15 miles on the Erie Canal

[Hannes]

Cool! Some sort of a Tintin feeling. I like Ulco's idea about the wrinkled cloth. And once again: the car is really sexy!

[sboerner]

Thanks for all the comments. Glad you like the look, Doc, even though it's the more the result of my rudimentary Mudbox skills than anything else. Practice makes perfect. Hopefully I'll be ready by the time I need detailed foreground figures!

Good tip on the wrinkle displacement, Ulco. I'll have to give that a try. As I mentioned I'm trying to keep the poly counts reasonable so displacement for fine detail is the way to go. Haven't yet explored Mudbox's ability to export high-resolution displacement maps, so that's another option. (Your technique would be faster though and would work fine in most cases.)

Right now my priority is getting this scene finished. Been a while since I've posted the entire scene. Rendering an update now and will post as soon as it's done.

[sboerner]

So here's where things stand. I need to fuss with the populations and the positions of some objects. Probably one more group of models to make and place, and a few more trees. And there are surface areas that need to be addressed.

The most dramatic change is the lighting. I've decided to switch the time from early morning to late afternoon so the scene is backlit. (The date is mid-October and south is to the left.) Before, the light angle was almost behind the camera resulting in everything being equally bright (and flat). Some objects, like the Model T, blended into the background. The new angle emphasizes the objects in the center of the scene – canal, bridge, and boats – in other words, the actual subjects. Overall the scene is less colorful but it is easier to read and has more impact.

I think I've mentioned this before but I appreciate everyone hanging in with me through this long, long project. I promise it will be over soon. This was just supposed to be a proof of concept and I've started researching the first three scenes for the actual series. This is going to be fun.

Comments welcome.

[DocCharly65]

That's just incredibly beautiful! Can't stop watching it and enjoying all the details!

Somehow I would prefer, if that project won't end It would be nice to see more stories happening at this part of the landscape at different weather conditions, different day times, different seasons and with different people...

[Dune]

I am flabbergasted too. It's wonderful! The lighting is superb now, in total a very powerful scene. I have been enjoying the ride too, and do hope for a next project to be shared.

But you asked for comments, so I'll give you some;
It struck me that the railtracks look quite broad. Is it the eye (and reflections) playing tricks, or are they supposed to be so wide? rail gauges USA
I also wondered about the front geese; I would place them further to the back, as they are quite obtrusive. But that is personal.
Thirdly; the water is quite speckled by all the little waves and the what seems to be lily pads, speckledness being increased by reflections of the clouds. Personal too, but I would leave out the lily pads (or stick them in some small patches to the sides of the canal only), and apply a patchiness to the water, where some area are pretty smooth, and wind only ripples parts.
And finally; the left concrete bank is very clean. I would add some grass growing a bit over it, or algae/moss/creepers, or some cracks, something to break up that long 'white' line.

[Oshyan]

Wow, what a difference the lighting makes! I liked the look before, but this really adds a warmth and vibrancy that it was lacking, I think. Quite nice. 

My only critique would be the background fields, which I think need a bit more variety (even though they are of course cultivated crops, i.e. all the same plant). 

- Oshyan

[sboerner]

Somehow I would prefer, if that project won't end It would be nice to see more stories happening at this part of the landscape at different weather conditions, different day times, different seasons and with different people...

First reaction: Oh, no-o-o-o-o-o 

Second reaction: That's a really cool idea. Maybe something for down the road. Thanks for the suggestion!

It struck me that the railtracks look quite broad. Is it the eye (and reflections) playing tricks, or are they supposed to be so wide? rail gauges USA
I also wondered about the front geese; I would place them further to the back, as they are quite obtrusive. But that is personal.
Thirdly; the water is quite speckled by all the little waves and the what seems to be lily pads, speckledness being increased by reflections of the clouds. Personal too, but I would leave out the lily pads (or stick them in some small patches to the sides of the canal only), and apply a patchiness to the water, where some area are pretty smooth, and wind only ripples parts.
And finally; the left concrete bank is very clean. I would add some grass growing a bit over it, or algae/moss/creepers, or some cracks, something to break up that long 'white' line.

Thanks, Ulco, this is just what I was looking for. 

