The second week started with an introduction to PBR (physically based rendering) through the use of Unreal Engine 4. during Mike Pickton's session we got to grips with the basics of how to use the slate-based system for applying multiple texture channels to specific objects. These channels included diffuse (or albedo), roughness, metalness, emission, bump and normal maps. These different texture layers help to produce a more realistic looking surface to the object - depending on how you use these layers, your object will take on different asthetic qualities when light hits it (roughness, for example will change how crisp or soft light is reflected off its surface).
I found this session useful as it gave me a much clearer idea of how the process works. I knew about most of the maps and how they work beforehand, but had no idea how they are applied in-engine, let alone what "PBR" was. This feature of Unreal 4 will definately need to be utilised significantly for the Film Room project, as we are striving to replicate a physical environment from real-life reference, so just diffuse maps won't be convincing enough.
Work on the "structure" of 221b Baker Street was completed this week, with all the bells and whistles. From the images you may be able to make out that as well as the walls and floors, I have also modelled several of the features and fixtures that come with them. Some exmples would be the rug, light switches, framed paintings and the large window to the left of the entrance. I intend to leave the far wall bare until we have positioned the windows, when I shall retroactively remove sections of the wall for the light to pass through.
The model shown here is roughly 2400 triangles, which may sound like a lot, but it's roughly the equivilent to a single armchair that Lexy produced for the scene! This is to be expected, though, as the room is full of flat, square geometry and mainly devoid of anything overly complex. As far as I can tell, the proportions are relatively faithful to the photographs that I have been using as reference, which is good news as it will make it far easier for ourselves once we attempt to put all the assets in one place (the less resizing needed, the better!)
Of what few object there are in the scene that ARE rounded, they are very small, almost unnticeable at a glance. Examples of this would be the pairs of handle knobs on the lower half of each bookcase, as well as the dial on the lightswitch and oval picture frame near the door. Ironically, these items are where a great deal of the triangles reside, but rest assured they are not going to waste - considering that we have an allowance of 100,000 triangles, I wouldn't be too worried about them!
Above left you will see a few examples of this week's life drawing work. This week we were focusing on directing our attention to a specific area of the subject matter and mapping it out as accurately as possible before proceeding. From there, we could branch off from this area using the same method to ensure good use of proportion and detail. This resulted in three half-finished, basic outlines which, while not much to look at, captured the size and shape of the form well. Though I am happy with this, we were given just under twenty minutes for each of these drawings and I would have liked to see one completed. Alas, I dwelled on the details of the face too much (per the norm) and generally spent more time tweaking than actually moving on with the piece, though this may be just because I need to get back into the swing of managing my time - They're not much for twenty minutes.
To the right you will see a beautifully rendered creature piece which was, unfortunately, not drawn by me. We were asked to bring in an inspiring image for our critical studies lesson this Friday - one which we could go into detail about its compositional structure. We were given some compositional catergories explore, and I came up with these pointers:
Balance: Largest example of mass is central to the frame.
Focus: High contrast on particular areas on the creature's torso, particularly in contours in/around stomach.
Movement: Relatively stright, follows the flows of the subject's silhouette.
Variety: Lots of different textures, such as leathery hide, fluff, tufts of hair, ivory, and skin.
Pattern: Stripes lead down the neck, horizontally along the image.
Proportion: Creature's physicality is stylised into to 3 main bulks; the head, mid-torso area and rump.
Space: Large amount of negative space below the horns, head and neck areas.
Contrast: Plenty of brightening sheen on skin, With very crushed blacks used for the far side of the subject, possibly to accentuate the foreground.