I want it to will the scene still work the way I've sketched it.

Thanks for your input!
MrJames
06-20-2006, 08:56 PM
Hey it looks pretty good, although its a bit hard to critique at the moment since you haven't got much of a scene. When you have a few more objects I may be able to help you a little more....

Maybe it would be a good idea to scan in a sketch so people could think about the composition a bit more. :)
usernamelolorz
06-21-2006, 07:00 PM
Hi Mr. James!


Well, in revisiting my original sketch for the scene ( http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e102/thelastusernamenotalreadytaken/crossside.jpg ) I came to notice some really fundamental differences in the original design and the initial model.
The thickness, angles and curves went all to pot - primarily because, I think, I started with a simple cube and then just played with the vertices. I don't know, for example, how to take that simple cube, stretch it into something, then add-in enough new vertices to make the curves and points I'm after (attempting to do this with the "split polygon" tool in maya led to some kind of weird, Escheresque configuration of the planes, whoops), so...the model ended up a lot, lot more blocky than I wanted, and even with the prospect of camera-perspective distortion, I still feel that a lot of the intended impact was negated.
I guess I could make it really thin and then extrude faces, to take care of the thickness issues?, but then I have to worry about vertices in all the other directions too - they're all needed, but I'd prefer not to start with them, since that makes achieving the basic shape a real ordeal.

Any ideas? :-o
Zenneth
06-22-2006, 01:14 PM
I don't use ZBrush, so won't be able to help you with technical issues. But As a modeller, I'd say that you worry too much for 2 pieces of wood sticking to each other. But you'd definitely make a great texture artist.
1st, you should sketched out rather clearly of what it is that you wanted to achieve, If you done that first on paper, it's loads off you when you do the actual modelling. Trust me, I learned that a rather hard way [I spent a few months on something that should be a few days work].
2nd, Details are something that should be done when you got the overall composition sorted out. If the composition doesn't work, it doesn't matter how detailed your objects are. Even Blockbuster productions sorted out their composition first with primitive polygons.
Zenneth
06-22-2006, 01:20 PM
OK, I just rechecked what you said. I'm not sure whether I understood correctly, but it sounded to me like you done that with really high-poly cube since the beginning.
For the Middle part you could easily create that with 8vertices cube, the just move it around to match the image, then Subdivide it for the more details.
Svayne
06-22-2006, 09:18 PM
either use a less shiny texture, like a lambert; or use specularity mapping to choose where the shines are. Maybe, also, it will look more "wood" when the color is applied too. Model's not bad though.
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