ddustin

Here is the link to the post with the airfield. http://www.hash.com/forums/index.php?showt...hl=airfield.zip David

Removed

Anders, Very nice as usual. David

It didn't help, but thanks for offering.

here's a quick update: I've almost given up on using AM for this type of work. I consumed a week (16 hour days) trying to get trees into the scene, the only thing that worked was tree hair, which made the interface really slow. I guess I could buy 3ds props for $200 that look right and don't jitter in the animation. Next I fought with NR (3 days) trying to get the smoke to work correctly. Most accident scenes (at least here in GA) have trees and smoke. I guess you can't use particles if you have reflections and/or are planning on using motion blur (let's see car windows reflect, and cars move fast). perhaps a nap will help.

30 Minutes to model the Cycle? Do you have a time warp machine? very nice!! David

Using AM for this is a stretch, particularly (there's a pun in there) trying to get the scenes realistic. The jitters are there whether I use the render farm or not. The tree hair is really tall, like 600" tall. The tree clusters in the distance are layers with a targa image applied. Surprisingly these frames rendered out about 2 minutes per frame. Thanks, David

Here is the latest version of the rendered environment. http://www.dustinproductions.com/files/cmodeled.m1v I need to still add smoke and get the jitters out of the tree shadows (used hair for trees after a debacle of trying single patch panels with cookie cutouts). Still fighting with NR on the particles. I used the lag idea on the camera too. A few more yard details are in order as well, maybe a few animals in the pasture.......... I know.. I know..... David

First off, it looks really good. I would also like to know if you used a bump map. The yellow moon immediately brought back memories of youth.... There doesn't seem to be much depth in the image. The waves farther away from the camera would be smaller etc. The fog kind of looks like looks like mist on the lens. Also, if it's a lake scene (must be a big lake) there may be a disconnect between waves that high (indicating a bunch of wind) and fog. Most times when it's windy, there isn't much fog. I think that's why my brain kicked it out What if the scene were a little bigger, and you had where you could see the other side of the lake, like trees and maybe something farther back?? Just a thought. If it's an ocean scene it could have fog with waves that large, but it would be thicker fog on the ocean. I don't live on an ocean, so my opinion is a little weak here. Do get discouraged by the critiques, you're doing great!! David

Dan, That finish has to be one of the smoothest I think I've ever seen on an AM car model. Can we see a wireframe? Very nice!! David

Ooooooo Good idea! David

James, I talked to the Trooper who investigated the accident. He said the truck spun CCW from the top view, and only 100 degrees or so after POI. David

Here is the latest version of the modeled environment. This is the first test render, and there are a LOT of things to add, and tweak. I had to do this to get around all the problems I was having with the video footage. The total environment in less than 800 patches. That doesn't include the vehicles. http://www.dustinproductions.com/files/cog...deled-25fps.m1v David

John, Out of curiosity: 1. What is the patch count on the titan? 2. How tactile is tactile (you mentioned it was tactile while moving it around). Really what I mean is what type of system is it "tactile" on? 3. What does your company do with the old models they no longer have need of? 4. Would they consider letting you import them into AM and offer them for sale (I'm sure the answer is no, and even if it were yes the price would be prohibitive for most of us). Thank you very much for allowing us this glimpse into Mecca. David Dustin

Phil, I tried the plugin and it helped stabilize the image. There is still the issue of the changing orientation of vehicle as it makes the transition from flat to going up the hill. The shadow catcher geometry doesn't line up after the vehicle and camera begin to climb the hill. I have started modeling the evironment. Thanks for the help. David

Dan, It's a case. David

The in-car shot is really taxing me. The crash occured on a hill. The direction the small truck came from is flat. Using the footage as a roto for the scene is tough because I'm trying to keep the shadow catcher properly aligned, not to mention the hours I spent in AE trying to get the jitters out of the footage. Then of course keeping everything in the correct perspective.................. ugh... David

John, That's outstanding!! Can you explain the technology of "grid taping and scanning"? It would be awesome if a technology existed for scanning an object, and converting it to a mesh AM could use. David

James, Thanks for the kind words. My theory is the blue truck (I just found out it's actually black, bad photo's) spun the other direction. I'm still trying to get in touch with the State Trooper who wrote the report, and find another witness. David

John, Yes the drivers are pretty small aren't they Thanks for the compliments. I met with the driver of the Explorer, and the Toyota Pick-up yesterday. Things happened a little differently than I have depicted. The Explorer skid while trying to stop and was partially off the road. The Semi truck did not come over into the nearest lane as far as I have it shown. The driver of the Toyota doesn't remember which way he spun after getting hit. I used the Explode plugin for the fender parts, Then the Newtonian Physics Plugin to have them fly after the impact. The exploding fender had to be done in a different Chor (with deflectors to control the direction the exploded parts flew), and the motion saved out as an action, which I imported into this chor. If I didn't do it this way, AM would crash. David would be a shame to totally lose the smoke as it makes a big difference...you're suddenly aware that the truck is in trouble & skidding & visually explains why it veers into the oncoming traffic....doesn't need much though Great job! Mr. Fish, Thanks for the compliments. The smoke took longer than animating the scene. I couldn't use my render farm as the smoke would get out of sync, meaning one frame would have the smoke billowing correctly and the next frame would have the smoke volume lower than it should have been. NR issue. David

Matt, I'm meeting with witnesses tomorrow (10/12/05) to get more details. Actually I hope they tell me the blue truck spun 1 and 1/4 revolutions so I can have it throwing parts as it spins. The final product should have those types of things. My latest struggle is with in-car footage, more later. David

Matt, It looks pretty cool. Neat idea. David

I'm waiting to talk to the driver of the blue truck (10/12/05) to see for sure which way he spun, and if we went more than one revolution. David

Michael, Actually it's a digital image, and I don't use any match moving software. I did just get done recording some footage to try to get an in vehicle shot, we'll see how that goes. Thanks for all the compliments. David

Very nice John!! Clean and functional. David