This semester I decided to audit a 3D Animated Design course in order to improve my 3D modelling and animation skills. I was able to learn more about how to create models and textures using Maya, Photoshop, and Substance Painter.
Before we began our project, we were assigned to create a 3D model of a plastic water bottle. It allowed me to refresh my skills using Maya as a 3D modelling tool.
For our first project, we were assigned the aquatic nation of Ingermanmore, a collective of Nordic, Russian and Baltic cities. To begin our research our group looked for information about the culture, history, and climate of the region, and thought how we could apply it to the Maglev train that would connect these areas many years in the future. Using the website Pinterest, we were able to collect a variety of inspiring images and references that allowed us both to contribute and discuss. Because the climate in Ingermanmore is cold, and the region is placed high up in the Northern Hemisphere, we decided that a train running in a cold, dark climate would have to be equipped to get through the harsh environments whilst keeping its travellers warm and safe inside. For that reason, the inclusion of many chimneys, as well as a fog light and snow plough was a key element from our sketches and designs from early on. As the brief describes the Maglev of the future to have self-sustaining energy from the tracks themselves, our argument for the chimneys was to melt the ice that caught itself on the train to prevent the doors from being sealed shut.
We also married the ideas of the area's rich industrial history from the Soviets and European Industrial Revolution with the brief's inclusion of the 'steam-punk' aesthetic in our designs, adding large and heavy industrial equipment such as cogs, gears, and pipes that go in and out of the train carriage’s exposed engine. In order to break up the symmetry, a single ladder was added to one side. Other than this, much of the design follows a simple, symmetrical design, reflecting on the Russian Constructivist movement of the early 20th Century. I was particularly inspired by the look of games such as Bioshock, which also uses an underwater setting, as well as its art nouveau stylised buildings and environments. Though it was not needed for this project, I also looked at the art deco styled stations of the Moscow Metro and the London Underground, and used the way they combined interesting colours and patterns to create a feeling of luxury and comfort.
Within our group we each came up with a different design, then combined the best parts of each one. Our final design was created in Adobe Illustrator in order to obtain an easy to read yet detailed plan for the front, top, and side references of the train. We followed a plan of each creating the individual parts and then 'kit bashing’ them together, which we found was a much easier way of working together as a team but having our own individual input, especially if we were unable to meet up for longer periods of time. As I am more experienced with Maya than Isabella I was able to take on the large, more complicated shapes such as the train's body and plough, while she could learn at her own pace whilst working on other parts, such as decorative or simpler shaped objects. As the design was quite symmetrical, we were able to work economically in regard to reusing the same models for multiple things - such as the cogs used both in the engine and with the door mechanism, and mirroring the final mesh to make sure each of the vertices were perfectly in palace. This would help us save time and let us divert our efforts elsewhere, such as texturing.
In order to get the rusted and beaten look we desired, we used the programme Substance Painter to put semi-realistic textures and bump maps on to our designs. As we both had no experience with this software, the learning curve took place whilst texturing the actual model, and you can see where some areas are more detailed than others. The look of the train and two carriages reflects our research on the subject matter and on the method of creating it, and I am proud of its final renders. To develop it further for the next project, I’d like to include interior shots and designs. Upon reflection, I believe that the texture on the train carriage itself could be duller and less coppery, but also contain designs and typography of the languages of the region.
Research:
https://www.pinterest.co.uk/evabadeva/3dad-train-project/
Before we began our project, we were assigned to create a 3D model of a plastic water bottle. It allowed me to refresh my skills using Maya as a 3D modelling tool.
Final render of the water bottle
'Real Life' photo of water bottle
Proportions of the water bottle based on the photo
For our first project, we were assigned the aquatic nation of Ingermanmore, a collective of Nordic, Russian and Baltic cities. To begin our research our group looked for information about the culture, history, and climate of the region, and thought how we could apply it to the Maglev train that would connect these areas many years in the future. Using the website Pinterest, we were able to collect a variety of inspiring images and references that allowed us both to contribute and discuss. Because the climate in Ingermanmore is cold, and the region is placed high up in the Northern Hemisphere, we decided that a train running in a cold, dark climate would have to be equipped to get through the harsh environments whilst keeping its travellers warm and safe inside. For that reason, the inclusion of many chimneys, as well as a fog light and snow plough was a key element from our sketches and designs from early on. As the brief describes the Maglev of the future to have self-sustaining energy from the tracks themselves, our argument for the chimneys was to melt the ice that caught itself on the train to prevent the doors from being sealed shut.
We also married the ideas of the area's rich industrial history from the Soviets and European Industrial Revolution with the brief's inclusion of the 'steam-punk' aesthetic in our designs, adding large and heavy industrial equipment such as cogs, gears, and pipes that go in and out of the train carriage’s exposed engine. In order to break up the symmetry, a single ladder was added to one side. Other than this, much of the design follows a simple, symmetrical design, reflecting on the Russian Constructivist movement of the early 20th Century. I was particularly inspired by the look of games such as Bioshock, which also uses an underwater setting, as well as its art nouveau stylised buildings and environments. Though it was not needed for this project, I also looked at the art deco styled stations of the Moscow Metro and the London Underground, and used the way they combined interesting colours and patterns to create a feeling of luxury and comfort.
Within our group we each came up with a different design, then combined the best parts of each one. Our final design was created in Adobe Illustrator in order to obtain an easy to read yet detailed plan for the front, top, and side references of the train. We followed a plan of each creating the individual parts and then 'kit bashing’ them together, which we found was a much easier way of working together as a team but having our own individual input, especially if we were unable to meet up for longer periods of time. As I am more experienced with Maya than Isabella I was able to take on the large, more complicated shapes such as the train's body and plough, while she could learn at her own pace whilst working on other parts, such as decorative or simpler shaped objects. As the design was quite symmetrical, we were able to work economically in regard to reusing the same models for multiple things - such as the cogs used both in the engine and with the door mechanism, and mirroring the final mesh to make sure each of the vertices were perfectly in palace. This would help us save time and let us divert our efforts elsewhere, such as texturing.
In order to get the rusted and beaten look we desired, we used the programme Substance Painter to put semi-realistic textures and bump maps on to our designs. As we both had no experience with this software, the learning curve took place whilst texturing the actual model, and you can see where some areas are more detailed than others. The look of the train and two carriages reflects our research on the subject matter and on the method of creating it, and I am proud of its final renders. To develop it further for the next project, I’d like to include interior shots and designs. Upon reflection, I believe that the texture on the train carriage itself could be duller and less coppery, but also contain designs and typography of the languages of the region.
Research:
https://www.pinterest.co.uk/evabadeva/3dad-train-project/
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