Assignment Research and Self-Critique

Research


Initially, my only resources to make my model were the tutorial PDF files and videos provided in OLIVE, and also, my gun. However, I felt that the limited resources were not enough for me and hence I went online to a Maya FAMAS tutorial to reference on modelling a gun (although the tutorial showed how to model a rifle, I thought  that I still learnt something from it that can be implemented in my pistol modelling). The tutorial was especially helpful when it mentioned that vertexes are especially helpful in shaping a gun model. However, there were some parts that did not work well when I used vertexes. As a result, I had to use the face mode to do the shaping of the gun, although the results did not turn out as nicely compared to the usage of vertexes.

Model of a chain gun

This is a model of a chain gun. The tutorial of making this chain gun is somehow similar to the bucket exercise I did previously. Although I didn't learn much from this tutorial, I got some minor tips like being careful while modelling anything. Anything can seem easy but when it comes to modelling, it is really tough and requires intense, undivided attention.

Self-Critique

VS

                      Model                                                    Original


I think the final model of the gun is quite successful, except the fact that there were some details missing if compared between the original object and the final model. The left-out details proved to be too challenging for me and hence I left them out and concentrated on the easier details so that the gun model will not look so empty.

Secondly, another problem with my model will be that the scale did not turn out as I wanted it to be. This was because the reference image in my Maya turned out to be compressed at the length. Hence, the body of the gun turned out shorter and thicker compared to the original object.

I also could not find an appropriate rusty, bronze texture which I needed for my gun model. I ended up applying a normal bronze texture colour as a replacement.

However, there are also positive thoughts about my own model. Firstly, I think that I adapt quite fast when facing problems like the lack of details. I would concentrate more on the details that I added on so that the details will still look quite similar to the one on the original object as I am more concerned of the quality than the quantity of the details in the final model. I also think very positively of my final model because it looks much newer compared to the original which has rusted.

Assignment 1 Modelling and Texturing (Gun)

 Original object for the assignment.

Done with the basic shape of the gun, I'm planning to put in the minor details of the gun soon. I think the details of the gun will take me more time compared to shaping the model as I have the image reference here in this stage. Shaping the gun took me a few hours even though it looked easy at first. Much extruding and moving of the faces was needed in the process. The shape of the body had to be as accurate as possible and I had the scale and move the faces and vertex of the polygonal cube around to get the satisfactory shape. The trigger and the handle was completed with the Create Polygon Tool which made it quite easy for me to make them. The only hard part was that if I made a mistake in tracing the handle or trigger, I had to restart tracing these parts from square one.

Made some progress with the minor details that I needed to add in. The minor details  which looked easy to do were in fact difficult without reference and I had to estimate the positions of these details by looking at the real object. The two details added in took me two whole hours to complete because if it looked unsatisfactory, I would re-do the details all over again. The hole behind is basically made by creating a polygonal cube and putting it where I wanted the hole to be, then using the Boolean -> Difference tool to create the hole. The detail near the gun barrel is made by scaling, moving and extruding the faces involved. I had a small problem before which was that the Split Polygon tool didn't work for me. Hence I had to use the Edge Ring tool to aid in making the part which I wanted to extrude. It took me a longer time compared to if I was to use the Split Polygon tool.

Up to this part, the details are more or less done, apart for some details that are really hard for me to make. I had to make these details as accurate as possible so that it will look like the original object. This part of the detail only requires me to split the polygon and extrude the targeted faces. However, scaling was the hardest as I only have the real object as my reference at this point of time.

Perspective view of final model

Side view of final model

Texturing is done at this point. Using bronze for almost the entire model with exception of the handle which should be orange. I also used the blinn material as the gun is initially shiny. Using the lambert material will cause the gun to actually look as if it is made out of wood and this will not be a closer replica compared to using blinn. The orange handle is made of lambert material as it has a non-reflective surface compared to the body and barrel of the gun. I referred to the tutorial video provided for us but it turned out a little difficult for me to follow up with my gun model and hence I just inserted the bronze texture face by face.

Week 5 Lighting Exercise

Today's exercise is about shading. I had to learn the process of making an object made of blinn and setting the reflective settings of the object. Through this exercise, I can learn the different lighting modes and the reflective setting (how reflective are they when light shines on it) while playing around with the program.

