WIP: Car - Shelby Cobra [Update pg. 2, 8. january 2006]

Artwork Works in Progress
#1

I’ve finally found a project i think i can stick to. I tried a long time to find something, but the most of the ones i started have been too complex, for my modeling/texturing skills…

The blueprints for the car is found on http://blueprints.onnovanbraam.com/

My main modeling is done on the body. The wheels is not finished at all.
I would really appreciate, if you would take a look at the wireframes, and help me with improvements, cause i am very new to modeling, and don’t know how a well-made car topology should look.

(Image top front view belongs to a post on pg. 2, but put here because of a max attachments limit on 3 images!)

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wires_202.jpg668×522 128 KB

cobra_315.jpg800×600 71.8 KB

topfront_168.jpg800×600 192 KB

#2

Looks realy nice!
How long time spent on it yet?

#3

Probably 5 hours, i think… haven’t started my stopwatch, though… =)

#4

Excellent mesh. Very clean and well layed out. Great job.

BgDM

#5

Thx, BgDM - I really appreciate it…!

I wonder - is it really, REALLY bad, to have tri’s in the mesh? sometimes, i think it fit’s a lot better, and it would be a lot more complicated to make with quads… - is it really worth making it more complicated, just to get quads only?

An update on the Cobra. Front lights, front blinkers (don’t know what they are called? the orange ones =), front window, rear mirrors, head-rollbar and a bit of editing in some places on the body…

Btw… - is it better, just to put the updates in the first post…?

Attachments

cobra2_187.jpg800×600 67.9 KB

#6

I like it when the artist adds new images rather than editing the first post, lets you see how the project evolves.

The model looks very good.

Think the only certifiable errors I see is some poly edges around the frame of the windshield and the mirrors.

The subsurfing on the door/hood is breaking the flushness with the rest of the body, can either add some loops close to the edge to give it more of an edge, or shift vertices around so the subsurfing lines up.

I seem to recall from my bosses cobra that the lip on the make radiator intake ends quite quickly after curving around… only a couple centimeters. From there it turns into a matte black cowl that extends back to the radiator fins. Is a pretty minor detail though. All the fenders are the same, all the edges curl under then abruptly end.

#7

Nice and clean mesh.

It’s OK to use triangles in many cases. I can see triangles in your mesh but none of them look bad.

A bigger problem are poles (vertices where more than 5 edges met). I can see you have a pole in your mesh - and that can look ugly with subsurf and texture mapping.

Attachments

wires_x_131.jpg668×522 47 KB

#8

Thanks a lot, xzzy. The polys on the mirros and windshield is smoothed out. I’ve tried to improve the seperations between the hood, doors and the body, but it still needs some work.
The lip on the radiator intake is shortened a little, but not that much (after looking at some more reference pics).

Can anyone explain what a cowl is…? :expressionless:

And thanks, Cipix, the poles are solved (no wire is uploaded, though =)

Now, i’ve also added some seats, and modeled a “box” so fit inside the car, so it doesn’t look like an empty shell (that’s the black thing in the radiator intake on the front - i’ll improve it later)
Then i’ve made a lot of minor corrections.
I also discovered the TraShadow, so the shadow from the glass isn’t that dark :smiley:

All for now… Keep commenting, please, i really appreciate you pointing out errors and tings for improvement!

Attachments


cobra3_704.jpg800×600 75.8 KB

#9

going back to the triangle thing, on blender 2.4 whats happend to the convert to quads function, sometimes triangles create unneat results when subsurfacing and/subdividing, i always prefere quads, so where s the function gone?

if you have triangles in the mesh for this car then i cant spot them, it looks good anyway

#10

I think I was mistaken about the “cowling”, going back and looking at pictures. The guy I know who has a cobra only drives his car in the summer and that’s a long way to be working from memory. If you can wait until May I can go look at it for you. :wink:

A cowl is sort of like body work, like air ducting or something. The hood of a car is “cowling”, just a sheet (usually metal) that protects internal machinery.

