Ak-47 Plain or Zombie Apocalypse

JoshuaMorrisonInk

UPDATE
Thanks everyone for the feedback along the way! I'm pretty happy with my end result. Doing all the attachments really helped push the material study. That ended up working out in more ways than one. Hope you guys like it!











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At GDC a lot of people told me to keep working on my props. One person even suggested doing the most generic weapon I could think of, he suggested the M4. So I started with a simple AK-47. It's just for my portfolio and nothing else, I plan on really pushing the materials so even if I just do a plain AK it should still come out looking pretty sick. However I was kind of thinking of going a little more original (as original as zombie apocalypse is) and adding a flashlight, bayonet, and maybe even a half plastic half wood hand grip. Giving the weapon a little more character.

So what do you guys think? Here are some WIP shots of the highpoly and the fastest concept ever of what I was thinking for additions.

joe gracey

I think your zombie version looks pretty cool.

I'm in the process of making a M4 and have been looking for ways to add some character to it too. Maybe you could add a scope? idk though, just a thought.

Looks good so far though! A lot better than what I'm doing

theSixtyEight

looks great, especially barrel part. For character thing, I think bayonet would be great addition

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Thanks guys a couple people that I went to school with suggest doing a plain on and then over the top apocalypse one but I'm still on the fence. I may try and just add a few things and keep it relatively simple but I'm still up for suggestions.

JoshuaMorrisonInk

So I'm finishing up the highpoly, with the plan of having just a simple ak with several attachments and with all the attachments on I will have a much more apocalypse style ak.

Bonkahe

Looking pretty snazzy, but I would redo the tape on the clip, usually unless you get in there with your hands and work it into the crevices the tape would go over the dips, as it is it looks more like cloth draped over it, just a minor gripe, cant wait for low poly!

PA: might put some more love into the metal pieces, seems like it has allot of dents but not much of those smaller scratches.

burchronicus

The wooden handles of both, the stock and the knife handle, seem a bit too clay like. I doubt the wood would get that beat up. I would smooth that out a little. As Bonkahe said, the tape does seem a bit too cloth-like. I assume the tape will be duct-tape...try wrapping some duct tape around a similar form and wear it down to see the effects. It will most likely be less exaggerated with tighter wrinkles. Just a thought. The detail you've incorporated is fantastic though. What programs are you using to achieve your effects?

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Everything was done in zbrush. I actually have two versions of the handle one is much more rugged and looks like it was carved from wood. I plan on using it for the diffuse. I can also see what you are saying about the wood looking like clay, thanks for the feedback.

JoshWilkinson

i dig it. *subscribing

AlexCatMasterSupreme

The wood. The fuck. If I saw an AK like that in real life I would cry:'(
BE NICE TO HIM!

The_Pixel

burchronicus wrote: »

The wooden handles of both, the stock and the knife handle, seem a bit too clay like. I doubt the wood would get that beat up. I would smooth that out a little. As Bonkahe said, the tape does seem a bit too cloth-like. I assume the tape will be duct-tape...try wrapping some duct tape around a similar form and wear it down to see the effects. It will most likely be less exaggerated with tighter wrinkles. Just a thought. The detail you've incorporated is fantastic though. What programs are you using to achieve your effects?

Yeah I agree with burchronicus, the wood on the stock and grip look too much like clay, and the bayonet handle too

JoshuaMorrisonInk

This is what I was talking about earlier. I have both saved I planed on using one for an ao map and the smoother one for the normals but if everyone agrees it looks to much like clay then it must be something I should address.

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Hey guys I haven't updated in a couple weeks but I have been working on the ak some more. I have the lowpoly completed and I'm currently working on textures. I'll try and finish it up soon so I can add the finish renders.

Obscura

Looks really nice to me, I just never understood that why these tapes are needed for guns :P

JoshuaMorrisonInk

You mean around the magazine?

ivanzu

Obscura wrote: »

Looks really nice to me, I just never understood that why these tapes are needed for guns :P

They are normally put around two magazines for faster reloading.

Xenocide

Nice work.

Dont they usually tape two magazines together for faster reload?

DWalker

The bullets should have a reddish cast to more closely resemble copper; at the moment it looks like a slightly different type of brass. The line between the brass and copper is much more prominent than any I have seen.

