Week 8

 

Undercarriage Optimization

During the production of the undercarriage last week a vast number of edges were used to ensure a perfectly joining edge flow consisting entirely of four sided polygons. This factor is essential for providing satisfying results with any of the smoothing modifiers which work best with quads, as triangles (3 sided-polygons) can create noticeable pinching effects.

However as the undercarriage will be positioned underneath the main body of the steam engine it will not be completely visible. It was therefore agreed that it did not need smoothing as its angular metal appearance in real-life would not really have any smoothness to its edges. The decision to exclude an additional smoothing modifier will also reduce the overall "polycount" of the entire geometry which in turn should decrease the needed amount of memory as well as processing power needed to operate the file. This aspect may prove crucial at a later stage once the scene is highly populated, as a significantly high polycount can severely affect the responsiveness of the 3DS Max user interface and is then ultimately dependant on the power of the PC being used to modify the scene. However as the scene is required by all group members who all have different computer specifications any savings on performance will improve overall accessibility of the ".max" file which is crucial for the animation processes when the geometry is required to move for example.

The task of optimizing the undercarriage object was basically achieved by removing redundant edges which were not integral to its overall shape. Consequently all connection edges and vertices were removed until only the necessary outline edges remained. This was a rather lengthy process but should be worthwhile for the reasons described.

Undercarriage w/ High Edge Count

          

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Optimized Undercarriage

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Body Trim Construction

Now that the undercarriage had been optimized I proceeded by starting to model the main body of the steam engine. This initiated with the under-body trim which sits on top of the undercarriage and supports the main body. The rough shape was traced using the spline tool to follow the shape of the side reference image as a guide. From this the line 0bject was "outlined" to produce a closed spline, this was then converted to and editable poly and extruded to give it some depth.

 

Body Trim Spline Tracing

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Body Trim Construction

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One of the main features the body trim consists of are ladders; these would be used by the train drivers to climb inside the cabin area as well as mechanics to climb aboard the steam engine at vital areas to inspect parts for example. The LMS Fowler 2-6-4T has a number of ladders some which are positioned either side of the steam engine and another at the rear. Each of the these ladders differs in appearance due to the area it connects to, for the example the ladders located directly below the driver's cabin are slightly wider as these would be more frequently used and consequently are thicker to withstand constant use. The other ladders located at the front and rear of the Train are somewhat smaller and do not protrude outwards from the body, as these would otherwise be a hazard to boarding passengers for example whilst the train is coming to a stop. Having the ladders positioned in-line with the body also makes the steam engine more aerodynamic, as protruding ladders would create significant drag at high speeds for example.

The Ladders were created using standard box objects and inserting numerous edge loops to allow for the steps to be extruded. Additional edges were also introduced along all the corner edges so that the affect produced by the "Turbo Smooth" modifier would still smooth them sufficiently whilst retaining the angular appearance. The required number of edges were also added to the body trim where each ladder connects using the "Ring" edge selection tool to speed up the process. The ladders were then connected by target welding the respective meeting vertices.

 

Driver Door Ladder Creation

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The first half of the body trim was then cloned and mirroed for the other side of the body. They were then connected at either end by extruding out certain polygons created by inserting new edge loops. These were then joint together using the "Weld" tool to fuse the required vertices.

 

(Click for Full-Size Image)

 

The same process was used for the rear connecting segment of the body trim. Both the front and rear connecting struts were made taller to act as the bumper sections for the coupler plates to be attached to. Consequently the next object I continued to model was the coupler backing plates and couplers themselves. Before doing this though the body trim object was previewed with a Turbo Smooth modifier applied to observer how the smoothing affected the current edges. The whole body object was being smoothed a little too much create over-smoothed results, therefore this was resolved by adding extra edge loops added near all the edges to limit the smoothing effect.

 

Bottom Body Trim Smoothed Preview

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Coupler Construction

The next feature to be modeled was the couplers and their backing plates. The Couplers on a steam engine are what allows other carriages to be attached, they are an essential component of any locomotive and thus were created with great care and attention to detail. Before beginning the construction I examined a large portion of the prior collated research images to identify the appearance of the couplers from a variety of angles. After gaining this insight into the relative size and shape of the couplers I started the production process with the backing plate. This was created using a simple box object which was centred on the back of the body trim using the "Align" tool. Curved corners were also fashioned by inserting additional edge loops at either end, the resulting newly created vertices were then manipulated accordingly.

