[C5] A New Year illustration

[Thomas]

A New Year illustration!

In this tutorial, which is in fact the second part of the Hexagon Gift modelling one, you will see how you can build a montain of gifts, to create a Christmass or happy new year illustration.

The Illustration itself can be made in Carrara 3 or 4, but you will have to duplicate yourself all the gifts

[Thomas]

Open the gift, created in Hexagonor import any model you want to use for this tutorial, in Carrara.

1: Select all the elements of the gift 2: Go to the Edit Menu 3: Choose "Smooth Objects"

1: To avoid potential edge creasing, check the "Change edges creasing" option 2: Select "Smooth" 3: Check the "Change Smoothing" option 4: Check the "Smooth" radio button 5: Set the "Modeling" slider value to 0 (or 1) 6: Set the "Rendering" slider value to 3

Select the cube of the gift and switch to the Shading room – 1: Set the color 2: Set a Highlight color 3: Set the Shininess value: the smaller the value, the more it will spread 4: Set a reflection and add a "Value" to the subchannel

Go back to the Assembly room and pick a Strip. Go back to the Shading room to change the values 1: A new color 2: A value for the Highlight 3: A new value for the Shininess

Drop the master shader to the unshaded parts of the Gift.

1: Press the Caps Lock key to change to Hotpoint position. The future copies will be based on the Hotpoint position. 2: Move it down the cube. Take care to pick the small black dot and not the axis

Create three copies of the original Gift, change the size and shaders. Create a group which includes each element of each gift.

1: In the Scene Tab, add a HDRI Map in the Background section 2: Add the needed HDRI map

The preview of the HDRI Map. You can find it in the Content CD of Carrara 5. The hdri-20_color from Sachform has been used.

A small render test, faster to preview with four gifts than 200.

Add a vertex object in the assembly room and create a 9x9 grid 1: Activate the soft selection and move some polygons to create an irregular surface 2: Apply a smoothing 3: Set the slider value to 1 for the Modeling 4: Set the slider value to 2 for the Rendering

Set your point of view in the Assembly room

Add a Surface Replicator to the scene and double click on its name in the scene tree to edit it 1: Choose the ground as the source object 2: Add each gift group in the Replicated object section 3: Set the number of copy needed 4: Change the default values for the transformation -- Add a big value for the vertical rotation and random scale, to create a high range of variations to the copies 5: Enter the distance between the copies. It should be the higher size value of the biggest gift box 6: Use the Shuffle button to try different random positions

The preview in bounding box display and mesh display, to preview the result.

1: In the Render room, choose the Photoshop file format 2: Check both Alpha Channel check boxes 3: Check the Fragment Distance box

Open your render in a 2D software like Photoshop. Now, use your Alpha channel to suppress the background and create your own, or use the Fragment distance channel in combination of the Lens Blur filter in Photoshop to create your depth of field.

This tutorial is now finished. I hope it will help you creating stunning images made with Hexagon and/or Carrara 5!

[are]

Thanks for this tutorial - I followed most of it but got lost at the end taking it into my (cheap) 2d package because I don't know how to add the blur.

Why add the blur externally instead of using the camera depth of field in carrara ?

Any tips on how to get the bow/ribbons looking like satin ?

[Thomas]

For the depth of field, you can do it in Carrara, no problems about that. I only prefer setting it in a software like photoshop, on the final render, it's a lot easier and faster than using the small window preview of Carrara and having undesired results on your final render.

For the Ribbon, perhaps try to use an anisotropic shader, it may generate a nice result.

[Corndog]

Ty for the tute. Is there a quick way to rsize the gifts?
I thought if the parent was selected and then scaled all children would follow the parent..( absolute newbie )
This is my first day with this software and my first Tute.. lovin it so far

EDIT After all of that searching and trying to resize the parent and children together I post a question and two seconds after I figure it out... Aint that always the way.

[psaldari]

hello Thomas,
thanks for this tutorial, I have found it realy hope for understanding some things of hexagon and carrara (first to all, to what they serve the HDRI).
I have a question for you: in your tutorial you have used a point of light?
I have put one, because if I "turn off" this light the scene is too dark...
I have found in the carrara scenes wizard that it is possible to create scenes without points of light, with only a HDRI. Can you make a tutorial in order to understand as it is possible?
I attach my exercise, this is my postcard of good festivities for you and all the Eovia guys.

Paolo

[Thomas]

Corndog: Yes, only resize the original gifts ;)
Psaldari: For the tutorial, I use a distant light with a softshadow (with a 2000 inch radius if I remember), a skylight (the HDRI map) and that's it.
I'll take a look about creating a tutorial about that, but I have a buch of other tutorials to finish first

[psaldari]

Originally Posted by psaldari

hello Thomas...
I have found in the carrara scenes wizard that it is possible to create scenes without points of light, with only a HDRI. Can you make a tutorial in order to understand as it is possible?

Hi,
I have understand! If I add the "sky light" in the render room no point of light is needed (see attach)

Paolo

[Pete Exxtreme]

Hi Paolo,

Thomas used both HDRi light PLUS a distant light. HDRi lights, while running good are not as a "real" lights, so some shadows effects can be missing (with shadow catcher i.e.), also pure HDRi light is not processed thru transparent materials, as far as i remember...

Adding a supplemental light solves these issues....

[Grendel]

I think he used the point light just to generate a shadow prevailing from a single direction rather than the GI light dome type shadow made by HDRI alone.

[Thomas]

Yes, a distant light for the shadow, the HDRI for the reflection and use the skylight for rendering, but no GI at all