Many of the Soviet-made cartridges were actually steel, not brass; just a thought if you want to stand out from similar models.

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Ya I was going for brass I didn't realize it was more commonly steel. Thanks for the help. I not 100% sure why people put tape on the mag it can help with identifying, but I thought it might help with grip. Taping two mags together seems like a bad idea though just because of the weight with a vest reloading wouldn't be that slow to begin with.

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Wrapping this one up, trying not to get carried away with the lights :P

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Just realize the gloss map on the knife is missing.

JoshWilkinson

I'm absolutely loving this. The knife looks like some of the wear on the side of the blade looks so deep it would make the knife fragile, but aside from that I'm really digging this model. And your decision to go with a steel cased bullet is a lot less distracting and actually compliments the model quite well. Very pleased with this.

garriola83

looking good but that bayonet is looking way too busted for its use. tone that down a bit and add light streaks instead. keep at it!

JoshuaMorrisonInk

Ya someone from my school pointed out the blade damage. I don't know how I over looked that for so long but lighting the damage greatly improved the look of the bayonet. Thanks for catching it!

Bartalon

I think you nailed the wood. I'm also glad you reworked the bayonet to reduce the abuse. What will your next weapon be?

EarthQuake

I'm going to have to disagree on the material read of the wood, to me its really off.

Think about what sort of material this is. Its a coated/lacquered hardwood. It has a clear sealant on it, so really just a smooth glossy finish. Now, tell me why you would have the same color and detail in the diffuse as you do in the spec? - Rhetorical question of course, you don't have to answer it, its more of a question you should be asking yourself. Why am I putting X detail here? Does this make logical sense? Etc.

Check out this thread for some really good wood, and a quick breakdown on how he did it: http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=118743

Bartalon

That's a good point. I actually glazed over the texture maps and didn't notice that detail.

JoshuaMorrisonInk

So I had a reason for the spec but it's pretty much irrelevant at this point because EarthQuake was right. I went back and looked at all my reference images and they all had a lacquer finish. So here is the fixed version. I'm still on the fence about the color. I may go back and fiddle with it more later.

Also again thank you for the feedback I truly appreciate the chance to make my art better!

Shrike

The model sure looks good, but it is so noisy. Right now, the clearest parts have the most attraction, the barrel with the shiny metal, and the blade, (due to the light color)

I would try reducing the black damage in your wood, it looks pretty comic style aswell.
Try make the blade with a black matte coating at the sides, so only the edge is shiny. That will stop it from taking all the attention, it is not as detailed or super interesting so that it would deserve it. The blade grip really stands out negatively to me, It somehow doesnt really fit, but I think it is the form, not the strong black, but for the form its too late. (Also, black rivets on black plastic, it looks like just black circles from far, try maybe subtle highlights so you atleast notice that its metal somehow)

The yellow-ish wood tone is also not working nearly as good as the darker red one, I strongly prefer that one. It is pretty dark tho, just a little bit lighter and id be really nice.

Also for your presentation in general, if you do so much detail or have a model that is noisy from far, make close-up shots from different angles.

Also, always cut your images to the target platform.
Right now you have oversized images which look terrible aliased from the compression of the resizing. I know, beeing able to look up close is a nice feature, but try posting images which are not too big, so they dont resize.
If you manage to show off your model on that resolution and it looks good on it, then you truly know that it works. Also you need to think more about your presentation in form of perspective and how to "shoot" so your detail can be seen.
(+ no Aliased images)

JoshuaMorrisonInk

I agree the wood color needed to be a bit brighter, I also fixed the dark spots on the bayonet and change the lighting to emphasis it less. I didn't want to change it too much seeing at I really liked the gradient I was getting across the blade.


Anywho some small changes

JoshWilkinson

Dog I'm loving your progress. I didn't notice it as first but now that it's pointed out, the blade is a bit bright and distracting. I see you've toned it down and it definitely looks better, but have you considered a more militaristic bayonet? It doesn't fit as well with the apocalyptic theme, but I think the color scheme will be less distracting. (plus I personally find the shiny edge against a black finish to be rather aesthetic.)

http://imagehost.epier.com/23293/NAVY_SEALS_KNIFE-NEW-ONE.jpg
http://www.jtknives.com/images/dustar-arad.jpg