Part three of the book; a celtic field setting, first croptest on final resolution (will be 3-4x smaller in book). The whole image is 6-7 times as wide as this. I need to add a lot more tree species, get the fields to look convincing and fill the homesteads with the right buildings and stuff. Perhaps the POV will be shifted to include a small creek and passing place up front.
Fields are flax, some wheat, some bare.
That is quite something vast you have there. Maybe the trees are too uniform in gap size and perhaps add a few trees that are dead or just less leaves but I do not know if that is possible.
I like the sound of "first crop test" in the context of "celtic filed setting" ;)
Great Project by the way!
Cheers,
J
That is all possible, but like I said, this was the first test, and a lot of trees will be added, and the distribution finetuned. Some dead trees wil get in too, thanks for reminding me anyway.
brilliant....love that long house you've made. the field dividers are perfect as well...just build ups of dirt....
Great!! Even without knowing that it was you, who created that, I would have spotted immediately that this is a "Glimmerveen"! ;)
I like this one a lot as well.
Only thing that I questioned was the very distant horizon. Just curious if there is such a flat place covering such a distance that you would be able to see a flat horizon line like that. If so great, if not, then what is likely to be there?
Yes, I sometimes get sick of these flat horizons, but we have no mountains, just a few hills in the south (300m), and this area is not undulating more than 20m. Makes it hard to make an interesting horizon line, I know.
Yes, the "flat horizon" question comes up a lot for poor Ulco, hehe. He must be a slave to realism quite often, whereas many of the rest of us can embellish if we don't like a terrain for artistic reasons alone. :D
- Oshyan
Thanks for your consideration, I'm really to be pitied :(
Maybe some low vapor again... or breakup the tree coverage (if that's scientifically correct), we'll see. Here's some more tests, slowly building up the contents, and noticing that I forgot an alpha mask to be checked.
I realize this will be printed and thus seen not at 100%, but at 25% max size, so I won't bother with grasses. Though seen at 100% the ground doesn't look really good.
Crits are welcome of course!!
Added another detail. I changed the POV so a small stream is visible in front. They might like that, though you're further away from the farms now. Have to work on that area...
Impressive Ulco! Did you refer to these three white spots in your Test-10 image when you wrote that you forgot to enable the alpha?
I like those closeups Ulco.
I already love it. Just great, plausible and realistic look!
Little suggestion: perhaps some plow grooves the unplanted farmlands?
Awesome Ulco !
@ Hannes; yes. It was the cutoff end of a branch that has a tif as texture, but I added an alpha mask (which is not needed), but needs to be checked nonetheless.
@Nils; good idea, but I have to research how these Iron Age people plowed. They might already have had some wooden thing and an oxen. If they did by hand it's less logical.
Seems to me to need paths actually leading to the fields. All the paths visible go past fields but not to them. It's really obvious to me at least, in the large view where you see all the fields. And that stream seems more like a river in width. Could use a bridge of some kind.
The color of those gray-blue fields seems odd to me. What are they? Clay-heavy soil? Some kind of plant?
- Oshyan
The stream is 5m wide (measured it), at the front will be a 'voorde', shallow passing area. Bridges were not 'invented' back then I guess. Bottom will be sandy, but the whole stream area will be different I just heard. I know about the paths, but the main (passing by) paths will be travelled more frequently and thus clear of grass, the paths leading to the fields might be more overgrown, as they weren't used very often.
The bluish fields are flaxen (but I still have to refine the colors): https://www.google.nl/search?q=flax&client=firefox-a&hs=5Ms&rls=org.mozilla:nl:official&channel=sb&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=rsSCVNzaBoWxUbyFgtgP&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1920&bih=1081#rls=org.mozilla:nl:official&channel=sb&tbm=isch&q=flaxfield (https://www.google.nl/search?q=flax&client=firefox-a&hs=5Ms&rls=org.mozilla:nl:official&channel=sb&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=rsSCVNzaBoWxUbyFgtgP&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1920&bih=1081#rls=org.mozilla:nl:official&channel=sb&tbm=isch&q=flaxfield)
It's this area and POV actually, if you look carefully there's still a trace to be seen of the old fields in today's meadows.
