Dream Like Terrain Scene

Community Forums/Graphic Chat/Dream Like Terrain Scene

CodeD(Posted 2004) [#1]
Here is a terrain scene I did in 3ds Max 6 sort of inspired by the dream scenes in 'The Cell' except not as bright. It's not really finished.
Please note, I am only an Uber novice user of Max.
You can check out my portfolio (and make fun of it) on my website.
Edit: I posted a new render at the bottom of this post for the critiques.





Braincell(Posted 2004) [#2]
The trees dont cast shadows onto tarain. Also terrain shadows look odd, are you using the lights from Max to make shadows or just textures? You can put an omni light > General Parameters > and tick Shadows On (Shadow map is good). Good start though. Theres a heap of other comments but i dont wanna drown.


Hujiklo(Posted 2004) [#3]
He he! You for real?? You one funny guy - I like you... He he!! Keep it up!


CodeD(Posted 2004) [#4]
I used a target spotlight, shadow map I probably missed. Yeah, I know it's not great. But, I did figure out how to displace a quad patch, and bump textures all by myself.
Anyhoo...I did say it wasn't really finished. Thanks for the tips though.


N(Posted 2004) [#5]
My critique.

Too much contrast, the water is too blue for what is probably a small pond. It should be transparent and a light blue green (turqoise-ish, but more blue than green).

I have yet to see a terrain in the real world that is that rugged and displaced in such a small area.

The dark thick streaks across the terrain don't make any sense to me and I see no reason for them being there.

Yes, I'm so bored that I'm critiquing a bit of unrealistic terrain.


CodeD(Posted 2004) [#6]
Okay, here is a new render. I fixed the shadow maps sort of.
Let me know what you think. Thanks again for the tips!! Keep em coming, please.




Braincell(Posted 2004) [#7]
Right now what can be seen is that you had a lower polygon count terrain and it seems you smoothened it out. This leaves certain anisotropic (1-way) "bumps" on the terrain which look unreal. They can be seen much more because of the shadows. Also, your light source seems to be really close, which is not good if you are simulating a sun or a moon. Now i dont know what youre going to use the terrain for, if its for a game then you dont need to smooth it like that cos it just increases the polycount a bit but doesnt help much in this case. Also what Noel said :)


CodeD(Posted 2004) [#8]
The bumps are from an actual bump-map I applied to the material texture. But, I'll give it a whirl without the bumpmapping.
Here is the new modified scene. Took out the bump map. Changed the water mat. But, I really can't seem to get a good water mat down.



CodeD(Posted 2004) [#9]
here is another go at the water and lighting.



N(Posted 2004) [#10]
As far as color and lighting goes, this is how I think it would best look:




CodeD(Posted 2004) [#11]
;) cool, what filter?? is that a clouds overlay???
Hey...how old are you now Noel?? At any rate, with all that stuff you're cranking art, modelling and programming you must have at a crapload more time on your hands than I do. Not, that you still wouldn't be better than me. And I'm 23!! In my defense though, I have a 2 kids, one a 2 year old son that squashed many of my attempts to sit down and work through all those max tutorials. ;)

Alright, well I gotta take the wife and kids to target but, I did come up with this in about five minutes.




N(Posted 2004) [#12]
Nope, that's just a paintover of your picture after running High Pass over it (it's good for sorting out lighting issues).

I'm 15, and yeah, I do have a crap load more time on my hands than most people. School starts Tuesday though, so that'll cut down on it signifigantly. Luckily, I'm homeschooled, so I don't have to spend 4 hours after school doing homework.


ashmantle(Posted 2004) [#13]
CodeD: Since you have Max 6, you should try out the new light features (from Max 5.1 and up) like Skylight and Photometric Lights.

Just adding a simple Skylight to the scene would do wonders.. also consider Radiocity, since your scene is very dark. This will bring you a good step closer to Noel's drawing.


CodeD(Posted 2004) [#14]
Noel: Who teaches your art/computer classes? ;)
High pass is that in max or in Photoshop? I did a cloud overlay in Photoshop.

Ash: Thanks for the tip I'll give it a try and repost.


N(Posted 2004) [#15]
CodeD: High pass is in Photoshop, under Filters->Other. The lowest version I've used- 5.5- has it, so it should be in whichever version you're using.

As for art/computer classes, I've never taken one of either in my whole life- though I did take a few French classes back when I was homeschooled by an organization and not my parents, but since then I've forgotten most of what I learned (I can still count and say a few words). Basically, I've been using computers since I was 5, and because of that I've learnt a great deal of skills- among which includes typing ridiculously fast while looking at the screen and not the keyboard. Of course, the skills that actually stand out are the ones I utilize in the course of my work here (and in other communities).


Rob(Posted 2004) [#16]
Just keep at it. It's impossible to critique this stuff when it's just your first attempts...


N(Posted 2004) [#17]
BloodLocust: Not impossible to critique it, but you have to be patient because it's still a learning experience for the person doing the artwork.


CodeD(Posted 2004) [#18]
That was a good experience. I learned about shadow maps, omni lights, and pressing more buttons!!
Thanks a lot guys!!


Braincell(Posted 2004) [#19]
*blink blink*


N(Posted 2004) [#20]
*blink blink* indeed. Pressing buttons is an essential skill in this industry- learn it and learn it well.


ashmantle(Posted 2004) [#21]
lol