 

Rear Coupler Backing Plate

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The coupler surrounds were then made using a Cylinder primitive which was converted to an editable poly. The end of the cylinder was given a sloping square base by selecting edge row of edge vertices and applying the "Make Planar" function on the appropriate axis.

 

Square Sloping Coupler Surround Base

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The opposite end of the Coupler Surround was then hollowed out by insetting the end polygon and extruding it inwards to produce a tube type of appearance. The end rim was also extruded and scaled multiple times to create a curved lip which is evident from the reference images.

 

Hollowed Out Coupler Surround w/ Curved Rim

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The actual coupler was then produced again using a cylinder object, the rear facing end was extruded and scaled numerous times to create a curved edge which connects to the coupler plate. The coupler plate was made using the same process as the surround, where the edge rows of vertices were made planar and then curved slightly to produce the final oval shaped Coupler.

 

Oval Shaped Coupler

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Additional edges were also introduced for smoothing reasons and further detail was added by placing nuts & bolts on the base of the couple surround where it attaches to the backing plate. I was especially pleased with the end outcome of the couple as the level of detail used accurately compares to the reference images which is personally satisfying. The Turbo Smooth modifier finishes off the objects nicely and helps to portray a hand crafted and realistic mechanical appearance.

 

Final Rear Coupler

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The group of coupler objects were cloned for the other side of the backing plate, the entirety of these objects were then mirroed and cloned for the front of the Steam Engine. The size of the front coupler backing plate was also altered slightly to match the research images as closely as possible.

Week 7

 

LMS Fowler 2-6-4t Chassis Construction

Before starting the production process a vast amount of reference images were gathered from various sources across the web. This was done due to the fact that the only image of the actual train model acquired from the museum is from one angle and is also obscured by a reflection on the glass viewing case. Consequently additional points of reference were required to view the different aspects of the train from different angles. Although a large number of images were gathered only several of these are exactly the correct steam engine, many of them are of a BR standard 2-6-4t which is a very similar train based on the LMS Fowler. Perhaps the main reason for a lack of photographic material of the LMS Fowler 2-6-4t is due to the fact that none of the original models survived or have been restored, as a result some of the images collected were taken during its years of service and consequently the quality of these are rather lacking.

The task assigned preceding the first group meeting was to construct the chassis for the steam engine with its basic components included for animation testing next week. Based on the collated reference images a side profile of the steam engine was chosen as a starting point, which was imported onto a plane in the left viewport of 3DS Max. From this image the rough layout of the steam engine could be mocked up based on the real dimensions found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LMS_Fowler_2-6-4T. This process allowed the rough size of each element to moved into position by aligning each object with left side image to gain an approximate representation of its layout.

 

Wheelbase Layout Test

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The next step was to produce the shape of the main chassis, which was achieved by starting with a box object, this was given numerous additional edges allowing it to be manipulated by moving the newly created vertices. The rough outline shape of the front part of the chassis was produced first following the contours of the side image whilst toggling the object's opacity using Alt + X on the keyboard.

 

Basic Chassis Creation

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Having made the basic chassis for the front part of the steam engine further detail was added starting around the axel areas where the wheels will later connect. Arches behind the wheel were created by extruding specific polygons these were then joined together centrally by welding meeting vertices.

 

 

Chassis Wheel Arch Area

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Next a section was cut for the axel surround by deleting the required polygons above the wheel arch component. A slight curve was also introduced to the wheel arch object by inserting additional edges and manipulating the vertices accordingly.

 

Chassis Wheel Arch Area w/ Axel Hole

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The axel holder itself was then fashioned using a tube object for the initial shape. The circular edge flow was then straightened to produce square edges which could then be extruded. The axel holder was then attached to the wheel arch object using the attach function and then welding the overlapping vertices. The edges of the axel surround were then curved by repositioning the corner vertices, it was then given more depth by "Shift-Dragging" the selected edges to extrude them. Lastly the gap between the axel surround and chassis had to be filled with a spacer object also responsible for holding the axel in place on a real steam engine. This spacer was produced using a standard box primitive, its polygons were then selected, extruded and scaled several times to create a right angular appearance.

