Creating Star Wars opening scene in Cinema 4D part 2

Texturing the models

Looking back on the Star Destroyer model I feel that I could have done things a bit differently. Rather than add the detail in the modelling process I should have used textures to create a similar effect. This way the model would have have had a lower poly count and so would have been easier to move around the 3D world. Thankfully by the time I modeled the Blockade Runner I had learned my lesson well.

Texturing the Ships

As I'm still a texturing newbie I haven't yet mastered the art of creating textures in Photoshop so basically I cheated a bit and hunted for my textures online. It wasn't an easy job finding a texture that matched and in hindsight it might have been easier to create my own from scratch which is exactly what I've started to do. I did manipulate the texture I found in Cinema 4D however just to get something that's a bit more of my own. There are some decent tutorials out there on how to create textures in Photoshop. Follow the link below and you'll find a real gem of a tutorial which looks at creating a metallic texture in Photoshop. This tutorial looks at using distortion techniques to create some interesting effects.
http://www.tutorialwiz.com/metallic_background/

This next tutorial looks at creating a stone texture. This will get you used to adding depth to a texture which will help you to create bumps and uneven sections on a metallic surface.
http://www.phong.com/tutorials/newstone/

I followed similar principles when creating textures for the Blockade Runner and Tie Fighters however with the Blockade Runner I added a bit more detail by adding layers. I was able to add some battle damage type effects using this technique. I learnt all about layers from this tutorial which shows you how to create a realistic water texture. What does this have to do with intergalactic spaces craft you may ask. Well I learnt a lot from this tutorial which I have applied to many different texture types from skin to rock; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrHabbtu0eY

When it came to texturing the planet I used a decent texture for planet earth. This tutorial explains how to create a realistic planet earth;
http://www.cinema4duser.com/tech_tutorial01.html

In the next part of this analysis I will look at arranging the models, the cameras and lights.

Creating Star Wars opening scene in Cinema 4D part 1

A few months ago I decided to create the opening scene of Star Wars in Cinema 4D. It was one of those random ideas that just popped in my head so I'm surprised I saw it through to the end. Anyway, I thought  would explain how I made the film from the modelling process through to the editing stage for anyone who might be a little but curious. Each week I will look at a different stage of the creation process. I will also mention the tutorials that helped me along the way. 

• Week 1: Modelling the ships
• Week 2: Texturing the ships
• Week 3: Arranging the models, cameras and light in the scene
• Week 4: Editing the footage and adding the sound and music

Right then, here we go. I've got to start somewhere so I suppose I'll just have to start at the beginning. I built the models from scratch using Cinema 4D's extensive range of modelling tools. I took a slightly different approach to each ship as by the time I constructed the last model I was just that little bit more experienced when it came to low poly modelling. Right then, first up I will talk about the creation of the Star Destroyer model.

Star Destroyer modelling process

I won't tell a lie, I have never been comfortable modelling anything space ship related particularly when I try to design my own. I tend to fair a bit better when modelling something that exists from TV or film. With that in mind I decided to make sure that I had enough pictures of the ship so that I had something to draw from. I also had reference images to help me get the proportions right. The following is a breakdown of the techniques I used;

• I set up my ref images in the side, front and top views.

If you click on the link below you'll find a decent tutorial on setting up reference images. 

