Component 1: Weekly Challenges

In this component I have been task to create an asset that is from these three areas: Spacecraft, weapon or aquatic vehicle. I have chose to create an aquatic vehicle more specifically “Thunder Bird 4”. Before starting to create the asset in Maya I first needed to gather research and reference imagery so that when I build the vehicle in Maya it will look just like it. These reference images can be shown below.

I then used the picture with the multiple views to start creating the 3D version of “Thunderbird 4” as this would allow me to get the most accurate version of the aquatic vehicle when its finished.

Week 1

The first weeks challenges was to help teach me the basics of building objects in Maya. The first challenge was to Import reference imagery so that we may use it to help build our final object. To do this you have to go to view, then image plane, then import image. This then allows you to choose an image you would like to have in your workspace. once the image is imported you then need to rotate and change the scale to your own prefrences. Screenshots of this can be shown below.

The next challenge was to be able to extrude and bevel. Extruding is when you stretch an objects face in Maya. You can do this my selecting a face then using the extrude tool. Also when using the tool you can offset the face so that the extrusion is larger or smaller so that it makes the object go into a bigger or smaller shape. My example of extruding that I used in my work is shown below.

  

The next thing we challenge was to know how to bevel. Bevelling is when you smooth the edges of an object so they are more rounded. You can do this by selecting the edges you want to bevel then use the bevel tool and change the settings till you get the bevel you want. For example you can change the fraction of the bevel so that the bevel is much bigger or smaller. you can also change how many segments there are so it makes the bevel more smooth. My example of bevelling is shown below.

 

The next challenge was to learn hoe to use the boolean tool. Boolean is when you use another shape to cut through or add to a shape so that you can make more interesting designs. You can do this my selecting an object you want to use to cut or add to your design, then place the object where you want it. Then select the object you’re cutting or adding too and then shift select the object you’re using to cut or add to the other shape, then use the Boolean tool and select difference or add depending on what you’re design to look like.  My example of Boolean is shown below.

    

Week 2

This weeks set of challenges was to learn how to improve modelling skills and how to sharpen the geometry of the whole design.

The first challenge was to learn how to use the soft selection tool. The soft selection tool allows you to create  more natural curves when moving vertices as when moving vertices one at a time they can be quite rigid. This can be a quite good tool to use as it can help keep clean geometry so that you don’t get any trouble when texturing. You use the soft selection tool by selecting a range of vertices that you would like to move then pressing “B” on your keyboard it creates a fall off around the vertices you have selected with yellow being the middle going into red then black. You then move the vertices how you would like to create a softer edge. If you would like the fall off to be bigger or smaller you would hold down “B” and the left mouse button and drag left or right depending on how you want the fall off to be. My example of this is shown on the screen shots below.

The next challenge was to learn how insert edge loops. Edge loops are edges that go around a whole object that then allow you to edit the vertices to create more complicated shapes. To insert an edge loop you need to go to mesh tools, then insert edge loop. you then need to select the object you want to place an edge loop on and then click the edge where the loop will go around. You can also move the edge loop by selecting the move tool. My example of the edge loop can be seen below.

      

The next challenge was to learn how to refine geometry. Refining geometry is when you clean up the geometry of the object so that when you get to texturing you wont run into any troubles due to geometry not being uniform. There are many ways to refine geometry like using the move and scale tool to straighten and move edges so that the squares are more similar sizes and the lines are straighter. You can also move and scale vertices so that they are in a more smoother lines and shapes in your object. Also you can delete any unnecessary edges or vertices made by edge loops. Some examples of me cleaning up geometry is shown below.

   

The next challenge was to learn how to smooth geometry. smoothing geometry is when you the geometry on an object more smoother so that the object looks more natural and less ridged. To preview what smooth tool would you can press “2” on your keyboard which will give you a x-ray view of the original shape and then a view of what the shape will look like smoothed. The if you press “3” on your keyboard it will give you just the smoothed shape and then by pressing “1” it will bring it back to normal view. This can be seen below.

 

As the images above are just previews of what an object would looked like smoothed and you are happy with how it looks then you can smooth for real by selecting the object you would like to smooth. Then go to mesh, then smooth, you will then get a little box’s that says division this will also you to choose how smooth the object will be but be carful as if you make the number to high you could crash your computer. Then once you have chosen how smooth you would like it you just deselect the object. my example of this is shown below.

   

Week 3

In this weeks set of challenges we learn how to texture objects so that we can improve the overall design of the object we are creating.

The first challenge of this weeks was to learn how to add basic shaders. Shaders are a type of texture that you can assign to objects so that you can make the object have different types of material and colour. Firstly to add shaders you need to create one to do this you to select the button that looks like a sphere shown in the images below and by doing this it will create at pop up box where you can create your shader.

