Impression of Dugway

[fleetwood]

An impression from about 45 years ago when I drove near Dugway Proving grounds in northern Utah. It was probably the most eerie desolate looking area I've ever seen. There was even less plant growth than I have shown here. The mountains seemed ominous, huge, and devoid of life. I wasn't about to get off my motorcycle and hike since this was about the time local ranchers reported many dead sheep nearby and suspected nerve gas or something similar had escaped the confines of the range.

The terrain is Terragen erosion, this time with some added heightfield curve vertical glaciation. I used 6000 by 6000 points for the starting heightfield which may be too many for the 10000 by 10000 area and may account for the resulting grain in the distant hillsides.

Plants from T3 pack, Mr. Lampost, Mandrake, xfrog.

[N-drju]

Actually the heightfield grain here is quite photogenic. But that's only my opinion.

I'd cut down on clouds so that it looks really hot and dry. Not like it's about to rain.

[Dune]

Nice. Three comments, if you like: I'd add more (or larger) sandgrain or very small pebbles between the larger ones, and I would try adding a fractal warp shader, you can achieve some additional erosion. And I'd say a little more color variation (subtle) wouldn't be too bad.

[fleetwood]

I hoped the admittedly unlikely extra clouds that never drop any rain might add to the ominous otherworldly quality I remember.
Probably my sand grains are too small. There are two different colored sand layers at the moment but I think they are too small to be visible as grains currently or the layers are too broken up in the foreground. The small rocks need some work. The very bland resulting terrain color is composed of the base and four surface color layers, but they are getting overly homogenized I guess. I may try this again but it was a very long render.

[choronr]

I like this. Maybe try to increase the diffuse color of the plants; and, employ clumping of them - plus, a greater size range like 1/1.7.

Been to Utah many times but in the Grand Circle area starting at Blanding and on up to Moab. Makes me sometimes feel I'm on a different planet.

[fleetwood]

A few tweaks later :

[choronr]

That is much better. The texture of the foreground rock is excellent. The entire image is pleasing.

[otakar]

Yeah, really good and I have to comment on the quality of the rock as well. Exceptional. Certainly improved over the original image.

[kalwalt]

i like very much, the quality of the rock is impressive!

[Dune]

Agreed, it's a big change. I presume the rocks are a population (or 2), not fake stones?

[TheBadger]

I presume the rocks are a population (or 2), not fake stones?

Please tell me they are fake stones! Also, I would like to see that render node of yours!

[alessandro]

Great stones!

[masonspappy]

Great stones!

Ditto

[fleetwood]

Thanks for the comments.

All the stones are fake stones. There are six sizes. The biggest are 5m size but they are offset negatively at one point making them a little smaller. They use small voronoi 3d noise patterns to give the grain texture and various power fractals for color and displacements plus pretty standard warped voronoi cracks.

Images of the 5m stone node set up and the look of the texture from the voronoi noise.

[Dune]

What's the idea behind using a PF feeding into the first position of the voro diff node? And not a get position...