D'oh, of course there were no bridges yet they lived in mud constructs...I'm guessing a a 'voorde' is what's called a 'ford' in English and by gum you can see a bit of the old. You are blessed to live where you can see man's passing in the ground all the way back to then. Gotcha on the small paths.
For the time being this will be the prelude to the final image, in terms of layout. Vegetation colors mostly need to be adjusted to July still. Fall colors out, then more detail in the homesteads.
What a masterpiece! You really managed to make the horizon look kind of natural now although it's absolutely flat.
As Hannes said: absolutely masterpiece!
The before unplanted farmlands is fallow land now? Looks like the perfect solution.
I could watch it for hours!
Quote from: Hannes on December 07, 2014, 05:24:26 AM
What a masterpiece! You really managed to make the horizon look kind of natural now although it's absolutely flat.
It's kinda like that here in the Canadian Prairies....so to me it seems totally natural/real. Great work Ulco, like the solution to the creek/stream as well.
Looks excellent.
- Oshyan
Too bad guys, it's far to wooded I heard. Needed more heathland, opener stream area. So there goes the beautiful image. Here's another try... curious what they'll say now.
I actually like this version even better. Shows the lovely ground textures off well and is likely more like it was then when they were burning and building with a fair bit of the forest.
The new one's not bad either. Maybe the stream needs a little bit of shore, or different underwater texturing? Some fake stones in the "stream bed"?
- Oshyan
I can look at what you've done here for hours; masterful indeed!
No stones in the stream, this is Holland, remember! It's supposed to be a slow moving stream through boglike 'valley', so it might even need areas that stream unseen, i.e. covered by vegetation, or the stream decreased to a very thin line. I have to check again. I can't wait to render this in high resolution at 8400px wide, that'll be something. But I have to add detail still and not make any mistakes, like at the 2 top arrows. I had the maps repeated to get some patches of heather beyond the principle mapped area, but the field 'walls' are repeated too, so I have to map that out again, or something (or just do a little post). The lower arrow points to a 'hunebed', which unfortunately is rather distant and thus hardly visible.
I doubt that anyone here would have seen these "mistakes"! :)
In your "...concept 2" image the less dense vegetation looks really good, but to me there should be a bit more clumping or a few more species towards the horizon. It somehow looks more empty than the foreground.
That is because the foreground are 2 old streambeds, the front one still running, the one behind the fields is a bog with accompanying shrub and trees, further away it's slightly higher and dryer ground (Drents Plateau), and I was told it was steppe-like with occasional trees. So I have to check whether they were solitary trees or vegetation 'clumps'.
I'm a perfectionist, so every 'mistake' bothers me, and is a challenge to get rid of. But of course, there's a limit ;)
Still, you've got to be pleased with this last image. There is some thing about the light that draws one in ...beautiful.
They got better and better. Some very cool stuff in each one.
Part of the stream and surrounding area; internal grass. And a house being built.
Nice. I like the first where the stream crosses the road. And the tree colors on the lower right is very good.
Good stuff, I like the stream/road treatment and that 'under construction' could also be a burnt out frame...hee hee hee...always the mischievious lil boy coming to my surface.
Yes, I used a burnt out frame before, so they might like that idea. Get some flames and smoke in and show the perils of past time.
This is excellent work Dune. Your historical stuff is without equal.
Thanks Mick.
Small crop. Added some lopoly folk on the road.
Quote from: Dune on December 21, 2014, 11:43:00 AM
Small crop. Added some lopoly folk on the road.
Impressive stuff! Just love it :D
Details abound; this is very good.
Do I spot some of the xoio guys amongst the lopo people? ;D 8)
Just keeps gettin better. I especially like the roof texture, never noticed that before. And in Medieval times weren't all people lopoly?
I find the new lighting and the color variation on the trees to be *extremely* effective Ulco. Very nice indeed. Looking forward to seeing it at higher detail and resolution.
- Oshyan
Well, the whole thing is going to be rendered at 8640px wide, so it'll be quite nice, I think. Still in discussion with the scientists about the exact width of bog, stream and treecover in the distance. They all have different opinions, which makes it a tough and slow commission.