 

Axel Area/Surround Creation

1                               2

        

3                               4

        

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Completed Axel Areas

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The completed axel area was then cloned and attached to the remaining drive wheel sections of the chassis. The entire group of chassis components were then mirrored and cloned for the left side of the chassis. The axles themselves were then constructed using simple cylinders which were scaled at either end to fit through the axel surrounds and wheels. The wheels produced by Steve Harwood were imported and then aligned to each of the six drive wheel axel areas. The individual parts of the chassis were also recoloured to provide a rough impression of the end colour scheme once the steam engine is textured.

 

 

Completed Axels w/ Wheels Positioned

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The next step was to produce the chassis section for the front leading wheels of the steam engine. This was produced in the same manner as the main chassis however an arched hole was carved out using the "boolean" tool. The messy edge flow introduced by the boolean was cleaned up, otherwise this could potentially produce notable problems when both texturing and animating for example where applied materials may have evident seams across the object's surface.

 

Leading Chassis Axel Hole

       

(Click Images for Full-Size)

 

Angled struts were then created by extruding out polygons from either side of the leading chassis. These were then connected using the bridge tool to create additional polygons in the gaps left between the edges. A hole was then Booleaned through the joint struts to form the pivot point that enables the leading section of the train to steer. A similar hole was then made through the main chassis directly above the joining struts.

 

Leading Chassis Pivot Point Creation

        

(Click Images for Full-Size)

 

 

A connecting bolt was then produced using the cylinder primitive which was given a "Turbo Smooth" modifier to portray more of a realistic appearance. A nut was also constructed using the tube tool with only seven segments to represent the flat sides of a real nut. The border edges of the locking nut were then selected and angled using the "Chamfer" tool to remove the razor sharp edges which wouldn't be present in real life. The nut was also given a Turbo Smooth modifier which was slightly altered by inserting additional edges at either end to limit the smoothing effect. Both of these were then positioned between the two holes in the separate chassis objects to simulate their physical connection.

 

Pivot Point Connecting Bolt & Nut

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Further detail was then generated by adding stabilizing struts which help in the steering of the steam engine in addition to keeping it firmly positioned on the rails. These again were created by simply extruding certain polygons on either side of the leading chassis section and were given a curved appearance by gradually rotating the newly extruded polygons.

 

Stabilizing Struts - Leading Chassis

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The last major remaining portion of the steam engine's chassis left to construct was that of the trailing wheels section. This again was created using the same techniques as the other two chassis sections except rather than containing a pivot point, it is static and rigidly connected to the main body chassis. First one side of the chassis was made which was mirrored for the opposite side, then the lower portion was fashioned by extruding out polygons to create the necessary supporting struts and axel areas.

 

Trailing Chassis Production

        

(Click Images for Full-Size)

 

 

 

Final Chassis Preview Render

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Before the animation testing can subsequently take place, the undercarriage piston & coupling features need to be modeled which are currently being produced by Steve Harwood. These will then be introduced to the existing chassis model and positioned as required. The majority of the individual components will remain separate for the time being and will not be group, as grouping can cause time consuming selection problems during the animation phase.

Week 6

 

 

The Museum of Power Assignment Brief

Today marked the start of the next part of the "Virtual Environments" assignment involving the modeling and animation of a steam powered asset from the "Museum of Power". Having decided our group several weeks ago, today the first official group meeting took place where it was decided what asset was to be made. Having taken numerous reference photos from the prior Museum visit we all came to the mutual decision to choose the "LMS Fowler 2-6-4T" Steam Engine as our final asset. This was due to the fact that it is a relatively complex vehicle, comprised of a multitude of mechanical moving parts which will present a challenge in terms of modeling and animation.

