mr-caoh©

Boxing Day

2011-12-26T21:18:00.004Z

Enviro Speedy 1

2011-09-29T01:21:00.003+01:00

Where Am I?

2011-09-11T20:34:00.003+01:00

Awesome: Tumblr of Ico & other stuff, nDo2 Beta (via Polycount), rodia's sketchbook (via Zbrush Central), some of the entries at this year's Indie Games Arcade.

Where Am I? by mr.caoh

Enviro & character thumbs

2011-09-11T17:53:00.009+01:00

Reading: The Science of Discworld 2: The Globe, Beauty in Decay: Urbex: The Art of Urban Exploration (birthday present from mr Carmine :D)
Watching: Ben Thomas' LDN,
Listening to: Nest 'Body Pilot' (Serein), Donato Wharton 'A White Rainbow Spanning The Dark', Gold Panda, Martin Stig Andersen – Limbo (Original Videogame Soundtrack), Johann Johannsson's 'And In The Endless Pause There Came The Sound Of Bees', Colorlist's 'The Fastest Way To Become The Ocean', Hammock's 'Chasing After Shadows...Living With the Ghosts'.
Inspired by: Tyson Murphy, Matt Timms, Jin Hyung Kim, Vitaliy Shushko, Atelier Olschinsky's 'China In A Mirror', Ari Gibson's work, and 'Bronte' by Ari and Jason for Gotye.
Dreaming of: One year diploma in Industrial Design at Feng Zhu's Design School, while reading other people's opinions and versions of this sort of thing.

Midas Oak

2011-08-02T22:47:00.003+01:00

Revisiting an old concept from about a year ago, Grandfather Oak's cousin, Midas Oak.

Listening: Tycho's new single 'Hours'.
Watching: Norwegian Wood. Mac 'n' Cheese.

Enviro thumbs 2

2011-07-30T21:19:00.004+01:00

Awesome: 111 by Eleven Tigers.
Excited by (and waiting with eager anticipation): From Dust, 111 limited edition stuff by Eleven Tigers.

Enviro thumbs 1

2011-07-28T01:55:00.006+01:00

Awesome: Stumpy Pencil brushes (noted from Charlie Bowater's tumblr)
Reading: 'ダンス・ダンス・ダンス' (Dance Dance Dance) by Haruki Murakami.
Drinking: coffee from Algerian Coffee Stores, Soho.
Listening: 'Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar' by Disasterpeace, 'Trials' by Shady Bard.
Watching: Jeffsimpsonkh's livestream (amazingly talented artist).
Inspired: 'Making of Cuto' by Ajdin, original concept by Bjorn Hurri.

It's Probably Best To Wait A Bit

2011-07-24T15:48:00.001+01:00

Listening to: The Sight Below presents Glider (Expanded Edition - limited run of 700 vinyl!), 'The Pipeline #53 podcast interview with Craig Adams (Superbrothers) by5by5,
Reading: 'Art & Fear' by David Bayles & Ted Orland,
Excited about: the idea of studying in Singapore for a year especially Feng Zhu's One Year Diploma, or one of the six week programs instead (deadlines are in August and September!).
Learning from: Jordan Walker's (mutantspoon's) UDK work - especially the recent Brawl winning Street Fighter Bathouse scene at Polycount.
Watching: 'Design Reboot' by Jonathon Blow,
Inspired by: Sachin Teng! Peter Mohrbacher's incredible artwork, Aaron Foster's artwork, Emmanuel Malin's illustration and concept art, Helder Pinto's level design portfolio, Odile van der Stap's beautiful illustrations, Charlotte Risch's showreel and mograph work, ISO50's review of Amon Tobin's Isam stage set,

It's Probably Best To Wait A Bit by mr.caoh

Something new (w.i.p)..

2011-04-24T23:46:00.000+01:00

Working with some recently shot footage of a stream close to where I live, and hoping to have it finished by the end of the Easter holidays! (:

Aspiring to be and inspired by Jon McCoy's artwork, Moullinex's music video for Catalina, Stash 78, Anton Lavrushkin's DW4 entry, Johannes Helgeson's sketchblog and portfolio. Vino Dram's artwork, and incredibly detailed concept art, Scott Homer's portfolio.
Watching (and equally inspired by) 'Jay O'Callahan's 'The Power of Storytelling', Simon Holmedal's work and tutorials, Ted Lister's animation reel, Slipgate Central's vimeo page, Pedro Amorim's vimeo page. 1stAvenueMachine's music video for Clark's 'Ted'.
Listening to my Spotify playlist.

Fluid Mechanics

2011-04-11T23:04:00.000+01:00

High resolution stills from the animation.

Reading: Kafka On The Shore (again)
Inspired by: Pierre Magnol's Magnesium opening title , Simon Holmedal's tutorials and video work at ManvsMachine , and Junkspace, Polycount's juicy news thread, particularly, Josh Nimoy.
Watching: Imaginative Illustration with J.P. Targete, Jason Welsh's modeling videos.
Excited: Mono, with the Holy Ground Orchestra 7th June!

New Track: All Day Long

2011-02-13T11:38:00.000Z

Hello! Crumbs, haven't updated in a while (again!). Hopefully got some cool stuff to post up in the next few days, cheers :)

Listening to: James Blake's self titled album on vinyl
Watching: Professor Sir Terry Pratchett's (OBE) Inaugural Lecture "The Importance of Being Amazed about Absolutely Everything" , likewise 'The Hogfather' (albeit the wrong season!).
Inspired by: The Art of the Title Sequence's feature on: 'Quantum of Solace'
Aspiring to: spacemonkey's work, Rafael Grassetti's work, Marc Brunet's work,

All Day Long by mr.caoh

Gunslinger Duel

2010-12-28T23:10:00.000Z

Listening to Afta-1.
Learning and watching Feng Zhu's youtube page.
Inspired by Nik Ainley, and the collaboration of Adam (aka dasadam) Wesierski and Alan (aka shinypants) Blackwell's brainchild - Scatterhead. Alchemy ftw!

Christmas holiday photo's

2010-12-26T17:51:00.000Z

Merry Christmas and a very happy new year!
Listening to Kwes, particularly his rework of Elviin's 'The Clock'.
Inspired by Tomstrzal's sketchbook, and old school airplanes.
Learning from Robert Leger, and the Pixar online library.
Gorging on Polish pierogi (om nom nom).

Ajdinium (w.i.p)

2010-12-16T01:39:00.000Z

Working progress of a portrait of my friend Ajdin.
Inspired by Juji Okubo's concepts
Mind blown but completely inspired by Ian Mcque's beautiful work. Makes me think about getting Junk Food going again!

Update

2010-12-13T02:09:00.000Z

Listening to: Kadan's album 'Casa', on my new cans.
Reading: Terry Pratchett's 'Light Fantastic'
Excited about: Dominance War 5, and the news over at Polycount.
Watching: Grant Warwick- Hard Surface Essentials, Meet Buck.
Inspired by: Nancy Zhang's beautiful illustrations, Ajdin's immense modelling for his antimatter gun.

Everything Passes by mr.caoh

Gled seg venn

2010-11-29T21:36:00.000Z

Portrait of a dear friend, in response to my self sketch (:

GPOY (sort of)

2010-10-04T02:04:00.000+01:00

Listening to : The Flashbulb - Arboreal
Inspired by: Dave Palumbo
Eating: Yorkshire puddings with golden syrup and cinnamon, and Earl Grey tea.

Weapons 1

2010-09-28T23:22:00.000+01:00

Listening to [vinyl LP]: Toro Y Moi - Causers Of This , Cerulean - by Baths
Inspired by: impromptu drinking sessions with friends at work, 8BCrew, Polycount, James Benson's Team Fortress Dance Off
Reading: 'Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World' - Haruki Murakami

23

2010-08-23T16:59:00.001+01:00

I'll be 23 tomorrow, blimey!

Chara 3

2010-08-22T16:24:00.000+01:00

Listening to [vinyl LP]: School Of Seven Bells - Disconnect From Desire
Inspired by: paulsvoboda , Charlie Bowater
Reading: The Art Spirit

Steampunky post-apoc soldier dude

2010-08-12T10:29:00.000+01:00

A late Wedding Anniversary present for Carm. Cheers to you and Anna man (:

Enviro's 1

2010-08-11T13:43:00.000+01:00

Enviro sketches, massively inspired by Thomas Scholes and his beautiful landscapes.

Chara's 2

2010-06-06T20:11:00.000+01:00

Words of Wisdom

2010-05-24T00:57:00.000+01:00

After following Tom Scholes for a while I've compeltely fallen in love with the loose vivid and colourful landscapes he paints. It feels so fresh and yet reminds me of some of the impressionist work I used to study way back in secondary school and art college. His composition and painting skills are awesome.

His work was featured in a presentation by Daniel Dociu, at this year's Games Developer's Conference (GDC). The presentation was definitely an eye opener and the artwork featured was a feast for the imagination and eyes.
(Sketches to come, still yet to scan in sketchbook/train stuff just yet).

Chara's

2010-05-16T15:27:00.000+01:00

Hey hello, it's been a while! But thank you if you're still checking out my work. Feeling empowered with my new intuos four, and upgrades for my PC have definitely helped pick up speed. I look forward to sharing more work in the coming days/weeks to come. I think I should be experimenting more, draw quicker studies and all the while wilder forms!

Father Oak.

Sci-fi characters (with funky armour!)

