Final thoughts and reflection

Being in the same group as Tom Robinson, Richard King and Stuart Norton, I immediately knew that the work we would eventually produce would be of a very high standard.
The group worked very well together in most aspects and the progress that we made weekly seemed amazing, even as I look back now.

The primary aspect that made the project so successful was communication. Right from the beginning, we agreed on a size scale to use, and this made it very easy later on when the different models were brought together. We met weekly to discuss what we had achieved over the week and set ourselves targets for the following week's meeting. Another key to the group's success was the fact that we managed to complete the main modelling aspect so quickly. This then gave the group more time to work on the animation and lighting/movie segments.

As Stuart lives quite a way from the University campus, it seemed more ideal that we contacted him via e-mail, and met just once a week. The rest of the group met every couple of days.
The workload was shared evenly. I took on the main model, Tom took the left section, Richard took the wheel and individual arm and Stuart took the right section and environment. It was basically a process where once someone had finished working on their section, they then moved on to something else that could be done. For example, after I completed my modelling aspect, I then moved on to creating some environment (ie snow and sky scenery). I also worked with other members to arrange the lighting and to create the final movie. This consisted mainly of arranging the various cameras into the right positions and making sure that the cameras displayed the scenes as we required.

Unlike many groups that have done projects like this before, the team worked really well together. Something that amazed me was the way the group got on with the work and never argued. We all contributed ideas, and then went with whatever the group agreed was the best option.
Throughout this project, I have yet again learnt so many new skills. Having never used 3DS Max before the face project, I have really been thrown into the deep end of modelling. The only way that I overcame my lack of experience was to sit and work through tutorials and spend hour upon hour learning how the software works. I have learnt so much. The techniques that I have acquired have proved really useful. Things like using the Boolean tool, adding and altering textures to display bump maps and anistrophic settings, lighting settings and key frame animations are to name but a few techniques that I have learnt.

The animation was relatively difficult to get right. Key frames seem to have a mind of their own. I had great difficulty when I grouped objects, animated them, then when I went to ungroup them, they distorted and the animation did not work as I required. The animation was also very fiddly, and typical of me (being OCD) I had to make sure that it was 100% correct.
I was initially concerned with creating the lighting effects and also the movie aspect.
However, working with the rest of the team, I soon learnt how everything works, and am now quite experienced in these areas. Creating a movie is a lot simpler than I thought. It is really just a case of placing the camera in the correct place, then moving through the key frames, making sure that it shows in the view port what you want to display.

At the beginning of the project, the group analysed everyone's strengths and weaknesses. This was vital, as it enabled us to work out who would do what within the project, making sure that everyone worked in areas where they were best suited. However, this did not stop us from learning new skills because with all 3d modelling, there is always something new to learn.
Looking back over the entire project from day one, I can not believe that we have created the model that we have. Our model resembles very closely to the original model. There are no particular areas that I am not proud of. We have now created a movie which provides an educational perspective (Commentary at the beginning) and a short film showing how the model works. I feel that this really is something that the museum could benefit from, which was our initial aim from the beginning.

If I were to go back to the beginning and do this project again, I would keep most things the same, although there are a few things that I would change.
Firstly, before anything else, I would arrange with the group exactly what our aims are and what we want to achieve from this project. Secondly, I would try to meet with the team more. And thirdly, I would try to ensure that the group used the same textures throughout the model, as sometimes working on your own, people tend to use their own textures which do not follow suit to the rest of the model.
However, I feel that the team worked really well together and I am extremely proud of the product that we produced. Maybe one day I will return to the museum and see our animated model/movie on display....

Environment

Using a background texture in 3DS max, I decided to use a night sky, as this seemed to look most realistic when Stuart's outhouse was added. I also created a plane underneath the outhouse ready for a ground material to be applied. The image below shows the sky environment with Stuarts outhouse model:

(Outhouse with sky)

Applying a snow texture to the plane was what I did next. I increased the bump map to 117 so that the snow had some contours. I then placed the steam pump into the outhouse ready for it to be filmed using cameras.

(Outhouse with snow and sky included)

Finally, I decided to add some lighting effects alongside Richard. We placed a spotlight onto the gauge where the first movie will start from. We also increased the intensity of the light within the outhouse so that the model could be seen clearly when animated. Some external lighting was also included so that the outhouse could be seen in greater detail.