 

2368 LMS Fowler 4 - MT Class 2-6-4 (1927)

(Click for Full-Size Image)

 

Once this decision had been reached a work schedule was devised starting by compiling a list of probable tasks needing to be completed in order to reach the final goal. These were then placed within a Gantt chart so the timings of each could be predicted. Now that we had established the tasks required, the work load and job roles were distributed amongst the group members. Myself and Steven Harwood will commence the modeling process, hopefully reaching the stage that was agreed in the meeting for next week. Lee confidently gave the presentation which he prepared prior to today's lecture and displayed his concept storyboard/sketches for the animation process. Steven Muller also presented several sketches which were drawn of a potential "Steam Bot" character that will be modeled this week for inclusion in the end animation.

My task assigned for this week involved the creation of the train wheels and undercarriage area. This will be modeled as accurately as possible based on the reference images that were collected. In order to prevent potential problems during the modeling process in the future, a measurement scale was confirmed so that each part of the Steam Train  will be correctly sized. Upon the completion of this stage of modeling, a trial animation can be conducted next week to gain a rough understanding of how the remaining parts will interact.

Week 4 & 5

 

UVW  Unwrap &  Texture Creation

 

Now that all of the modeling had been finalized, the last stage to complete the 3D representation of my head was Texturing. This is arguably the most significant aspect throughout the production process as a good texture gives the impression of realism and personality.

Before creating the texture for the model, the surface needed to be examined using a "UVW Map" to identify problematic areas that are prone to stretching.  Consequently to conduct this test an "Unwrap UVW" modifier was applied, then a black and white checker pattern was then assigned to the head model. In an ideal scenario the checker pattern should be completely uniform over the entire surface, which would be indicated by perfectly sized and spaced squares. However this inevitably is not the case and additional tweaking is required to produce as little stretching as possible.

One immediate issue was the top of the head, where substantial stretching was evident from the deformed rectangular checker pattern.

 

Stretched Checker Pattern

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Fortunately a tool found under the "Edit" parametres of the Unwrap UVW modifier called "Relax" rectified the problem after several applications. The Relax tool basically does as its name suggests, it relaxes the selected faces/vertices by using spacing on edge, faces or centre angles. The tool can therefore be applied a number of times until the desired outcome is achieved, the amount of relaxation applied can also be fine tuned using the Iterations, Amount and Stretch settings.

This process was also used to rectify further areas of stretching especially around the neck, eyes, ears, nose and mouth. Many of these features are comprised of a complex surfaces and therefore the relax tool alone was not sufficient enough. As a result manual adjustment via moving individual vertices was required to flatten out the UVW Map as much as possible.

 

Top of Head after Relax Tool

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Two built in features included in the "Edit Menu" of the UVW Map Modifier also made overlapping faces rapid to identify using the select commands "Select Inverted Faces" and "Select Overlapped Faces". When either of these commands are used faces that are overlapping or inverted are then highlighted bright red to show their position. These sort of faces need to be eradicated before texturing as they can cause noticeable seams/imperfections in the texture which should be one continuous flowing asset. Once any offending faces had been pinpointed a slight vertex adjustment easily resolved any overlapping edges.

 

Overlapped Faces in Ear Canal

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Now that the square checker pattern had been sufficiently adjusted to remove as much evidence of stretching as possible, the next step was to render out the UVW Map for use in Photoshop.

 

Relaxed Head w/ Checker Pattern

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This was achieved by using the "Render UVW Template" command found under the tools menu of the Unwrap UVW modifier. When this tool is used various options are available including the ability to render edges, seams, fills and change display modes. In order to produce a nice clear set of guides only the edges of UVW Map were rendered out as a Bitmap (.BMP) at a resolution of 4096 px by 2048 px. This may seem quite large for the template however using this size will produce nice sharp edges, additionally the photos from which the face textures will be made from are approximately around the same resolution. This will therefore eliminate the need to re-size any texture selections from the face images, which if enlarged or significantly shrunk to fit the UVW Map would introduce apparent blurriness/low resolution.

 

Head & Ear UVW Template

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The rendered UVW Map was then opened in Photoshop in addition to the reference images of the head, from which the texture will be created. The edges on the UVW template were then duplicated as a "layer mask" allowing them to be viewed over the top of the texture to help align the selected features. Certain selections were then made on the front and side images of the head image which were then pasted as separate layers underneath the UVW guide layer. For example the Eye socket area was selected using the "Lasso" tool, Crtl+C then Ctrl+V were used to paste it onto the UVW template file. The selected eye area was then repositioned and transformed accordingly to match the UVW edge guide as closely as possible. This technique was repeated for the entire face until all of the main features were correctly placed on the face texture.

