ABOUT ME

I live in a camper van with a West Highland Terrier for company.
My passion is creating images but it is a work in progress.
I am always willing to share what knowledge I have and can be contacted through the comments on this post or e-mail ADRIAN
ALL IMAGES WILL ENLARGE WITH A LEFT CLICK

Thursday 20 December 2018

DING DONG.

Unless anything spectacular happens during the next five days this will be my last post before Christmas.
I have an idea for a New Year animation. The modelling I am confident with, texturing less so and using rigid body physics is all new to me and it is causing me to suffer brain fade. It is starting to encroach into Game Engine territory which I suspect will be way beyond me.
This is the first bell I modelled but I applied a sub-surface modifier prior to getting the model finished. I textured it with a rusty iron displacement map and added a bronzeish colour which shows promise, I could do with an antique bronze set of textures but they can be expensive and I don't know how to make my own. I am enamoured with this volumetric lighting which is what Blender calls it; I call it foggy. Why they have a default density of 1 when this is 0.015 beggars belief I guess it's just Blenders way of keeping me on my toes. If I test render at the default value then it's all black and it takes me a while to realise that it wasn't me being thick.
This is bell number two. I much prefer it. The materials are simple but you get the idea. I used the Screw modifier to generate the bell bit and for once I have experienced few issues with normals. It's perfect inside and out which has to be a first for me using a double skinned profile.
Now on to the animation malarkey, I expect a few naughty words and much perusal of the instructions at Blenderwiki.
See you after Christmas.

12 comments:

  1. I hve said it before about your more esoteric posts and I'll say it again: I understood all the words but the order they were in confused me totally. I hope you have a very happy Christmas, Adrian.

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    1. Graham.it may be a working Christmas but it will be enjoyable.
      These programmes are very complex. I used to think Photoshop was arcane until I found 3D stuff to baffle myself with. There is one other Blogger starting to play with Blender and I try and help where I can and surprisingly I haven't been stumped with his problems yet.

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  2. Both look good though I do prefer the 'character' of the first one.

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    1. John, I aim for better than the first in the final animation but I got muddled up with the first bell. No way could I pull it back from the subsurf. I have learnt keep geometry simple until the job is perfect. I want it to swing and go ding dong. You have an music machine, don't bother now but when or if I get the bell to swing and the clapper to hit it I recon two dongs a second in bass profondo would add to the job. I'll have to duplicate the bell and scale it down to get the ding. Video 10s max as it will take all night to render.

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  3. An interesting work in progress, Adrian. I prefer the antique finish of the first one and I think some annular grooves would add to the appearance (don't want it to be too easy for you now!).

    Rather than the bell sound, how about a recording of Leslie Phillips saying "Ding- Dong" in time to the swing.

    Have a great Christmas - even if you are going to be working. Best wishes - - - - Richard

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  4. Richard, I am not very good at texturing but didn't put anything on the second image but colour and varying roughness. A year ago I wasn't any good at modelling but now know to trace a bell by copying a single vertex. When you get to the end you have to close the sketch, Blender doesn't call them sketches but they are (In most 3d and CAD stuff) and then Blender screws them for me, a ten minute job.
    Took me ages to find a cross sectional bell image And several tries to hold control and click round the picture to get a profile with a single vertex to use to spin, rotate or whatever different software calls it. In Blenders case it's screw. Nothing wrong with the programme. Costs nothing but time to play with seriously good algorithms.
    I could modify the bell by indenting text and a pattern using array for the latter. I can do it but my processor can't and even if it could I don't have refrigerated air wafting over it to keep the blasted CPU functioning. I have to keep things lowish polly. It's computer speak for not much grunt.

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  5. I could definitely use a Screw modifier, I have a few issues with normals, and my profile could be a little more double-skineed. Aside from that, I am in all respects a happy camper.

    Merry Christmas, Adrian!

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    1. Thanks Bob. Worse is to come I fear as this is the easy bit.

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  6. I like the first bell
    I wish you wonderful happy holidays Adrian

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    1. Thank you Marty. I'll use a similar theme for a short New Year video.

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