Updated animation

Richard and I have been working on the animation this week to overcome some of the problematic areas that arose during the first stage of creating the animation. We have slowed the fly wheel down so that it starts gradually rather than immediately and it also runs a lot slower throughout the entire animation. The arm at the back of the model which collided with other sections now works correctly. We amended this by simply dragging the key frames forward slightly so that the arm moved in synchronisation with the object that surrounds it. Although it is difficult to see, there is also another small animated object between the fly wheel and the back arm which has been included.
We have now completed the animation of the model itself, which lasts for approximately 700 frames. Previews of the first 250 frames are shown below:





The gauge which Tom has been working on also needed to be animated. So, as I have had a lot of practice with animation now, I decided to continue with animating the gauge.
To do this, I created a new gauge arm which resembled the red one that Tom created, and coloured the new one in black. This could then be animated.
I then turned the key frame record on, and started to move the arm around accordingly. I encountered many problems, worst of which was the fact the the gauge was joined to the main model, and when I ungrouped it, the previous animation became corrupt. So, I had to animate the arm on the gauge at an angle, which meant that when I moved the arm to be animated, I had to correct it on all axis. This took a lot longer than I intended. I moved the arm up to around the 15lbs mark, and then moved it up and down a few times so that it gave the impression that it was juddering. I then gradually increased the arm, and half way made the increment even faster as the wheel then slowly comes into motion. A preview of this can seen below:

Additional end joint

In order to join the end where the animated arm finishes and joins Stuarts Model, I decided to create an object that was diamond shape, but rounded on the edges. To do this, I drew the lines in the front view, then extruded it. Capping the back made the object solid. I then converted this to an editable poly and selected the vertices. Once selected, I was then able to manipulate the object so that it resembled the shape that I required.

All of the ends are now connected correctly , and the image below shows the new additional end joint used to connect Stuarts model:

Reflection from meeting (19/10/09)

Again, good progress has been made over the past week.
The interim presentation that we gave went smoothly and the general response from other students was positive, particularly when we showed the animation that I have been working on.
The group are now starting to look further than the animation by looking at the environmental aspects, with particular attention towards the outhouse and surrounding area. Stuart has made a start on creating the outhouse, and I shall be working alongside him to complete it. Hopefully, the model with then be placed inside and animated so that the camera 'flys' through a window or door and into the outhouse, to then show the model in motion.

We have set ourselves manageable targets for this week that we will be working on. My main targets are to complete all the animation for the arms and also to texture the model. Once added with Richards fly wheel and arm, there is not a great deal left to do with regards to animating the model. We will then be able to start focusing more towards the post production elements.

A deadline has been set for 6th December, where we aim to finish the model and animation aspects, with the intentions of using the last week to finalise and prepare for the presentation to Terry Bradley (Voluntary Trustee of the Museum of Power).

Model in animation

And so, I decided to animate the two front arms. This took a particularly long time because certain things had to be grouped together and moved as grouped objects. I created the animation by using frames, and moving each object every 5 frames or so. Sometimes, I needed to place the objects every couple of frames so that everything moved together as it should. Everything had to be done in stages. First, I animated the arm at the front of the model, then animated the circular disk that rotates at the front and back of the arms. Next, I animated the arms themselves, which move in a circular motion but keeping the end as a key pivot point. Finally, I animated the silver arm sliders at the end of each arm. These had to slide horizontally in a straight line, whereas the arms themselves move in a circular motion. I achieved this by moving the pivot points to the very end of the arms, so that it pivoted from there, but the rest of the arms moved in a circular motion. A preview of how the animation will eventually look is shown below:

Preparing for animation and textures

As the rest of the group completed their modeling aspect of the project, I decided to make a start on the animation. The first thing that I noticed was that there was a section that needed to be removed from the base model. This section laid just where the front square was situated. With this section there, I would have been unable to animate the front arms because this would have got in the way. To remove this segment, I simply isolated the object, then used the cut tool to create lines around the area that I wanted to remove. I then selected 'polygon' in the editable poly mode and removed each polygon accordingly. I then needed to cap the ends as they were left vacant. The images below show where the section has been cut out (Creating a 'T' shape rather than two separate objects).

(Base before the section had been remove)

(Base after the section had been removed)

To make the model look even more realistic, I decided to start adding a few textures to see how the model looked once they were applied. I have added a red texture created in Photoshop onto the arms, and will be adding further textures at a later date. Changing the parameters, I was able to create an effect on the texture that made it look more metalic. I changed the texture to anistropic in the basic perameters and altered the specular highlight to create a reflection from any light that is cast onto it. The settings are shown below:

The image below shows the arms with textures applied:

The same technique was used for the metal caps and the ring around the front arm: