"Array"
The most important element in this image is the DPS (Duplicated
Primitive Symmetrical) Satellite, so lets get started. The top of
the satellite consists of two crosshair-like sections and a dish.
Start with a torus radius set at 55. Turn it horizontally using the
blue horizon line for alignment. Next create a cylinder, resizing
it slightly thinner than the torus. Turn it horizontally, and
stretch the cylinder so that each end protrudes a little from the
torus. Duplicate this cylinder and rotate it on the Y-axis,
centering it to the torus to make the first crosshair shape. Make
sure there is space left on the end of each cylinder. Next,
creating the fuel cells at the tip of each cylinder. First, create
a cube, and flatten it to approximately the same size as the torus.
Move this flatten cube on the end of one of the cylinders; this
will be the mount for the first fuel cell. Create another sphere,
the same size as the square, and place it on the flattened cube.
Duplicate the sphere, and resize to the original size. Move it to
the top, aligning it about halfway out of the top of the sphere.
Make one sphere protrude out of each part of the sphere (top,
bottom, left, and right). Group the flattened cube and all of the
spheres together and name it cell. Duplicate the cell and place one
on each end of the two cylinders. This will create a symmetrical
crosshair object. Group this together and name it top section.
Create a cylinder with a slightly larger width than the first
cylinders, and place it at the center of the crosshair. Stretch it
on the Y-axis so that it rises above the top-section and goes below
it as well. This will be the main shaft that will hold up the dish,
and connect the other parts of the satellite. Duplicate the torus
and turn it horizontal making it slightly thinner and smaller than
the original one. Create a cylinder smaller then the torus, and
turn it horizontally. Center it to the torus, stretching it to
protrude from the edges.
[Note: if you resize and move your objects by clicking on and
moving them, or using the small black dots in each corner, then I
strongly suggest you use the reposition and resize buttons under
the edit menu. Simply by clicking on the middle of the resize
button and dragging, you can resize the object without taking it
off-center, and therefore making a more aligned and symmetrical
image. Its a good habit to get into!] Duplicate the cylinder you
just made, and rotate it 90 degrees. This becomes the second
crosshair shape. Group the 2 cylinders and 1 torus together and
name it bottom section. Place it below the top section, and center
it to the shaft made earlier. You should now have something that
looks like a space-age spindle.
Making the radar-dish is fairly easy. If you are using Bryce 5,
there should be a bowl preset under the create > menu,
otherwise, you can make a simple bowl shape out of a negative
flattened sphere and a slightly larger positive sphere. Flatten the
bowl shape until it looks like a radar dish, and name it dish. Move
it over the shaft of the top and bottom section. resizing to the
same size as the top section torus. Resize the shaft to protrude
from the top of the dish. To give an extra level of detail, add a
flattened cylinder to the inside of the radar dish at the end of
the shaft. That finishes the hardest part of the modeling, now onto
the modeling the main compartment of the DPS satellite. This
section holds the solar panes in place, and balances out the model.
The basic structure of the compartment is extremely simple. First,
make a six-sided column, located in the preset create menu under
imported objects. Resize to make it as long as the top section,
bottom section, and radar dish combined (make it the same radius as
the bottom torus). Make sure the shaft connecting all the parts of
the satellite is long enough to connect the main compartment.
Reposition the compartment so that it is centered on the end of the
shaft. You should now see the basic shape of the satellite taking
form!
Before creating and connecting the solar panels, the main
compartment needs to be expanded to add more detail. Select and
duplicate the compartment. Using the resize button under the edit
menu, reduce it to the size of the original. (Once again,
clicking in the middle of the resize button and dragging makes this
part easier!) Stretch the column down on the Y-axis, so it
protrudes from the bottom of the main compartment. Duplicate the
smaller column, flatten it on the Y-axis, then move it to the end
of the protruding column.
Now, on to the solar panels, starting with the main mount for the
solar panels, under the create presets menu, select the object
called organic Boolean #6. Create this object and turn it on its
side. Create a cube, and flatten it from the side. Stretch the
flatten cube until it takes the shape of a solar panel! Place this
on the center of the organic Boolean. Group these 2 and name it
solar panel. Place this on any of the sides of the main
compartment. Make sure the solar panel and the mount are
perpendicular to the rest of the satellite. Duplicate the solar
panel group. Rotate, and place it on the opposite side, facing the
opposite direction. Congratulations, you finished modeling the
satellite!
The easy part comes next, which is deciding the tone and color for
the image. For the background, I set the sky to the preset star
field, with the amount of stars turned to 3,500, and the intensity
set to 50. I also added the Accurate Starfield by Wolfie, from
Renderositys Free Stuff, to give a believable space background.
The lighting is next. I added 2 radial lights in front of the
satellite, both with an intensity of 46. The color of the planet
that the satellite is near depends on the color of the radial
lights. I used a red/orange tone, thinking of Jupiter or Mars.
Group the radial lights and the satellite name it satellite. Rotate
and reposition the satellite, keeping in mind that if it is
floating in space, then its not going to be perfectly straight.
Duplicate the satellite group and move it further away from your
view. To avoid the new the cut and paste look, position the second
satellite differently than the first. Duplicate the original
satellite group again, and move it closer to your view. Once again,
reposition it so it looks different than the others. The last step
is texturing. The textures I used were from http://Shaderlab.com,
although any mechanical/robotic textures will do. It was a lot of
fun making and modeling this image, and even better was showing how
I did it, so thanks for reading and happy rendering!
####
Who is woodhurst:
My name is Jordan Speer, Im 16 years old and Ive been working in
3d art for almost 2 years now, but Ive only discovered Renderosity
and grown in the past year. I find inspiration mainly from movies
and books, and a lot from the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and the
artists who have interpreted his world. I also find inspiration
from the artists here at Renderosity, from the forums to the
galleries. Im also trying to keep up with my 2d art, hoping to
take what I have learned from 3d art and apply it into other
mediums, and visa-versa. Im hoping to get a job in graphic design,
my dream job being a conceptual artist one day for movies/video
games.
####
To learn more about woodhurst's work please visit:
woodhurst's gallery and
woodhurst's store
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