[WIP] Apache Helicopter
polycounter lvl 4
Final Renders:
Final triangle count is around 18,500. Did lots of renders, but if there's anything else you guys want to see, just tell me and ill do some more shots.
I also did a Nod paint scheme for Renegade-X
Anyway, hope you guys like it,its taken me forever to finally finish, but I did it (yay) and am happy to move on.
You can also check out my site to see a few other things I've done.
Original post:
Hey guys, first time posting here on polycount. I've been working on this on and off for a very long time now, and thought I could use some feedback.
Anyway, here it is, 18,021 triangles, with a 4096x2048 texture set:
Right now, I'm looking for some feedback on the texture, and on the presentation (render / lighting) before I call it finished, but if you notice anything else that seems a bit off I'd love to hear it.
Final triangle count is around 18,500. Did lots of renders, but if there's anything else you guys want to see, just tell me and ill do some more shots.
I also did a Nod paint scheme for Renegade-X
Anyway, hope you guys like it,its taken me forever to finally finish, but I did it (yay) and am happy to move on.
You can also check out my site to see a few other things I've done.
Original post:
Hey guys, first time posting here on polycount. I've been working on this on and off for a very long time now, and thought I could use some feedback.
Anyway, here it is, 18,021 triangles, with a 4096x2048 texture set:
Right now, I'm looking for some feedback on the texture, and on the presentation (render / lighting) before I call it finished, but if you notice anything else that seems a bit off I'd love to hear it.
Replies
Wow! I can tell right away that you've spent a lot of time on this Apache based on all of the realistic details and weathering going on. It definitely shows! I really like where this is heading and wanted to share my thoughts on what might help you to push it further as you try and finalize everything. Overall, props to you for even getting to this point.
1) I totally agree with Marq4porsche about the scratches. Right now the scratches look very hand painted and are almost the same intensity all over the vehicle rather than being more pronounced near scratch prone areas. Once you tone these down, the realism will be improved quite dramatically
2) UVs - I wouldn't expect you to change any of the UVs this late in the process due to the work you'd lose but if your goal was to build a game ready vehicle, I would think you'd want to use a lot more overlap to achieve better pixel density. Yeah this will make readable text decals tricky but there are ways to work around that. Not a dealbreaker by any means but something I was curious about.
3) Cockpit- Are you planning on finishing this? I realize you may be getting burnt out on this heli but it would be a shame if this was left incomplete and untextured for the final version, especially since the glass coverage is so large. Don't give up!
4) I'm really loving a lot of your color and value treatment but when it comes to this particular heli, I tend to favor seeing paint fading and stains that hold up better from not just close shots but also medium/long shots. This doesn't mean you current approach is not realistic because a lot of Apaches have much less variation than you're currently showing, but if you're trying to push the art qualities of this heli, it's worth considering. Here are some examples of what I mean:
http://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/imgs/boeing-ah64-apache_8.jpg
http://www.lkdesk.com/photo/usa/air/AH64/AH64_25.jpg
http://img.bz1111.com/d3/2008-2/2008021220554575345.jpg
I realize the last example has camo which adds to the contrast but even if you take that away it has some nice contrast going on with the hue/tone shifts that give the apache more pop if viewed from further away.
5) Material treatment - What level of finish is your spec and gloss map at right now? Apaches seem to have a bit stronger specular than your renders are showing but maybe you haven't tweaked it that much yet. Also, I would highly recommend a gloss map with some variety rather than a constant value (can't tell for sure if you are using gloss map but it doesn't look bad by any means)
6) Render feedback - it would be nice to see some stronger rim lighting for your final renders and maybe consider a warm light source from below that can act as a general ground bounce (might be cool if your dark shadows under the wing pick up some of that color)
I realize I wrote a lot of feedback here and I hope you don't think I'm being too harsh. I honestly took the time to write all of this because I think you have a lot of great progress so far and just want to help you reach the finish line. Some of my suggestions are probably more personal preference so keep that in mind. Thanks again for posting and I can't wait to see more!
I'm definitely wanting to put the time in to do this right, as I've come so far, and invested so much time, it would be a shame to stop short.
Anyway, in response to your feedback:
1.) Yea, feedback I've gotten from almost everyone, scratches really need to get toned down, so something I'll be doing for sure.
2.) UV layout could definitely use some improvement, the gaps between the small pieces are too large, and there's not really enough reason to have the sides separate. I think what I'll do is after I finish the texture, is fix up the UVs, then bake the texture from the old UVs to the new. The source texture is 2x res, so it shouldn't be a problem.
3.) I wasn't originally going to texture it, but after seeing it like it is, It could definitely help the model. I don't think I'm going to do a full high poly and bake, but more than it is now for sure.
4.) Completely agree, actually working on that right now
5.) I have to admit, the spec map was done quick and dirty, and is pretty much grayscale. It has a goss map, but only done so the glass/plastic bits are more glossy than the rest, it doesn't have any actual textural detail in it, so that's something I need to do.
6.) I love the ground bounce light idea, hadn't thought of that.
Once again, appreciate the feedback extremely, and it definitely gives me a great deal more motivation!
And as far as my latest helicopter goes, there are certain artistic liberties I took that may not be such a great idea for your apache considering how many realistic touches you've added. So hopefully it doesn't influence yours in a negative way.
Oh and I agree that you don't have to go all out and do a full HiPoly bake for the cockpit. You could get away with simple smoothing groups there and just rely on nice painting and texturing for the seats and instruments. I realize you painted a lot of this manually so far, but I advise maybe getting a little photo sourcing help for the instruments if possible. No guilt in that - I used to paint it all manually back in the day but now I see how insane it can be, especially when going for realism. :thumbup:
Good luck!
There are only a few little things that I'd suggest at this point (besides the cockpit but you already know about that):
1) This could be your lighting setup combined with the spec and gloss but in a few renders your main rotor blades are looking too similar to your main body texture in color and tone. If they kept a similar look to the tail rotors and only showed some spec in a few areas with a tighter spec power it might look better. Since a lot of the heli is very similar in tone, I think keeping a few key areas like the blades much darker helps quite a bit. This is pretty nitpicky I know.
2) This is probably even more nitpicky. The small sections around the 3 oval exhaust ports might look better if they were a little darker and desaturated. This is the exhaust port I'm talking about:
http://www.b-domke.de/AviationImages/Apache/Images/0244.jpg
Once again, great updates !! :icon60:
The cockpit was modeled fairly quick and dirty, just so it looks like there's more than a silhouette there behind the glass, definitely not meant to be seen up close. I didn't want to make another texture sheet for it, so I fit the control panels in-between UV gaps, and the more generic metal surfaces use texture from other bits of the helicopter.
I tweaked the specular on the blades, but they seem to be catching the light from the rim lighting mostly, which if I move it, doesn't look as nice on the rest of the model, so I can live with them how they are. Also darkened the engine exhaust like you had mentioned, as well as the missile pod. Added in a couple decals here and there to give it a bit of character.
Anyway, here are a couple shots, I'm going to do some more in a couple days after I'm sure I want to call it finished, and do some nice texture samples and wireframes to go with.
For your final shots that you show in your portfolio hopefully you're planning to show the glass in all shots right? the cockpit seems fine except those screens stand out the most as not matching your topology. Might be better off just throwing a flat color on all of that if you don't have time to clean up the uvs/screen layout. Or maybe just a quick photoshop paintover and you're done
Good work!
Seeing a High Poly would be great as well!
I also did a Nod paint scheme for Renegade-X
Anyway, hope you guys like it,its taken me forever to finally finish, but I did it (yay) and am happy to move on.
You can also check out my site to see a few other things I've done.