Farmhouse

kxiro

Started working on a personal piece of my childhood home that has since been demolished.
modeled in Maya rendered in UE4. block out and WIP textures.

kxiro

Im trying to go for a Andrew Wyeth look

kxiro

Got some rough terrain in

kxiro

Adding some grass and more plants

kxiro

working on materials and lighting

kxiro

more materials and lighting added more detail to barn doors and updated the gravel driveway material

RogelioD

Looking good man! Can't wait to see more!

kxiro

kxiro

Worked on adding architectural detail an the moldings and porch.

Maxilator

Nice work, the road looks pretty strange to me, almost looks like asphalt or something, while a dirt road seems more fitting. I would also say that the sky looks very flat.

kxiro

Swaggletooth

Maxilator said:

Nice work, the road looks pretty strange to me, almost looks like asphalt or something, while a dirt road seems more fitting. I would also say that the sky looks very flat.

Yeah it would benefit from having ruts in the physical geometry, and maybe a larger tiling texture that isn't visibly repeating so often. At the very least it needs to be more of an earthy colour.

That said, the model has clearly progressed nicely. This should be an easy fix to add!

jaker3278

Are you doing any post effects in photoshop or anything, or are these screen grabs from UE4?

kxiro

Swaggletooth said:

Maxilator said:

Nice work, the road looks pretty strange to me, almost looks like asphalt or something, while a dirt road seems more fitting. I would also say that the sky looks very flat.

Yeah it would benefit from having ruts in the physical geometry, and maybe a larger tiling texture that isn't visibly repeating so often. At the very least it needs to be more of an earthy colour.

That said, the model has clearly progressed nicely. This should be an easy fix to add!

Thanks for the Feedback. I agree that the driveway needs some more attention. I plan on making a new texture using Substance designer. 

kxiro

Maxilator said:

Nice work, the road looks pretty strange to me, almost looks like asphalt or something, while a dirt road seems more fitting. I would also say that the sky looks very flat.

yeah the sky is a little funky right now just experimenting with some stuff. hopefully i can make it look more alive 

kxiro

jaker3278 said:

Are you doing any post effects in photoshop or anything, or are these screen grabs from UE4?

Yes these are screen grabs right from UE4 in play mode. I havent started to mess with any post inside or outside of UE4.
I am still adding set dressing and have not really locked down anything final just yet.

pixelpatron

I'd approach this differently. Your main directional lighting needs more intensity. Start with that, and then remove all your grass. You need to challenge yourself to make this work with vanilla dirt and grass textures....and paths, then add the 3D card grass. Your handicapped at the moment cause you're covering up the ground the 3D grass cards. Get the ground looking good with straight up grass textures and dirts. Get the community to agree it looks decent enough to move forward with adding back in the taller grass. (You're gonna find that you need multiple dirt and grass textures, and that your going to want believable paths leading down the driveways and around entrances...etc.)

kxiro

pixelpatron said:

I'd approach this differently. Your main directional lighting needs more intensity. Start with that, and then remove all your grass. You need to challenge yourself to make this work with vanilla dirt and grass textures....and paths, then add the 3D card grass. Your handicapped at the moment cause you're covering up the ground the 3D grass cards. Get the ground looking good with straight up grass textures and dirts. Get the community to agree it looks decent enough to move forward with adding back in the taller grass. (You're gonna find that you need multiple dirt and grass textures, and that your going to want believable paths leading down the driveways and around entrances...etc.)

That sounds like a solid approach I will try that when I get around to making better versions of the terrain. Thanks for the input

kxiro

messing with material masking on the house. added some branches to the willow without leaves have to re adjust  the orientation now they are shooting all over the place.

Maxilator

Looking better, the rocks sticks out really much though, i'd say just remove them, can't think of a time i've seen large rocks like in a driveway.

Joopson

I'd say get rid of most of the post processing. Especially any blur or chromatic aberration. Makes it hard to look at right now.

GameArtifact

Hi kxiro,

very nice scene! 

If you want to add more details ... in this kind of environment I would see well a rocking chair near the door or a tire attached to a rope in the garden.

Jakro

I'd have to agree with Joopson, the post processing doesn't help, I actually prefer the screenshots without it. Though the updated tree to the right looks a lot better than before, so well done
I'd say that from the screenshots the scene is mostly as a whole, the same level of brightness, similar hues and there's little contrast. This could be fixed partly by having more defined lighting. I'd suggest setting the view mode to 'detail lighting' and then not turning it off until you feel that the scene looks kick-ass without any textures. Don't be afraid to use point lights to brighten a focal point you want to viewer to see either. The lighting doesn't need to be 100% realistic, just as long as there's no blatant errors that will stand out. 

kxiro

Jakro said:

I'd have to agree with Joopson, the post processing doesn't help, I actually prefer the screenshots without it. Though the updated tree to the right looks a lot better than before, so well done
I'd say that from the screenshots the scene is mostly as a whole, the same level of brightness, similar hues and there's little contrast. This could be fixed partly by having more defined lighting. I'd suggest setting the view mode to 'detail lighting' and then not turning it off until you feel that the scene looks kick-ass without any textures. Don't be afraid to use point lights to brighten a focal point you want to viewer to see either. The lighting doesn't need to be 100% realistic, just as long as there's no blatant errors that will stand out. 

Yeah i totally agree about the post I was really just experimenting I will try that tip about adjusting my lighting in detail lighting mode.  Thanks for the feedback

kxiro

GameArtifact said:

Hi kxiro,

very nice scene! 

If you want to add more details ... in this kind of environment I would see well a rocking chair near the door or a tire attached to a rope in the garden.

I love the rocking chair idea ! Hopefully i will get some free time soon to finish this scene up.

kxiro

Joopson said:

I'd say get rid of most of the post processing. Especially any blur or chromatic aberration. Makes it hard to look at right now.

agreed will do in my next update

kxiro

Maxilator said:

Looking better, the rocks sticks out really much though, i'd say just remove them, can't think of a time i've seen large rocks like in a driveway.

I totally agree I still haven't done a final pass on the driveway dirt textures. I hope to make all new textures in substance for the dirt/gravel driveway. 
Thanks for the feedback

kxiro

wanted to post a pick of just lighting any and all comments, suggestions would be welcome.

ActionDawg

I love the main building and overall look of this scene! It's looking quite nice, especially in the lighting only mode, but it's so washed out currently that it lacks a lot of depth and readability. Keep in mind that our eyes, and the way we tend to photograph things, bring the dynamic range of the world in front of us into a limited range that tries to get the most of the information that's there. Even with it being so bright we'd still perceive essentially pure black in heavily shadowed areas. In addition, there should be some semblance of the light changing color when it comes to the indirect lighting contribution due to the sky and overall bouncing.

Lastly, watch your white balance. Just because a light is yellowy doesn't mean we'll see it as such. Our eyes correct for color-cast scenes so we perceive them as more neutral than they truly are. Not doing this for rendering (or photography) makes things look odd when viewed on a typical screen. I did a quick push and pull to show you the difference in depth for the above picture:


Overall I'm quite enjoying the attention to detail. You just need to help bring it out!

Joopson

I really like somedoggy's adjustments. Makes it feel much more believable, and looks great.

Tectonic

I think the way you've framed the scene my eyes are drawn to the barn doors in the back, but when my eyes get there, theres not much to look at. maybe consider putting another piece of farm equipment over there, or a pile of chopped firewood or something.

kxiro

Tectonic said:

I think the way you've framed the scene my eyes are drawn to the barn doors in the back, but when my eyes get there, theres not much to look at. maybe consider putting another piece of farm equipment over there, or a pile of chopped firewood or something.

Thanks Tectonic i really like the suggestion. I will do something about that this weekend. cheers !

kxiro

somedoggy said:

I love the main building and overall look of this scene! It's looking quite nice, especially in the lighting only mode, but it's so washed out currently that it lacks a lot of depth and readability. Keep in mind that our eyes, and the way we tend to photograph things, bring the dynamic range of the world in front of us into a limited range that tries to get the most of the information that's there. Even with it being so bright we'd still perceive essentially pure black in heavily shadowed areas. In addition, there should be some semblance of the light changing color when it comes to the indirect lighting contribution due to the sky and overall bouncing.

Lastly, watch your white balance. Just because a light is yellowy doesn't mean we'll see it as such. Our eyes correct for color-cast scenes so we perceive them as more neutral than they truly are. Not doing this for rendering (or photography) makes things look odd when viewed on a typical screen. I did a quick push and pull to show you the difference in depth for the above picture:


Overall I'm quite enjoying the attention to detail. You just need to help bring it out!

Wow great adjustments! I will work on the lighting the next time i get back into UE4

kxiro

more work on lighting, and more small props. Still no new driveway texture(working on it now)

RogelioD

This is coming along so well! Love the lived-in feel and the overall aged look of everything! Can't wait to see more!

Joopson

This last shot is a huge improvement. Looks awesome.

I'd change the font on the sign on the barn, by the way. I recognized it immediately and it distracted me.

kxiro

Still have a lot more to do, my task list keeps growing . got some more contrast in the lighting and figured out how to get quality screen grabs.

Justin Wagner

This looks great. I have read through a lot of the comments and if you are trying to go for the realistic/ photographic look, then I would recommend some depth of field and vignetting on the camera. The DOF can also help hide any models that are right in front on camera. For example the grass looks awesome but not when you are right on top of it. The Post effects can help greatly if used in moderation. 

I also think that the house textures have come a long way for the better but I would recommend getting more shingle definition on the roof.

Great work and looking forward to more screenshots.

kxiro

Justin Wagner said:

This looks great. I have read through a lot of the comments and if you are trying to go for the realistic/ photographic look, then I would recommend some depth of field and vignetting on the camera. The DOF can also help hide any models that are right in front on camera. For example the grass looks awesome but not when you are right on top of it. The Post effects can help greatly if used in moderation. 

I also think that the house textures have come a long way for the better but I would recommend getting more shingle definition on the roof.

Great work and looking forward to more screenshots.

Thanks for the Comment. Yes adding some DOF would add some more realism to the scene. Getting closer every weekend

kxiro

ActionDawg

This is looking a lot better! I think that the contrast would reach a happy balance between this latest picture and the picture from July 19th.

jaker3278

Looks really nice. I second the comment on contrast. 

Justin Wagner

The shingles look a lot better. Definitely helps break up the silhouette.

amirabd2130

Love how this progressing.
I also agree that the contrast in your last image is a little too much.
the image @somedoggy posted is a little too green in my opinion, maybe something like this.
keep rocking

kxiro

Thanks everyone for all the help and great advice. I can almost see the finish line

kanga

This looks super!
Are you using height maps for the shingles? In fact are you using height maps anywhere?

Marshkin

It's looking really good now! The light reflecting off of the metal on the chimney is a bit distracting, but that's about it! 
It's been really useful to see this come along. I've learned a lot! 

kxiro

kanga said:

This looks super!
Are you using height maps for the shingles? In fact are you using height maps anywhere?

I am using Height maps on the shingles and one on the dirt drive way still some more tuning to do.

kxiro

I added some DOF and toned down the Bloom coming off the metal flashing around the chimney. I'm getting close to calling this one done. 

Ged

this came out really well! loved seeing the progress.

kxiro

Did a little more color correction. I Feel like i could mess with it forever. I am gonna call it done(for now ) This was a real personal piece for me this house no longer exists, only in my mind and in photos. I plan to get a print of this picture and give it to my parents for a house warming gift.

here is a Black and white one too