Thursday, 14 April 2011
Storyline change
It should be noted that I have rewritten the storyline as I felt the previous idea was too convoluted and confusing. I decided to simplify the storyline to something that is easily conveyed to the viewer in a video less than a minute long. I decided upon something simple that everyone would recognise, a force overwhelmed by something dangerous with great power and strength. I feel this was a very good direction to take the storyline as it has provided a very satisfying end product that shows the viewer something interesting and enjoyable.
I feel that considering the time scale I have been using this program, which is obviously incredibly in depth and takes a considerable amount of time and skill to become proficient, the end result of this assignment is very rewarding, and has helped me learn key skills to continue using this program.
I feel that considering the time scale I have been using this program, which is obviously incredibly in depth and takes a considerable amount of time and skill to become proficient, the end result of this assignment is very rewarding, and has helped me learn key skills to continue using this program.
Post Production
After finishing the rendering of the video and editing it I decided to create a version which featured added effects to better emphasise what was going on in the video and add a little more immersion for the viewer. The effects were added in using Adobe after effects. The effects were from video copilots action essentials effects pack (http://www.videocopilot.net/products/action2/) and really give the video a boost in excitement and appeal. I featured a version that had the effects removed so the actual physical movement of the objects is more apparent.
Filming pt3
The following scene shows the radar base fulfilling its true role as a hidden Superweapon!
The rotation of the dome was made entirely within the curve editor for rotational movement. The curve was manipulated to give a constant acceleration until it reached it's top speed. The curve editor was perfect for this scene as it allows precise control over the motion. Had I used the normal keyframing method then the rotation would have built up then stopped again instead of reaching it's maximum speed. Manipulating it's curve in this way ensure smooth uniform movement as the weapon charges up to fire.
the scene after is a duplicate of this scene however the camera is viewing it from directly above to give a sense of the scale and magnitude of this superweapon.
The credits then roll showing the title of the film.
The rotation of the dome was made entirely within the curve editor for rotational movement. The curve was manipulated to give a constant acceleration until it reached it's top speed. The curve editor was perfect for this scene as it allows precise control over the motion. Had I used the normal keyframing method then the rotation would have built up then stopped again instead of reaching it's maximum speed. Manipulating it's curve in this way ensure smooth uniform movement as the weapon charges up to fire.
the scene after is a duplicate of this scene however the camera is viewing it from directly above to give a sense of the scale and magnitude of this superweapon.
The credits then roll showing the title of the film.
Filming pt2
The Scene in which a guardtower is destroyed was easily my favourite to animate. I ungrouped all the individual pieces of the tower allowing me to set keyframed motion to every single polygon It was made from.
In the scene a shell from one of the tanks strikes the guardtower and its debris are scattered across the scene. First I decided to animate the smaller parts as they would move fastest and require less detail than the heavier parts of the model. Using a mixture of lateral and rotational movement I sent the struts holding the roof on spinning in multiple directions, including head on to the camera. I then had the main part of the guardtower drop down from its position and slam into the ground. I gave it some slight rotation, though not much as it is the heaviest part of the tower and requires a lot of force to move it. I then animated the roof spiralling into the sky before falling back down again and slamming into the rest of the ruin causing it to dislodge the main struts and also knock the main body to the floor.
This looked visually impressive and really captures the more intricate mechanics of how the tower would be destroyed if it was real that might normally be overlooked when animating something being destroyed.
In the scene a shell from one of the tanks strikes the guardtower and its debris are scattered across the scene. First I decided to animate the smaller parts as they would move fastest and require less detail than the heavier parts of the model. Using a mixture of lateral and rotational movement I sent the struts holding the roof on spinning in multiple directions, including head on to the camera. I then had the main part of the guardtower drop down from its position and slam into the ground. I gave it some slight rotation, though not much as it is the heaviest part of the tower and requires a lot of force to move it. I then animated the roof spiralling into the sky before falling back down again and slamming into the rest of the ruin causing it to dislodge the main struts and also knock the main body to the floor.
This looked visually impressive and really captures the more intricate mechanics of how the tower would be destroyed if it was real that might normally be overlooked when animating something being destroyed.
Filming - cont.
