Pin up TM

[tonytrout]

Hi Guys, Im supposed to be doing other stuff, but couldnt resist.

Heres just the start, working on the pose really with a basic mesh, I think the finger will touch her lip which will be pouting, just experimenting really. Im planning on a negligee and high heels thing I think, I was originally going to do a puppy pulling away a towel thingy but I just aint got time.
I need to retopologize the left shoulder arm joint as its all twisted around. Just a start to support the challenge :thumbsup:

Smoothed off a bit in Mudbox.
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Posed in Maya, any crits on the pose welcome... please.
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cheers
Tony T

[PascalR]

Nice pose, the model needs to be sculpted to get rid of the rubbery effect, but you know that already :)
I am planning on using maya for a quick rig as well, did you use any script for that?

Cheers

P.

[tonytrout]

No script Pascal sorry, just boned and very quickly weighted as you see. I have been following jason Schlieffers AFR tutes on my other project but a bit overkill for this, Ive only had maya for about 5months so baby steps for me. Im quite excited about doing maybe some vintage hair with the ptex shader i have been reading about

[Manuel Poehlau]

Nice, I like the pose, too. And i don´t see any issues with the proportions, so you´re on a good way. Looking forward to see more! :thumbsup:

[tonytrout]

Been a bit busy but I did a bit last night roughing out the shape a bit more in mudbox

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[PascalR]

The head looks better, the RHS shoulder looks compressed, and I would refine the deformations around the ankles and wrists.

Cool stuff!

[tonytrout]

Cheers Pascal, noted. I dont like the RHand setup and I think I will change it, maybe back of the wrist on the bum instead, or steeple the hand a little more elegently. Ive just spent the last week every night rigging my pixie character following Jason Schliefers method. Not something I would like to do everyday, I take my hat off to people who do it professionally :thumbsup: so this is a bit of relaxation :)

[Aumakua]

Sweet pose, keep it coming :)

[tonytrout]

Thanks Amaukua :thumbsup:

Hair test, about 60 strips at the moment, probably need 2-300. I guess Im going to eventually extract some curves out to do the hair.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTSHLapp3QU

[tonytrout]

Been stuffing around doing so many cloth and hair simulations .....ncloth is just so much fun its addictive :) I thought I had better start sculpting. Here's a start on the face, ears are just a bit basic still, crits and comments most welcome

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[PascalR]

Cool stuff, I like the dressing tests you're posting in your sketchbook thread clap
Would you have a screenshot without the wireframe? It seems like the eyelid shape needs some refinement , the lower lid goes up a bit abruptly towards the eye corner. Also the temporal area seems too deep and as you mentioned ears need some detailing.

Keep it up, cool stuff :thumbsup:

[tonytrout]

Thanks Pascal, Ive been pulling those eyelids up and down all night trying to get them right, but I can see where the problem is now. Im not totally convinced I want this type of hidden eyelid yet where the brow folds above the lid, I fancy a more exposed eyelid like in Manuels model but most of the movie stars pics I have looked at have this folded type. but the best eyes I have seen with exposed eyelids are on Kate Walsh, her eyes are quite remarkable and unusual.(see pics). Ive also got a bit of hair scalp going on at the moment, I think the temples aren't too far off just need to push the hair line back but Ill play around a bit more. Thanks for the feedback.

I see your lady has stockings now :D something to think about along with 40's style hair. I have in mind a vintage pinup but mine keeps veering towards a Vargas type girl

cheers :thumbsup:

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[Manuel Poehlau]

It can be really hard to get the eyelids right. One advice I can give you, but it really depends on your workflow, is to work on the facial expression as soon as possible.
You can spend nights on getting the eyelids look nice, but then when you change the expression you have to change the shape of the lids and the surrounding again, because they always follow the rotation of the eyeball.
Sure, if you want to create a facial rig or morphtargets then you always want to get the default shape right. If you´re just going for a still image you can save some time and work on the "posed" lids right away.
But again, it really depends on the workflow and what you want to do with the model.

