I've been using Cinena 4D for the past few days to create some rudimentary ships and planets to create scense in which I later add stars using Appleworks.

I've been wondering, however, how certain things are achieved with 3D programs. Chiefly, these are

- clouds, nebulei and other hazy features. I can make haze, but I can't get it to look like a nebula or anything other than a primitive object.

- finer detailing on ships (i.e. vents, windows, grills, gratings, indentations, etc.)

- "good" textures that don't look canned and don't look like polished down metals (which is basically what my ships look like as of now). Stuff that adds dirt-like effects and such.

- and anyone using Cinema 4D, if you could tell me exactly how to apply textures to selections (I've been playing around with this, trying to create doors and windows, but it never works the way the manual describes and I end up cutting a portion of the ship out and making a small object inside to add the transparency to).

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When viewing a Terrapin for the first time, I realized that anything flies-if you throw it hard enough!

1:to make a nebula i suggest using differnet lights if close up...if far away...make a nebula picture and put it in as an background...

2:Use texturing for windows...you can put a differnt texture to each polygon on your model... select the polygons you want the texture to apply to...chose set selection...make a name for teh selection..like "1"
apply the material/texture you want..and restrict it to selection "1"

other fine detailing made by extruding objects...or by using primitives...or by texturing...no real answer depends on how far away you are going to render teh ship etc.

3:make a bump map and some texture yourself....put down the specularity,this is what causes the "polished down metals" look...if you add reflection use an environmental map...i´m going to post a model on the image gallery soon...uses heavy anvironmental maps and textures...generally playing around with the material manager helps a lot..

use teh texture tools to move the textures around....have no other tip...texturing is DIFFICULT

4:explained above... if you don´t get it...i´ll take it step by step and with pictures if you want...

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And then there were silence.................

1. I want the ship to interact with the nebula, like it's flying through a cloud or something similar. As a background, it'll just be like wallpaper under the ship.

2. For some resaon, the "restrict to selection" feature doesn't work when I use it in Cinema 4D. I followed the manual's instructions to the letter (I generated a set, applied a relfelctive tinted window texture to it and made sure I restricted it to the right selection, but it didn't work). The other method (generate UVW (I think it's UVW anyway) coordinates) doesn't work either.

3. First off, what is a "bump map" and how would I make one, or a texture? I know how to use specularity as well as the basics of the rest of the texture manager in C4D — I make it reflective because I can't make any other kinds of textures. And how do I use an enviromental map?

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When viewing a Terrapin for the first time, I realized that anything flies-if you throw it hard enough!

Try to look on google or somewhere, this is not the best place to ask for texture info.

Here's an excellent link about how to make good textures, but not quite the most beginner thing... (url="http://"http://leigh.cgcommunity.com/tutorials.htm")http://leigh.cgcommu...m/tutorials.htm(/url)

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skeptic

Quote

Originally posted by Zzap212:
**1. I want the ship to interact with the nebula, like it's flying through a cloud or something similar. As a background, it'll just be like wallpaper under the ship.

2. For some resaon, the "restrict to selection" feature doesn't work when I use it in Cinema 4D. I followed the manual's instructions to the letter (I generated a set, applied a relfelctive tinted window texture to it and made sure I restricted it to the right selection, but it didn't work). The other method (generate UVW (I think it's UVW anyway) coordinates) doesn't work either.

3. First off, what is a "bump map" and how would I make one, or a texture? I know how to use specularity as well as the basics of the rest of the texture manager in C4D — I make it reflective because I can't make any other kinds of textures. And how do I use an enviromental map?

**

1. never tried...so can´t really help...try using lights and noise....maybe an obje with an alpha map or transperency map

2. you may have another texture on top...to fix this move your window texture as far to the right as possible...in the object manager....and the name of the texture and the restrict to selection has to be the same has to be the same...

3 a bump map: a map in greys which define heights and lows...white is highest black is lowest...
An environmental map: a fake reflection in a way...lets say you have a terrain on the background...and your obj is reflective....tthe background won´t apply to the reflection..so you take the background picture and use it as an environmantal map faking the reflection....

alpha map: white part of the texture shows the black does not...greys are partially transparent

and you are best of making your textures in photoshop....if they should apply to an entire object use the offset filter in photoshop so that there will be no seams...

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And then there were silence.................

Interaction with a nebula is a tall order. While I suppose you could do this with LW (it would be a pain, but perhaps possible with HV emmiters, colisions and attractors), the only way I know to do it well would be with fluidics (I am assuming that you want the nebula gasses to flow and curl arround the ship as it passes thru them). I don't believe that C4D can do this, so baring a purchase of a diferent product I don't believe that you can do this.
Joe

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"Life is tough, but it's even tougher when you're stupid."
-John Wayne

Add the swirls later in Photoshop.

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Quote

Originally posted by modesty_blaise_us:
**3 a bump map: a map in greys which define heights and lows...white is highest black is lowest...
**

Well that doesn't make much sense to me. Surely a better way to describe a bump map is to day that it defines three-dimensionality of a texture, telling the renderer where to have indentations or protrusions on a geometrically otherwise smooth surface. ie: you could have windows that are indented without modelling them, gaps between plates of metal, gratings and all sorts of things.

They're an essential part to realistic graphics. To quote Meowx: "If you want it to look real, give it a bump map. If you want it to look real, give it a bump map. If you want it to look real, give it a bump map."

I think he was right, personally.

~A~

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"How can I make it go faster?" -Me-

Quote

Originally posted by Azdara:
**Well that doesn't make much sense to me. Surely a better way to describe a bump map is to day that it defines three-dimensionality of a texture, telling the renderer where to have indentations or protrusions on a geometrically otherwise smooth surface. ie: you could have windows that are indented without modelling them, gaps between plates of metal, gratings and all sorts of things.

They're an essential part to realistic graphics. To quote Meowx: "If you want it to look real, give it a bump map. If you want it to look real, give it a bump map. If you want it to look real, give it a bump map."

I think he was right, personally.

~A~

**

My english isn´t really good enough to explain somthing like that..so thanks for making it more understandable...

though don´t use a colored image as a bump map...i have some bad experience with that..

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And then there were silence.................