Plant CatBot!
Hi! My name is Natela and this is my entry for the Robot contest!
Update - 2 Nov 2022
I finished the textures today! I really enjoyed working on the tail and the bottom part of the inside of the face, I feel like I was able to imitate the reference very well. I also changed the dark blue part of the head and added a gradient instead to match the reference better.
After I finished texturing, I sat up a scene in Marmoset Toolbag and also went back to Blender to add the outlines to further replicate the artwork. I've also recreated the little comic style green lines, as well as the frame replacing one of the triangles in the corners with the Rookies logo using Photoshop.
Again, I kept jumping from Blender to Marmoset and back, changing the thickness of the outline on different parts of the model, ensuring that it looks nice and close to the artwork I'm referencing.
Update - 31 Oct 2022
I've started working on the textures in Substance Painter today. First, I blocked in the basic colors. Since I am going for hand painted textures, I only have the Base color visible in the viewport. After the base colors, I started adding shading to the body. I attempted painting those blue lines inside the head, but soon realized that it only looks okay from a certain angle. The same goes for the yellow highlights. As a result, I decided to make highlights as separate geometry, and have the head consist of two objects, filling the outside object with darker blue and the inside with light blue to imitate this effect of thickness. That way, it looks right from any angle.
I kept jumping from Substance Painter to Blender and back to make sure the textures look good, as well as adjusting some parts of the model.
Update - 30 Oct 2022
I unwrapped my fellow cat robot! This is how the UV layout looks like. As you can see, my model will have one texture set. In my experience, one 2048x2048 texture is usually enough for characters with hand painted textures. During unwrapping, I actually learned how to straighten UV shells! It's really handy for preserving space. I ended up using the Layout tool in Maya because there are so many UV shells and I wanted to get to the texturing step as fast as possible!
After the unwrap, I also got rid of some of the edge loops that were unnecessary.
Can't wait to texture this guy!
Update - 27 Oct 2022
Have been power working through this project and I can finally call the model finished! I created a couple of modular pieces, then placed them in the pose. Also, some parts of the model are subdivided at the moment, but I am planning to get rid of some of the edge loops once it's unwrapped.
Now it's time for UV unwrapping!
Update - 23 Oct 2022
Just started working on the model today. I decided to take a different approach compared to how I usually make models, and I immediately posed the head(and am planning to make the rest of the model in the pose) so it's easier for me to match the reference. I've also sat up some materials with flat colors, inverted objects' normals and turned on backface culling to give the model this cartoony artstyle with transparency. I like adding colors to my models early in development because it really helps me assess what I'm working on. Furthermore, I used a curve to create the base shape of the plant.
Really enjoying the process so far!
Update - 15 Oct 2022
Hey! I love cute stylized characters, so the moment I found out about this contest I knew I had to make a cute robot! After browsing the internet I finally found this amazing artwork of a cat robot.
With this project, my aim is to improve my hard surface modelling skills and maintain the style of the artwork through texture work. I am hoping to produce a breath taking render by the end of the project!
My plan for now would be:
1. Make the model in Blender
2. UV unwrap in Maya
3. Make the textures in Substance Painter
4. Render it in Marmoset
We'll see how it goes! And good luck to other contestants!
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