I'm working on a cool tree. The Bristle Pine.
This will be very detailed with cones.
The needle images will take some time to clip and create the alpha. There will be two needle images and one bark. I may do a separate branch image.
The is just a test image. There is still a lot of work to do.
Marc
this will be really cool, provided the needles are geometry. That would be best (quality wise).
Just today I looked at a reference image I'm using and there's a tree like this one in the foreground (or a similar tree at least), and I thought it would be nice if I had one of these :)
Cheers,
Frank
Is this the Bristlecone Pine? In which case, it's going to be very useful for mountain renders, since they grow up to 3350 m.
The 'Bristlecone Pine' is among the oldest living conifers in the USA. And, it is a very picturesque plant. Those trees with a buttressed base trunk are usually very old with their exposed roots running horizontal along the ground. We see this also with the Olive tree. Marc, you are doing very fine work here.
Bob
Bob,
Excellent picture. This tree has so many looks to it due to it's long life.
Thanks,
Marc
Quote from: MGebhart on February 02, 2010, 07:38:24 PM
Bob,
Excellent picture. This tree has so many looks to it due to it's long life.
Thanks,
Marc
You're welcome Marc. Yes, the dead wood and wide base add to the tree's artistic attributes. In southeastern Utah, you'll discover the 'Pygmy Forest' consisting of both Pinon Pine and Junipers (the natives call them Cedars) where you find many of each plant that has survived hundreds of years; yet, some are only three to four feet tall. The interesting thing is their weathered, twisted and gnarled trunks and buttressed bases with their roots radiating in a number of directions. These and the Bristlecone Pine make interesting models for our use; and, for those in the 'bonsai' hobby.
Bob
Here is a new trunk and branches image. I left the roots out since I don't have them made right. Also, ignore the texture.
Marc
That is looking mighty fine Marc. The combination of varies shades of gray and tan on the main trunk work well. And, the complex branching is very good.
Looking great, this is just the kind of tree I need for many of my projects. Look forward to the final product
Mick
that is going to be one gnarly tree, Marc...looking real nice so far!
I think I have the texture right.
Marc
That looks very nice. Now if you could get the roots and the cones up to the standard of the rest of it, it would be fantastic! (No pressure ;))
Whew! That is one gnarly tree. Looks really awesome. This will make Vue people sing the blues!
xFrog Image.
what a great tree
david
Update of trunk with twist modifier.
Marc
Looks very intriguing.
excellent
are you using the crookedness setting or the screw one
folder
I exported the trunk out of xFrog and imported into 3DS MAX. I think this can be done in xFrog using deformations but, I haven't played with that part of the program yet.
Marc
I'm working on the tree in Zbrush to create displacements maps. This will not be the final displacement but, I wanted to show you some of the steps involved in creating the Bristle Pine in High Resolution.
The Zbrush model is 3,460,000 polygons. YIKES!
Marc
Mark, this is looking super. Many of the trunks of ancient, weathered, living conifers throughout Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Nevada and California look like this ...great work you are doing here.
Bob
Wow - looking forward to the hi-res version even more!
Nice work, Marc. Great trunk. Do you export as obj from XFrog into ZBrush, and what about leaves, are they still there when you do so? And can you import such a trunk into XFrog again to add leaves or branches?
In XFrog you can do some twisting and bending (with 'patch' just before your trunk, the edit the 'patch'), but it's tricky.
---Dune
This is looking really good. Are you going to do a couple more variations? I would definitely get this from the NWDA Store. 8)
Superb your best yet. Can't wait until it's done
Mick
@Dune,
Zbrush is used to import an obj from xFrog then create high res mesh. I use alpha images to apply displacement. Once you are happy with the displacement you then export a high res image map of the displacement. You do not use the mesh from Zbrush. The Zbrush model is around 3 million polygons. You also have the option to polypaint a texture as well and export. Only the trunk and branches are imported into Zbrush. The model used in Terragen is the one you create in Xfrog with the applied displacement and texture maps.
@Henry,
There will be 3 variations of the Bristle Pine.
Here is the final texture with Zbrush generated displacement.
These are the programs in order of use:
Xfrog
3DS MAX
Zbrush
PoseRay
Terragen 2
Marc
Wow again! What a complex workflow - shows your dedication to a fantastic result (although I see you don't reveal the roots - are you still working on them?)
I'm worling on the root system.
Marc
Thanks for the explanation, Marc. Still, I think this can be done in XFrog only. I might have a try at such a tree as well. In fact, I have been working on a typically Dutch tree, a 'knotwilg' (shortened willow?). Hollowed on one side, crooked, with a thick top where all new branches explode from. I'll post some day...
---Dune
Marc these are looking really really good!
Quote from: Dune on February 10, 2010, 02:20:32 AM
Thanks for the explanation, Marc. Still, I think this can be done in XFrog only. I might have a try at such a tree as well. In fact, I have been working on a typically Dutch tree, a 'knotwilg' (shortened willow?). Hollowed on one side, crooked, with a thick top where all new branches explode from. I'll post some day...
---Dune
and Dune, when I was living in the Netherlands I saw some really strange trees, mainly in cities DenHaag & Rotterdam where the branches are restrained along one axis, keeping the avenue nice and neat..'echt nederlandse'!
Great work Marc!
@Dune,
No doubt. I have been using MAX and Zbrush for some time and I'm already familiar with the software. I have yet completely discovered all the features in xFrog. Finding good tutorials is rare.
Marc
New Image with second version. Still tweaking.
Marc
I think the correct term is "gnarly".
Yes, it be.
Marc
The more I look, the more excited I become ...Marc, these are just what we need. You might consider having a few of the needle clusters a dry (tan.gray) color. And, a few downward pointing branches would put the icing on the cake (the ones closest to the lower part of the trunk would be the heaviest). Those extended roots are looking real fin.
One more thought Marc; there is a book/manual written and illustrated by 'John Naka' on his 'bonsai'. If you ever get a chance, have a look at it. His work is known worldwide. In addition to photographs, he has many drawn images of his projects - these would serve as a great guide for modeling trees. You'l find some there that look like your models.
Bob
Bob,
Thank you for the suggestions and recommendations. I'll try the needle clusters in a dry (tan.gray) color. This will most likely make the tree more natural and provide character.
This has been a fun project and I have discovered some new ways of enhancing the trees without increasing the poly count. I hope to have the third variation done today and post it by Saturday.
I think I will start a new tree that will be native to Europe. Some of the members have provided image samples of some nice big ones. I will research this this weekend.
Thanks for your participation in this thread.
Marc
NOTE: Here is a variation with some dead needles. I'll droop the branches on version 1.
Final.
Marc
Nice render Marc. I like your image better than my version. Fantastic tree!
Thanks Henry,
There will be two version but, you can configure them many ways. Example: with all green needles, mix dead and green needles, sparse needles, mix and match bark and branch textures and so on. It should be versatile. I will include the obj file so people can manipulate the geometry. Add more branches and roots and such.
Marc
Marc, these are fine examples of what we need to add a certain specialness to our images. I truly appreciate what you've done here.
You are all very welcome.
I will do a couple more tests from different angles and release it sometime tomorrow afternoon. Also, add a text file on how to configure it for different looks. Should be fun.
Marc
superb trees an a great example of what can be done. Look forward to using these.
Different configurations.
Marc
They all look very good! Nice work, 8)
Marc, all of the configurations are looking superb ...excellent work on this project!
The degree of flexibility is very impressive.
Great work, Marc, they look stunning.
---Dune