It's all about shapes!

I can't believe I never downloaded the free Google Sketchup program until today.

Sure, I've been browsing through the Google 3d Warehouse since I bought iClone last year, and importing many of those models into iClone via 3DXchange. However, I never gave serious thought to trying my hand at the program.

The primary reason being, I've never been talented at drawing. Without a ruler, I can't even draw a straight line. I actually hold pencils & scissors incorrectly (I hold them the way a left-handed person would but with my right hand. I don't know why!). I lumped Sketchup into the same category as my sad, sad past endeavors at creating art during my childhood.

Lo and behold, Sketchup is blessedly user-friendly! Now, granted, some natural talent is needed to make anything truly astounding, and I strongly doubt that I'll ever be classified in that category. It is, though, gratifying to learn that I can use the program to make some simple props for myself.

Over the past few months working with iClone and soaking in the knowledge of my truly artistic co-host, Wolf, as well as other poweruser iCloners, I have noticed that I'm looking at props/sets/the real world a little differently. And, my friends, let me tell you - it's all about SHAPES! I know, it's taken me a ridiculously long time to come to this realization, but that simple statement speaks volumes. SHAPES. I discounted geometry when I was student as I never had a knack for it. I loved algebra but could not get a handle on geometry. I could not visualize the lines on the paper as a 3d object. Oh, how I wish I had a program like Sketchup back then! I've had eureka moments just making cubes & cylinders in Sketchup.

Because of working with materials in iClone, over the summer I found myself becoming more and more obsessed with textures. It was an entirely new method of observation. Now I've compounded that worldview with searching for the shapes in the composition of everyday objects; and while the person standing in line behind me at the grocery store might not find my fascination with the design of the cash register equally stimulating, I trust that some of you can relate to what I'm experiencing.

SHAPES!

You'll have to excuse me now, as I have just gotten distracted by the varying shapes making up my Blue Snowball microphone.....

Upcoming Mega Sci Fi Pack from Wolf

Wolf provided some sneak peeks of his upcoming Sci Fi Mega Pack for iClone - and I gotta say, I'm very impressed. Ok, to be honest, I was expecting something great from him - but even with that expectation, I am still blown away. Further affirmation that I chose the right partner in crime for the weekly radio show.

Fore more info (and a better view of the images) you can see his post about it here.

Here's what he had to say about the images: "Aside from the weekly freebies, it's been a while since I released any content on a larger scale. The show and production of various projects has kept me busy. That being said, for those that do listen to the show, you heard us chatting about the upcoming sci fi mega pack. I know there's alot of folks looking forward to this pack. It's in its final stages of some stress testing of my own before I release i to the Reallusion and coolcreator store fronts. The pictures below will give a taste of the contents of the pack. It is not an exhaustive demo, but it shows a great deal of what the pack will contain. Everything you see in any of the photos (except the one character in the sickbay) will be included in the pack and then some. Once it's submitted, I'll update The CCD thread with videos of the prop sets in action. Thanks to all for the requests and guidance on what you'd like to see as it helped me immeasurably in the modeling of this pack."

I know several sci fi buffs who have been looking forward to this pack, so to them I say - woohoo! It's coming soon! I can't wait to see some great movies made with these props, sets, etc. I really am a sci-fi geek at heart!

Joseph's DreamCoat

One of my first pieces exploring some of the exciting features in iClone4. In this I used video as the texture on the cloth, and also played with HDR lighting & facial animation.