Re-imagining Shadowglen [WIP]

SylveriaDreams

Hi everyone! I have been working on an art project for my portfolio and wanted to start documenting my progress here. 

For the first part of the project, I came up with a character and backstory so that I could apply that to the environment. One of the things I am trying to improve on is adding a story to my environments. I created a character first, Tenaria and she is the ruler of this re-imagined Shadowglen area from WoW. Once I complete the environment, I might take some screenshots of my character posed in the environment or I might use the renders of the environment as a backdrop for my characters. 

Character thread: http://polycount.com/discussion/192043/hand-painted-elf-character
More character renders can be found on my artstation: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/QqBqZ

Right now I am working on the bigger pieces of the scene such as the trees and architecture. Next, I will be adding foliage and then props last. 

I am currently finishing my first texture pass. I might start adding foliage next so I can get more of the color palette added to the scene.

Thanks for checking out my work. Comments and crits are welcome.

Renders are in Marmoset Toolbag 3. The lighting situation is WIP. 

Markmars

I like!

but

background is too dark

it is important to pay attention to background and light

https://youtu.be/AL1BFxpSqhM

https://www.artstation.com/artwork/x1X4

https://www.artstation.com/artwork/xdz5E

Textures need to be improved

good luck! 

SylveriaDreams

I decided to bring my environment in UE4 and I spent the week setting up everything in Unreal. My current problem is dealing with the dark shadows. I will probably try lightening the texture maps in Photoshop to see if that helps.  I also started to block out the foliage and figuring out the base colors. Next steps are: paint foliage, block out ground, work on the ramp, start second texture pass

Markmars

maybe this will help
https://answers.unrealengine.com/questions/425939/too-dark-shadows-with-dynamic-light-setup.html

https://answers.unrealengine.com/questions/22470/shadows-are-too-dark.html

https://answers.unrealengine.com/questions/356542/shadows-are-too-dark-in-living-room.html

http://polycount.com/discussion/188239/question-shadows-are-too-dark-why

https://answers.unrealengine.com/questions/309897/foliage-shadows-too-dark.html

https://answers.unrealengine.com/questions/108001/shadows-just-black-even-with-skylight.html

https://forums.unrealengine.com/development-discussion/rendering/73368-why-are-shadows-in-unreal-engine-so-dark

SylveriaDreams

@Markmars Thanks for the links!

SylveriaDreams

I have brightened up the bark textures and that seems to have made a difference. Since the light and shadows were looking ok with a flat material, I figured it was my textures that were too dark. When I do my second pass on the textures, I'm going to brighten up some more areas that are rendering too dark. I also began painting the leaves and adding details to the foliage. I might need to duplicate more of the foliage so it looks fuller. Also, I need to readjust the UVs for the leaves since the texture is getting cut off at weird places.

I also experimented with different camera angles. I will probably tweak the cameras more towards the end.

C&C are welcome!  

Markmars

maybe this will help

http://polycount.com/discussion/188120/unreal-engine-4-lighting-course
https://docs.unrealengine.com/en-us/Engine/Rendering/Overview

good luck!

SylveriaDreams

Hey thanks for the links, but I am looking for direct crits of my project. Thanks for looking at my art. Cheers!

SylveriaDreams

I have made some new assets for my project. I created the purple tree, pathway rocks, and some additional rocks. This is in UE4 in the unlit mode so that it is easier to see my textures. After I create a few more things, I am going to do another texture refinement pass and add shadow gradients/AO to a second UV channel.

Next on my to-do list:
- Create lanterns for a light source
- Add glyphs to the main tree trunk
- Create some grass foliage and add alphas to the edge of the ground so it won't be a straight edge

Comments and crits welcome! Thanks in advance!  

SylveriaDreams

Lately I have created a lantern for my environment, fixed some lighting issues, and I redid the grass texture.

For the lantern, I started with a high poly sculpt and then I made the low poly version. Finally, I painted the texture using the bakes as my base.




I wasn't happy with my first grass texture and decided to re-do it. I think the grass scale is better in the new texture. I tried a few different color palettes for the grass and landed on this one. I wanted to keep with the Fall theme. I have yellow/orange leaf piles that I will distribute after I create grass/flower foliage. I'm also going to make some purple leaf piles. I think once I add some grass/plants and place more leaf piles - it will help break up the grass more. 

SylveriaDreams

Also crits and comments are welcome! Thanks!

Markmars

 You understood me wrong.

Sorry, I didn't want to offend you.

I mean it

(relax=good mood)

 that meaning

If you're reading  my comments

 you must understand

in my comments  (not negative ways)

there is no double meaning.

I'm so sorry.

SylveriaDreams

I've started adding plants to my scene and arranging them with rocks. I'm thinking of making some color variations of the plants and leaf piles. I also added some glyphs.

SylveriaDreams

I've made a lot of changes since my last post. 

- I re-built the ramp and added trim
- Adjusted the glyphs (emissive color & pulse effect)
- Fixed the texel density on the big tree and roots
- Added moss
- Added rocks to the entryway
- Added my skybox
- Added more directional lights
- Added more foliage and color variants
- Placed more leaves around the ramp
- Various texture passes on several assets

I have some more changes that I want to make before I call it done including a bark texture pass, editing ground alpha mask, falling leaves, and final lighting pass.

SylveriaDreams

Here are some of the final renders! If anyone wants to see some more of the close-up shots and breakdowns, I have more images on my artstation. Thanks for checking out my art.

 https://www.artstation.com/artwork/R8yBy