Ok, so you want to know more!
Well then keep reading!
The Next Major process we must cover is:
SCENE EDITING
Just like a motion picture company would create a Set in a studio the
3D artist must also create a set in the computer and this is done in the Editor.
 In the Editor all of the
Meshes that you have made or acquired from outside sources are brought together to form a
scene. Lights and Cameras are then placed in the scene to provide the proper lighting and
views you want. Lighting is the most important element in a scene. The placement and color
of lights will establish the mood of the scene and the overall quality of the Rendering.
The example on the left shows lights (yellow lines) and the camera (blue lines).
The example at the left also shows our HOW 2 Mesh that we are now
going to call an Object. They are one in the same but for the
purposes of scene editing they are now given the name of Object. Objects are the pieces
and parts used to make up your scene and just like a 2D Shape they are also made up of
different parts.
An object has vertices much like those in the 2D Shape. However, the vertices in the
object are used to form a triangle called a Face. |
So now you are asking yourself where did these faces come from?
This guy didn't tell us about no faces-- we don't need no stinking faces! Ok, Ok, Ok, I
know I haven't talked about them yet, that's because they weren't being used until now,
but I'll fill you in on them.
An object is made up of many faces, the HOW 2 object consist of approx. 4,000 faces
with each face needing three vertices (you do the math). The
faces were created for you when you lofted the 2D Shape in the last step. Faces are much
like a painters canvas pulled across a frame. They are the surfaces that the colors and
textures will be applied to.
So now you know what faces are and what they are used for but how do we get the colors
and textures on the object's faces?
 Well, this is where the
Material Editor comes into play. This process may be the most complex and hardest to
master of all the processes. Like a painter's palette is used to combine different colors
to achieve the right color and texture, the Material Editor is used to create materials
for use in our computer scene in the editor.
One of the advantages the computer artist has over a traditional artist is that colors
and textures can be adjusted and tweaked over and over with never the chance of making a
mistake that would require you to start over. Also, the computer artist has a infinite
amount of materials that can be created.
Materials are created by establishing a base color which consist of Ambient (the
overall color), Diffuse (the dark or shaded areas of the color), and Specular (the
brightest spots in the color). These can be all of the same basic color (Red) or mixed and
matched to create complex colors. Your settings would then be rendered as a test color. If
you look at the example on the right you will see a red Sphere. This is the test color for
the red in the rendered HOW 2 logo. |
The base color can then be combined with various MAPS to create
even more complex materials. Maps can consist of Texture Maps, Bump Maps, Reflection Maps
and many others.
Once you think you have gotten a material to look the way you want it, then it must be
applied to the object and then rendered to test the effects that lighting and camera
angles have on the material. You would then evaluate any problems in the scene and make
the proper adjustments to the lights, camera or materials.
The process of test and evaluation can take some time but it is necessary to achieve
the proper look to the scene. Once you have done it enough it becomes second nature as to
what will work and what won't. But that is like anything you do in life, practice makes
perfect.
Ok so now we know how to make a Still picture. But how many times have
you been watching a movie and a really cool Animated special effect is used and you ask
yourself
"HOW DID THEY DO THAT!!!"
Well if you want to know go to the next page.
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