Potted Plant ~ First Fibermesh Test

[coreyschroeder]

Hey Zbrushers!

I really wanted to test out Fibermesh with an architectural piece, but setting everything up was taking longer than I thought it would... And I couldn't hold my breath any longer... So, I turned on Fibermesh for the first time tonight!
I could kick myself for waiting until now, it is amazing!

I have to say, I've been watching everyone post some cool Fibermesh tests over the last few weeks, and I was a bit intimidated on getting started.. I am very pleased to see how easy and quick it is to get some cool results.

Also played around with Lightcaps and BPR settings.

I'm fairly new to Zbrush and here to learn, any comments/tips are greatly appreciated.
Thank you for taking the time to check this out!
Corey

[SpiritDreamer]

Great little study there,..especally for a first try.....Maybe a cast shadow would enhance it even further..Just a passing thought on my part....Looking forward to seeing where this ZBRUSH adventure leads you to.
Glenn

[KC-Production]

Cool render and great first try out with fibermesh!
Keep it going man!
Cheers ,
Kenny

[michalis]

@ coreyschroeder

Very very nice!
I just posted on your other thread.
To export such models to blender for instance, is possible. We'll talk about it, soon. LOL

[coreyschroeder]

Hey everyone, here is an update on my fibermesh test.

Kenny - Thank you so much for the comments, greatly appreciated!
Glenn - Thank you for the great tip! The cast shadows really bring the scene to life.

All- I played around with fibermesh more, adding one final bulk of fibers to the plant, just to give it a bit more body. I added the floor and wall, to allow the plant to cast shadows in its environment (props to Glenn). And the last thing, was using fibermesh to create a carpet on the floor. Someone just told me, that at first glance, it looks a bit like gravel... So... I am going to try and sculpt a cool wooden baseboard to put on the wall, to help sell the idea that this is an interior scene.

I am also toying with the idea of rusting out the pot. Originally, I envisioned this as a modern/industrial piece, but it hasn't quite achieved that look yet. So, if any of you have some cool tips on creating rust, or making this pot look more like steel, please pass them on.

Thanks again for checking this out!

[chalkman]

Hey Corey, Very zen like, I love the surface it is sitting on and the background as well. Gotta love this fiber mesh! Cheers, David

[coreyschroeder]

Here is the update, with the baseboard added, just a simple wood texture... Like I said, I'm going for modern, so I think simplicity is key.
I added that plaster texture to the wall as well, which I feel adds a pretty nice visual dynamic to the piece.
Attempted to rust out the pot a bit... Not sure if I'm feelin it yet.
Played around with lights and shadows still...

Let me know what you think!

[kokoro]

i like it, it has a zen feeling... to me, the texture on the wall has too big a scale. i like the texture and agree with you that it adds a calm dynamic. very nice. maybe try a different scale ?

[coreyschroeder]

Thank you all for the kind words!

I agree with the scale on the wall being too large, I'm going to try a orange peel texture next, and see what happens.

[coreyschroeder]

Here is an update on my fibermesh test!

A few things that I changed up-

I took the advice on the wall, and went with a very slight orange peel.. Its so subtle.. You have to really look for it. Much more realistic from the perspective of the camera.
I dont know what I was smokin before.

I textured the pot some more, as well as rusted a hole in the top.
Paired this up with polypaint.
I feel that this is far more like what I originally envisioned. Very happy with how the textures came out.

Anyways, please let me know what you think.
Again, any tips/ideas/whatevers would be greatly appreciated!
Corey

[kokoro]

yes, this wall texture goes great ! i like a lot :-) also i like the texturing of the pot... one suggestion for improving the lightning : in real life such a light floor would reflect very subtly light onto the pot, so the planes facing downwards would not be pure black as they appear in your image. you could put another very subtle light shining upwards to lit these planes a little, just very little, to achieve this bouncing light effect. i know lightning in zbrush is a hard job ... i think it would add to the zenlike feeling of the scene, since this piece of realism would calm the brain...

[coreyschroeder]

I actually have a light setup in that position, to give some reflective bounce back, however, I think my polypaint is a bit too dark to capture any light..
I cranked up that light, almost to the brightness of the main light source, and I still didn't get any reflected light in my BPR.
So.... I think I need to re-polypoaint the bottom half of the model, to a lighter gray, so the light would be more visible.

Lightscaps are kicking my butt. However, they have proven to be a very good asset to my renders.
I think at this point, I've just gotta keep pushing through, understanding Lightcaps will make me a better zbrush artist in the long run.

Thanks again for the tip - I'll post the update as soon as I can get something looking nice.

On a side note - these renders TAKE FOR EVER to render out.. I have a pretty nice computer, so I wouldn't think this should take so long.
So, if I was to spend some cash this weekend on computer upgrades, what would benefit me the most? More Ram or better Video Card or what?
Currently, I'm running a 2.8Ghz Quad Core w/ 8Gigs of Ram and a Radeon HD 5770. Any advice here would be greatly appreciated.
Oh, and Memory/Performance settings within zbrush, what would be best for my computer?
Thanks!
Corey

[coreyschroeder]

Hey everyone!

So, I've spent a bit of time reworking the lighting, to really help the shadow realism.
I feel like the highlights, shadows, and reflected highlights are all now accurate.
Let me know what you think!
Thanks - Corey

[KC-Production]

Keeps on looking better and better! Great work!