New Track: Candor

2010-02-07T19:45:00.000Z

Candor

Dark and moody. Perhaps borrowing some ideas from Japanese band Mono in the anticipation of going to see them on 15th March with Jason (blue!). Should be fantastic going by their performance live a few years ago, awesome stuff (:

Plans for the next few weeks are to setup a sketchblog for my friend and long term mentor Ajdin and I to motivate and focus on. And to finish a piece of artwork and a banner for my more politcally engrossed, digital pirate extraordinaire friend Carmine over at Wired Inn.

Weekend inks and lotek green screening

2010-01-17T17:24:00.000Z

This is slightly embarassing, but it's the only method I could think of without having my own photography studio! After all, they say neccessity is the mother of invention. Hopefully all will become apparant after I've got the stills and clips into After Effects and into the piece of work I'm doing. I should probably wear a long sleeved shirt next time, I have very hairy arms.

Al.chemy beta 008 out

2010-01-11T02:21:00.000Z

Alchemy beta 008 has been out for a few days now, but I reccomend getting it based on their last releases alone. Should have a proper look at it tomorrow or as soon as I get it running on the mac.

Bursts of Inspiration

2010-01-07T17:52:00.001Z

3D Games referrence, Steambot Studios interview from cgchannel.com, and lots of concept art to enjoy:

Recently I found out about a game called Heroes of Newerth (aka HoN), made by an American games developer - S2 Games, the same developers who built and released Savage. Anyway, check them out if you're that way inclined. I couldn't help but post up some links..

More importantly I found some of the developer's blogs, and they're oozing with 3D/2D concepts and progress shots of models for some of the characters used in game. They're very stylised and definitely have a look of their own, perhaps not to everyone's cup of tea but they still rock. The concepts by Aaron Holley are very nice to the eye, really like the dioramas and set pieces a lot, and his characters are awesome. Crackjo3's models really bring S2's concepts to life and still stay believable in a 3D form. Rohnert Park's blog is balanced between concept and 3D modelling/texturing, for some of the lower poly npc characters, he's got some awesome concept character silhouettes on the second page too! BruceGlidewell's drawing and painting style is gorgeous, really like these a lot. Ah and there are links to the other developers too, but then there's just too much to write about (:

Awesome stuff.

Ah and maybe the blog entry title is misleading (I would love to work with these guys but, I don't think I'd have much to offer!), no this is the Steambot Studios interview, hosted by cgchannel.com. I emailed Sebastian Larroude a few months ago, asking for any pearls of wisdom as well as congratulating him on his amazing work for Exodyssey.

Links for more cool stuff:
Company portfolio/profile: Volta
Profile for artist and illustrator: Dan LuVisi
Slipgate Central's blog (mostly in Russian)
Amazing spaceships and flying things from sci-fi outer worldly places

New Track: Cajole

2010-01-01T21:21:00.000Z

Cajole

Happy new year and such festive greetings, welcome to the next decade (it's not really that big a deal). Got back this evening from celebrating with friends in north London last night, watched lots of films, ate loads of noodles, and drank merrily. Back to work next week, so much for a holiday (:

New Track: Blue Coffee

2009-12-27T01:20:00.000Z

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all. Enjoy the festivities where ever you are, or chase the blues with some downtempo electronica. Oh and there's a tiny bit of snow left outside but the rest has all melted away, but there's talk of more snow coming down from Yorkshire and up north which would be nice (:

Couple of moleskine sketches

2009-12-15T18:33:00.001Z

There is life here

2009-12-14T21:01:00.000Z

It's been a while.

New track: Kodaclik

2009-08-06T15:54:00.001+01:00

New piece of music I'm working on in Cubase, heavily inspired by the Broadway Project, Benn Jordan (aka the Flashbulb), and Bop's new material. It's down tempo, it's dark and cinematic, it's a bit repetitive, but it's not completely finished yet. Thanks for listening and watching!

Concept: Karapace King

2009-08-04T23:49:00.000+01:00

Hello well it's a while since I broke up from Ravensbourne, I graduated with a 2.1 which I'm pretty chuffed about! But anyway, time waits for no man and all that sort of thing, so onto a concept I've been working on recently. I want to take this thing into Maya and ZBrush too, feel it's got a glimmer of potential. Updates to follow!

The mother of all updates, and a time to reflect

2009-06-22T22:34:00.000+01:00

So here we are at the end of the scholastic year and after a lot of grafting and work Junk Food’s time is nearly up. Submission day was last Friday and Tuesday just been, which in turn means that I’m continuing to update my blog past the deadline (eek!). I think it’s best now if I try and summarise and reflect on the year and how things have gone as a whole, without wanting to sound too pessimistic or negative of course.

There are a lot of things I’ve learned from this year, and there are also things which I would’ve changed if I had that all-important time machine. Junk Food was supposed to be a great little piece of animation, with a very rough sketchy aesthetic – derived from my sketches and comprised of mixed media and both 3D and 2D animation. I believe my drawing style and the mixture of concepts I turned up with on the initial pitch way back in term one are what got me through, and having my film shortlisted for the year. The tutors seemed impressed and delighted to have a much rougher - more gritty and tangible film on their hands, something which I believed could grow into bigger and better things. I organised a team together of enthusiastic students, met a fantastic sound designer, arranged to meet up with a very talented voice over artist (as well as including my Dad's signature voice over!), and the backing of a studio to help me get the film off the ground (promotion, rendering, advice etc.). But somewhere along the line it never materialised, or at least when it did we had very little time to realise the true potential of the film.

Fundamentally there were many things that went wrong with this year, including many internal conflicts and a lot of friction, but I believe that the main reason was that the director couldn’t direct as well as he needed to. That is why I’m labelling most of the blame on myself for this project failing to deliver on time. Because I couldn't motivate my team to work to our story, or failed to drive them into areas of their specialism therefore leaving some members feeling singled out or completely severed from the film.

At the time of writing we still have a week or so to hand in the absolutely final version of the film for our degree show, and I believe that this is definitely achievable.

The creative process of unearthing a concept and story across any medium is a deeply personal one. I think that whether it is in writing literature, planning out a dissertation, drawing or painting, cooking and preparing food, composing music, or indeed anything and everything where a creative spark manifests into something tangible – the creator or person responsible is exposing how they think and how their ideas are supposed to come across. Without wanting to sound pretentious or deluded I think this explains my current predicament, where I feel like I have failed not only my team and everyone else involved, but worryingly I failed myself ten-fold. By loosing my chain of thought and arriving at the end of the project with something that doesn’t resemble the original concept that much I feel completely and utterly useless.

My tutor Jared asked me last week “if you could go back and change anything then what would you do?” to which I replied “I would probably defer my place as a director and work as part of another team", and take orders rather than issuing them to a group of people. I understand that it sounds as if I'm completely degrading and disassembling everything I have done this year, but this is as a result of seeing how everything has turned out the way it has. Arguably this is the first time I’ve ever directed a group of people and so problems and mistakes are bound to occur, but if the majority of directors from the other groups in my year managed to do it then why couldn’t I?

Nevertheless what’s done is done and it’s impossible to track back and undo whatever bad things happened during the course of the project. This year I have been grateful for having some key people to work with and feed off every step of the way, and for meeting people who remain incredibly passionate for what they do through thick and thin. I don’t resent anything that’s happened or not happened, as it is all part of the experience, a learning curve. And I will continue to practice my craft in all shapes and forms, getting better with each day that passes. Surround yourself with like minded creative people who inspire you, and then seize every opportunity that comes your way..

Recap

2009-06-12T20:01:00.000+01:00

Well it’s about time I posted some proper breakdowns and renders of that which I am most proud of this project, especially as both jobs have been challenging to say the least, but incredibly fun and rewarding. To think that only a few months ago the robot was just a concept and a rough sketch made between a cup of coffee and some marker pens. Then after sitting down with Ajdin a few days afterwards we tweaked him a little and so began the long and arduous tasks of modelling and texturing.

After going through various incarnations and redesigns we arrived at a crossroads – should we compromise some elements from my original designs and concepts to better allow more potential in animating the character later on? Or continue with the current structure and plan but with the knowledge that it could cause problems later? We decided that the main problems came about when modelling the arms and legs, as there were issues as to how the robot would perform simple actions like lifting objects or even walking without toppling over and thus flattening Sophie (which could make an interesting albeit unexpected ending to the film)! Hopefully this sheds some light as to why the robot looks slightly different to the original concept, but both Ajdin and I agree that the robot still holds some similarities and key characteristics to its predecessor.

I can only vouch for how hard Ajdin has worked on this character (despite it being an enormous metallic giant I still think it deserves to be labelled a character and not a prop!); from the finest detail on the inner workings and cogs on the robot’s head to every seemingly insignificant nut and bolt across the framework. Ajdin went one step further to UV map the majority of the robot’s geometry, and so this made my life a lot easier – as most of the UV mapping was sorted. I still went on to map other parts as well as compiling each individual segment into manageable nets. Arguably though, I could’ve compiled and organised the nets so that there were six or seven separate files rather than an astounding twelve. Nevertheless, I still think he’s done a very commendable job with the robot, especially considering how complicated and detailed the original concept was.

Bellow are two images with a breakdown in the robot’s blinn shader network; including a colour map, a normal map, a specular map, and a dose of ambient occlusion to add some more depth. Also I've uploaded a breakdown of the actual textures sitting on the robot throughout the course of the film, some 36 textures applied to this beast! Probably an absurd amount of different parts for just one character but that's how it ended up after completing all the modelling and texturing.

And so onto the zeppelin! The robot I christened Somnium (Latin meaning ‘to dream’ and so a reference to how I imagined the robot dreaming of a brighter future for himself and for Sophie), I christened the zeppelin Aether (which in Greek mythology meant or represented the upper sky or where the Gods resided). Once again thanks to Ajdin for modelling a fantastic and superbly detailed model based on concepts and designs I gave him previously. Likewise with the robot we collaborated our ideas into one entity throughout the course of a few weeks, over msn messenger, emails, phone calls, and in person at Ravensbourne. My job was again to UV map and texture the entire model, a daunting task at first but thoroughly enjoyable and rewarding.

Junk Food Teaser Trailer (May 09)

2009-05-19T04:16:00.000+01:00

Junk Food cinematic trailer May 09 from chris on Vimeo.

And the original render out from Cinema 4D

Junk Food [trailer testing] from chris on Vimeo.

Testing out dynamics

2009-05-16T19:30:00.001+01:00

Right so here is a test from the dynamics front!

Junk Food fluffly clouds from chris on Vimeo.

Colour correction tests and general editing

2009-05-14T19:53:00.000+01:00

In the hope to try and catch up I’ve started tinkering around with colour grading options in After Effects, by taking a piece of video footage shot way back in 2007 of a friend and I on a train up to Tokyo. I discovered a plugin a while back called ‘Rebel CC‘, and it’s much better than AE’s default colour correction tools. It works like an all in one colour correction package, providing the editor with endless possibilities of colour correction; everything from the colour of the base shades (blacks and whites and greys), the various levels of shadows and highlights, the overall hue and levels of saturation, an RGB editor, and all of which can be key-framed and animated within AE. Unless I or someone within our team learns how to use Shake within the next few weeks, then our post production pipeline will include After Effects and Premiere Pro, and it’s more than likely that Photoshop will be integrated somewhere as well. So here I'm just testing some editing and post effects, (with the original footage on the bottom right of the frame).

The original export was pretty big (around 2 gigs or so), and so I had to export again with a different codec (mpeg 4) but I think that it still holds enough detail and depth for this test. I also realised that the file had an enormous amount of time still rendered out after the image had finished (a good 3 minutes of pitch black!), so I'll need to fix that at a later date. My main objectives were to give this video a grainy dreamlike feel, a feeling of memory or warmth within nostalgia, high contrasts and saturated parts warm with sepia tones. I wish I had an HD camera! There's also a bit of gaussian/lens blur that I keyframed to animate in and out as the train went through a station or past another train. Brightness & contrast animation when the camera tilts up towards the sky or out of immediate darkness, just to ease the transitions from one section to the other. Black gradients on the frame set to around 30% to round off the picture a bit more, set to overlay or multiply. Changed a lot of the levels and another dose of Rebel CC to finish it off.

Untitled from chris on Vimeo.

Junk Food [post test 1] from chris on Vimeo.

Looking back on it, I really don't like the feel I've got going on. It looks like something from a horror or thriller film! It's an interesting effect but aside from it being a test it doesn't really serve any purpose for the final film.

Junk Food [post fx tested on old AE comp] from chris on Vimeo.

Dug this one back up and fed it through some more post fx (albeit the progress or changes are hardly noticeable).

Onwards and Upwards

2009-05-14T19:52:00.000+01:00

Well here’s a long overdue update on my work, it’s been nearly over three months since my last post! Since then I’ve become nocturnal, working frantically and thoroughly during the twilight hours as only students can do. For some reason my mind seems to go into overdrive either through caffeine or from the absolute silence around me at night, and as a result I’m absolutely burnt out the next day, waking up at any time between 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Which is ridiculous really, it’s very counter-productive and gets you into a vicious cycle of constantly being without energy and unable to sleep at normal times of the night (or day).

At the time of writing I pulled off an all-nighter in aid of finishing an upcoming trailer for Junk Food, which will hopefully be aired at this year’s Rave On Air. Thanks to Ajdin and our combined efforts we have really poured our hearts into a sequence which will both tease and amaze the delegates at ROA, and possibly generate interest for this year’s animation degree show. In turn maybe it can generate some hype and talk among the CG community, as we plan to plug this thing as much as possible around the web; YouTube, conceptart.org, deviantArt, CGHub, CG Networks, and loads more dens of creativity. It’s all about generating discussion and feedback, getting some recognition along the way would be amazing also but we’re not aiming solely for fame, we’re producing this film because we love what we do and we do what we like. The deadline for the Junk Food trailer for Rave on Air has been moved (for animation students) until the 21st May, but our deadline is planned for this Friday.

So after resolving various problems with the story for Junk Food in a pre-Easter formative assessment with Dan Dalli and Mike Smith we went into production. This has involved designing and conceptualising everything in the film, modelling characters and environments, rigging and blend shaping, texturing everything, and then onto animation. After rendering each shot we put everything through After Effects (and any other software we have in our arsenal) to buff up the overall look of the film, as well as ironing out any creases or problems which present themselves throughout the course of the production.

Other news includes welcoming back our highly skilled and talented sound designer/composer Simon Bowden to produce all the music and sound effects for the film. When Si isn’t producing music for X-Box 360 games he’s a multi skilled composer and sound engineer, and luckily we’ve got him on the team to create everything in our film’s world. From the tiniest mechanical glitches and creaks of the robot, to the vast ambience of our planet’s environments. Together we’ll be chucking sounds and ideas into a big melting pot which we can create and fill this world of junk with. This is going to be exciting, keep your eyes and ears peeled for his work.

Right and now onto my work, what have I been up to these last few weeks? Well it’s mainly been texturing, but there has been a lot of other bits behind the scenes too! Throughout the course of production there has been a lot of space for crossover and the amalgamation of shared ideas within the group, so for example on some of Dan’s work I’ve helped him fix UVs or even painted whole elements for his tasks, and likewise he has helped me on certain parts. Our modellers and texture artists work closely together to address ideas and problems, but sometimes problems with geometry or bad UV’ing occur and so the workload can get a little heavy. As these minor set backs mounted up they have delayed certain people’s jobs and duties, but somehow we’re getting the work done!

My main role is as a lead texture artist, working on Ajdin’s fantastic models – the zeppelin and the robot for the most part, giving them a rusted metallic appearance. When I texture 3D models I normally start by painting most of the elements by hand, but certain elements and features are quite tricky to emulate and so I often bring in some photos from my own collection or from free texture networks (cgtextures.com is a fantastic resource for 3D artists). Tools of the trade included Photoshop and rarely Corel’s Painter if I need some more organic painted textures, but it’s more often the case I’ll make some new brushes in Photoshop to cater for that sort of thing. In terms of time allowance, I’ve been working almost solidly on each model’s texture maps for probably 100 hours each, which may sound like a lot – but it’s not so unrealistic especially as this includes generating all the necessary support maps and files. I UV mapped the zeppelin, while Ajdin bravely made the UV layouts for the robot!

Making Custom Brushes

2009-03-18T13:47:00.000Z

I hope this helps! :>

Desktop/Concept Fodder

2009-02-24T04:16:00.000Z

Keeping busy..

Back on track

2009-02-13T16:13:00.000Z

Matte painting: 10 hours or so from start to finish, copped out on colouring this beast so it's going to stay in black and white. Photoshop CS2, with a load of homegrown brushes and textures.

Rusted doorway: not really happy with this one. Photoshop CS2.

"Please Standby": 10 hours or so work, Cinema 4D & Photoshop CS2.

"SomniumBot says hello": Photoshop CS2.

It’s week four or five of the term, and I’m keeping busy, but it’s hard to keep track of the time with all this work; for my dissertation, the film, and everything else in between. I haven’t torn out all of my hair yet, or become an insomniac either, and spirits are generally quite high despite the absurd amount of work there is left to be done. I’m enjoying the work and getting some good feedback and support from my producer, our team, and our competition! We are still together but we really need to knock it up a notch or two if we are to get everything done to an awesome standard and in time.

I had a dissertation formative last week which went pretty well, actually it would’ve been better if I’d written as much as I had planned back in the summer. My dissertation tutor Mike Hirsch gave me a lot of advice about where to go from here, and some words of wisdom to spur me on to write lots of stuff for the summative deadline on Friday 13th March. Friday 13th, of all the days!

I should be going to meet Jeff Wayne in Brighton roughly a week or so before the dissertation summative deadline, and in between now and then I’m cramming in as much research as possible. Watching films, reading articles and books if time permits, speaking to lots of clever people, discovering just how in depth my dissertation subject goes underneath the skin. So needless to say, lots of work to do!

Recently got heavily into digital painting again, so the concept stage is still lingering around, and with lots of planning and thumbnails to do for the environments before we can start modelling stuff. I found a stash of photos I shot from a holiday a few years ago to Tenerife, where I was lucky enough to go to the island’s volcano – mount Teide, and make the ascent to the volcano’s apex. Lots of films have been shot up there, including Planet of the Apes, and various other sci-fi films, so the baron landscape lends itself perfectly to the black water desolate rusted junk planet.

Research

2009-02-08T09:33:00.000Z

Machine Gods

2009-01-28T23:35:00.000Z

Nothing strictly related to Junk Food, just a little bit of nonsense in between stuff for the film! 5 minutes per silhouette, alchemy and photoshop cs2.

I drew 6 more concepts up in an hour or so a few days ago, posted them up on my conceptart.org sketchbook.

50 silhouettes in one day

2009-01-26T13:19:00.000Z

I did not make the 50 silhouette target after all, but here's an assortment of some of the better bits. Alchemy, and Photoshop CS2, varied amount of time on each - 10 minutes maximum.

Emotion Through Colour

2009-01-25T12:39:00.000Z

It dawned upon me that the robot has no mouth, no nose, no eye brows, and no visible neck or facial features to dictate any kind of emotion. How is he supposed to convey any kind of feeling then? I've taken inspiration from two main sources for a solution, The Iron Giant, and the Big Daddy character from Take 2's 'Bioshock'. Where the eyes of the Iron Giant have what seem like little shutters which control a portion of the eye's visibility, and in doing so make shapes which emulate eyebrows or eye lids. And with a suggestion from James (ginger) Milham in class - "how about using colour to show his emotions?", it sounds similar to how the Big Daddy in Bioshock used coloured lights in its design to alert a player whether the creature is about to attack (red = angry colour), whether it is passive (white or yellow = neutral colours), or even when it has been charmed (green = friendly colour).

We could do this with just by keyframing one or two lights within the robot's rig, and letting the light splash all over the metal work's shell and inner workings. Coupled with the eye lid idea and the body language or poses of the robot we can now achieve a lot more emotion and interest towards the robot!

SomniumBot - Final Design Completed

2009-01-25T03:01:00.000Z

At long last I've finished the painstaking process of drawing the final robot design out in Photoshop, and I'm glad it's done. It's arguably one of the most detailed drawings I've made in a good while, and it's taken far longer than it should have taken. My reason for being so precise and precious about the design is to provide Ajdin with sufficient technical information to create a dazzling 3D model.

I'm very happy but also a little sceptical about the robot, and I just hope that I haven't created a monster! By which I mean that this could be the project's downfall as well as it's magnum opus; if the animator(s) responsible for animating this beast loose the will to live, and if the computers seemingly loose the ability or will to render, well then that's a situation not even worth thinking about! I look forward with great anticipation, wonder, and faith in Ajdin as to how he is going to tackle this monster of a design.

Busy Busy!

2009-01-19T22:32:00.000Z

Stay tuned... SomniumBot final concepts to come.

Teaser Material

2008-12-10T22:48:00.001Z

The first teaser trailer..

An After Effects exercise to make a mock up of how the planet could look..

A couple of teaser posters..

Tools devoured: CS2, 3D renders from C4D, and lots and lots of organic custom made textures/scribbles. About 2 hours per poster, with about another hour to generate the custom brushes for both pieces.

So after starting on storyboards I couldn't help but scribble all over some of the panels, and it ended up looking more like a mess of ideas and stuff. Probably close to 10 hours worth of work here, and so jotting down rough ideas for the film.

Storyboards and an animatic to come!

Junk Planet Daily Photo

2008-12-04T13:17:00.000Z

As the planet's scarred surface catches a glance from the sun, its surface is illuminated in a hazy glow. The weather forecast is average, heavy clouds will bring rain for much of the day, wind speed will vary from a calm breeze to much stronger gales later on this evening, with some chance of forked lightning and falling stars closer to midnight.

Sunrise is at approximately 7:48 am local time, and sunset at approximately 15:49 pm. Length of this day: 7 hours and 1 minute. Predicted junk pirate raids today: 7. Predicted rainfall: 23mm. Average wind speed (knots) 14.

//

Hours of tinkering, painting, and crafting a 4k square canvas, some 376 megabytes later and this is where I've ended up :)

Robot Concepts

2008-11-19T02:01:00.000Z

Just spent a few solid hours of drawing concepts for the robot over the last few days, and managed to get some feedback to help push the ideas further. Silhouette technique inspired by Mike Yamada's work. More to come, if time permits.

A Collaboration (killaStrations & mr. caoh)

2008-11-03T17:39:00.000Z

Weee, this turned out alright I think, but it still needs work. And so thanks and credit to Natasha for the original concept and ideas along the way, she's got a crazy style going on and is already bringing lots of ideas to the table. Thanks again :]

Photoshop CS2, original concept by Natash Monk, messy edits added by me!

Sketchbook scribbles

2008-10-31T17:07:00.000Z

An offering from my sketchbook, mostly drawn over the course of the last two weeks. Probably a bit too heavy on the old saturation and contrast, but that's the way I like it.

Tools devoured: white paint marker, 0.5 mechanical pencil (HB), Rotring 3,5 pen, Promarkers (colours include warm grey 1-4, satin, blush, cinnamon). Homegrown custom photoshop brush (for clouds).

//

Storyboards to be done this weekend, eeek. Thanks to all my team for their support so far, let's prove our worth at next week's formative and show em who's boss.

Junk Planet concepts

2008-10-29T18:25:00.000Z

I'm working - honest!

1 . Several hours in Photoshop CS2, one referrence used for the zeppelin and the rest is homegrown. I copped out on drawing a proper ground plane for the planet - which I'll fix later on tommorow probably, I can't seem to get the perspective right. It'd either be metal plating or more like a valley with evidence of heavy earth excavation going on.

2. 6 minute render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), 30 minutes of post production edits in Photoshop CS2.

3. 8 minute render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), 50 minutes of post production edits in Photoshop CS2.

4. 9 minute render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), 1 hour 20 minutes of post production edits in Photoshop CS2.

5. 40 minute render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), 1 hour post production edits in Photoshop CS2.

6. 40 minute render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), 30 minutes of post production edits in Photoshop CS2.

7. 7 hour render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), the area shadows casting from the omni lights took a long time to render. The GI calculation/pass took hours as well! 1 Hour of post effects in Photoshop CS2, artificial shadows, lights, rain, rust, and textures applied.

8. 2 hour render from Cinema 4D (ambient occlusion, depth of field, global illumination), cubes and such based on the previous renders - just tinkered and moved around a bit. 30 mins of post effects in Photoshop CS2 (colour grading and correction, and rain painted with tablet).

Junk Food is live!

2008-10-15T17:55:00.001+01:00

Junk Food is live! I won the pitch for my film, the next step is to bring together a team of people and get down to business.

I was trawling through the web and found some artwork for the recently released Wall-e animated film. I'll have to find out who designed this poster, because it's really good. It's an example of how artists and designers can trace back to the last decades and emulate a style and era of design - but integrating it into something more recent. Here's my wall-e inspired poster for Junk Food.

It's coming...

2008-10-06T20:12:00.000+01:00

A few hours in Photoshop CS2, lots of textured brushes, grungy bits and pieces, and a bit of vector stuff for the robot silhouette.

Crux

2008-10-04T14:41:00.000+01:00

Just a little something I made in a lunchtime, while I was at Fuse.

Modelled, textured, and rendered in Cinema 4D R11. 40 minute render. Post effects in Photoshop CS2. Probably made it too grimey and saturated, but I think it looks alright. Nothing serious, just a bit of fun :]

An alternative render can be found on my deviantart page.

Sketch

2008-10-01T15:07:00.000+01:00

"As a scrapyard owner the dead of night brings many problems. When the junk pirates are out and about raiding your junkyards for scrap metal what can you do to protect your bounty?"

"Your prayers have been answered! Now your sleepless nights will be no more! Enforce your junkyard today with the TrashHunter©! The latest innovation in junkyard security systems. Simply place the ignition key into a generous amount of scrap metal, add 3 tablespoons (depending on the desired size of the bot) of 'Shacklepot's Finest Composite' iron filings, water generously with a blend of 1/2 engine oil 1/2 tap water, leave to rust and build overnight, and by morning you'll have your very own TrasHunter©! Warning - requires no immediate structural maintenance or servicing, but does require a healthy diet of scrap metal and gallons of oil to keep it off its knees."

Tools devoured: acrylic paint, white paint marker, mechanical pencil (H), Rotring 3,5 pen, Promarkers (colours include warm grey 3&4, cinnamon).

Piaggio Presents A Play By Vespa...

2008-09-30T12:47:00.000+01:00

Inspiration

2008-09-11T16:41:00.000+01:00

Found some awesome websites for design and illustration, definitely check them out if you get the chance. They are all great artists and illustrators alike, but particularly the third link does it for me and the work there is something to aspire to.

Cool collective of Romanian artists.

Awesome Japanese stuff.

Amazing Illustration work.

Spaceships

Scribbles

2008-09-06T20:26:00.000+01:00

A monthly offering from my August/September sketchbook. Tools devoured: mechanical pencils (HB & H), Rotring 3,5 pen, Promarkers (colours include warm grey 1-4, cinnamon, ivory), letrasets.

Coming soon to a landfill site near you...Trashbot©.

Keeping Busy

2008-09-05T12:24:00.000+01:00

Weather-wise August has officially been the most abysmal month of this year so far, and chances are we'll probably be headed for a tropical heat wave mid December or something ridiculous like that. The rain comes and goes in heavy showers and the golden rays of sunshine are far and few between. Nevertheless everything (except the bloody weather) else is running like clockwork so I should be grateful for that.

Once again I start by preaching Fuse as an awesome place to work. I've had the pleasure of working in the other half of the studio this week with the guys from Nonsense, who do... Well I'm not really sure what they do, but the work they produce is good and often on multiple platforms and mediums. The last project I was working on for Fuse was pushed to the back burner for a while, and I've been given a new client to work for, Piaggio, more specifically their breed of scooters called Vespa. This has involved working in Cinema 4D once more, and the office has upgraded the software to the latest release of C4D - version 11. The new package has Renderman capabilities and various other amazing features, more amazing videos and renders can be found on the Maxon website.

