Description
This is a place to record my working process of MA project: The Green Room. In this project, I'm going to demonstrate 3 scenes with different moods include characters by using lighting storytelling. It's going to be a nine-weeks project. Making quality visual deliver of the scenes is my goal. During the process, I'll build up the environment on my own and also using some outsourcing modeling and textures. Then I'll responsible for all the shading, lighting, rendering, compositing and final editing.
Original concept By Huong Nguyen
Two different mood concepts I made by using Photoshop
:: Process Journal ::
|| UPDATED: 2020/04/03 ( WEEK 1 ) ||
This is the first week of the project, I was doing the pre-preparation of the class, also for the asset setting. Trying to create a schedule for the project to fit in the 9- weeks production pipeline.
Part 1 : Assets
Searching Models:
I'll use a lot of plants in my project environment so searching out some models can help me speed up my assets set-up.
Texturing:
Some of models already include textures images, I'll re-connect the texture of the materials for the Arnold renderer.
Modeling:
Special models could not be found! So I'll create them by myself for the specific needs.
Build up the Environment:
Once getting some models, I'll put them into the appropriate position referenced by the environment concept.
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|| UPDATED: 2020/04/10 ( WEEK 2 ) ||
I was searching for the models of my MA project all of the last week. In this week, I was starting to build up the environment of the scenes and testing the possibility of good camera movements. Also made some adjustment of my pipeline schedule. I already got most of the models I need, but I will have to create some specifics on my own if I can't find the appropriate one.
Items and Layout
Starting to create a space for the scene, and here are some of plants I'm going to use.
Referencing the proportion and distance of the environment from the concept
Texture Testing
After getting some models, I start to test the models included texture works or not, I recreate the material, adjust the detail of values such as SSS, Bump, Specular etc... to see how they look like.
Issue
I got an " Arnold node type color_manager_syncolor does not exist " issue at the first time I did my render testing, Maya won't let me rendering my scene. So my solution is re-install Arnold for Maya plug-in again then it' s back to normal.
|| UPDATED: 2020/04/17 ( WEEK 3 ) ||
Layout of the scene and the camera movement are almost finished. So I start to test different angle of key light. Also, in this week I made a decision to change most of models into reference file in order to decrease the data size. Adding characters from DAZ 3D into my scene can help me to identify element's proportion.
Part 2. Layout & Pose Blocking
Camera Setting :
My project included 1 scene with 3 different moods and each mood will present for 120 frames. So 360 frames total.
Characters Setup :
Using DAZ 3D's characters for my environment.
Pose Animating :
I'm going to ask my friend for helping me for the pose animating.
Key Light Testing
Adjusting the direction of light source, making sure reference files are working.
Camera Movement
This is preview of the 360-frames length camera movement.
Reference files Transformation
This method makes the file smaller and easy to edit, reloading those references when your items got some updated to make sure they are the newest version.
Characters
A character from DAZ 3D for my scene.
Issue
My project sources are from multiple places, I got the issue when I was loading one of plant models as a reference.
My solution is unchecked Shared Nodes and opened Use namespaces to fix the problem.
|| UPDATED: 2020/04/24 ( WEEK 4 ) ||
Keeping working on my texturing of the environment. Test shading of flowers, woods, and glasses.I use skydome light and direction light as light sources to test how those models expressing in realistic environment.
This is the HDRI I used from HDRI Haven, created by Greg Zaal.
Plants
Wooden Ground - Shading Compared
Aistandarsurface- material nodes
Specular/ Weight 0.3 Roughness 0.1 IOR 1.5 || Subdivision/ DA/ Height 0.005
Specular/ Weight 0.2 Roughness 0.1 IOR 1.3 || Subdivision/ DA/ Height 0.005
Specular/ Weight 0.1 Roughness 0.284 IOR 1.5 || Subdivision/ DA/ Height 0.01
|| UPDATED: 2020/05/01 ( WEEK 5 ) ||
In order to speed up the texturing process, I create a simple MEL tool loading the testing light set into files. This light set including one sky dome light and one direction light.
The code is in below:
file -import -type "mayaBinary" -ignoreVersion -ra true -mergeNamespacesOnClash false -namespace "testren_dome" -options "v=0;" -pr -importFrameRate true -importTimeRange "override" "E:/pamu_projects/VSFX_748_MA/GreenRoom/data/testren_dome.mb";
Plants
Test Render A
Test Render B
|| UPDATED: 2020/05/08 ( WEEK 6 ) ||
Testing and calculating the render time at SCAD Render Farm, Total 360 frames and it took 34.72 hours to render.
Plants
Petal Adjustment
The original color contrast of the petal texture was a little not obvious so I did a little adjustment on that by using Photoshop.
-Before
-After
Item sets
|| UPDATED: 2020/05/15 ( WEEK 7 ) ||
More element sets for this week, the bike model I got from the internet looks great but it didn't have any group, so it made my work process a little bit longer.
|| UPDATED: 2020/05/22 ( WEEK 8 ) ||
Keep working on texturing environment sets and character, I spent some times to feature out how to re-linked the V-ray based shading to Arnold. Also, all environment have textured at this week, I started to light the scenes immediately. The row results are at below.
Part 3. Lighting & Compositing
Type A : Original
The original light set based on the concept.
Type B : Magic Moment
Demonstrated a colorful mood based on the lighting concept.
Type C : Cozy Night
Demonstrated a worm feeling based on the lighting concept.
Compositing the scenes
Create render layer and passes, bring the
materials in Nuke.
Test render preview
Type A- Original
Type B - Magic Moment
Type C - Cozy Night
|| UPDATED: 2020/05/29 ( WEEK 9 ) ||
After I had the base version of each type of scenes, now it's time to separate render layers and bring them into Nuke as final adjustment. At the meantime, I can fix the bugs I found when I re-render those layers.
Part 4. Final Adjustment
Final Adjustment
Fixing bugs based on the renders and put whole three scenes together.
Final Adjustment
Type A- Original
-Essential method-
BG : Camera projection
I exported the camera to .abc file and use the camera projection in Nuke in order to make the background.
Breakdown
Type B - Magic Moment
-Essential method-
Sky Dome Selection : Pink Sunrise By Greg Zaal
Color Matte : Adjusted the ambient color
I created a matte to be able to control the area that I want to change color specifically.
Original Ambient color ( before )
Color corrected Ambient color ( after )
Breakdown
Type C - Magic Moment
-Essential method-
Increase a glow of the lamp : Using tracking node in Nuke
To be able to let the light glow looks a bit thicker, I used a Tracker node to create an animation path combine with a Radial card node to make the effect.
Separate the foreground
The reason I chose separating the foreground because background would be affected if using passes to make ZDefocus. Especially when it have camera movement.
Breakdown
Special Thanks
Vanicha Suwansiri
Ziv Lin
Professor. Stuart Robertson
Professor. Garrett Ilardi
..and all my dear friends and family.
In this difficult COVID-19 virus situation, we can't have full resource support from school and we got a shorter quarter than usual. But it still a big challenge experience and I learn a lot. Thank you all the support and gave me such valuable advice, so much appreciated!
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