Week 5 Dice exercise

The dice exercise we learnt today was a brand new thing that I had never tried before. Putting texture into a dull polygon object was new to me and I had doubts of actually trying to complete the exercise at first. The tutorial videos given to us were so boring as the narrator had a monotone voice and I almost fell asleep twice going through the video. However, when doing the dice, I found out that it was quite interesting and realised a few factors that needed to be taken care of in the process of applying texture to my dice. One of them was to remove the history after completing the process as failure to do so will result in the texture being inconsistent and the dice will not get its definite pattern.

Assignment 1 Sketches and Storyline

Sketch of gun object for Assignment 1

Descriptions of making the gun object are stated in the sketch book.

Storyline

The engines of both cars burst into life. Rat ignited the first gear and maneuvered his mousetrap car towards the starting point, together with his opponent. Soon after, the blast from the air gun signified the start of the race. Both cars surged forward at lightning speed. The two drivers drove through loops and dangerous curves skillfully. Out of a sudden, Rat heard one of his tyres pop and realised that something had actually punctured one of his tyres. He turned just in time to see that someone had actually taken a shot at his tyre with a pistol. As a result, the opponent was able to outrun him and not surprisingly, won the race. Rat was devastated. He had never lost a race before, and now he had lost one because unethical methods were used by the opponent.

Week 4 E-learning reflections

Does multi-tasking give you a real or false sense of having accomplished something?

Ans: No. Personally, I will try to avoid multi-tasking as my brain 'Random Access Memory' (RAM) isn't very high. I cannot do multi-tasking very well or else the efficiency and effectiveness of my work will drop. Hence, as a result, I think that multi-tasking doesn't give me a sense of having accomplished something. It will in fact backfire, as the quality of my work will drop and I will have to re-do it again.

Is learning 3D and design different from learning programming? Or is it all learning the same? Why?

Ans: To me, learning 3D and design is different from learning programming, but at the same time they are the same. 

Firstly, 3D and design is actually quite flexible. If there is any obstacles in making a model, there can be other ways to make the same product by using other tools in the design program. However, in programming, once we are stuck facing an obstacle, the programming error can only be solved only be altering some parts of the code using the programming language. To sum up, programming can only be solved using one or two (rarely) methods while in designing, the same product can be made using different tools. 

The next point is that both 3D and design and programming needs to be practiced in order to prevent the knowledge from rusting. Programming and Design sometimes need to be taught by theory but it is the practical (hands-on) part which actually facilitates the learning process. Hence both learning methods are the same.

The articles states that "Learning is actually a very complex operation for an individual". Do you agree with this? Do you feel that your approach to learning is the best way? If yes, how? If no, how can you change your work style?

Ans: I agree to a small extent. For me, I will prefer self-learning compared to a lecture session. I will tend to be distracted during lectures as my friends will be talking to me at the same time. When we hit an interesting topic, I will end up not listening to the lecture. Hence I will prefer self- learning as my learning method. However, I will also not say it is the best method of learning because when I hit an obstacle while learning, I will have no teachers or lecturers to turn to for advice. I will try to change my learning style so that it will become a win-win situation during lectures and when I'm doing self-learning.

What are your thoughts about the last paragraph in the extract?

Ans: I think that the importance of communication is really important. Without communication, many things cannot be solved easily as people might have a hard time trying to understand one another. I also agree that students for the current industry have talent and the personality to fit in with the team. However, it is up to the student if he/she wants to make use of his full potential.

Should your lecturers also focus on your work attitude, or just leave you to sink or swim on your own? Why?

Ans: It depends on the situation. If there is something important, the teacher should provide at least a little help rather than to leave us to sink or swim on our own. However, if the matter is quite manageable, the teacher should give us an opportunity to swim on our own so that we can learn to be more independent.

Bucket exercise

Bucket side view

Bucket perspective view

Bucket top view

For this exercise, I learnt how to revolve a 2D polygon plane to a 2D images and transform it into a 3D bucket by using the revolve tool. It is quite awesome to find out how much this program can do. Using the CV Curve tool, I was able to crave out the shape of a 2D portion of the bucket image. It was a little tough to always keep the curve tool outside the lines of the 2D image as it need accuracy. If not, the bucket would look very weird. 

Throughout the entire exercise, the toughest part for me will be the handle of the bucket. I had to redo the handle 3 times because either my Curve tool wasn't accurate enough or the handles were done wrongly.

Overall, I will say that the bucket exercise is one of the toughest exercise so far among all the other exercises.