The Favourite Website Awards (FWA):

When I'm not working through m lunchtime (or more likely devouring a bowl of ramen down the road at Ryo) I frequently visit the FWA and the FWA Theatre. Both websites are fantastic sources of inspiration and ideas for web developers and animators alike, and worthy of a quick visit.

cRave Magazine

Ravensbourne has had one or two in college publications or magazines, and they've often consisted of news articles and various interviews with students and tutors alike. cRave is a new idea to be launched (presumably) for the next scholastic year, and it promises to comprise of student's work. I've got in contact with one of the head honchos of cRave, and hopefully if they like some of m illustration work then it will be included in a future issue!

Preparing for year three at Rave.

I'l be finishing my work experience at Fuse on Wednesday 24th of September, and sadly it's because I need to prepare for my third year in animation. The third year will be solely devoted to each student developing a story idea and choosing teams of fellow students to help produce their chosen film(s). Hence, it is really important to have done a sufficient amount of preparation work ready for the first week back, where each student will pitch their film idea, giving a run down of characters, story synopsis, and how the expect to produce the final animation. I think I should be alright on most of the pre-production bits and pieces (sketching out ideas, storyboards, and a script) so it should be fine. For the meantime I'm looking for inspiration and ideas for the film.

Until next time.

Hellboy 2

2008-08-23T01:04:00.001+01:00

Fantastic film... You must see it...

Work Experience: Fuse

2008-08-14T01:17:00.000+01:00

Fuse is a creative agency in the heart of Soho - just off of Brewer's Street. I've been working there as part of some work experience for the last week or so (I started on Monday 4th August). There are lots of things to do and I'm always learning stuff, whether it's how to make 8 or 9 cups of tea simultaneously or create high end renders using Cinema 4D and other in-house software. I'm getting my travel fare and lunch costs paid for which is awesome, and that sometimes includes a quick pint down at one of the many pubs nearby! Life is good!

I'm not sure whether or not I can post up some of the renders I've been doing because it's to do with a corporate company, and the company Fuse is working for is a big name in the car industry. A clue - they're Korean.

I suppose in the mean time I should upload some sketches I've done over the last month or so, but that might take me a while to sort out!

Update

2008-06-19T02:39:00.000+01:00

Ah the Samubot project has fallen through for the mean time, but I deffinately want to pick it back up again - or at least keep it going when I'm not busy! I have done some more modelling since the last post and will aim to upload them here within the next few days.

I've been handing out CVs around Bromley, both to retail shops and a recruitment agency. The plan is to keep chasing them up to see if they've gotten me anywhere, I'll try and be as optimistic as possible!

Somehow I've had a stroke of luck with regard to finding work experience, although it's nothing solid yet - just an interview with a company who are producing the visuals and materials for the BBC documentary program - Timewatch. FANTASTIC!!! I'm excited to say the least, and just in the final throws of getting together another copy of my DVD showreel (produced last term) with a CV and cover letter. I'm a little apprehensive as to whether or not there is enough material on there to astound the editor at Timewatch, but this will be a fantastic bit of experience nonetheless!! Wish me luck!

Samubot

2008-06-11T00:02:00.000+01:00

Just a quick update on some modelling, and I really need to pick up the pace with this thing otherwise I'll get bored before it's even started. I tried importing it as a ".obj" file into ZBrush, but the geometry around the scopes on the face plate goes horribly wrong, and that's probably because the faces there aren't quads. Instead of taking time to carefully perfect the geometry around that area I've skipped it and just gone onto beefing up the general design.

I've taken a lot of inspiration from the Warhammer 40,000 hobby game, and a particular race from that universe called - The Tau. For example the 'bunny ears' on either side of the helmet are based on some of the armour and warriors of the Tau, but I don't want to completely rip off the idea, rather make my own adaptation. Hmm, maybe this design wasn't the best idea to stick with, I could scrap it all and just start again, back to the drawing board as it were...

Week One

2008-06-09T10:46:00.000+01:00

Week One [08/06/2008]

Samurai Robot/Organic Female Character

Character Synopsis:
"Chieko Mana (born August 23rd 2160, current year is 2184 A.D.) is a Samurai warrior, and an esteemed leader in part of Japan's prestigious wing of aviation defence - The Dragon's Trinity. Her father is a semi-retired vice-admiral in the R.A.F, and her mother a Japanese engineer famous for her devotion to designing and developing new advances in solar power – particularly throughout Japan. Mana is famous for her suit of tactical armour - The Asura, which she has worn when leading her squadron into numerous wars in the last decade. Respected by her government, looked up to by her brothers and sisters in the forces, idolized by the media, and hailed as the people's champion in Japan. Chieko's success comes from her fierce determination to succeed, and ferocious tenacity whether training or fighting in battle. However she is a female Samurai, and is continuously ridiculed by her male Samurai counterparts in the forces. It would be unwise to test her abilities or insult her face to face, as many men have felt the cold back hand of her palm not only knocking them out – but completely destroying their pride."

Model: Organic female character model, and a robot - GUNDAM style mechanoid.

Well, it’s a geeky cliché to hook onto, and probably a really bad place to start but why not? Concepts and modelling progress to follow.

Summer 2008!

2008-06-08T21:40:00.000+01:00

Well it's been a while since I updated this here blog, and now that I've broken up from Ravensbourne for summer it seemed like the perfect opportunity to pick up where I left it. Also as I don't have a holiday planned for the next few weeks, and as I still haven't got a part time job yet, I thought why not try and set a challenge for myself to keep motivated and learning on Maya.

The challenge will be to design, model, texture, and rig a fully animated character in the space of a week (normally Monday - Monday). This will be a chance to practice all the skills I've learned when using Maya, and hopefully teach me some new things along the way too.

Update! Warehouse Montage!

2008-05-12T20:19:00.000+01:00

Showreel sneak peek :)

Fresh Slate

2008-03-27T11:44:00.001Z

Well next term is on the way, and I hope that last term's project will be good enough to secure a place for next year. Meanwhile I've been doing some sketches and the like but nothing really that amazing, nevertheless I'll post them up later, maybe! Sad to say that I haven't touched Maya since I broke up a few weeks ago, and I'll probably be terrified to open it up back at Ravensbourne but who knows. Animation is my prime concern in the summer term, I desperately need to practice my rigging and animation/timing. After meeting a friend in Norway who is studying on the Animation Mentor course, and seeing his current portfolio of work I've realised that this is an area I'm failing in. Back to work soon enough!

Rendered Stills

2008-03-10T09:26:00.000Z

Here's a collection of stills, rendered in mental ray - it kills your processing power but the end result is worth it!

The Mouth.

Head Shot.
Profile Shot.
Arse.
Torn Ear.
Head Shot.
Profile Shot.

Torso Shot.

Trotters and Legs.

The Final Outcome

2008-03-10T01:51:00.001Z

Well here we are some nine weeks later and this is what I've made! I'll post up some closeups of the model with some better lighting sometime next week, but for the mean time I hope that this will suffice.

A Final Thought

2008-03-07T00:38:00.000Z

Conclusion

Well this is the penultimate day to this term’s project, and it has been daunting to think that it’s all got to be handed in tomorrow, including Gareth’s video editing project. Thankfully that’s rendered and just needs to be burned to a dvd, and the renders from Maya are just waiting to be composited into After Effects or Premiere. I’ll post up the brief again just to make it easier for you to see what I’ve achieved and if there’s anything I’ve missed/altered from the original.

The main aims and areas of improvement for me this term have been:

Concept art: I had the intention to pursue concept art and design drawings more in this project, but it effectively took a back seat especially once I started modelling in ZBrush and then imported my meshes into Maya. I will continue to refine my drawing/sketching over Easter and there onwards, as it’s something I enjoy and believe it lends well to the animation process.

Modelling; learning how to make cleaner and more efficient deformable geometry which lends itself well to both texturing and UV mapping. My Napoleon model is probably my best character model to date, but it still has areas for improvement of course! Nevertheless, this new benchmark is something to drive me forward in future projects to come.
Texturing; I’ve learnt how to create UV maps and texture them in Photoshop, with help from Alex Hulse and the Sean Mills DVDs from the LRC at Ravensbourne. This has been a massive point of progress for me, as I now know how to UV map properly and can go on to create better textures and much richer interesting models for future animations. I’ve also realised that texturing is something I enjoy, maybe because the process of painting (albeit digitally) is similar to what I did during my GCSEs, A levels, and foundation diploma.

I have to credit a few artists of whom I used their custom brushes in Photoshop with my texturing (if I had planned more than I would’ve made my own brushes). Most of whose brushes I found via http://www.deviantart.com/, a fantastic resource for inspiration, stock images, and photoshop brushes.

1. ‘addictingeyes’ http://addictingeyes.deviantart.com/art/Checker-Pattern-Brushes-78001925

2. ‘jujubinha’ http://jujubinha.deviantart.com/art/cloth-II-46947596

3. ‘cloaks’ http://cloaks.deviantart.com/art/Ripped-78154122

4. ‘miss m’ http://missm.paperlilies.com/

5. ‘scully7491’ http://scully7491.deviantart.com/

Other than the wooden texture (taken from cgtextures.com) used on the model’s plaque all the texturing is 100% original, hand painted in Photoshop with my tablet, mouse, and 10 digits.

I should try and reflect on the project’s outcome and gain some wisdom for next time right now. To start with I’d like to highlight the fact that I made good use of the resources at Ravensbourne and asked relevant people for help when I was stuck - instead of trying to solve the problems myself, and often wasting time in doing so. Although this may not sound amazing or important it is to me, especially as I’m continuously realising my own strengths and weaknesses, and better learning to overcome them with help and feedback from others.