 

Positioned Facial Features

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The Photoshop file was then used as a material within 3DS Max which was applied to the head in order preview the appearance and position of the copied features of the face texture. This was done frequently by making changes and saving the Photoshop file which would then automatically be updated within 3DS Max to show the specified alterations.

 

Positioned Facial Features Texture Preview

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The next step was to merge all the facial features together in order to produce a seamless, flowing head texture with no obvious joins or gaps visible. This was conducted via using the powerful Cloning tools within Photoshop to fill in gaps and join overlapping selections where the skin  didn't flow for example. The main tools used were a combination of the "Cloning Stamp, Spot Healing Brush and Patch" tools. The Cloning Stamp tool basically copies a sampled area which can then be painted over gaps in the skin for example. This is a really useful tool ideal for extending/copying parts of an image, however if it is used too much in one area repetition will frequently become visible. Repeating sections of skin for example would deter from the overall level of realism and consequently any occurrence of this sort was eradicated using the Spot Healing Brush and Patch tools. The Spot Healing Brush is similar to the Cloning stamp, however rather than sampling and copying a certain area it blends the selection based on the colour/position of surrounding pixels. This therefore helped to hide any repeating sections of skin for example to create a nice unique and flowing texture. The final tool used was the Patch tool, this basically combines the functions of both the Spot Healing Brush and Cloning Stamp to fill a selected area with a sampled selection which is then blended with the existing pixels. This tool was ideal for adding further detail to areas which had become blurred as a result of considerable cloning.

 

Gap Between Features BEFORE Cloning

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Merged features After Cloning w/ Patch Tool

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Once the front and sides of the head had been merged together the last remaining feature to texture was the ears. These again were textured using the same techniques as were used for the face, however due to the shear complexity of the ear additional action was required to provide a realistic outcome. Firstly the ear was copied from the side of head reference image and then pasted into the UVW  Template file. Although the UVW Edge guide could be used to roughly position the ear its complex surface made aligning a 2D version extremely difficult. Therefore in order to aid the situation a "Normals Map" was generated using the Render UVW Template tool in 3DS Max. The fill mode was change from "None" to "Normal" which basically draws up the surface of the UVW based on faces's X,Yand Z positions. The outcome is a vibrant colour image which clearly shows the flow of the textured surface. This image was saved and imported into Photoshop on a separate layer for use with the ears. The selected ear texture was then placed above this layer and given a "Layer Mode" of "Multiply" which made it opaque and allowed the normals image map to show through. Having done this the ear texture could then be sufficiently aligned using the "Warp" and "Rotate" transformation tools.

 

Ear Texture Warp w/ Normal Map Underneath

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When the head texture was finished, further detail was introduced by creating both a "Bump Map" and "Specular Map". Firstly the Bump Map was produced by creating a copy of the textured head UVW Map which was de-saturated to make it purely black and white. A "High Pass filter" was then used which creates an embossed/engraved effect of the image. 3DS Max interprets Bump information based on Alpha Channels (Black & White), black being an area which is lowered inwards and white the opposite creating a raised appearance. Based on this fact the resulting image was altered by manually using a soft white brush to add further detail to areas such as moles & freckles, to give them a slightly raised appearance. The final Bump image was then assigned to the head texture material in its "Bump map slot" and given an value of "30".  Extra detail to blend the bumped surface with more of an irregular skin surface was accomplished using a "Fractal Noise Map" with a Tiling of "3.0" and Size of "0.101". This was combined with the Bump Map using a "Mix Map" which basically allows two maps to be merged/overlaid using a given "Mix Amount" which in this case was set a value of "75".

 

Bump Map Creation

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Using the previously created image a "Specular Map" was fashioned using a "Levels Adjustment" to increase the contrast between black and white. A Specular Map is interpreted by 3DS Max in a similar way to the Bump Map, however this time the White information will be signified as "Specular Highlights" and the black areas have the opposite effect of low highlights/shine. Again this was modified using a white brush to paint in areas of the skin which are naturally more oily in real-life. Consequently these would be more shiny, such as the forehead, nose, ears, cheeks and chin. Areas such as the eye sockets and lips were given a vast amount of whiteness as these would reflect a large amount of light due to there wetness. Then to create more of realistic appearance a "Gaussian Blur" was applied, which removed any harsh brush strokes leaving a smooth softened effect. The resulting image was then assigned to the "Specular Level" map slot of the head material and given a value of "80".