The first view of the Radar dome was my first use of a moving camera in the video. The camera only has basic movement at this stage, very slightly panning up to reveal the whole radar base.
The scene afterwards shows the radar dome emerging from beneath the ice. This was achieved by selecting the whole radar base and keyframing it's movement vertically up through the ice.
The following shot carries on from the end of the last and shows the base unfurling into its full form. This was made much easier thanks to the grouping I did earlier. The main base, power generator and aerial are three separate groups making this movement much easier.
The next shot uses moving camerawork. The camera was keyframed to move downwards and rotate to face toward the radar base. During this time the tanks are firing rounds toward the base, the turrets movement was deliberately set to jolt backwards with recoil and slowly move back into position again to really give the feeling of the large caliber weaponry mounted within them. I keyed them so that there was a delay between them whilst firing to show them working as an orderly team rather than firing off shots at random and I think it helps to convey the feeling of an organised military force.
The scene afterwards shows the radar dome emerging from beneath the ice. This was achieved by selecting the whole radar base and keyframing it's movement vertically up through the ice.
The following shot carries on from the end of the last and shows the base unfurling into its full form. This was made much easier thanks to the grouping I did earlier. The main base, power generator and aerial are three separate groups making this movement much easier.
The next shot uses moving camerawork. The camera was keyframed to move downwards and rotate to face toward the radar base. During this time the tanks are firing rounds toward the base, the turrets movement was deliberately set to jolt backwards with recoil and slowly move back into position again to really give the feeling of the large caliber weaponry mounted within them. I keyed them so that there was a delay between them whilst firing to show them working as an orderly team rather than firing off shots at random and I think it helps to convey the feeling of an organised military force.
Filming
Whilst "filming" the scenes I used several techniques that I found worked well and others that didn't work so well.
for basic movement I simply keyframed the movement in which worked well as it meant i could move multiple objects at once, such as the convoy of 3 tanks at the start. Each of these tanks had been grouped into body and turret sections to make movement and selecting them much more easy than having to select the many polygons that made up the tanks themselves. This saved me a lot of time when wanting to select the tanks and move them around. I also used this technique for the radar base, and grouped it into 3 large sections to help in the later animation.
I keyframed the movement of the tanks turret simply enough, though it wasn't a case of rotating the turret section as it did not pivot on the correct point. This was corrected by simultaneously moving it laterally as it rotated to keep the pivot point in the centre of the tank. This worked effectively and gave a flawless outcome. These scenes had been filmed using a static camera as it was not required to move.
for basic movement I simply keyframed the movement in which worked well as it meant i could move multiple objects at once, such as the convoy of 3 tanks at the start. Each of these tanks had been grouped into body and turret sections to make movement and selecting them much more easy than having to select the many polygons that made up the tanks themselves. This saved me a lot of time when wanting to select the tanks and move them around. I also used this technique for the radar base, and grouped it into 3 large sections to help in the later animation.
I keyframed the movement of the tanks turret simply enough, though it wasn't a case of rotating the turret section as it did not pivot on the correct point. This was corrected by simultaneously moving it laterally as it rotated to keep the pivot point in the centre of the tank. This worked effectively and gave a flawless outcome. These scenes had been filmed using a static camera as it was not required to move.
Creating the Scene
Like any other method of filming or creating a video, before I could shoot I had to create the environment in which the events would occur. I decided to create a vast snowfield with the radar base in the centre.
I firstly created a large plane as the ground surface and gave it around 25 x and y segments. I gave the plane a bump map and displacement value of 10. I was sure to give the map only small geological features as this was not supposed to be a hilly area. I then added a noise modifier to the plane with only small x y and z values to ensure the topography was flowing and rounded rather than jagged and rough. I then added a high resolution snow texture. I had to make sure the resolution was high otherwise it would appear pixelated and unrealistic when viewed closely, such as in the video.
Once I had finalised the appearance of the ground I added in a sky box by creating a large geosphere, halving it using the hemisphere option. I ticked the flip normals box so that I could place a sky texture inside the scene without it showing on the outside. I added some slight self illumination to the skybox to ensure that it would stand out adequately for the scene.
I finally added objects to the scene and then resized them so they were in scale with each other and were the right size for the plane I had created.