Yeah, Bobby, people didn't get highpoly until the mid '50's I suppose, and now they're degrading again ;)
No XOIO guys, just 2 DAZ people (hardly worth all the polys) and 4 types of very lopoly homecooked specimen. I will add one or two more, I think, but don't want it overcrowded.
Quote from: Dune on December 22, 2014, 03:30:06 AM
Yeah, Bobby, people didn't get highpoly until the mid '50's I suppose, and now they're degrading again ;)
Heh heh heh, I Blame txtng and I calls 'em GENTXT ::)
Quote from: Dune on December 11, 2014, 11:59:07 AM
Part of the stream and surrounding area; internal grass. And a house being built.
Second image: "Get your stinkin' paws off me you damned dirty ape!"
Haha, these area really nice. Love the grasses, though I think they're missing any sort of wild flowers. Maybe even add some more lush colors to the grasses around the water-sources like IRL.
Quote from: WASasquatch on December 22, 2014, 12:50:29 PM
Quote from: Dune on December 11, 2014, 11:59:07 AM
Part of the stream and surrounding area; internal grass. And a house being built.
Second image: "Get your stinkin' paws off me you damned dirty ape!"
Haha, these area really nice. Love the grasses, though I think they're missing any sort of wild flowers. Maybe even add some more lush colors to the grasses around the water-sources like IRL.
"Get your stinkin' paws off me you damned dirty ape!" hee hee hee...re: flowers, Dune is working to spec for an era and they may not be appropriate.
I wait full of anticipation for the final overall picture...
Amazing detail Ulco !
A lot of work in there and it shows !
Excellent in all respects !
Paul
I can't show the final here, as 1. NDA, and 2. very big!
But the result is stunning (if I may say so myself). Rendered at 0.8 and AA8, with soft shadows, at a resolution of 8400px wide, and back within a few hours from Pixelplow. Same with the other 2 renders for this book; Glacial and the Primeval Forest scene. Can't show them either.
So here's a thumbs up for Pixelplow; it really is worthwhile to send your stuff up, especially if you have a lazy machine, or only one fast one (like me). Before stills were difficult, because the GI prepass couldn't be done by them, but now nothing more is needed than a good file, and specified what you want to get, in the output image file name. Super!
Quote from: Dune on January 15, 2015, 11:03:03 AM
I can't show the final here, as 1. NDA, and 2. very big!
But the result is stunning (if I may say so myself). Rendered at 0.8 and AA8, with soft shadows, at a resolution of 8400px wide, and back within a few hours from Pixelplow. Same with the other 2 renders for this book; Glacial and the Primeval Forest scene. Can't show them either.
So here's a thumbs up for Pixelplow; it really is worthwhile to send your stuff up, especially if you have a lazy machine, or only one fast one (like me). Before stills were difficult, because the GI prepass couldn't be done by them, but now nothing more is needed than a good file, and specified what you want to get, in the output image file name. Super!
Well that's a great plug for the plow...I may well be planning some larger stuff in the near future hearing that. I'll wait till the book hits my library to see the pics. Can you divulge the book's title so I can watch for it?
They've not decided on the title yet, but I doubt it'll be in the US or even outside our little country. It's a very local riversystem that is going to be described indepth (500 pages, 24x32cm book). But I thought they were going to make marketing posters from my renders, and they might well be available somewhere.
Quote from: Dune on January 16, 2015, 03:42:25 AM
They've not decided on the title yet, but I doubt it'll be in the US or even outside our little country. It's a very local riversystem that is going to be described indepth (500 pages, 24x32cm book). But I thought they were going to make marketing posters from my renders, and they might well be available somewhere.
Still it might just turn up in the Geography Dept. at the University of Manitoba. University libraries often have books, in my experience researching oddities, that you can't find anywhere else. Crossing my fingers on the poster though. It'd look really good on my wall.
They ordered a 8400 pix picture for a book like that? ???
That is a poster size image...hmmm
Fold out page, so total will be 72 cm wide @ 300dpi.
Quote from: Dune on January 17, 2015, 03:14:20 AM
Fold out page, so total will be 72 cm wide @ 300dpi.
I see...then it makes senses.