Secondly, I should mention scheduling and time tabling for deadlines and work outputs, as I think this is still an area I need to improve on. In future I will definitely try to update my blog daily with breakdowns of what work I’ve produced on each respective day, with a formal outline of what still needs to be done, by when, etc. This is how people in the industry work and have to apply to each job the receive from a client, otherwise they find themselves snowed in with lots to do and next to no time to do it in, therefore loosing money and business.

My third point is regarding the second character I had planned – Snowball. He was supposed to be the accompanying model to Napoleon, but I didn’t start designing him or giving him any thought until Napoleon was well under way. In the future I want to try and run two or so models/jobs at simultaneously so that I can improve my work output, without sacrificing quality for quantity of course. This was my understanding this term as I wasn’t prepared to model another character but rushing to get it complete and up to any decent standard, in comparison to the Napoleon model the Snowball model would’ve been awful.

And finally my fourth point and target is to get better at animation and rigging, something I should’ve addressed in this term’s project (although I didn’t specify it much on the brief). I will look into downloading pre-made rigs of characters and learn how they work, also practicing to make my animations more crisp and lifelike using these simple characters.

I’ll post up some images of the final render, and also the texture files - albeit smaller versions as the originals are enormous both in file size and resolution.

The Final Countdown

2008-03-05T21:52:00.001Z

Well this week is the final week of the term and of this project, and it’s amazing how nine weeks goes by so quickly and suddenly. I’ll try and summarise what’s been going on this week, and try to conclude this term’s project as shortly and concisely as possible!

With the UV maps completed from last week’s efforts I went on to texture the model using Photoshop to paint lots of detail (for example veins and blemishes) onto Napoleon’s skin, and all around the model itself. The main aim of texturing is to give some life and substance to what is a blank canvas as it were, as the geometry is the foundations to a character, but colour and composition really help to amplify the characteristics and features of the model. Texturing itself is very methodical, and providing that the UV map is clean and easy to paint onto it’s refreshing and easy - compared to the laborious notion of modelling geometry, a process which usually makes people shudder and turn green with disgust.

I have to admit that if it weren’t for the various web tutorials and opinions and feedback from others I probably would’ve thrown the computer out the window long ago, as Maya can throw some awkward moments at the most unforgiving times. A favourite of mine is when you’re just about to save and it crashes, or you’re trying to open photoshop and run it simultaneously with Maya and it crashes/the blue screen of death appears. It’s enough to drive anyone into an early grave, or at least turn into an alcoholic!

Nevertheless, texturing has been great fun, and thankfully relatively problem free. I made a quick normal map for the model in ZBrush, and then went onto applying the texture file with it and the overall effect wasn’t perfect but suitable enough. In the future I’ll try and spend more time experimenting with different alpha brushes in ZBrush and then go on to create the normal maps, as the default brushes are good but have their limits.

I started to play around with applying an ambient occlusion effect to the model, and managed to render off one or two presentable images. The main reason for experimenting with ambient occlusion was to try and recreate the global lighting/realistic lighting effects which we see in really high end animations and renders. I wanted to create an ambient occlusion map for the model, just to give it that extra depth and realism. However, I’m not fully aware of how to do this and didn’t leave myself enough time to fully test it with the help from the tutors at Ravensbourne. This is something I’ll play around with over Easter and try to include in future projects.

Here’s a quick test image to show you what the ambient occlusion looks like, the difference between light and dark really amplifies the importance of shadow and shading in a model. This technique could applied to renders and included by layering it over the top of the colour image, and applying a layer setting such as multiply or overlay to create a darker composite where the shadows and highlights are really enhanced.

Regarding the project as a whole, I’m pleased to say that it’s gone mostly to plan with much fewer problems and issues than last term’s efforts. As I write this I still have to render off the 3D rotation of the model, but hopefully that’ll be fine. I plan to go into Ravensbourne tommorrow to hand in Gareth’s DVD project, and then take one or two computers to render out the project over night. Then finally stick it all together and render it out in Premiere Pro with a soundtrack or something to make it a bit more interesting to watch, in theory the render should take an hour at most to complete. In theory…!

I’ll hopefully post up a final message for this term’s project on Friday if not tomorrow, by which time the project will be complete. (I hope!)

(Continued)

2008-03-02T16:09:00.000Z

Well, some 300 or so vertices or so later the model is stitched together and is whole once more! All that's left to do now is to align the nets into a much better layout across the map, and stitch together some shells. For example stitch along the side of the face, and elsewhere when necessary.

Progress // Crunch Time!

2008-03-02T00:56:00.000Z

Where has this term gone!? Week nine starts on Monday and already I'm starting to sweat about the deadline, aaaah!

Apologies for neglecting the blog, over a week has passed since my last post so I feel I should elaborate on some of the things I've been doing. Thankfully the UV mapping is done and all that's left to do with Napoleon is texture, create some nice effects with lighting and hair, texture shaders and such, and then (if I get time) animate him breathing or looking around the scene. The thought was to have the model stationary on a plinth/plaque with a simple 360 degrees rotation around the model, with some closeups of the face and body. I want to create a bit of animation - nothing too complicated because of the time left, but something more interesting rather than the current generic T shape pose.

I've been getting my head around UV texturing and feel pretty confident with creating nets using the three main types of projection, and then stitching the UVs together, etc. It's a very time consuming process and it really plays off how well or badly the model is modelled! If the topology is crap then chances are the UV mapping will follow suit, edge loops and clean lines are paramount. Thankfully my UV nets aren't tangled or horribly distorted, and the checker pattern (which I borrowed from the Sean Mills UV Texturing tutorial DVD) around the model doesn't distort too badly either. All things considered I'm happy with how it's turned out, and glad that I spent so much time into learning this new technique properly.

Here's my work flow for UV mapping/what's left to do:

1. Take finished model (un smoothed) and cut it in half, this will be the proxy model we texture map for now. Keep a smoothed copy of the model and hide it for later.

2. Begin with the head and work your way down and around the body creating nets/shells from the various types of projection available.

3. Continue setting projections making sure they aren't tangled or warped, be realistic with the projections - if some are as good as you can get them then move on and try to compensate for where one projection lacks with a better one further on in the mapping process.

4. Relax UV sets/shells until they are smoother and better laid out for digital painting which will commence later on.

5. Layout UV shells into the 0-1 square, using the following settings:

6. Final UV Map not mirrored for the other half of the model (yet!):

7. Bring back the smoothed version of the model, and mirror it back together. For some reason my mirror geometry tool started to create some horrible effects on the model - merging vertices in the middle of the face and generally destroying the mesh! I've had to merge all of the vertices by hand and then hope and pray that the UV map still mirrors across. Once the map is completed and the U/V ratios are upped to around 4 or 5, then I'll be ready to start painting on the detail in the map, again praying that it doesn't deform horribly around the model!

8. Import texture file into Maya and apply to model. Apply normal/bump map(s) and other shaders/effects, and the Gorilla hair preset.

9.
Make simple rig for character, and animate simple movements (with one or two blend shapes if necessary.

10. Render out 3D rotation of Napoleon, and composit into After Effects and Premier Pro.

All things considered, there shouldn't be any major problems next week, as all the hard work is done essentially, and now begins the fun! I am pretty good at using Photoshop and have acquired a tablet to paint textures and such with, so this process will be relatively simple/fast. It'll be a case of trial and error for a few tests, and then the choice of whether or not to render in mentalray, or Maya Software.

Speaking of which here is a quick shader test I made using (a) a skin shader downloaded from www.highend3d.com - created by Miguel A Santiago - http://www.digiteck3d.com, and a simple lambert shader I made a few days ago.
Personally I like them both, although probably more so the mentalray render. It just has more realism and depth to it, the colour might be slightly off but these were just two quick tests I made a few days ago. I also spoke to Alex about using layers in the animation, i.e. ambient occlusion passes, global lighting, RGB lighting, and much more. My only concern is that I've never used this layered technique, although I'm familiar with the similar technique used in Photoshop - for example using the various layer properties such as colour burn, pin light etc, to create more effects with an image. This is something I really want to look into and explore over Easter, and it's a shame I hadn't addressed it this term, but nevertheless - it's a learning curve!

Hopefully the UV texturing will be done within the next couple of days, leaving a few days to finish everything up.

Napoleon Model 3D Rotation

2008-02-24T00:08:00.000Z

I thought it was time to reveal the whole model, and now I present to you Napoleon - the glutinous evil and malicious bastard who is now running Animal Farm.

Update

2008-02-23T23:20:00.001Z

Well as I write this I've nearly learnt the basics to mapping out UVs on polygon primitives such as cubes; which includes selecting the faces then using either planar, cylindrical, or spherical mapping to create UV 'shells'. These shells are then stitched together to form a completed net, which can be exported to Photoshop or another digital painting application.

With help from technician Alex, and the DVDs from the LRC (which are overdue hehe!) I'm steadily learning the basics which I hope to apply to my Napoleon and Snowball models.

Luckily I've also invested into using two monitors with a split between them, so using one for modelling and the other for rendering/IPR renders. Pretty useful if you want to render stuff on the go and not have to move the render window around while tweaking bits and pieces around the scene. My only concern is that I'll be blind in a matter of weeks from the now double dose of radiation my eyes are receiving from these monitors! This is all for the love of animation and CG I hasten to add. :)

Refining The Model // Learning UV Texturing Techniques

2008-02-20T14:57:00.000Z

Just a quick update on how the model is looking now, it's almost there, but still needs some decent definitions here and there. Adding creases and more realistic deformations on the geometry is cheering up what was a rather plain model. This could be improved with normal mapping/bump mapping as well as or instead of, but if I get the geometry right first, then it should make texturing easier and faster. It's mostly quads but I'm using some tris to get the end of creases perfect, and also smoothed the whole model just once more to give it a better finish.