Oh, and the cloth tests in your sketchbook are really nice :thumbsup:

[tonytrout]

Good advice thanks Manuel, I adjust a few things with the eyes like you suggest. I hope this looks better

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[Manuel Poehlau]

Looks a little bit better. I´m not sure what kind of look you want to achieve. She looks a little bit crazy right now, with eyes wide opened and the smile in combination. Maybe some kind of ooh shape for the mouth would work better.
Or if you want to keep the smile, then I would squint the eyes, or at least lower the upper lid a bit.

[tonytrout]

LOL Yeah thanks Manuel. Lost the plot there, I had better do something about the expression, maybe something like this would suit my pose

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or Pascals title pic :D
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[mel_danes]

LOL Yeah thanks Manuel. Lost the plot there, I had better do something about the expression, maybe something like this would suit my pose

Great facial expression in those images, but with facial expressions it really depends on the mood of the overall piece.
Your characters pose is suggestive but without props, clothes, and an overall sense of atmosphere we really don't know what this image is saying?

A facial expression can sell an image or ruin one fast in this type of work. If it contrasts the body language the viewer wants to know whats going on in the characters head. If the facial expression supports the images narrative it helps cement the overall aesthetic. A great facial expression is the capping bit of a portrait piece. Your concern here is justified, your face looks great as is but with that little bit of extra care she will be a stunner.

Take Elvgren's work, his models are usually smiling or pouting, either way they are very clearly communicating whatever the damsel in distress is thinking.

[tonytrout]

Good thoughts Mel, I will have to think about where shes at, at the moment probably shes wondering where her undies are :o

Some hair sim tests

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[Aumakua]

Sweet reference for the face, possibly some Scarlet Johanson material would be relevant too :) You're showing great progress ;)

[tonytrout]

a turntable of the roughin sorry it is so poor quality video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tSc6Nf-8HA

well thats a bit of waste of time so here are some pics, I havent done left foot as I was tired but comments on general form and silhouette appreciated :)

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[tonytrout]

A hairtest, I spent all day on this with a million guide curves and patches and rendering and its still really crappy. This is going to take a lot more days fiddling. I will take some photos of my wifes hair so I can extract some better colours and add some transparency maps to the ends of the hair. I also need to figure out mayas light linking :mad:
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[mushu_mushu]

well here comes the 'hair headaches process' time... lots of experimentation

have you tried to render the hair in max with hairfarm then composite everything ??

good luck :)

[tonytrout]

Cheers Mushu_Musu Maya here, but they chucked in Toxic in the last upgrade and I havent opened it once :o so I might try compositing the shadows and AO when I get that far. I like your guitar (fender I see) I have to start thinking about some props too :beerchug:

[PascalR]

well your hair shader doesn't look too bad at all but I would spend more time on the grooming like you said. The top part shape looks too simplified, something that would help would be to add fly away hair strands to get more details in the silhouette. I would also try to get a smoother transition at the base of the LHS noiser clump so it flows more naturally from the main hair volume.
The curvature at the tip seems to fight against the gravity, but overall I think it is a good start :thumbsup:
Keep it up!

[tonytrout]

Everything you say Pascal on the hair is right :thumbsup:. but I set the hair aside for a while while I think about a more vintage style.

Been busy lately but I try some different pants styles

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and some subd test with modelled lace

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[PascalR]

Nice tests :thumbsup:

[Manuel Poehlau]

Looks good. Nice butt :D

I also did that lace border for my choker with polymodelling. It´s a bit of an overkill, but on the other side you don´t have to deal with alpha transparency/AA problems and gives you a better sense of depth. It´s really polygon heavy, though.

But it´s always a good idea to try every option available.

Keep on experimenting!

[mel_danes]

Ruffles with piping are the best. Great idea.
The lace solution is a problem for machines with low specs. if your system can handle it let it do the work.
Like Manuel said using alpha cards is a pain, not all rendering engines do them justice.

