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I want to start modelling......

Bone said:
My hat is off to you Cag40Navy, and to all of the rest of you Poly Masters. Don't forget how important Placards are when you build your models.

5840_115331603646_548613646_2374827.jpg
Click to expand...

Now that is a... um.. gland placcard!

:kilroy: :isadizzy:



By the way, for those starting out making new planes, here is a cool tip. Make your placcards as seperate floating polygon rectangles that hover over objects. This way, you can map them with high detail from another 'placcard sheet' (texture) and make them very readable. This way they dont have to be micro small a large texture sheet. Also, with practice in learning your graphics, you can replicate placcards easily, and add some smudges and scratches and niches and things for realism.
 
Lionheart said:
Now that is a... um.. gland placcard!

:kilroy: :isadizzy:



By the way, for those starting out making new planes, here is a cool tip. Make your placcards as seperate floating polygon rectangles that hover over objects. This way, you can map them with high detail from another 'placcard sheet' (texture) and make them very readable. This way they dont have to be micro small a large texture sheet. Also, with practice in learning your graphics, you can replicate placcards easily, and add some smudges and scratches and niches and things for realism.
Click to expand...

That's a main-gear strut of a B-727, looking a bit worse for wear.
 
I make my placards like LH says, even the PPP data plate, custom for each plane. Placards can be quite interesting when different languages are involved!
 
Here are a couple of more tips.

1. Learn to make your Mesh as basic as possible. Do not go overkill on Polygons. It can slow down your models performance in a sim. With FS2004, you actually had a limit, so you had to watch your poly counts. You also couldnt put Vertices too close together or they welded. With FSX, you dont need to worry about that. So you can make some cool, nice parts that are really small.

2. Learn texturing. Try to use real textures when you can, such as photos of tires, switches, things like that. Textures will totally make your work. Check out how others do theirs, like Carenado. Theirs are always photo real, like a photograph both inside and out, mapped to a nice Mesh model.

Learn all you can about textures and layers and shading and things. It will really pay off for you.

Note; Many modellers do not have to do textures themselves. Some painters will join up with modellers and work as a coop and create the planes, so that is a option for you if you really dont painting your own planes. I do as I was an artist for a while, so I understand shading, highlighting, and things like that. Sometimes model makers, (like draftsmen), do not always have the artist side also, which you can work around..


Also, its fun to put in some lite funny stuff now and then. :d


Bill
 
I would have to dissagree on the use of real photos as textures.
The "pre-baked" highlights make for a nice stillife but look just wrong in realtime, plus turn it as you want you won't produce a "Gesamtkunstwerk" using this method, just a piecemeal were every part looks as if it wouldn't share the same space as it's surroundings.
There are better methods today to produce realistic surfaces such as procedural 3d maps along with physically correct lighting scenes.
You guess it, talking about texture baking.
 
Mathias said:
I would have to dissagree on the use of real photos as textures.
Click to expand...

Me too.

Especially when you've got only limited resources on your fingertips (say internet) it's difficult do get photoreality.

You can just be as fine off with the right use of texture creation techniques, like you said baking or just simply by applying the right filters.

Yet, as long as it fits well into the FSX world in terms of appearance just do whatever floats your boat.
 
A couple of observations...

First, FSX doesn't really seem to care about how many polys you use. It's how you use your materials & textures that matters. Learn about "Draw Calls" :kilroy:

Second, while I agree that texture baking is the way to go remember that it's not an option for us lowly Gmax types :d

Some good stuff being posted here :applause:
 
N2056 said:
Felix...
He is not ready to get into "_ _ _" features! :icon_lol:
Click to expand...


Ahh yes. I was getting ahead of the game. Said features can only be attempted when you have attained the &th level of flightsim modelling. It is not for the faint of heart (or serious of mind).
 
Hey All,

Once again I need to Thank all of you. Every so often this I want to model thread shows up and it is almost always about the time I start thinking about clicking on the GMAX shortcut on my desktop. Luckily there is enough discussion about how hard and complex it is that I'm "cured" till next time.

This time it was a bit worse as I even installed sketchup as an easier start to see if I could get into it and then convert the model to GMAX through the Google Earth file route I read about somewhere. I was even foolishly thinking about starting with something as innocous as a tractor (Case CVX) for a farming sim I play before trying an airplane. However I am now "cured" again - for awhile.

I certainly appreciate all that you poly pushers do! :medals: Maybe I should try to figure out some XML programming or something instead.

-Ed-
 
Piglet said:
These are before they get shrunk down into "greek" sizing.
Click to expand...

lolol...

:ernae:

One of the wild features of one of the Eaglesoft Jets is that if you hit the landing gear knob on the ground, a voice says, 'The next time you do that, the FAA is going to be knocking on your door!' Figure the level of sophistication to get a gauge and sound system to have a voice tell you that, lol...
 
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