Texturing Progress on an old model-now with Steampunk projec

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:19

Thought I'd finally post something here to signal that I've migrated from the Google forums.

I posted this model awhile back over there, but after I was done with it, I pretty much left it...

Now it's back, and in the process of being textured. Once I'm done with it I'm pretty sure I'm going to release it - anyway, cheers, glad to be back in the SU community

And yep, it's all being textured in Sketchup

EDIT: Hehe, got distracted with another project, this one's a little bit more useful, so I'm concentrating on it. It's a steampunk fighter - scroll down to my next post to see it

Krisidious · 24 Jan 2008, 19:20

very sweet design, there is a free space program in which you can fly your creations...

Orbiter 2016 Space Flight Simulator

Orbiter is a realistic 3D real-time space flight simulator program. Official site with free download.

(orbit.medphys.ucl.ac.uk)

awesome job...

Gaieus · 24 Jan 2008, 19:21

UT (lack of a better name ),

Nice modelling. This would really deserve some 3rd party rendering though!

boofredlay · 24 Jan 2008, 19:22

Man that thing looks fast.

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:23

Haha, glad to be here guys, and thanks for all the replies (lol @ the image Boot).
Oh, and Krisidious - this would probably be for Freespace 2 actually (http://www.hard-light.net/forums ).

When I get some free time I'll run it through 3DS Max, but at the moment I have been stricken with Steampunk fever, and I bring to you this This little guy flies mostly by repulsor (probably generated by that giant engine in the front), but as that technology require a large power sources, the fighter doesn't have enough room to house something that would be able to generate enough to keep itself afloat. Instead, it has to rely on wings as well as the repulsor lifts

Krisidious · 24 Jan 2008, 19:23

I'm imagining a hitching post type of parking device with tw arms that reach up and hold on to the front end... when you park...

how do you see it?

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:24

Those two big half circles in the front are the main landing gear - they deploy like the Wildcat fighter from WWII.

New progress! I just spent the last three or four hours reducing the polycount from 17,000 to 7,200. So I'm pretty happy with it. Still going to add more detail though, so I would have liked more overhead - oh well.

Here's a before:

And an after:

And some more progress:

Cheers!

EDIT: Cockpitize me, Cap'n!

After this it's the pilot and then texturing!

EDIT: Update - 622 polies (this is going to be my first organic ever

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:25

Bumping this with new progress Progress is far past my target (about 6k, this models at 9,200), but with LODing I can probably make it work

robmoors · 24 Jan 2008, 19:25

This looks awesome, the red style is even more perfect, it creates a cool atmosphere and hides the sketchup smoothing flaws. Very well done!

Krisidious · 24 Jan 2008, 19:26

the orbitor is a simulator... where as freespace is a game I think... unless I'm mistaken about what software you mean...

the simulator uses real physics but you can make up engines...

the model is coming soooo along well... I can't wait to see that cockpit with the gauges all lit up...

I like the antique looking stick...

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:27

Well this is more for a tounge-in-cheek, not so serious type project, that's why I'm using Freespace - If it was more realistic, I'd probably go with Orbiter (although you don't get guns in that game! haha).

Coen: Nope, this is one of my own projects I'm doing with a few other people (who are also from the BSG team though ).

Heh, and thanks rob - yea, when you go into monochrome mode SU looks so much better.

Texturing progress, still very WIP, I hate/suck at texturing

SU:

Max:

Just wanted to do a nicer render - it's all being textured in SU of course, hehe.

robmoors · 24 Jan 2008, 19:28

Very Nice texturing job, you gotta teach me how you do that, I know how to create realistic textures but to get them fitting on the model as you did here and in your previous model beats me, would you be interested in writing a tutorial for that? I would greatly appreciate it.

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:28

Already did it awhile back

File sharing and storage made simple

(www.mediafire.com)

There's the .skp file.

With round surfaces I just mapped the whole thing like it was 2D. You get some stretching on the middle parts, but some clever texturing can mitigate that.

It's also semi-imprecise. You can get the general placement but if you want absolute exact UV mapping spaces you should use a UV mapping program. If, however, you're like me and hate UV mapping the normal way, I just edit the texture so that it corresponds to the way it's mapped on (i.e. if a bit on the model is off of it's actual placement, i just move that bit over on the texture).

robmoors · 24 Jan 2008, 19:29

Ill have to actually tag along this tut cause I don't immediately get it when I read it.

Though this looks a lot like UVW unwrapping in 3DS max, something I always enjoyed because you could texture any model with that with great precision.

Is there a way to UVW unwrap in Sketchup with a ruby perhaps? That would be awesome..

Anyway thanks for the tutorial!

Unknown Target · 24 Jan 2008, 19:29

If you have any questions about the tut, feel free to PM or post them here and I'll do my best to answer - I tried my best to explain it simply, hehe.

And unfortunately, no there's no way to UVW Unwrap in Sketchup with Ruby You can use the flatten.rb and unfold.rb to lay everything flat, so you can get a map, but then after that you still have to assign the map to the model in the proper locations.