 

Specular Level Map Creation /w Gaussian Blur

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Bump and Specular Maps Render Preview

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Eyes were then produced for the head model using basic Spheres which where converted to "Editable Poly's" and positioned accordingly in the eye sockets. These were then given a quick eye texture using the same method as the head by applying an Unwrap UVW Modifier. The eye texture was then positioned in Photoshop using a rendered UVW Map of the Sphere objects. This was then assigned to a new slot in the "Material Browser" and given a high amount of "Glossiness" and " Specular Level" to simulate a realistic wet appearance. This newly created material was then assigned to the Sphere objects to simulate basic human eyes.

 

Eye Texture UVW Align

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The final task before running out of time to complete this assignment was to add hair to the head model using the "Hair & Fur" modifier. This was achieved by make a selection of Polygons based on the underlying hair line on the texture of the head.  The preset of "Semi-Clumpy Brown" was then loaded as a starting point for the Hair & Fur modifier. The "Hair Guides" were then styled using the "Pop", "Comb" and "Hair Brush" tools to make it flow in the correct direction at each point. The hairline was then given a more precise shape using the "Hair Cut" and "Scale" tools. This proved to be rather a frustrating process as the hair is controlled by the orange Hair Guides which are different lengths compared to the actual hair strands that render. Parameters of the hair itself rather than the guides were then changed including "Scale", "Cut Length", "Hair Count", "Hair Segments", "Hair Passes" and "Root Thick". The colour of the hair was also adjusted by changing the "Tip", "Root", "Mutant" and "Specular Tint" Colours in addition to modifying the "Hue Variation" values. All of these settings were continually adjusted before a satisfactory result was acquired. The entire task of creating the hair was evidently aggravating as any changes made to the parameters had to be viewed by re-rendering the hair which was an exceptionally time consuming process.

 

Hair Guide Styling

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Once I was eventually satisfied with the appearance of the hair, I created a Camera in the scene and manoeuvred it to a desired position for a final render of the completed 3D Head.

 

Final Rendered Head w/ Hair

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Over the last five weeks I have learnt a vast amount of knowledge concerning the creation of organic assets such as a human head within 3DS Max. The process of sculpting the head based on hand drawn Topology was particularly rewarding given the fact that in my opinion the final shape of the head is somewhat comparable to the reference images. Therefore overall I am exceptionally pleased with the way the final rendered head came out, even thought some stages of the production were troublesome.

One of the more significant aspects I would fix if time was not an option, would be to improve the glossiness and realism of the eyes by using an "HDR Reflection" to simulate a wet, reflected appearance. Additionally I would spend a vast amount of time to perfect the hair which is an extremely in-depth modifier involving a substantial amount of time to produce realistic results. The final rendered appearance is also heavily dependant on a decent lighting setup as well as appropriately modified parameters.

Week 3

 

Back of Head & Ear Construction

Once I had finished shaping the main facial features the next step was to form the rest of the head and skull. This began by creating a basic sphere object which was squashed accordingly to match up roughly with the reference images using the scale tool.

 

Sphere Head Object

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The sphere was then rotated 90 degrees so that the triangular polygons that comprise the two sides of the sphere were over the ear area. The edges that make up the circumference of the sphere were now running parallel to the edges on forehead. The number of  segments on the sphere was increased to "32" so that its edge spacing matched that of the forehead as closely as possible.

The triangular polygons in addition to others underneath the face were selected using the "paint selection region tool" as a quick method and then deleted.

 

Rotated & Scaled Sphere w/ Adjusted Segment Count

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"Vertex Snap" was then enabled so that the edge vertices of the sphere could be lined up with those on the top of the forehead. Having done this the rest of the head could then be lined up and attached to the face. However before doing this the sphere object was simplified to reduce the number of edges in comparison to that of the face. Fewer edges may mean less detail but smoothing modifiers produce a better effect as a result, further details can be added at a later stage by adding extra edge loops for example. In order to simplify the sphere/head object without a significant transformation of shape, every other edge was selected and then the "Ring" selection button was used to select all adjacent edges.