I firstly created a large plane as the ground surface and gave it around 25 x and y segments. I gave the plane a bump map and displacement value of 10. I was sure to give the map only small geological features as this was not supposed to be a hilly area. I then added a noise modifier to the plane with only small x y and z values to ensure the topography was flowing and rounded rather than jagged and rough. I then added a high resolution snow texture. I had to make sure the resolution was high otherwise it would appear pixelated and unrealistic when viewed closely, such as in the video.
Once I had finalised the appearance of the ground I added in a sky box by creating a large geosphere, halving it using the hemisphere option. I ticked the flip normals box so that I could place a sky texture inside the scene without it showing on the outside. I added some slight self illumination to the skybox to ensure that it would stand out adequately for the scene.
I finally added objects to the scene and then resized them so they were in scale with each other and were the right size for the plane I had created.
Texturing the Models
Before I could place my models in a scene, I needed to give them all textures.
TANK
With the tanks in the scene, I wanted to give them a distinctive military look, that fitted well with the environment they found themselves in. The first thing that I decided upon was a camo pattern. As these tanks were placed in the Arctic, I decided to give them snow camouflage comprising of blacks whites and greys. this pattern was found at the following address: http://www.cartownforums.com/forums/downloads/urban-digital-snow-sample_dOk.jpg
As it is, it would work well however i wanted something with more detail. When applying the regular material to the tanks, it looked slightly bland as it revealed no detail of the texture underneath the layer of camouflage. I edited the texture using photoshop to bring out some of this detail, such as access panels, riveted sheets of armour and other components that would give the model an extra kick of realism and style. These camo textures were applied to the main body of the tank and the turret body. The two textures can be compared below, the original first followed by the edited version.
TANK
With the tanks in the scene, I wanted to give them a distinctive military look, that fitted well with the environment they found themselves in. The first thing that I decided upon was a camo pattern. As these tanks were placed in the Arctic, I decided to give them snow camouflage comprising of blacks whites and greys. this pattern was found at the following address: http://www.cartownforums.com/forums/downloads/urban-digital-snow-sample_dOk.jpg
As it is, it would work well however i wanted something with more detail. When applying the regular material to the tanks, it looked slightly bland as it revealed no detail of the texture underneath the layer of camouflage. I edited the texture using photoshop to bring out some of this detail, such as access panels, riveted sheets of armour and other components that would give the model an extra kick of realism and style. These camo textures were applied to the main body of the tank and the turret body. The two textures can be compared below, the original first followed by the edited version.
Other areas of the tank were textured using several custom made textures, comprised of varying shades of grey with similar black detailing to add interest to these areas. Some of the areas that these textures were applied to were the gun barrel, muzzle brake, engine panels on the rear, wheels, tracks and attached items on the back of the tank. By mixing several different textures it makes the model look as though it is made up of many pieces that have different functions and compositions and also made the tank more visible, as camouflage all over would have made the tank hard to see in some shots. I was very pleased with the final outcome, the camo texture looks fantastic and fits in really well with the environment and also looks believable, and interesting to the viewer. The other components look good also, although do not have the same complexity as the camouflaged areas.
Guard Tower
The guard tower was supposed to be a lightweight prefabricated structure that could essentially be "Flat-packed" and shipped off to wherever in the world they might be needed, so would have to be composed of lightweight materials that could be easily sourced nearby. I decided that the roof should be made of wood, along with the struts. The rest of the body would be a lightweight metal for repelling small arms fire, though not impervious to anything larger. I custom made textures for the roof and legs, opting for a light brown with detail lines and white flecks to represent snow or ice covering its surface. This texture looked effective when placed onto the models, the white snow looked particularly effective in the scene, as it really gave the feeling the towers were exposed to the elements.
The other areas of the tower were made using a grey detailed texture to give some surface detail and bring a bit more life to the model.
Radar Base
The radar base was intended to be a bare sterile looking building made from solid sheets of metal and concrete, and as such was not camouflaged in any way. The main dome was given an actual radar dome texture, found at the following url http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/11652574.jpg
This texture wraps entirely around the dome and gives it a nice futuristic mechanical look. The other textures were reused from the other models, which turned out to work well for the heavily armoured outer shell made up of huge metal plates.
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