UV Maps

 

 

So something different for a change, I thought I would share with you guys my UV layouts. This is a mixture of organic animal unwraps as well as hardware machinery parts. You can see the difference in how I construct my layouts. Organic unwrapping is very different to normal unwrapping and sometimes you have to waste space. I don't like doing this but the odd shapes you get, you can't help but waste a little. Unwrappign is something that you just learn to get better at and every time I do them I always try and optimize them to make sure I get the best texel density. I think there is one thing I don't do well which is allowing bleeding and so I can get some errors due to packing my maps a bit too tight, this is especially true for normal maps. These are most of my texture sheets for FMP but I'm sure I've missed out some by accident but I thought it would be a fun blog just to show the way I unwrap and pack my maps :).

Pelts Galore

So a few days past and time to blog again. I've been doing a lot of unwrapping and texturing and i have lots more to do but it's a good start. So I've got the base textures for the factory component, I just need to add the details to it and again these don't have to be amazing as they are behind glass but they still have to be textured half decently.

I got some pelts on the go, this will really help break up the floor tiles and add a bit of life to the taxidermist. 

I textured the deer table and made a fur coat which is unwrapped and i'm testing a few fur textures on now. gonna texture the bear rug white like a polar bear to add a little bit of different than just the brown bear. you can also see the heads at the side there, I'm making my way through texturing them to add that little more variation to the level. 

I made the Les Deux Garcon four deers stuck together, this is unwrapped and ready for texturing. The shark is almost done need to try get my Ndo working again for the textures to pop a bit. I've started texturing on the lamp, lamb crow and fox as well so getting through that.

Going a while back to this cabinet but finally unwrapped it and slapped on a wood tileable, I was gonna do the wood mahogany but when I put it in level i didn't like it, it seems to stick out way too much an take your eye away from the key assets. I can change all this at a later date if I think mahogany will work better but at this point I think i'll stick with this pine type wood.

So this is where the level sits at the minute, the fog is a different colour i pelt rugged the floor up, proper pimping now. Adding in new asset and tomorrow i'll get back onto texturing all the stuff i need to do. None the less it is coming together if I keep the pace up I should be fine. Have to focus on the outside a little more as well and make it all pretty as I plan to have a presentation shot of that as well.

I love when 3ds Max Crashes

Gonna try and update more regularly again, it does help me keep track on what to do. So I've been working on some of the mechanical things for the behind the glass details. So this stuff will be moving and giving the illusion of awesome stuff happening.

Went back to the vertex painting again and added a plaster texture to the walls to help break up areas.

Also made some quick trees for the outside area and a pathway for the character to walk down. Also made a quick lamp post as well for the outside to help light up the area.

here are some of the mechanical parts in max, so there's like a steamer, pelt press, moving arm transporter...just the weirdest assortment of stuff but it will look cool when it's done. Although might need to turn the opacity down on the glass a little bit so you can see a little bit more of the assets.

Deer City & Level Progression

It's been a while since I uploaded a blog, mostly because of Easter break and productivity being a bit all over the place so time for major update on what I've been doing. I have a ton to do still and its time to knuckle down and really bring the whole project together.

 These are the modulated antler horns for the generic deer heads on the wall. This is something I've wanted to do because I have so many unique stuff that I can't spam them around the level because it would be too obvious so I needed something to help me break up wall spaces.

I'm also about halfway done with the Pim Palsgraaf sculpt, it's taking a while because I'm basically modelling a city on the back of this deer and so this is where things can start eating into time. But when it's done it will look awesomesauce so I can't complain.

I was feeling stuck over the easter and with not much work being done I decided to do a paintover to try give myself a better idea of where the level is going and to make it feel less empty which i was getting annoyed at.

 I won't have time to fully do the factory but i can give the illusion it is working with things like gears, rolling machines and the assembly line working away behind the closed doors. You will be able to see behind the glass a little bit and hopefully it will look really awesome and be kismeted and be cool.

You think I would have done enough fur but i want to do more, i want a big fur coat at the front entrance and a pelt to break up the repetition, it just helps make it feel more like home. I also want particle FX in teh light shafts to make them more realistic

As you can see I have a long way to go but with a better idea of what i'm doing again I will pick up the slack and get it finished to a high standard. I love this project and I will really work on the lighting to give it an awesome atmosphere, hopefully very reminiscent of Bioshock infinite.

Also here are some of my sculpts, just trying out rendering and stuff for portfolio, I'll keep experimenting and learning about this whole presentation business.

Bioshock Infinite Reference

So for my birthday I bought Bioshock Infinite and it was worth it, the environments are so stunning and with a lot more inspiration than I expected to get with a lot of factory stuff and even a small taxidermy scene. The colour palette in this game is just awesome and I love their use of fog. Here are some screenshots of the game;