In this box is where you will create the shader that you will apply to an object. To do this you need to select the type of material that you would like use normally the material you would use would be either Lambert which is the basic plastic material with no reflection,   Blinn which is reflective and then Phong which is reflective but is more diffused. once you have selected the material you can then select the colour of your material which is shown in the property editor along with transparency, ambient colour, incandescence and diffuse. This can be seen below.

Once you have chosen how you would like your material to look like you are then ready to apply the material and this can be done one of three ways. Th first way is to select the object then right click on the shader you would like to apply then click assign material. This can be seen below.

The second way you can do it is by clicking the shader with middle mouse and then dragging it to the object which is shown below.

Then the third way you can do it is by right clicking the object then go down to assign existing material and then choose the material you want. This is shown below. All three of these ways will allow you to add texture to your object.

Another thing you can do is assign a texture to a specific face you can do this by going to face mode then select the face you would like to texture. Then assign the texture you want to that face. This can be seen below.

The next challenge of the week was to learn how to add image materials. image materials are textures that you use from images to add to objects. To this you will first need to create a new shader so you first got to the hyper shader tab then select a new type of texture want for example Lambert then when changing the colour instead you click the little box next to it which will allow you to add an image.

It will then create a pop up box where you will click file. Then you will need to click the little file icon in the property editor. Then you can choose the image you would like to add to your object.

 

As you can see the image I chose was added to the preview. You can then apply this material to your object. You may find that you can’t see the material on the object and to fix this you need to click the button that looks like a circle with black and white boxes which is shown below. This will then put the texture on the object.

You may find that the texture doesn’t work as well on the object you have and you can fix this by going into your hyper shader editor and clicking the UV box which is the purple one shown below. This will then allow you to repeat the image on the shape, offset the image, rotate the image or change the noise on the image.

By doing this you can improve the way your texture looks on your design.

Week 4

This weeks challenge is learn how to create and use lighting correctly to in a scene so that the object I am creating looks realistic and is able to be seen when rendering out.

The first challenge was learning hoe to create three point lighting and use it correctly. Three point lighting is when you use three lights to light up a scene, with the main source of light being the Key Light. This is light is normally the strongest light and it is place to the side of the subject so that you can get some shadow. The next light is the Fill Light this light is normally the secondary source of light in the scene and it is place to the other  side of the key light as this fills in the harsh shadows created by the fill light. The third light is the Back Light this light is placed behind the subject so that it can create highlights around it so that it looks more 3-dimensional and this light is normally the weakest.

The first thing I did to create three point lighting on my object was to create the key light.  I did this by using a spot light and aiming it at about the middle of my object. I also changed the cone angle so it gives the light a wider spread, then the penumbra angle and the drop off so that the light didn’t have harsh out line on it. This is shown below.

The next light I added was the fill light so that I could fill the dark shadows created by the fill light. I also changed the intensity of the light to about half of the Key. I then changed the cone angle, penumbra angle and the drop off so it gives the light a more natural look. This is shown below.

The last light I added was the back light. I did this so that I could give my object some highlights around the edge of it. I also made the light intensity about half of the fill light. This can be seen below.

Once I created the lights I then went back and changed the intensities on some of the lights so that they wouldn’t be so harsh on the objects. Below are images of my object with the different lights on it separately.

Below is my render of my object using the three point lighting.

The next part of this weeks challenge was to learn how to use Arnold Lights. Arnolds lights are different type of lights to the normal lights in Maya. These lights allow you to make your object more realistic by using better real world algorithms to create how the light would work. Below are the types of Arnold lights that maya have the one I’m going to be using is the sky dome.

Below you can see what happened when I insert the sky dome light into my project and at the moment it is too bright so I need to turn it down to get a more natural look.

Then I need to change my 3 point lighting to quadratic rather than liner as this also creates more realistic lighting and it will benefit my object when I render out. However I will have to change the light intensity up a lot when in quadratic compared to liner. This is shown below.

The final thing to do once I have sorted the lights out is to do an Arnold render of my object. This and my final render is shown below.

Week 5

This weeks challenge was to learn how to set up a render properly. Firstly you need to set up the cameras so that they show the angles and shots you want of your object. Also you want to go to camera settings and put on the resolution gate as this will show you exactly what part of the image will be rendered out. This can be seen below.

The next thing you do to render out your object is, to go to the render settings to make sure everything is correct before you actually start the render. My settings can be seen below.

  

Then the final thing I did was to actually start the render. when you render you need to make sure you are rendering through the camera you created as this will give you the shot that you wanted.

Week 6

In the final week of these challenges we had to show case what we have done so far with our objects that we are creating. shown below is what I have done so far for the creation of “Thunderbird 4”.