This was just a quick test done in Photoshop making a realistic(ish) texture for the skin, and also considering the possibilities of lighting/shadows. It's cheating in a way, but at least it gives a quick idea as to what colour scheme and texture it should have.

I'm using some Gnomon Workshop DVDs from the library at Ravensbourne to learn how to UV map and texture better, and so far it's been quite easy to understand which can't be a bad thing! Sean Mill's DVD about character mapping using advanced layout techniques is really superb, he starts with creating a proxy model (duplicate of the original model but lower poly and less detail) and then cuts the model in half (as UVs can be mirrored in Maya just as geometry can too), and then start going about creating UV nets. A good investment for any would be 3D artist.

As you can see, the mesh is getting quite high poly now, but I'm still trying to stick to my initial target/polygon count of 100,000 per model. So far at this stage it's reached 67,124 - over half way!

Week Seven

2008-02-17T14:58:00.000Z

I've nearly got the modelling finished now, and the plan is to have Napoleon textured and ready to be rigged by the end of the week. Apologies for the lack of updates since Wednesday, but Mike Hirsch project had distracted me from this project - and I've still got to present my chosen area of interest on Friday's lesson. Screen shots and such of Napoleon to follow.

For the meanwhile here's a quick (one hour-ish) landscape painting I made, after looking at Thomas Pringle's artwork and also Ashley Wood's artwork I had the urge to draw out a concept of what the neighbouring landscape to Animal Farm would be. The intention was to have massive sloping mountains and hillsides dipping in towards the centre of the valley, giving the impression that it was serene and isolated from the outside world. The central part was meant to be a pathway leading through the meadows but instead it ended up looking more like a lake! Better luck next time!

The Valley - digital painting made using Photoshop CS2, digital tablet, scanned sketches, and custom brushes. (It's at half resolution so it should load up faster).

Fixing The Napoleon Model // Tutorial Hyperlinks

2008-02-13T21:58:00.000Z

I'm really starting to grasp the importance of topology and having a clean mesh now, and that's only after realising and being told that my Napoleon mesh is a little messy. The edge loops are a little bit limited but shouldn't cause too many problems; the mesh was a lot more dense two or three days ago but that's in the process of being fixed; and furthermore I'm working towards preparing the mesh for UV texturing and normal mapping. I've had a few issues with the topology but with help from Alex, Mike, and fellow students the problems have been fixed.

In preparation for UV texturing and normal mapping I've been searching for tutorials to give me some extra knowledge and advice, here are some of the best ones:

Ambient Occlusion Mapping/Baking
High End 3D - Normal Mapping
"Ugly Character" - UV Mapping
Basics Of Creating UV Maps
High End 3D - UV Mapping
High End 3D - Polygon UV Mapping
"Maya 8.0 Character Modeling - A Practical Approach to the Art of Professional Character Modeling" by Gary Oliverio (FULL BOOK)

Those should be enough for now, but I'll keep adding links as and when I find more tutorials!

Week Six

2008-02-10T21:23:00.000Z

Week Six starts tommorow, and after a week or so I can say that the modelling is yet to be completed, but I'm certain that with the help of Jamie and Alex, and Jared too if he's free I will get this bloody stuff done. I've got most of the storyboards done too, I just need to scan them in and sort them out a bit, also I'll post up a quick script or description of the animation. I'm still under pressure to get an animation made, but the back-up plan should it all go to pot is to get some walk cycles and lip sync stuff sorted, similarly to last year's projects. This way I can have some animation with the models I have created, and during the Easter break I will get a proper animation complete. I want to learn more about lighting and texturing too, I see so many animations on youtube and a lot of them rely on superb lighting techniques which I am yet to understand. Here's one example, something to aspire to.

Progress

2008-02-09T15:29:00.000Z

Just as an update, Napoleon is coming along nicely, Snowball is still in the beginnings of being modelled, and I've started to address the use of an environment to set a possible animation in. I am not going away from the initial idea as much as it seems however, as I remember doing this last term and falling a victim to constant perfectionism of ideas and developing more possibilities. My initial hope to finish modelling by tommorow might be slightly out of my reach, although it is something to aim for.

More 3D stuff to follow.

Napoleon Model: The Body

2008-02-07T12:57:00.000Z

I've interpreted Napoleon as a very evil and malicious character, and he's pretty fond of eating gross amounts of food as well as over indulging Mr Jone's alcohol stash too. "Napoleon was now a mature boar of twenty-four stone", an enormous size for such an animal as a pig, and one can imagine that while he and his fellow pigs ate and drank well the other animals on the farm were undernourished and overworked. The reader is told that "Napoleon was seen strolling in the farmhouse garden with a pipe in his mouth" while donning "a black coat, ratcatcher breeches and leather leggings".

"Napoleon himself, majestically uprights, casting haughty glances from side to side", he was a real dictator who loved to spread fear into the hearts of all the other animals on the farm, with the help of his loyal canines his reign was unquestioned. But his transformation from pig to human is a gradual process which takes place throughout the novel, not over night. Through his rise to power and corruption of the farm he assumes the role of president on the farm, and turns from a domesticated boar into a hideous "man".

Napoleon had become a successful business man through abusing and manipulating the animals on the farm, and exploiting their complete fear/vulnerability. The final chapter of Animal Farm illustrates how the pigs assume total control of the farm and secure deals with various money hungry business men. The rest of the animals curiously stare through the windows of the farmhouse as the transactions are being made, "Twelve voices were shouting in anger, and they were all alike. No question, now, what had happened to the faces of the pigs. The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again: but already it was impossible to say which was which".

Furthermore I go on to envisage Napoleon in a hideous form, half human and half boar. With terrible posture which is emphasised by the bad fit of Mr. Jone's (the human farm owner) clothes. It is most likely that his shirt or jacket would be covered in food and drink stains, and possibly ripped at the seams as his vast mass has been forced into the clothing. He would also don the two medals of the farmyard through no actual achievement or merit, but rather corruption and greed.

Week Five

2008-02-05T10:43:00.000Z

It's make or break time now, as the term is over half way complete and there's lots still to be done. The aim for this week is to finish modelling Napoleon and Snowball, which will be a challenge to say the least but it's a good aim which will hopefully propel me forward a lot. After speaking to Jared yesterday he's come to the conclusion that I really need to animate my characters in some sort of environment: (a) to give it some kid of context and (b) to test my skills at animation.

The Napoleon model is coming up to probably the half way mark, as the head is nearly finished, I've just got to complete the head and then start working on the actual body. The Snowball model is a work in progress also, as the design is in its last stages of being refined - something I will get done today and be ready to model by tommorow hopefully.

Once the two models are complete I'll try and play around with them in ZBrush to get a couple of normal maps ready to go with the diffuse and specular maps. Crunch time.

//

I also went to a lecture hosted by RaveMedia - the college's production house which draws upon the talents and abilities of Ravensbourne students, acting as another opportunity to get work out there and get some experience with real clients and companies. This project is based on Global Warming and Climate Change, so it is quite a tall order to get something professional made for the two companies in this project, who are 'Greenpeace' and 'Practical Action'.

There's a deadline on the 8th of March to hand in possible ideas for each student's pitch. The aim of the project is to create a 'Viral' which is basically an advertising medium either a poster or piece of live action/animation which will create interest about either Greenpeace's or P.A's ideals and work in the third world, also connected to climate change and the environment.

This seems like a really worthwhile cause, not only because it's a great opportunity to put out some stunning and eye grabbing advertising, but because it's dealing with something we should all have some connection with. The guest lecturer was saying how most people are suffering from the vast amount of publicity, propaganda, and begging (e.g. those bloddy charity workers on Bromley high street) going on. It's everywhere, we all know the planet is melting and being devoured by our destructive ways, so what can we do? Ah hah! That's where the clever designers and animators come in and alleviate the staleness which has settled in the air.

//

Furthermore I found a website with tutorials and various goodies written by Ben Cloward, a character animator. Check out his website where you can see his portfolio, but mainly check out his theories and lessons regarding normal mapping. There are also some free textures and shaders for 3DS Max in another part of the same website. Writing your own tutorials and theories is a very good way to get your work noticed, and people will return to your blog/website with the hope to find more hidden treasures which others may not have discovered yet. I'm going to bear this in mind, and probably start a blog site with my own Photoshop tutorials or other tutorials for other software packages soon, (a) to see how much I can teach myself, (b) how much I can teach others.

Ben Cloward

Normal Mapping tutorial

Don Bluth On "Cleaning Up" // Texture Artists And References

2008-02-03T16:20:00.000Z

Here's a really good website article, presumably written by Don Bluth himself. It's a breakdown of the roles and jobs of a character animator, with some excellent drawings and notations referring to each aspect of the character design process. A worthwhile read for anyone interested in character animation or directing characters in a scene!

Don Bluth cleaning up article

Furthermore, I found a couple of websites with some very detailed UV maps and character designs which may shed some light on how the character and textures are constructed with: diffuse, normal, specular, and glow maps. Both websites have some nice models used in games, for example Unreal Tournament and Quake 3. Pior Oberson's portfolio of characters is by far one of the best I've ever seen, amazing talent there.

Fraktal Void game character

Pior Oberson's character portfolio

Forest Sketch/Research Images

2008-02-02T13:03:00.000Z

A Possibility

2008-02-01T18:46:00.000Z

Jared mentioned animating my characters a few weeks ago, and yes the prospect of seeing some animation would be fantastic, and it would also be good to get some more practice animating characters. However as with anything in this world it depends on time and how much there is.

