Zinjo Posted August 3, 2012 Share Posted August 3, 2012 (edited) It August 2012. That means a new photo. Vermilion Squadron leader.......TAKEOFF!!!!!!! Photos from previous months: http://www.macrosswo...leryℑ=7078 Yet again, you prove your compositing talents. I am a fan! Nice Work! Edited August 3, 2012 by Zinjo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grapetang Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 Nice! The cast shadows & blending are really impressive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobber Posted August 15, 2012 Share Posted August 15, 2012 (edited) Fantastic work as usual! You should make a macross calendar with these. Can't wait for each new month to see what you come up with! Chris P.S. If you would like to use any of my build pics in my sig line for a composite you're welcome them. . Though I admit the may not be of the best quality or lighting for what you need. Always thought the 4th from the bottom of the finished pictures, in the VF-11 link, looks like it is flying over clouds on a moonlit night. Edited August 15, 2012 by Dobber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EXO Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 Found this one... don't know where it's from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobizon Posted August 19, 2012 Share Posted August 19, 2012 Found this one... don't know where it's from. from some 3DCG artist in jp http://web.kyoto-ine.../people/gahaku/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EXO Posted August 19, 2012 Share Posted August 19, 2012 Cool, Thanks Lobizon! It seems that he does modelling as well as CG! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron5864 Posted August 19, 2012 Author Share Posted August 19, 2012 Found this one... don't know where it's from. That's a cool photo of the YF-21. This guy's website has some other mecha in realistic settings. Awesome stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Froy Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 That 21 looks extrange... can you see the battroid shoulder showing? Must be based on the Yamato's 1/72 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinjo Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 That's a cool photo of the YF-21. This guy's website has some other mecha in realistic settings. Awesome stuff! It's really nice, but not in hires, unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron5864 Posted September 1, 2012 Author Share Posted September 1, 2012 September 2012: VF-11B Successor to the aging VF-4 Lightning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Froy Posted September 1, 2012 Share Posted September 1, 2012 Wow that almost looks real. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moss Posted September 1, 2012 Share Posted September 1, 2012 September photo looks great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommar Posted September 1, 2012 Share Posted September 1, 2012 September 2012: VF-11B Successor to the aging VF-4 Lightning. Holy crap! What does the "Raw" photo of that toy look like? My Mom wandered by, saw the photo, and asked me if that "toy" I had was actually a real plane based on this "photo." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinjo Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Holy crap! What does the "Raw" photo of that toy look like? My Mom wandered by, saw the photo, and asked me if that "toy" I had was actually a real plane based on this "photo." That's high praise indeed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PetarB Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Very nice work for September Ron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron5864 Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 Thanks for the complements. To answer some questions and curiosities, here is how the September photo was done. + = Easy math. I took the background photo while flying over the Mojave desert in the morning and I took the VF-11 at around the same time of day facing similar direction for proper shadowing. Then crop and paste with some color adjustments and detail corrections. This is not too difficult, but it does take some planning to make it look realistic. Ok.....hmmmm planning something special for the Moon Festival on September 30th. Check back then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PetarB Posted September 5, 2012 Share Posted September 5, 2012 Actually it is difficult. A few of us do not have access to an aircraft, or the Mojave desert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JET7 Posted September 5, 2012 Share Posted September 5, 2012 can i request a VF-1S in strike pack hovering in cloudy sky? pleaseee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobber Posted September 5, 2012 Share Posted September 5, 2012 FANTASTIC!! Always looking forward to these! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bowman Posted September 5, 2012 Share Posted September 5, 2012 If you can take the photo of the toy in the Mojave desert combining it with that background it would look even better. The indoor photo makes the plane a bit too bright compared with the background, solved this issue and you got one realistic photo that's hard to be distinguished from a real photo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron5864 Posted September 29, 2012 Author Share Posted September 29, 2012 In celebration of the 2012 Moon Festival on September 30.... When uninvited Marduk crashes the 2092 Moon Festival and captures Hibiki and Ishtar, Lt. Sylvie Gena kicks into action. After getting a hold of a Super Valkyrie II from her teammate Nastasha, Sylvie chases after them to the alien ship just as the ship begins a space fold. VF-2SS in hot pursuit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron5864 Posted November 1, 2012 Author Share Posted November 1, 2012 November 2012... VF-19 Excalibur. Workhorse for UN Spacy in the 2040s and tested to the extreme limits by Isamu Dyson and Nekki Basara. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reïvaj Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 Beautiful VF-19 picture, ron5864! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommar Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 November 2012... VF-19 Excalibur. Workhorse for UN Spacy in the 2040s and tested to the extreme limits by Isamu Dyson and Nekki Basara. Wow, is that a toy/model? The only thing that gives it away is the tires/landing gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinjo Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 Wow, is that a toy/model? The only thing that gives it away is the tires/landing gear. An easy fix in photoshop... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grapetang Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 I love these updates & comps! This last one is simple yet striking. Nice work as always! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjo Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 Actually, I think the canopy is the most realistic looking part of that last pic. It's the rest of the valk that's not shiny enough to match it. The trick is, real aircraft, when they're fresh from the factory, truly are as dull as a fresh Yamato.. but they don't stay that way. Wear and tear on the planes, and touch-ups in the paint over time actually turn the dull paint shiny, and you get uneven levels of gloss all over the aircraft. Normally, weathering techniques are used to add dirt and stuff, but rarely do I see people weather models purely in the specular range, which is where a lot of it happens. If I learned one thing from my time making mods for games, it's that there are multiple levels to what makes an aircraft model look real. Game models today use multiple texture maps to make things more and more realistic. You've got your base texture level, which is your traditional styled "picture of what the plane looks like." Then, you add your bump or normal maps for details that are too impractical to build into the model. On top of those, you've got your specular and reflectivity maps. Reflectivity is just how much of a reflection you can see, usually just a grayscale image that indicates levels between completely dull and a mirror finish. Specularity is basically your map of "What does the light reflecting off this surface look like." You know how some metals will look one color, but when the light hits them at a certain angle, they show up a different color? That's what causes this. I think games mostly only support grayscale specular maps, but high quality rendering software will let you have objects reflect colors that are very different than what they normally apear. Best example I know of is to go take a look at any ship in Star Trek past TOS. It's what made the Enterprise refit in TMP so impressive in that long cinematic intro. The individual panels are really not very different in color at all. But view them in different angles of light, and the panels jump out at you. If you really want to try something fun, try painting an aircraft in a standard dullcoat, and then add your usual light weathering to it. Then, to seal it, apply varying levels of gloss clearcoat to the plane. Start with flat, then start mixing some gloss in for the parts you want to look worn. Make the leading edges, access points, etc, shinier than the rest of the plane. Places where friction in flight would wear the paint shiny. Even completely dull aircraft very rarely have a dull nosecone, because it's constantly being polished by contact with the air. I haven't tried that myself yet, but I really want to someday, because I think it would look amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelS Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 Ok can I make a request: YF-29 with super packs!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinjo Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 That would definitely be a challenge!!! However, those who strive to create realism at scale would welcome the challenge... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron5864 Posted December 1, 2012 Author Share Posted December 1, 2012 December 2012: Another view of the VF-19. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UN Spacy Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 HOT DAMN! Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reïvaj Posted December 2, 2012 Share Posted December 2, 2012 Simply beautiful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chillyche Posted December 2, 2012 Share Posted December 2, 2012 That looks dope! I'm wondering what the intention with the light was, though? It's coming in at a very steep angle, as though from a rising or setting sun coming through a hangar door, or a massive, ginormous spotlight at like, a 15 degree, 20 degree angle. If the intent is the former, the sun, then I feel like there should be some color temperature shifts. To clearly indicate the source as the sun, a sunrise or sunset will appear orange or red. It's possible that the photograph could be white balanced for that magic hour look, but that would put the shadows into a bluer, purpler sort of color space. I personally believe the idea would be sun, here, because the shadows are so sharp, we have to assume that the light source is far enough away, that the Valk is MUCH closer to the wall than the light source. Maybe just a bit of straw gel over the light would do the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reïvaj Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 What about if the light belongs to a star which isn't the sun? What about if the picture was taken in an environment without atmosphere? This is Macross, nothing is impossible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chillyche Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 All very good points. The variables mean just about anything is possible. At the same time, as humans, certain tricks make things seem "realistic" to us, based on our own terrestrial experiences. Sometimes we have to fudge the science to sooth the suspension of disbelief. However, I bow to the fact that this picture could be ANYWHERE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.