My background is in photography and design/animation… mostly for feature films and games. I’ve been modelling 3D cars since 1995 using Maya, 3DS Max, Softimage, etc etc - and for the past few years in Blender. I started this model in response to some versions of the gullwing I saw that were fraught with inaccuracies and problems. It’s a VERY tricky car to model accurately. The gullwing can be one of the ultimate studies in industrial design, both artistic and mechanical. Creating the curves and surfaces of a car accurately is a challenge I enjoy. It takes a lot of specific attention to details and viewpoints to really get all the surfaces and curves to flow and balance exactly the way the original car is designed. I have gone over this car again and again to make adjustments and refinements. Its hard to know how much time this truly took, since the work on it is sporadic.
I’ve made cars for video games, and now I want to set up some photographic style fine art renders of specific vintage cars for print sales.
Oh and yes, the gullwing doors are fully rigged to open and close perfectly. I have a video of this on my Instagram.
There aren’t enough superlatives for this work (plus it looks kinda like the Incredimobile!). I’m desperately trying not to compare to things I’ve done, but just to add my feelings of inadequacy; would you mind telling us how long this took you?
I can completely relate to the feelings of inadequacy. I certainly have my fair share of those as well with some of the ridiculous work in CG I see. This was part of what drove me in the beginning to improve. I knew I had the abilities to see and re-create the details, I just needed to get fluid with the tools.
The Mercedes Gullwing project is difficult to measure time spent. I have worked it off and on (and continue to do so) for the last year or so. The detail level actually pales in comparison to the next car I’ve been working on - the Aston Martin DBR1. A full engine bay, suspension, steering, drivetrain, all of it has been modeled. It turned out really fantastic. A LOT more time has been spent on it.
Thank you Bruno! Appreciate it… the “pebbles” are actually a cobblestone driveway. Sort of an oversized stone or brick that was used much more often in vintage city streets and driveways. If you do a google image search for them, they are still used but usually for more affluent landscape design.
It seems to me that it was worth all the hours that you have dedicated to this work. It is in these things that one moves his limits forward, sure that you have learned a lot along the way and the result is awesome.
Congratulations
