Conclusion

I have learnt alot from this assignment. Namely, how to use spline modelling to create an organic 3D model in 3D Studio Max. Also, how to use a UVW Unwrap to texture it. I have never used either of these techniques before, so it was a definite learning experience for me. I have also learnt a few new keyboard shortcuts and features of 3DS Max that makes me more confident in using it.

The model itself as turned out fairly well. If time permitted, I would definitely spend more time on the texturing and modelling of the nose. The shape of the ears turned out better than expected, and I like the look of the lips. I am not proud of the clothing, but due to a lack of usable reference images, it was all that was available at the time.

I feel that I could use the techniques learnt in this module in my future career which hopefully will involve some 3D modelling.

Overall, I believe that the assignment was a success, and that I have produced a piece of work at a reasonable standard.

Texture + Final

I started applying pieces of my reference images to the template to create the texture for my 3D model. I used the patch tool, clone stamp and various transform tools to align and match the pieces.

I had alot of difficulty with the ears, not because both were different, but I couldn't seem to get the texture to line up with the template. This is probably due to the pelt mapping being incomplete or not flattened enough.

Matching up all of the pieces was very tricky, and while mine may not be to an expert's standard, I believe it is a reasonable attempt.

I ten used this texture to create a bump map. I desaturated the image, modified the levels and used the "High Pass" filter to produce a bump map. To avoid over-emphasis in the wrong places, I took out the edge of the map using the clone stamp tool.

I applied this to my model to create the final piece.

I added a quick texture to a sphere to create the eye, using a reference image of my eye. A UVW Map aligns it, and symmetry creates the 2nd eye.

UVW maps

Now that the model is complete, I started work on the UVW maps. First, I used the material editor to create a checker pattern to place on the model. I then applied a UVW unwrap modifier to set up the UVW co-ordinates.

I used the paint selection tool to select all of the faces that did not form part of the ear (which would be done afterwards) and selected cylinder mapping. I used the Align Z tool to center it, and scaled it to fit around the head. In the edit screen, I filtered the selected faces to hide the ear and noticed some stray seams on the top and bottom of the head, so I welded them together.

I used the relax tool in key areas to flatten the image in the edit screen. I also altered the edge to make it easier to attach to the other side later on.

Next, I deselected the current faces and selected the ear. From the Unwrap UVW modifier, I selected pelt map which brought up the pelt map edit box. Here, I expanded the stretch ring to give the model room to spread out. I then started the pelt mapping and relaxing repeatedly until the model was better spread out.

I went back and saw the UVW map for the main model, and altered as necessary.

I them applied the symmetry modifier and another Unwrap UVW over the top. I then mirrored the map to the other side and welded the two together.

I had some problems with the ear, so they ended up as 2 different maps but it shouldn't matter in the end. I rendered a UVW Map and opened it in photoshop. From this, I created a layer mask to use as a guide.

Ear

The next stage was to model the ear. I hid the rest of the head and used splines to follow the topology of the ear I created earlier. There were a few problems with following this topology as there were multiple 5-sided shapes. I fixed these and simplified as I went.

I converted this into an editable poly, attached the rest of the splines and welded them together (as with the face). I then begun to pull out the vertices, selecting see-through to follow the reference images.

I continued to shape the ear until I was happy, then applied a turbosmooth to see what the end result would be.

To get a better shape, I used the inset tool to make sharper edges going into the ear in various places.

Once I was happy with the overall shape of the ear, I matched it up with the head to ensure it was in the right place, then entered isolation mode. I extended the edges at the back of the ear to create the shape. I also simplified most of the edges to made it easier to attach to the head.

Once the back of the ear was complete, I used the snap tool to match up the vertices with the rest of the head. I wasn't concerned about the stretching, as it can easily be fixed once the ear was connected. Once everything was in place, I attached the ear to the head, and welded the matching vertices.

Back of head + neck

Once I was happy with the general shape of the face, I moved onto the rest of the head. First, I took a sphere and fit it to the size of the top of my head. I then rotated it to get a clear seam in the centre. I deleted the half that would eventually be created using the symmetry modifier, then used the paint selection tool to pick out polys to delete to make it match the face.

I matched up the vertices to the face and began extending the sphere down the back of the neck.

I continued extending to the top of the back and chest, and underneath the chin, meeting the symmetry modifier in the middle. I did encounter a few irregular polys during this stage, but I used the cut tool to fix them.

I then attached the back of the head to the face, and welded the vertices to complete the head, with the ears left to go.

Mouth

The next step was to do the lips by selecting the surrounding edges, holding shift and dragging out. I then target welded the edges together to form the shape of the lips.

Once this process was complete, I re-applied the turbosmooth modifier and noticed the lips were too small.

I went back to the polygon and widened the lips by dragging the vertices out and re-shaping.

Nose

I began work on the remainder of the nose, selecting a number of edges and using the connect tool to create new polygons. This created some irregular shapes that had to be fixed before moving on.

I applied a turbosmooth modifier to check the current end-result.

Mask

Once the main shape was created, I applied a symmetry modifier (flipped) and set the mirror to create a full face shape. The seams were a bit off, but I fixed these and left spaces for the nostrils and eyes to complete later on.

Polygons

I created the lines from the reference images using splines, simplifying and correcting areas where possible. Once all of the lines were in place, I converted one to an editable poly, attached them all to it and welded all of the vertices together. I then started to pull out the vertices, setting the poly to see-through to make it simpler.

Reference plates

I created two planes that were perpendicular to each other and the same size to use as my reference plates. I created a material from the reference images, and set the self illumination to 100. I then assigned this to the planes and used a UVW Map modifier, with "Bitmap Fit" to ensure that the images weren't distorted.

I set these to frozen (unchecking "Show frozen in grey") and began work on the polygons.

Aligning + Topology

The next step was to make sure that the reference images matched up in terms of size and alignment. First, I used the lens correction filter to remove the "fish-eye" effect caused by the camera used. Thankfully, this was pretty minimal and very simple to do. Next, I used rulers to align points on the face, re-sizing and rotating to match. This was the result:

Next, I had to draw the topology on the reference images. I started by marking out key areas of the face (lines, creases, bone structure etc) to base the topology on:

Next , I began to draw in lines to separate the face into quads. This will form the basis of the polygons used in the 3D model.

Reference images

I began by taking my reference images, one from the front and one from the side. I used a tripod and DSLR camera with remote control to maintain the distance and quality needed. After a few attempts, I chose the following pictures for my reference images.