The geese seem obtrusive to me, too, especially after placing all the human figures. We know they are much closer to the camera, but the huge difference in scale is distracting. 

The "lily pads" are actually maple leaves. It's common to see big patches of windblown leaves on the canal surface in the fall, so I'm inclined to leave them. But there don't need to be so many. I'll try some different patchiness settings for the surface, too.

And yeah, that washwall on the left side needs some attention. At this point it's still new (finished in 1910, scene set in 1916.) But it needs to look more weathered and grimy.

Railroad tracks are U.S. standard gauge. I agree that the curve where the siding angles away from the main line looks wide, but it's right.


Thanks!

My only critique would be the background fields, which I think need a bit more variety (even though they are of course cultivated crops, i.e. all the same plant).

Agreed. Some farm buildings will be added near the left edge, behind the railway embankment, surrounded by trees. Once that's done all of the ground populations need to be given some more attention. They've been pretty neglected.

Glad you all agree about the lighting. It was one of those "maybe I should take a look at that . . ." moments that turned out to make a big difference.

[Dune]

I actually mean the iron tops themselves, not the distance between rails. I think here in Europe they are about 74mm or so (from my head).

[sboerner]

I actually mean the iron tops themselves, not the distance between rails. I think here in Europe they are about 74mm or so (from my head).

Apologies . . . I misunderstood. The rail profiles were based on a generic diagram that I found on Wikipedia. The rails were the first models I made for the scene and I didn't take the time to really research the size.

The diagram puts the head width at 3 inches (about 76mm) but it is for 127 lb. rail. This evening I checked and learned that the interurban railway was built with 70 lb. rail and decided to do a little digging. I found a table of modern rail profiles that specifies a width of 2-7/16 inches (about 62mm) for 70 lb. rail. A more contemporary source, from 1921, specifies 2-9/16 inches (65mm) for 80 lb. rail. So the modern width is probably right.

So you're absolutely right.  The rails are about 14mm too wide. This is a pretty easy fix, so why not. (Not going to worry about the rails on the embankment. That's a New York Central line and the original profile should be good.)

Maybe I'll reduce the reflectivity too since that may be making them look even wider.

[Dune]

14mm isn't much, so I suspect the reflectivity playing a large role. Good that it's an easy fix

[Hannes]

Wow, what a beautiful image! The new lighting is fantastic, and I really love all those details.

[sboerner]

OK. I've tried to take into account all the suggestions and have added the last batch of models and fixed the ground cover and tree distributions. I'll be working on an optimized print-resolution rendering but (aside from the inevitable tweaks) I think this image is done.

What a trip it has been.

Thanks to everyone for all of your encouragement and suggestions.

Checked my notes and found the first entry for this project is dated November 30, 2017. Almost two years to the day. Time to move on!

(Edited to remove attached image with blue cast. White-balanced image attached to later post.)

[Oshyan]

And it's a really gorgeous end result! So full of detail. And I like the changes for this final version. I do find the more blue tint to the image interesting, it definitely changes the feel, but if that's the mood you prefer there's certainly nothing wrong with it. It's beautiful regardless. 

Congrats on the end of a real journey here! Just think of how much you've learned. I'm looking forward to seeing what you do next.

- Oshyan

[WAS]

Fantastic work! Love it. The trees are lit very well I must add as well. And all the little touches with the objects really breath life into the whole scene.

[sboerner]

I do find the more blue tint to the image interesting, it definitely changes the feel, but if that's the mood you prefer there's certainly nothing wrong with it.

Thanks, Oshyan. The blue tint struck me too. At some point I had set the Redsky decay value much higher (when I was using early morning light) and had forgotten about it. I rediscovered it before making this rendering and reset it to the default (2.5). With that change and the new clouds everything took on a much more intense blue-sky cast. Maybe a Redsky value higher than 2.5 is called for to neutralize those whites. (Or just deal with it in Lightroom.)

And yep, I learned a ton.

Fantastic work! Love it. The trees are lit very well I must add as well. And all the little touches with the objects really breath life into the whole scene.

Thanks, Jordan. Appreciate it. The path tracer does a great job with the foliage.