WIP Pagani Zonda Cinque Roadster

#1

Hello! I’m a beginner in 3D-Desing and this is one of my first car i’m modeling, but i have real problems with the flowwork. Here are some images with what i’ve done so far.



#2

I have worked a litle bit on the car but i don’t like how it looks here.

#3

Is that one piece? It looks like the black carbon fiber is part is part of the splitter and the white front part isn’t connected to it. That might make it easier to model too.

#4

To be honest, this project is a bit to complex attempting as a first time effort. Because at a glance not only is there irregular spacing but also incorrectly placed triangles, resulting in shading errors and “pinching” when mesh smoothed. So if you intend continuing adding detail, then I’d strongly suggest modifying your workflow by:

  • Further subject reference research
  • Working through a step by step hardsurface polygon modelling tutorial
  • Generating an optimised base mesh geometry, through an efficient topology design

To give some idea of what I mean, as an example I’ve made a start on another version of this car, mainly for personal practice plus a possible portfolio submission:

Basically once the major parts of the car are blocked out, a sub-division modifier is applied (x2 iterations) and shaded smooth. Also note at this stage apart from face loops (a boundary quad group) supporting curved regions of the mesh ie: wheel arches, headlight wells, windshield…etc

Edges that will define creased areas of the body shell are yet to be added. Its also important to bear in mind reflective surfaces are a primary element of car modelling, which will usually tend to highlight mesh inconsistencies as well.

#5

I don’t think he needs to do all that. It might not be perfect as a first attempt but I think he should go for it. You can always clean it up later. The triangles aren’t creating a whole lot of rendering issues so he seems to know when he can get away with it. And working at that res isn’t that bad. I would go your route also, with the base mesh, but it’s not the only way to do it.

#6

You’re quite welcome too express an opinion of course, however in this case, about as far from what one would categorise as anything approaching constructive or indeed otherwise, I’ve yet encountered on this board or anywhere else for that matter, in a fair old while I might add.

Well that’s all well and good, but if he persists untutored, essentially without a basic understanding how to resolve a problem, then what? - really its all about being efficient and affective being key here pretty much from the get go, without which as an artist, progression would be highly improbable.

You can always clean it up later.

As above in bold.

The triangles aren’t creating a whole lot of rendering issues so he seems to know when he can get away with it.

Sure about that? I mean seriously…

I did allude automotive modelling especially for a beginner was a complicated subject to take on, so “knowing what you can get away with” takes more than just a bit of aptitude to assess. For instance if a reflective shader was applied too the OPs base mesh, in all intents and purposes It’ll definitely produce shading artefacts, in effect jaggy wavy lines, typically populating the affected areas.

And working at that res isn’t that bad. I would go your route also, with the base mesh, but it’s not the only way to do it.

Oh well…each to his own, I guess.

To the OP:

Reiterating what I’d said earlier. As you gradually attain competency working in the digital medium, being efficient and effective, is from experience the optimal avenue to pursue. So If my argument doesn’t sound convincing enough, then these indepth articles on the topic may explain things a little clearer, hopefully:

“Modeling Cars in Polygons” by Ali Ismail
http://www.carbodydesign.com/article/59531-modeling-cars-in-polygons/

And…

“Making of Mercedes S600” (by the same Author)
http://www.aliismail.com/downloads/Making%20Of%20S600.pdf

#7

I don’t want to be a dick but I have no idea what most of those sentences are trying to communicate.

I’m just saying he doesn’t need to start on something completely different to learn whatever it is you think he needs to learn. Yeah it’s better to have clean topology and to work from a simpler mesh, but he’s going along fine especially for a first try. This experimentation is just as useful as a tutorial so I don’t see the point in diverting attention away from the project. But whatever. Both opinions are on the table. No biggie.

#8

^ …seems as if you’re in need of a helping hand as well.

Looks as if those links, may come in handy, after all.

#9

Hah wow.

And here I thought being a dick was against the forum rules.

#10

When I first tried my hand at car modelling, I made similar mistakes to the OP. A car (or helicopter or whatever) is a very complex object, and the limitations of Sub-D don’t allow you to combine regions of vastly differing geometry density in one continuous mesh, at least not easily. In a sense, modelling something like this is a bit like painting; you attempt to lay down the broad strokes first, and only once these are correct do you go for the finer details.

What sacboi has done is correct. The overall shape of the vehicle is created first, without worrying about sharpening corners or adding too many cut-outs. This serves as a guide as much as anything else. You then have to understand how the real vehicle is built; we’re talking about all the different panels and where the seams are. Once you have the basic shape correct, you then split the model into panels; adding details will become much easier because whenever you add loops, you don’t have the nightmare of trying to figure out how to route those loops all around the model such that they don’t detrimentally affect your existing work. With everything cut in to panels, an extra loop terminates at the edge of that panel without affecting anything else. Another point to consider is the spacing of your loops. If you want a panel to look like it is uniformly curved, then your loops must be uniformly spaced, or at least as much as possible. This is why the Loop Tools in 3DS are so useful.

Speaking of triangles - they’re not desirable and can usually be avoided. For example in your second image from the first post (showing the front of the car) you have tried to sharpen up the front by adding a loop, but then it dips down creating a triangle. Instead, you should allow that loop to run all the way to the front wheel arch, spacing your loops appropriately. In the worst case, you can probably get away with creating a four-sided triangle, which is where the four vertices forming a quad are arranged in the shape of a triangle. To put it another way, imagine taking one of your triangles and splitting one of the sides so a vertex is in the middle of it. You can use a loop coming from that new vertex to define a sharp edge anywhere your model requires it.

I’ve only talked about some very basic aspects. There is a lot more to it but it would be a little much for someone starting out. Hope this helps. :slight_smile: