any tutorials on grouping and spreading out vegetation realistically
polycounter lvl 7
In my current project Im having trouble deciding how to spread out and group my vegetation in a natural and pleasing way. I was wondering if there were any good tutorials people could link to so I could get a better understanding of how to approach this.
edit: sorry thought i was in technical talk when i posted this
edit: sorry thought i was in technical talk when i posted this
Replies
Neat videos. Covers some general guidelines and techniques.
Mcejn, lol im watching that as we speak. i guess ill have to go further for the vegetation spreading part.
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Art_Bible
I used similar techniques recently to make some environment layouts, a couple examples...
http://ericchadwick.com/img/mmo_worldbuilding.html
A thread about learning composition
http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=72082
A lot of it for me comes down to closely examining the real world, and trying to break it down, trying to imagine how to simplify it for game use.
The general idea for getting fairly decent placement of vegetation is to try and group the foliage in a ramp-like shape. What I mean by that is that you start with the largest objects and then add smaller objects around the bigger ones and make them progressively smaller and less dense as they get further away from the centre.
An example of such placement would be something like:
Large tree => smaller bushes around the trunk => Medium sized grass (greenish) => Short grass (yellowish)
The reason for this order is simple; the tree in the centre provides cover. Some plants seem to prefer to avoid strong sun. The area around the tree would also hold the water for a longer period of time, whereas the areas not covered by shadow would become dry quicker. Large rainfall could also wash out the seeds of growing plants if they are not covered. (Or at least that's my pathetic attempt at rationalising this :poly142:)
Then again, don't follow these guidelines too closely. Nature appears to most people as random, so it's often good to work in a subtractive manner. Click around like mad for a few seconds and then start removing objects that do not seem to fit.
And lastly, I think it's all about observation. Look up references or take a trip to a park. Back at my home, there's a forest right next to my house. When I'm back, I tend to go there for a smoke when I need inspiration. Finding real-life references is often difficult, but when it comes to foliage it should be fairly easy even if you live in a big city. It's extremely rewarding and lets you study things from all directions.
edit:
That Allods bible is great btw, can't believe I didn't see it before.
Also I found it helps a lot when I color the terrain surface to match the ground cover (grass) and vice versa. I don't put green grass on tan dirt, I put green grass on green terrain. The closer the colors match, the better the grass will look.
Same with rocks and trees... I darken (or brighten) the terrain around the bases of these, to help them fit into the terrain.
Would you say its generally beneficial to make grass smaller the closer it is to a dirt path and taller/larger the farther away it gets? I guess it depends on the scene but i find this to be the way it works. Im wondering why this would be logically. Damian's logical break down of plant distribution around trees really helps me understand what to go for. Im finding plant distribution is more based on logic than pure composition.
may be of some use
Yep, that's a good way to look at it. Another example FWIW. I made the grass shorter as it gets closer to the rocky path.
Mongrelman, we have an English translation of that on the wiki, if it helps.
could you link to it, i cant seem to find it. looks like an awesome resource.
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Game_Art_Examples#Allods_Online_.282010.29