BA3: Practise Models

Throughout weeks 2-4, I spent it researching, sketching, and creating models of 4 different pieces of architecture in Norwich or the internet.  Each one was a challenge, however I was able to create each one to my best potential with my experience using maya.  Even though one was not technically classed as architecture, because I was fiddling around with U.V's I was allowed to keep it.

Lamp Study

This was my first official model for the project, it took me about a day to complete, I used a basic cylinder, then using edge loop tools, extruding, and shrinking to get the base of the lamp, the more detailed parts like the lightbulb where done with separate tools and a lot of extruding and moving. I didn't know that much about the UV's at the time, so I thought I was ready to texture it, what I hadn't done at the time was unwrap it, so it became incredibly difficult to texture. As a result the model refused to let me texture it the way I wanted, so I decided to move onto the next model instead. 

Door Study

This was my second piece of work, and the only one that I used the internet as a main source for construction.  I did struggle a lot more with this piece, getting the basic shape and the pillars done was simple enough with extruding, shaping, and scaling tools, the hardest part was building the mount on the top.  After completing one half with extrusions, and scaling, I cloned, and rotated it so they would meet in the middle.  Merging them was another story, it took me quite a number of hours to figure out how to get them to merge together well.  Next to my textured model this one took the longest to create, but I do feel proud of my results and I know I couldn't do something like this at the beginning of term.

Shed Study

To make this model, I decided to use as many basic primitives as possible, however later on I decided to use as many as I could to finish it.  This model was my least favourite, due to it taking over a week to complete, I kept going back to it to add more items to it because it felt incomplete when I looked at the image reference.  At one point when constructing the side door, I had a problem with the edges, somehow I had managed to tangle them up on the roof.  It took me a while before I figured out how to solve that problem.  The window and the roof tiles took a couple of days to complete, I was able to produce a finished piece, but I hate how slow I was at creating it.

Window Door Study

This was my final and textured model for the practise models assessment, I was able to create it quickly thanks to the skills I picked up in Lectures and workshops.  The top semi-circle was created separately from the main body and then combined together.  Creating the circle in the middle was the most difficult part of the build because I had to boolean it.  Then came unwrapping it, I probably spent about a day unwrapping the model, it took me a while and asking the tutors for help, but I managed to complete it with four days left to texture it. When it came to texturing I decided to get basic photos off of CG textures and layer them on top of each other, while painting over them to look like they where one piece.  The longest part I spent on texturing was the wooden door, I kept changing the main colour to try and match the picture. Once the diffuse texture was complete, I attempted to try another map like Normal and specular, however I ran out of time and had to hand in the model with only the diffuse map on it.

Summary

Overall I feel good that I was able to learn these skills in such a short time.  I am very happy that I was able to complete all four studies and texture one, I know they aren't up to professional standards, probably very noob level, however I do feel as though my understanding and overall skills have grown extremely fast this term, and I hope to create an amazing finalised piece of work for the second half of the project.