First Mudbox Session

This week we had the opportunity to try out and learn Mudbox, which is a mix between digital painting in Photoshop and modelling in 3D in Maya, so I found this software to be the most enjoyable and the best of both skills put together. We spent the morning practising and playing around with the software and trying out the tools to get the hang of them and then in the afternoon we were given the basic model of a Trex and given the task of putting our basic knowledge to the test to sculpt out and add detail and paint to bring the Trex to life. I am really pleased with my final outcome as I feel I grasped the hang of Mudbox pretty quickly and really enjoyed mixing both of the skills together of both 3D modelling and digital painting to create an interesting final outcome and an overall enjoyable experience.

Reference Images used on my final model

Final rendered and sculpted model

3D view of final model

USS Enterprise 3D Model

For this assignment in class we were set the task of putting all our of knowledge of Maya to test and modelling something slightly more complicated and organic looking, not just blocky shapes, as well as learning a few new skills to model the USS Enterprise from Stars Trek. We were given the blueprints for the model and set the task of creating it using these images set up in a 3D view. I did struggle with this model as I feel as though I still have a lot to learn about Maya and how the tools work and after re-doing the model twice I feel as though it looks successful and accurate enough according to the blueprints and am happy with the final result.

Muscle Anatomy Assignment

For this assignment we were set the task of studying muscle anatomy on the human form.

To start off the assignment after looking at some reference images and books I first started off by making some rough studies in pencil showing parts of the body and the different muscles in these parts by labelling them.

Once I was happy with these basic muscle studies I then created the whole human body using muscle anatomy and labelling the key muscles on the form showing both front and back to show how where different muscles are within the body, this will help me in future when creating character concepts and will help to think realistically about movement and how the muscles form and move the body around. 

Life Drawing Sessions 2&3 Term 2

Here are a various selection of life drawings from sessions 2 and 3 this term. In both of these sessions I have not only done the traditional charcoal and pencil drawings but also ventured into other media and tried out felt tips in different styles to add some colour and create a more interesting visual effect for the viewer.

Felt Tips Overlay

Biro Pen in a Geometric Style

Simple Pencil Outline with basic shading

Felt Tips showing highlight and shadow

Felt Tips in a spiral style showing highlights, mid-tones and shadow

Felt Tips using bright contrasting colours to show highlights, mid-tones and shadow

Lizard Assignment

For this lesson we were set the task of digitally painting the given lizard sketch using quick digital drawing techniques to speed up the process. Some of the techniques included: adding texture, using the lasso tool, using soft and hard edge brushes in larger sizes to block out the colours quickly and also using a clipping mask of the overall figure to stay within the lines and keep the overall drawing neat.

To start off the process I created a clipping mask of the overall figure in a silhouette style using a given colour and blocking this out using a large sized hard edge brush and then using a large hard edge eraser to clean up the outlines. After completing this I then started by using the lightest colour in the provided colour swatches and blocked out the lightest highlighted areas on the lizard man using a large soft edge brush at about 15% opacity and building up the colour in various places to give the effect of depth within the highlights and how the light is falling on certain places then creating bounce off light in others.

I then began to build up the various colours adding lighter and darker colours and switching between the two to build up a realistic, 3D effect on the overall lizard man.

Once I was happy with the overall base effect of the lizard man I then copied and pasted the original clipping mask, silhouette layer and then using a soft edged eraser then went back and erased all of the areas over the skin and highlighted areas, leaving the armor darker.

I then worked back into the armor and skin adding various colours from the pre-given colour swatches to build up the overall image and adds a 3D effect that lifts the lizard man off the page and brings him to life.

Once I was happy I then began to add texture to the overall lizard man and used the lasso tool to draw around the areas I wanted to add texture to one by one and then added a found texture of firstly reptile scales and used the 'paste special - paste into' function under the edit menu and then edited this texture by lowering the opacity, changing the layer mode to soft lighting and warping and scaling the texture to create an effect overall look. I then completed the same for the armor, drawing round it using the lasso tool piece by piece and adding a found worn metal texture to create a realistic, battle used effect.

Overall I am really happy with my final piece and feel I have used the layers and tools learnt to their full advantage to create an interesting and effective final outcome, created in a fairly quick time period which can be useful when creating concepts for clients or in tight deadlines, whilst still creating an effective final outcome.