#11

Still there. Select joining tri’s and press ALT+J.

Back on topic, very nice update and progress. Everyone else has pointed out the issues that I see.

BgDM

#12

TheANIMAL, There are triangles in it (a few very obvious from the side view wireframe =) And thanks…!

xzzy, Heh… :wink: i suppose i’m done with this one in may… And i think i understand the “cowling” now… at least i have an idea of what it is…!

And thanks, BgDM…!

I’m having a go at HDRI renderings, which i haven’t tried before, and i haven’t used YafRay before, either. But i think i have to learn HDRI to get the car good-looking, and from the test renderings that i’ve made, it looks like i was right :smiley: (just some test-renderings - the color’s won’t last…!)
Can anyone tell me where the bluish color come from (not the blue body-color, but everything has a bluish tint.) I think it is from the GI, but i don’t know how to get rid of it.

I know the modeling isn’t finished yet, but i was too eager to try out the HDRI-thing… :expressionless:

Attachments



#13

Hard to be sure what blueness you’re talking about, as the images are pretty small and low contrast.

This fellow had the same sort of problem though, I think:

https://blenderartists.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=57471

Looks like he fixed it by cranking up GI and emit in the yafray tabs.

#14

The cowl is the bit between the windshield and the hood.

#15

wow, very very nice, looks quite good, I saw one of these up in red lodge this summer, quite cool. I’m amazed at your speed too! dang… i’m getting embarrased by all these people that have friggin awesome work, and mine is still stuck back at a noob level

#16

xzzy - Thanks, i’ll have a look at it, when i’ve finished all the modeling… :wink:

Cohort - The room for the engine…? :expressionless:
.oO hard word to understand…! Heh! Oo.

Centauri - Thanks for all the nice words… =)
You shouldn’t be embarresed… - if it’s cars you want to model, just pick one that isn’t too complex. Find a blueprint for it at either http://blueprints.onnovanbraam.com/ or http://www.suurland.com/ - that’s at least the best sites i know. And there are also planes, boats and other stuff as well.
Then have a look in here (i know it isn’t for Blender, but the method is pretty much the same, except for that you should seperate your viewports into the different views of the car, and then set the blueprint as background.) http://www.onnovanbraam.com/index.php?m=tutorials&g=7-car-body.
Then just take your time, and keep in mind, that the mesh should be clean with as few vertices as possible, but still getting the shape right.
-And btw… I’m a newb too… i started using blender just 1½ month ago [!]

Soon, i’ll post some minor updates, but i’m working on all the smaller details right now, so it’s hard to see the progress…

#17

Which way would be the easiest to paint the stribes on to body (you know, the white ones, that run all the length of the car)?
UV-mapping, Vertex paint, or, or, or? i don’t have a clue…! i’ve tried to make the “LSCM Unwrap”, but the centerline of the car is not at all straight…

Please give me an idea on how to do this…!

#18

The biggest update this time is the wheels. The rubber isn’t finished yet, but the rims (?) are done. Again, minor corrections on details finished. And then i’ve tried to make the stribes.
Rendered in YafRay with HDRI lightning. (dunno how to make the background another one than the .hdr image used for lightning…!)
The logo on the front is also added… =)

Enjoy, and please feel free to comment on it…!

Attachments


#19

Since last, the wheels has got an overhaul. That’s probably the biggest change. The Chrome-material is improved (a lot, IMO)

I also figured out how to render with white background [!]

This render is done in Blender Internal, in a total time of 4 min 1 sec.

I think this project is nearing it’s end, but i still have some small details to add, such as the radiator at the intake, and a w-re-mesh in front of the small holes in the front.

If you have any suggestions on how to make it look nicer/more realistic, please feel free to write it… =)

Attachments

cobra_test_render2_197.jpg800×600 113 KB

#20

Whoa :o
This looks hot.my only critic is the white background,it takes away the beauty of it.

Can you post some new pics in difrent views?
also,How did you add the white stripe?

Great job none the less.