Nevertheless I've got an idea for a possible environment, with simple geometry/modelling specifications. I'm going for a typically English countryside farmhouse, with a windmill and nearby woodland/grazing fields. I really like the charm and style of Tudor buildings, and have spent time in the west country near Bath, where the architecture and general way of life is totally different to the suburbs and busy cities most of us are familiar with.

Reference photos from 'Inns Of England In Colour' by William Gaunt.

Formative Assessment

2008-01-31T22:24:00.000Z

Tommorow's Formative Assessment will be the half way marker for this project, and also a wake-up call to pick up the pace, but not to rush work halfheartedly, just focus and knuckle down.

I've put together some bits and pieces to put on the CD required, although the majority of my images are poster here on this blogsite. I want to produce two model sheets (with poses of each character) over the weekend, and also some facial expressions if possible. However, I know that Mike Hirch's unit - the essay and presentation is looming so that's another thing to get done ASAP!

Reflecting

2008-01-29T23:59:00.000Z

Right, it's week four and I thought "hmm", I should try and summarise what I've actually done so far and what is still to be done for the ever approaching deadline. I've researched into pig annatomy and how pigs look, using google image search and various library book references. In its simplest form, this has been crucial in understanding what makes a pig look like a pig as when I first started people thought I was drawing foxes and such! Afterwards I painted the propaganda poster of what Napoleon could look like, this has helped me to envision his looks and characteristics based on the novel.

Of course reading the novel itself was a step forward, as it's got a good plotline where each chapter seems to end with either a death or something monumental, this then goes on to shape the following chapter.

I'm drumming up the courage to put some silhouette style concepts and some environment sketches too, in particular a windmill and the surrounding farm area. I'll probably go out looking for some photographic references tommorow and also look for some textures in the woodland around college. There's also a farm about twenty minutes (cycling) from my house but that seems like a bit too much, also there was the idea to get some photos of pig giblets/meat from the butchers down the road, but again maybe it's a bit too much!

The aim for this week is to catch up with Jared and establish a good start on the modelling, and in my opinion the Zbrush sketches I've done don't constitute to the modelling aspect as such. This is because the model's poly counts are so high they wouldn't be incorporated into a project funded with real money, unless of course it was a Hollywood blockbuster! It doesn't hurt to experiment though, as it's such a good tool to conceptualise ideas quickly and efficiently.

I'll crack on with some environment sketches tommmorow, so it's a trip to the college shop to buy some of their delicious marker pens. Until then.

REFERENCE MATERIAL

ALL THE IMAGES IN THE COLLAGE BELLOW BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS, THEY ARE HERE MERELY AS INSPIRATION. Furthermore none of these images are mine/were drawn by me!

And a screne from Hayao Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli's film - 'Spirited Away'. Notice the exaggeration of the pig's features, especially the small eyes, large forehead, rounded face, enormous bodies, and heavy flappy ears.

Snowball Pig: Test One

2008-01-29T23:45:00.000Z

I had the intention to model the other character 'Snowball' today, but struggled to get his essence into this model. Strangely enough I find it easier to model and design evil characters, rather than the good guys. Snowball turned out to be a very sly and dirty looking pig with a false smile and a similar frown to Napoleon, not quite the right idea but never mind. I plan to do a bit of research into what culture and symbolism allows us to decipher a 'goody' from a 'baddy', and then I can hopefully produce another model of a better Snowball pig.

Roughly 2 hours sketch on Zbrush, again using a tablet - I'd probably struggle if I weren't using it! I stopped drawing after realising that this design didn't have the right charm or feeling I intended it to have, hence it's unfinished.

Week Four

2008-01-28T13:04:00.001Z

Over the last week I've been drawing the pigs in character poses and such, meeting a few creative blocks about whether the characters should be human with animal characteristics or vicer-versa. I've recently discovered how to use Z-Brush which has inspired me tremendously to knock out some decent looking 3D renders and in the process I've probably sold my soul to the devil and fallen in love with its intuitive layout/interface.

We as animators and artists are always developing and therefore never stop aspiring to be something we're not. By learning and adapting to the ideas around you, from books, people, films, music, food, and everything in between, only then can your work earn the respect of others, and then the expectations of yourself. Once you've established a firm base of reference and knowledge to tap into then it should become easier to source ideas and solutions to problems. Knowledge is power.

This bust was made as a sketch for my own ideas and thoughts about Napoleon, the evil villain in Animal Farm. I'm trying to establish a look and feel for the character which is both appealing and revolting.

Timescale for sketch: four to five hours, tablet in Z-brush 3, references taken from Google image search and my research. The ears could do with being finished, and the head could do with some more detail around the back and sides, but I don't want to waste anymore time with this little piggy, best to move onto the next concept.

Pig Pose Skecthes

2008-01-24T15:39:00.000Z

I'm starting to realise the importance of character posing and establishing an interesting pose in each key frame. By using Michael D. Mattesi's 'Dynamic Life Drawing For Animators' book I'm relearning the aspects Dan Dalli taught us during our first year, to capture the essence of a pose and convey the energy which is there. I am starting to establish an idea as to how I'll model the pigs in Maya, as I've been in a dilemma, should look realistic or stylised?

More sketches to follow.

Propaganda Comrade!

2008-01-23T01:44:00.001Z

Animal Farm is based hugely on the conflicts during the Soviet Revolution, with Stalin's dictatorship regime in full flow George Orwell (the author of Animal Farm) was largely influenced by the events which followed. Subsequently he based the main villain Napoleon - on Stalin. However this is never actually mentioned/confessed in the novel but it has been speculated to be true by experts on numerous occasions. Stalin is represented symbolically and metaphorically throughout the novel, so this adds a subtle undertone to the character which many readers might overlook.

I wanted to create some form of propaganda piece which I envisaged to be on posters or in local newspapers in the story. With Napoleon branding the farm and beginning his dictatorship after Snowball's (the honorable brave pig with good intentions) exile, I imagine he would broadcast his power and attempt to brainwash his underlings into a sense of false security. Evil bastard...

Note the flag in the background, unfortunately this was not my original idea but one I found on the wikipedia entry for Animal Farm. It's a cross between two animal parts and the infamous Hammer and Sickle of the Communism party. With a pigs trotter on the right, and a cow's (?) horn on the left.

I researched into some Russian propaganda posters and found some good reference illustrations of Stalin. This piece started off as a sketch, then cleaned up with a rotring pen. I then scanned in the raw image and coloured it in Photoshop and Painter, giving the oil painting feel artificially.

This image includes a stock photograph from this website. I imagined Napoleon using this sort of imagery as part of a grand scheme for his growing empire, encompassing the importance of a strong labour workforce in a lucrative farming industry.

The phrase "Four Legs Good Two Legs Bad" is a quotation from the book, regarding the hate for humans and all of their kind, but the fraternity and respect for all other animals. The irony is that the pigs evolve throughout the book to become human, i.e. walking on their hind legs and living as humans do.

Sketches

2008-01-22T12:05:00.000Z

Most of last week and this week has consisted of finding good reference images of piggies. I have to confess I've never drawn animals much, but it's good practice for the future should I ever need to design alien creatures. It's interesting to draw from anatomy books because it really helps an artist's understanding of how an animal's body works. This goes for human anatomy too, of course if you practice then you'll become better at drawing them.

I've got a deadline for next Monday to finish the character designs, and if possible get some modelling started (see schedule timetable). My friends are all progressing nicely, makes me wonder why I picked a story hardly anyone has read/heard of - despite it being an English literature classic!

Subsequently this gives me a bit more freedom, as apposed to trying to please the people who have read the book and would have their own opinions of each character. I remember Peter Jackson talking about the outcry he received from would be fans while producing 'The Fellowship Of The Ring'. He had his opinion regarding Gandalf's appearance and what he should look like but obviously it wasn't how others depicted him. Afterwards I believe Jackson went on to look at an artist's impression of the wizard, produced by the fantastic fantasy illustrator John Howe. Readers across the globe have identified with Howe's green wizard illustration, and so Jackson probably tapped into this idea for his trilogy. Having said that I have been advised not to look at the animated cartoon of Animal Farm or at any recent productions of the book, as it might shift my views and ideas into something which has already been made.

I finished reading the book a few days ago and it was generally good, but the ending was a little too ambiguous for me, nevertheless an interesting read.

Timetable for this term

2008-01-18T00:36:00.000Z

Here's a timetable I put together on excel, hopefully I'll get more done before week five, as I have a feeling that the P.P.D. presentations are due around that time too!

Becoming a Stuntman for the day

2008-01-16T19:27:00.000Z

Well today was eventful to say the least! I got a bit carried away with hurling myself around a corridor near the lecture theatre, and subsequently bruised myself on the elbows and buttocks. It was all in a good cause after all, as a group of us tried to get some interesting shots of us acting out scenes in our fantastic production. Well I can only say that our storyline involves vending machines, griveous bodily harm, and various other bits and pieces.

In between the chaos of our production I continued to draw up some ideas for Napoleon.

Digital pig silhouette drawn with mouse in Photoshop.

Napoleon sketch drawn with 0.5 mechanical pencil, colours added in Photoshop .
And the coloured version, proof that I still need to work on my Photoshop colouring skills, and probably my drawing too!

The Brief

2008-01-15T19:39:00.000Z

Here's the brief I typed up today, I'm sure it'll be open to a few minor adjustments later on.