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AlexGT
10-30-2008, 08:55 PM
Hello people,

i need advise about a project i'm working on in 3D for the web, working for some animations
that i need to do in 3D and export them in Flash for a website. So the website in background
white and i need to do a white character, a little white mascotte to be precise, and he will
move on different sections of the site, always with the white background.

I have tried to do some test renders, it started to be ok but i'm always ending with
too much white on some area on my character, so i can't see the difference or the contrast
with the white background. And i also need to have a shadow of him on the ground.
I'm working with maya and i want to render it with Mental ray and Final gather cause i found
it really cool and the most photorealistic that i know of so far.

* I have included an image with the character that i did and some made by others that
i want to look like or the result i'm looking

So any idea i can work on or advise by you guys ?

Thank you for your cooperation

Bob
Rens
10-30-2008, 09:12 PM
Easiest would be to do it in post if you can by changing the black and white in/out values, or rendering out a solid colour or mask and a separate self-shadow/shading pass. Drop shadow would also be easiest to do in post with a separate shadow pass.
Other than that you might be able to change the ambient colour to lighten up the dark parts and set a darker diffuse colour to darken the brighter parts. Or mix the regular shader with a neutral constant or self-illum shader which will bring the contrast down.

Here might be some useful tips as well: http://mentalraytips.blogspot.com/2008/09/white-out-thise-nice-product-renders.html
phix314
10-31-2008, 03:23 AM
Perhaps an overall ambient occlusion pass with a large max distance... that and a reverse rim shader that darkens ever so slightly on the edges depending on facing angle to keep him from disappearing...?
mister3d
10-31-2008, 05:01 AM
Place a plane over your characters (if you use Gi). You are not the first to encounter this problem, and this is white-on white lighting technique. You block your direct overhead lighting with a plane. Your lighting source must be an area light and quite big, so it wraps up the blocking plane.
AlexGT
11-01-2008, 03:36 AM
All right !

Thank you very much to all of you, i will check on this but i had some good result by testing many renders, and with a couple of lights and light linking i had what i want so far.
But i got your advise in case some scene go wrong.

Bob
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