Advanced Modelling Portfolio: Mini Challenge Complete!

I had alot of fun with this! I am slowly understanding the kinds of techniques to use when texturing in different programs (I am a beginner at texturing). For this I used Zbrush and Photoshop CS3 to texture (mainly Zbrush’s polypaint tool, as I find it much more intuitive and easy to use, you can really go to town on something and make it look great)

Bigger picture here: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v605/VivaEmm0r/VespiraSeascale_render1-2.jpg

I really enjoyed sculpting this one too.

Advanced Modelling Portfolio: Mini Challenge!

Dominance War 4 Mini-Challenge

For my Advanced Modelling Portfolio module we are required to do a mini-challenge for week 3 of my course and then a full challenge for week 11 of my course. Of course I decided to go for the character modelling/sculpting challenge as I do enjoy this alot and want to improve my technical skills in that area.. We have to take one of three base meshes provided from the Dominance War (http://www.dominancewar.com) challenge and turn it into a War General of any type.

I got the idea from Ursula in the Little Mermaid. Also the stereotypical idea of a large woman on an english beach, which is what made me choose those (ghastly) colours – they remind me of an old seaside resort postcard! However I am going to play around with colours more when I’ve finished sculpting. She will probably end up a colour more sea-like (green/orange/blue)

I made a good start on sculpting..

I’ve not sculpted clothing in Zbrush before so as you can see her bikini isn’t looking great at the moment. This is at 5 levels of division in Zbrush – it is barely finished, but I have just added in some of the main elements. Also trying to work out how to do the eyes. But hurray for boobs and lips right?

Handheld Games Design: Phaelous the Owl Beauty Render

Art test one complete, this was a practise, and it was very enlightening.. it was just over half what our limit was (500 tris) but have I made the most of those polys? *reflection*

Well, in the time I spent on this, I had fun and learnt somethings so.. that’s all that matters for now right?

Emma

Handheld Games Design: Owly

And so it starts!

Right well this week we were assigned 2 tasks: to do 2 art tests for this coming Thursday, one of an owl and one of a desk (both need to be under 700 tris). I have started work on my owl, and finished the modelling, currently just unwrapping it (I could get so much more done if my back/neck weren’t aching like hell..)

So I know my owl is a little chubbier.. but he is only 286 tris (not including the sphere). Texturing is going to be fun, I love the little designs all over our concept owl. Seeing as I am in the tri-budget, maybe I will curl his wings round him a little more.

Progress to come.

Emma

My Progress with Tiku

I didn’t manage to finish Tiku, however I made some progress with her. I imagine I will work on her further once I have fixed my computer, but for now here is the progress I got (warning: it’s not much!)

So that’s how far I got.. I believe I worked on the back leg alot more because it just isn’t accurate to how I want it in this picture but didn’t have a screenshot of that.

Emma

Results of my 2nd year!

Hello!

Haven’t updated in a long time. This is due to Summer holidays/searching for job/seeing friends/being on holiday.. Today I am going to post up my results that I got for my second year at university!

Facial Modelling – 12/15

Computer Games Design – 2A 12/15

Multiplayer Online Gaming – 11/15

Body Modelling – 10/15

Computer Games Design 2B – 8/15

Character Rigging – 7/15

Computer Animation – 7/15

Character Animation – 7/15

All in all I am pretty pleased with the results, I passed into the final year – now I need to get cracking on some solid ideas for my Final Year Project!

- Emma

Character Animation: Final Anis!

Hello Hello.

These are the finished animations I handed in this semester at university for Character Animation.

What I liked about my animation; gotta say the style and initial concept, it’s simple and fun imo. The animation itself is not great at all.. I can see where I went wrong watching it back closely, timing is off in some areas, some dodgy little animation errors I noticed also. But all in all I’ll give myself 5/10.. it’s a good first try in my opinion!

I also need to upload the finished walk and run cycle. Bear with me on that.

- Emma

Tiku

Tiku

Hi there

This is the Tiku I spent yesterday designing, sketched out first then drew her in Photoshop.. I have gone onto drawing over it in a new layer in photoshop, marking out where the polys will lie and trying to get good flow.  Started a base mesh about 1hr ago but won’t post screenies up yet as I haven’t finished that at all.  This is all for a new competition at cgCoach.com so go check it out !  Tons of amazing prizes.  I probably won’t win, but I think it’s worth giving it a shot anyway, I really wanna start progressing in the CG community. Heh I feel so self indulgent atm -_-

Hope you likeee

Emma

Technically..

You’re supposed to skin the character first when coming to animation, I think. Oh well.

Doing it second instead! At least I know for next time, I haven’t really been penalised because of doing it this order yet but may come across some problems with the run cycle I think.. we’ll see.

Skinning the Character

As you may notice, it’s a character exported from the World of Warcraft engine. I just really love the style, and the mesh is nice for skinning also. Maybe I will post up a fast tutorial on how to export and import from the WoW engine when I have time. He doesn’t exactly fit the biped either so skinning so far has been a little finickity – but we’ll get there.

- Emma

Character Animation: Test Walk Cycle

I rendered out a very fast example of the walk cycle I want to use for my Character Animation project. We’re required for this section of the project to use free form animation and keyframe the steps ourselves (not using footstep animation through biped tools). This character is pretty laid back, his walk is slightly brisk and he checks his watch for the time so obviously he is headed somewhere.. maybe to meet someone special!

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Just need to skin the biped to the mesh I picked out now, and then move onto making a run and jump cycle! Trying to think of some funky jumps.. but not sure.

Ideas:

Long Jump

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Around 2:14, the way he runs/dances and does the little click with his heels is a nice jump, quite stylized.. would be fun to attempt.

- Emma