 

Head to Face Vertex Alignment

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The "Collapse" button located under the "Edit Geometry" Rollout menu of the "Modify Panel" was then used on the selected edges. This function basically removed the edges and alters the object according to the selected and surrounding edges that remain.

 

Sphere Edges Ring Selected (Before Collapse)

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Collapsed Sphere Edges (After Collapse)

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The sphere object was then attached to the existing face object using the "Attach" button found under the Edit Geometry Rollout. Although the sphere object changed to the same colour as the face to signify they became one object, they were still not attached. This is due to the fact that the aligned vertices were only overlapping and consequently needed to be welded together.

 

Head Attached to Face Object

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After welding all overlapping and unconnected vertices, the side of the head as well as neckline were modelled by extruding new edges. Whilst conducting this process I purposely tried to use as few edges as possible for the previously described reason of better end results after applying a Turbo Smooth Modifier. Large polygons were also created over the ear area as these will need to be deleted in order to attach the ear once produced, a lower number of edges will also making connecting the ear an easier task.

 

Connected Head, Face & Neck-line

(Click for full-size image)

 

Before constructing the ear itself it is crucial to analyse the structure of the ear by referring to the head profile images. This is because the ear is an extremely complex object in terms of replicating an organic object, as it is comprised of various dips and ridges. As a result I planned the Topology in Photoshop by drawing on rough curves following the contours of the ear, to approximate the flow of quads (four-sided polygons). The side profile image was then updated with these additional topology guidelines and imported into 3DS Max to start the creation of the ear.

 

Hand Drawn Ear Topology in Photoshop

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Production of the ear was then initiated using the same techniques that were employed when originally making the face. The Topology was traced using Splines which were converted to an editable poly and then welded to form a single object. The vertices were then dragged out using the "select and move tool" based on the positioning apparent on the reference image planes. During the shaping of the ear a Turbo Smooth Modifier was previewed to identify how vertex positioning would effect the final smoothed object. Additional edges were also introduced in order to replicate the majority of the ridges that are present in the reference images. This was achieved via the combination of creating edge loops and connecting specific vertices.

 

Ear Spline Topology / Vertice Pull-Out

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Smoothed Ear Preview & Adjusted Shape

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The ear canal was then produced by insetting a selected group of polygons and extruding them inwards multiple times to replicate the curvature downwards of a real ear canal.

 

Ear Canal Creation - Inset Polygons

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The rough shape of the back of the ear was then fashioned by extruding the outer edges and scaling them down appropriately. This process was then repeated a couple of times to build up the rough shape of the back of the ear.

 

Back of Ear Edge Scaling

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Now that the production of the ear was nearly finalized it was time to attach it to the rest of the head. This was achieved using the same attachment process as used for connecting the back of the head to the face. However in this scenario the ear itself required considerable tweaking before it could be physically attached to the surface of the head. This was due to the fact that the ear contained a large number of edges in comparison to that of the side of the head were it was being attached.

 

Ear Edge Problem

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In order to resolve this issue a great deal of time was spent governing several methods and which produced the best outcome. Initially I attempted a quick fix by simply inserting numerous edge loops equivalent to the number of extra edges of the ear compared to the side of the head. However this severely disrupted the surface of the face mesh, where many of the newly created edges were too close together causing harsh lines to appear across the surface of the affected areas. Consequently this method was rapidly abandoned for a more laborious approach which yielded more satisfying results. This alternate technique involved carefully placing additional edges on the edge polygons of the ear causing three edges to meet for example, creating a new polygon with a single connecting edge.

 

Edge Reduction Example

 

 

Back of Ear Edge Reduction in Progress

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Having reduced the number of edges on the ear it was then attached to the side of the head by extruding polygons on the head around the ear. These were then attached to the ear surface by target welding certain vertices to connect the required polygons. The overall shape of the joint ear and head object was then tweaked with smoothing previewed to finalize its appearance.

 

Ear Attached w/ Reduced Connecting Edges

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Ear Attached w/ Smoothing Preview

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