http://cinema4dtutorials.com/modeling/modeling-a-car/

• I decided to create my model from a cube primitive. I started to using points however I couldn't get to grips with this method of modelling. I'm used to modelling from a primitive, particularly when it comes to characters. 
• I made the cube editable by pressing c on the keyboard. (windows users) 
• After stretching the cube to make it fit the refs I used the knife tool to make a series of cuts. After I was happy with the cuts that had been made I set about deleting parts of the cube to get the basic shape of the Star Destroyer.
• The next step involved moving points to match the ref images.
• Once I had the shape of the model sorted out I used the mirror tool to create a duplicate of it just below. I had a lot of trouble getting the mirrored object in the right place. It inloved plenty of trial and error. I've never really been comfortable using the mirror tool but I'm trying to get to grips with it as it is quite useful when it comes to character rigging.
• The next stage involved connecting the two parts of the model together. I used edge extrude to pull down one half of the model to meet the other. This didn't go quite to plan as the extruded area didn't meet the bottom of the model in a desirable way. Basically I didn't know how to connect it and I didn't even know if this was even possible. After much research I was none the wiser. I aligned the extruded part as best as I could and carried on regardless. 
• Next it was a case of adding the details. This meant using a variety of tools and techniques. I used the knife tool, bool and a series of extrusions. I also used cube primitives (edited) to add some finer detail to the ship. 

The links below will take you to some tutorials that show you how to model from a cube primitive. 

This one gives you an idea of how you could model a ship.

http://dogparry.deviantart.com/art/Space-ship-modeling-46480733

This one looks at modelling a water faucet. Not quite a spaceship I hear you say but it will give you an idea of how you could model one using the same basic principles. 

http://www.tutorialblogger.info/cinema-4d-box-modeling-a-water-faucet-with-hypernurbs/

So, that's week 1 out of the way. Next week I'll look at how I textured the models. See you then.

Star Wars short Cinema 4D animation

Here's a Star Wars animation that I created a few months back. I'll explain how I put it together in my next blog.If anyone wants to comment on it or if you want to make suggesting as to how I could make improvements then please leave a comment. See you next time.

Choosing the right modelling method

After a very long hiatus I have returned to write about what I know best; everything 3D modelling related. During my time away from blogging I have been soaking up the 3D modelling scene to try and gain a bit more knowledge about building low polygon characters. My usual method of character modelling is effective enough but I wanted to see if there are any alternative methods on the internet. I managed to find a couple of informative tutorials but before I go into any detail I'll quickly explain how I've been modelling my characters in Cinema 4D.

• I'll drop a cube object into the scene and increase the number of segments.
• After I've made the cube editable I'll delete half of it and place it into a symmetry object (this really makes the modelling process a lot easier).
• I will also pop the cube and the symmetry object under a HyperNurbs. From there I will make a series of extrusions and cuts to to get the desired look.

I've always found character modelling to be frustrating, particularly when the symmetry object causes unexpected deformations. Thankfully after much experimentation I am able to spot any errors that the symmetry object might cause. Overall though, character modelling can be a rewarding experience. Now, on to the aforementioned websites.

The first website looks at modelling a character by starting with the leg and building up the body from there. This is a great way to model as you can be more precise with your extrusions and for the basic body shape you won't need to make as many knife cuts. You can find the website by following the link below;

http://www.markuslanser.com/tutorials/c4d_low_poly_body.html

It's great to have as many methods of character at hand as possible. This website shows you how to model using a drawing which you can use as a guide. A great level of detail can be achieved using this method.

The second website that I checked out looks at adding detail to the face. I wanted to add facial detail to my character however I needed a few tips to gain a bit more confidence. The following link will take you to a very thorough face modelling tutorial;

http://www2.ocn.ne.jp/~mimura/tutorials/index_e.html

Check out these two tuts and I promise you won't be disappointed. By combining various tutorials and techniques you will find that the modelling process becomes much easier. That's all for now.

Cinema 4d star wars scene

Just a quick blog to let everyone know that I'm back from my holidays and ready for action. So, what have I been up to in the Cinema 4d world this past couple of weeks; well I'm still working on my little Star Wars project and it's almost ready for its debut on You Tube. There have been problems galore though. The toughest problems I faced didn't involve special effects or modelling, no it was the setting up of the scene that gave me a few moments of frustration. To give the impression that the star destroyer was even bigger than it looked I played around with aperture width and the focal length in the camera settings.

As promised I will put up a tutorial of how to set up the scene in a future blog but first I have a film to finish. That's all for now.

