A Look at the layers

Here is a look at the environment with the basic diffuse texture applied, with no lighting.

 This layer shows the shapes in the scene with lighting information.

This layer shows the shapes in the scene with normal and specular maps picking up the lighting information.

The finished product is a combination of all of the layers.

The Propulation!

It took a while, but they are all now in UDK! I fell into some difficulty with textures not going in the right place which set me back 40 minutes but it was resolved. Now its time to arrange them all beautifully in the scene.

Now the fun begins...

Time to Propulate!!!

I have created a number of basic props to Propulate (populate with props) my environment.

 Plywood boards, wooden pallets and wooden planks.

 Cardboard boxes open and closed, also broken boxes to scatter about the floor.

 Sheets to cover storage units and crates. Also sheets that are clumped on the floor.

 Crates of all different sizes to represent storage.

Metal shelf units, metal beams and sheets and a bin.

At this point I am exporting these objects into UDK ready to populate my environment.



Environment in UDK

Now I have both the Galloper and building in UDK i can move onto the other props in the scene. I have also lowered the brightness on the specular maps to remove that glossy look.

Lighting test in Maya

I decided to put the Galloper in the scene and play around with some lighting in Maya . I used a blue point light and a white spot light that used depth map shadows. Just a small exercise to visualise if this combination of lighting will set the right mood. Personally i feel the blue point light makes the environment feel cold and the white spot light casts menicing shadow on the wall. I will play around with both of these in UDK where the scene can be lit to a higher quality.

Bulilding structure done!

The building is now complete with the support beams in place. It is now ready to be imported into UDK.

At this point I created some doors and other objects to be placed around the walls of the building to make it more believable as a location.

These three props are used to flesh out the scene, a large door, normal door and wooden board are placed about the environment, this helps with the aesthetic quality of the level along with breaking up the wall textures to hide the repetition.

Building under construction

I am now building the warehouse for the galloper to go inside. I wanted the building to look old and similar to the environment concept I created. I used the colour palette from that concept to paint my textures.

I have yet to create the roof and support structures but will hopefully have them done by the end of today and all exported into UDK.

This is the overall layout of the warehouse. I added archways and pillars to break up the repetition in the textures, this also made the scene more interesting.

These four sections make up the walls of the warehouse, originally i was going to add them into UDK separately and assemble the environment in the editor. Due to time constraints i am now going to assemble the scene in Maya and export it all as one object. boom

Finished Galloper Model

28th November 2011

I have now finished my Galloper model. The screenshots here show the galloper in UDK. The model has diffuse, normal and specular maps applied to it. In these images the model its self is too shiny. This is because I need to turn down the levels on the specular map. In the learning progress section of the blog I will show my work process of how this model was made.

My last post showed a concept for how the top boarder of my Galloper could look. I quickly realised when modeling it that structurally the idea was too complex, as my goal was to keep the model as low-poly possible. Also the design I created replicated designs of American Carousels, I wanted to keep my galloper routed to an English style.

The hardest aspect of the Galloper to model was the Horse. As they are the focal point I knew it was important to model them correctly. I modelled the horse once and after UV mapping it, I duplicated it and altered the positions of the legs and head to give them different silhouettes. This is visible in the image above.

Galloper Decoration

Design for Tilable Roof Decoration

I created a design for my roof section that would work if tiled. I can now create the structure and UV map in Maya now i have the general shape of the decoration layed out.

Final Template complete Tuesday 15th November 2011

I originally designed my Galloper ride as a three abreast horse ride, but was told to change it to a four-abreast ride. This was done to make them seem bigger and give the central area of the Galloper more room. This scale will now work well with my design and will be a good base template to start my final model.

I will start modelling the top section of the Gallopers, becuase the model is round i can just model and UV map one section of the Galloper. Like a piece of Cake. Once I have a basic design i can break up the repetative structures with unique images and text writen around the top. 

Deadline for Modelling Galloper

DEADLINE Friday 25th November 2011!!!

 

I Have been given a Deadline from which i am going to 3D model and Texture my Galloper ride. on Friday 25th I aim to have a finished Galloper with high quality textures. I will also apply these textures to the low poly template to see if it could also work as a low poly model.

Maya Environment Test

Created Sunday 23rd October 2011

I created a quick environment in Maya to show how the Galloper will look in the Warehouse. Again I played with the singke sauce of light, which i feels makes the environment a lot creepier. 

Its all about the Shadow in this image. Seeing it cascade across the ceiling and up the walls creates an overpowering image.

As you can see I have added Tents and a Ferris wheel in the background, also pillars and supports for the building structure. This helps the viewer understand the location without much trouble.  

Maya Test

On Thursday 20th October I created a low-poly Galloper model. This was done to judge the scale and shape of the ride. It will help me create my final model, using it as a template from which to create a more detailed version. 

Environment Concept

Environment Concept, Entrance.

When me, Steph and Dave my fellow masters comrades went to Manchester on Friday 7th October 2011 to gather research we decided to visit Manchester Town Hall. We were fortunate enough to be allowed upstairs for 10 minutes. Whilst wondering around admiring the architecture and artwork we passed through a passageway that overlooked a small courtyard. Once i saw this secluded, claustrophobic area my mind was filled with ideas for the environment upon which my Gallopers could be situated. I decided to create a concept of the entrance too the fairground storage area, inspired by the courtyard at Manchester Town Hall.

Galloper Environment Concept

I created a concept for my 3D Environment. The aim of my project is to evoke an emotional reaction from the player. For this Environment i want the reaction to be one of Tension and fear. I created this concept to try and develop how this can be done using Gallopers. I used a focal light that shines through the Gallopers. I enjoy the relationship between the light shafts and the structure of the ride. The way in which the light is breaking through the shapes of the horses and poles gives off an creepy vibe.

And so it Begins...

Figure 1: Gallopers Built by Savages of Kings Lynne in 1903.

I am Oliver John Farrell I have recently started my Masters Degree at University of Central Lancashire. I completed a BA Honours Degree in Game Design at Uclan the semester ending in June 2011 where I achieved a 1^st Class grade.

So Masters has begun. We have all been encouraged to write a blog for our masters, so here it is! This blog will document my journey though a master’s degree. I will post both my research and practical work.

I want to focus on Environment art for my masters. I have been told that where you begin is not necessarily where you finish. So with this baffling fact in mind Josh has given me a starting point. Gallopers, old fairground rides as a place of interest to start researching. So let’s go...