Really nice update.

[tonytrout]

Thanks Guys, I will work on the lace. Heres some shoes, I fancy diamantes on the decoration. Should I model those in or could i sculpt them in in mudbox, I dont think I could shade them properly unless they are separate geo, or could I get some sparkle from the shader?

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Edit:Went ahead and added diamantes anyway

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[tonytrout]

something of the look I want, I work on it some more

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[tonytrout]

WIP on torso

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[tonytrout]

WIP Rhand. Any good? I dunno. Im having a lot of trouble with the top to make it look right.

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[PascalR]

super quick reply for now, looking good! I would add more details on the knuckles, keep it up!:thumbsup:

[tonytrout]

Thanks Pascal, will do, Ive sort of run out of geometry at this level and before I subdivide again I need to do the other hand feet and face. I have narrowed down the palm and realigned the lines a bit.

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[tonytrout]

Some more WIP on LHand this time

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[Intervain]

sweet progress on the modeling :dance: - I'm just hoping she won't have those pale pink/puple nails in the end [makes her look like a cheap corpse ;)] :sw:

[tonytrout]

Ha ha, trashy and pink, you have been warned :eek:

[tonytrout]

Lfoot WIP, and the ubiquitous pink shoe. I can take orders for colour :D Feet are such dumb things, like beasts of burden. They do all the work and get little attention.:dance:

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[Intervain]

lol fair enough :rofl:

[Aumakua]

She's coming along really good, lovely detailing! that's a piece for 3d print definitely ;)

[MikeANash]

Coming along nicely, that posed foot looks great :)

Would'nt be able share the refs hehe ?

[tonytrout]

Sadly not any specific refs, just looking at people on the street

[tonytrout]

I hope I get to finish this, been up to my eyeballs at work. I have to do another whole detail at the next level yet.
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[PascalR]

Go Tony, finish it, looks good ! :)
That RHS shoulder still seems a bit distorted, like the biceps is connecting quite abruptly with it.
Maybe a few wrinkles on the hips where the skin is compressing?

Nice stuff, keep it up!

[tonytrout]

Thanks Pascal, yes, RHS shoulder looking pretty ugly :o made a bit of an adjustment??

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[tonytrout]

A small turntable (really just an excuse.... I learn how to do an animated gif :dance: )

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[Tomaya]

:thumbsup:Very nice mesh tony , impressive work on the muscles :thumbsup:

[PascalR]

I like your adjustments Tony, looking good mate:thumbsup:

[tonytrout]

Thanks guys:o

[tonytrout]

Some diffuse texture only (mudbox)

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base stamped 2 tone skin tex then projected photos blended with new mudbox tools, hue, dodge burn and some cloning. Took a looot longer than I thought. Still some hue adjustments to do to get all the limbs matched. WIP

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[PascalR]

cool stuff, go Tony! :beerchug:

[tonytrout]

An idea for scene in mudbox, i have a fire in the room for lighting. If it looks really rubbish when I get it into Maya i maybe do an outdoors scene.

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[mushu_mushu]

I think you did the most difficult thing Tony. the sculpt is really good and you did a good job on the skin texture.

The idea is nice but the lighting is going to be hell, good luck man :beerchug:

[tonytrout]

Thanks chanyl I might do one of her on the beach yet now I have a bit more time learning how to render :)

[tonytrout]

I spent much of today setting up siBL in Maya and testing rendering. I also learnt how to do render layers (laugh as much as you like), and set up a blinn using Ashmans multi script, a SSS shader hooking up the setups for displacement,bump etc from the blinn structure, and an AO layer all on different render layers. I was pretty pleased with myself :) so some huge steps forward in understanding rendering today.

the siBL gui is pretty cool, Im not exactly sure how it works :p but I got it working :rofl: 27secs to render model with 2X4K 32bit exrs displacement and same for diffuse, and some smaller spec and bump maps.