Cinema 4d car rigging problems

I've been away from the world of blogs for a for couple of weeks and I put this down to car rigging in Cinema 4D. Trying to find a tutorial on how to rig a car is an almost impossible task particularly for Cinema 4D users but I managed to come across a basic tutorial which looked at wheel turns and movement. The tutorial was informative with easy to follow on-screen directions.

Just click below to check it out;

http://vimeo.com/13207222

Now I am trying to add a suspension system to my rig which is a totally different level of difficulty altogether. I tried using spring dynamics but couldn't build a frame around the spring set up. I'm sure it's possible to use dynamics to build a spring based suspension rig as I have seen videos on You Tube which demonstrate this method. Well after searching through various forums I came across a Cinema 4D plug-in called Roll-it. I was impressed with this plug-in as it managed to plant the wheels of my car firmly on an uneven surface and keep them there as they rolled over the terrain. So I would like to say thanks to the developers of Roll-it.

You can download the plug-in by clicking below;

http://www.eggtion.net/index.php?id=1030&l=en

I have had a play around with this Plug-in and have so far been impressed. It's easy to get the ball rolling, pardon the pun, by simply dropping a terrain in to the floor tag and selecting geometry. Thankfully you can download an instruction manual from the same website to get in in depth look at how it all works. As far as my car rig was concerned I achieved a mixed bag of results. After applying the plug-in the wheels connected to an uneven surface but the car didn't move up and down with it. I would have to animate the movement of the car separately. This is not the fault of the plug-in though as it can't solve all of my problems. Anyway, I'll continue to play around with Roll-it and let you know if I discover anything new.

That's all for now folks.

Hollywood films that use Cinema 4D

Cinema 4D has proven its versatility in the film industry many time in such films as District 9 and Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs. The latest film to add Cinema 4D to its arsenal of special effects software is Tron Legacy, the sequel to a film that needs no introduction. It's kind of nice to know that the software I use to create 3d models is used in big budget Hollywood blockbusters. So I just wanted to give this and some other films a quick mention. Quite often Cinema 4D is used for Matte painting but this time around the 3D applications spline capabilities are being used for the bike scenes.

District 9 took advantage of Cinema 4Ds Bodypaint 3D capabilities for the aliens. Cinema 4D has powerful tools that can help replicate smoke effects and these were used in the Bruce Willis film Surrogates. GI Joe: Rise of the Cobra used Bodypaint 3D to texture various models in the film. Here's hoping Cinema 4D continues to be used for future film releases.

Overcoming the symmetry tool in C4D

A few days ago I followed a tutorial that showed me how to create a humanoid head in C4D which didn't go too well at the time. This was partly down to how some of the tutorial was written and also because of the difficulty of using the symmetry tool. The symmetry tool can be of great help when modelling a character as it quite literally does half the job for you but there is a lot that can go wrong when using this tool. One of my previous efforts started to show signs of a bump which ran down the middle of the model. No matter what I did I couldn't rectify this problem however not all was lost as I managed to disguise the defects. I then found the tutorial mentioned above in the hope that I could learn how to avoid the common mistakes often associated when using the symmetry tool. I found the tutorial frustrating at first but on the whole it did teach me some valuable information that I would have not known otherwise.

For my first try at using the symmetry tool I used a primitive cube object which I placed in a HyperNurbs object. I then placed the cube object under symmetry and then placed both of them under HyperNurbs. Now it was this mistake that made the modelling process difficult. Instead I should have cut the primitive object in half and then placed it in a symmetry object. This made so much sense and I don't know why I didn't think of this in the first place. There is still the risk of a split down the middle of the model if a selected polygon is pulled outwards.

I have just begun a new model and I am pleased to say that this one is going smoothly thanks to the symmetry tool.

Below is my effort from the tutorial. The model on the left demonstrates what happens when I connected all of the objects together. For some reason the pixels seem blocky compared with the model on the left.

For anyone who is interested in checking out the symmetry tutorial just click on the link below;

http://dogparry.deviantart.com/art/Head-modeling-C4d-part-1-77337338