Pretty cool HDR labs clap ... and you can can generate ibl sets from any hdr in sibl edit and set the sun position

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[PascalR]

Nice render test Tony, looking forward to moreclap

[tonytrout]

More render tests, sorry they are not too good at the moment but maybe you get an idea where Im going, rendering is not my comfort zone, just learning MR as I go :banghead:

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[tonytrout]

More Fur :( Looks more Pixar than real:rofl:

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[tonytrout]

Im using Mental Ray fast skin shader, three light setup, key (1+ raytraced shadows),fill (0.3) and back (2),think the render is getting better. Im using Ashmans multi tile script and then hooking the appropriate displacement AO Normal diffuse networks etc from the blinn into the appropriate slots on the sss shader. There is a backscatter map and the diffuse is going into the overall colour and front sss colour. I have attached the network and sss settings I am currently using. The model is about 1.8m high in world units. I would appreciate any feedback on those settings

cheers Tony

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2015 2016

Edit. Oops forgot to ask what maps i should do to improve it. should I paint a bumpmap in mudbox or use the diffuse map somehow. i know I have to paint a spec map, where would you advise to hook that into the sss? pascal keeps on going on about reflection maps what are they used for? Sorry for all the noob questions.

[PascalR]

Hey Tony, qucik reply for now.
I think you just need either high frequency bump map to break up the specular or a spec map to do the same. Can't remember the MR sss settings right now but the scale is vital, so maybe try doing tests on a low rez version of your mesh to do pleanty of fast render tests.
Last renders looks good though, keep it up :beerchug:

[tonytrout]

Thanks for your comments Pascal. the wonders of my i7 machine are churning out the render above in about 1min20s :love: he he really glad I spent the extra at the time for the 8 threads. Slows down to about 8 mins with hair though even on the lowest settings :(. Any way working on the spec WIP

I spent a lot of time on the weekend trying to sort out the pesky hair, tweaking and prodding guide hairs around. Got it all sorted with my lowres body mesh, but horrors of horrors when i tried a render with Ash's multitile script with my .exr displacement tiles, the mesh seemed to have bloated a little bit so I investigated by adding my hires mesh from mudbox and that looked all right. I ended up putting a multiply/divide node in the displacement pathway and dividing the output into the luminance node by 6, seems to work now. I have no idea really but I figured that all the luminance inputs add up to six:rofl: I tried with dividing by 2 first off because the inputs were 2 but that didnt work completely. The bloatings probably due to some other reason to do with Uv smoothing between mudbox and maya but I dont understand that too well. Im not too worried as I dont seem to have lost any detail on what is a reasonably low detail mesh and im viewing it from a whole body shot not for closeups. I checked with a full body render and i cant see any detail loss anyway. I may use the hires mesh in the final shots anyway. I thought someone might be interested in this if they are using Ashs's script and Mental Ray and know what i stuffed up :)

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[tonytrout]

Some draft renders .. one more day.. coming together ..I should make it

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[PascalR]

Clothing model looks good Tony, come on you can do it ;)
:dance:

[tonytrout]

He he, ta Pascal, I have it mostly together, whole day tomorrow to render things..;)

[tonytrout]

Heres my final entry. At least I have sort of finished it. Like Mike,I'm more than ready to move on to something else

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[ianucci]

This is a great model Tony I love your work on the clothes:thumbsup:. BUT I hope you work on it a little more, because its screaming out for an occlusion pass and it looks like that strong rim light from the right of the image isn't casting shadows.

[mushu_mushu]

Man you finally made it !! It's coming out great, just need a few tweaking.
Keep it up Tony, you have a stunning one here :thumbsup:

Cheers

[tonytrout]

Thanks Ianucci, took your advice and added an AO (took me a week to work out how to do an AO pass :rofl:) and tweaked the shaders and shadow and touched up the hair a bit in PS, just for completeness even though the contests over. Not sure if the renders any better though, heaps more to learn.
And cheers Mushu appreciate your comments, at least its finished now :)

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