Self Service - Work in Progess #2 (Patreon)

NOTE: This post contains GIFs! They may take a bit to load, so if you don't see anything just wait!

This is the second WIP post of Self Service, the animation you voted on! These posts are aimed to give you insight into my workflow and show you my creative process. Below is a segmented list with images and GIFs of everything I accomplished this week.

Animation Preview

Since this is a pretty short loop, I can fit it all in a single GIF! It has to be relatively low res though, so check the .mp4 attached below for the loop at full resolution.

Environment

The environment for this project is relatively complex as it requires a relatively well-detailed city with a long distance horizon line. This brings in one of the principles of 3D: level of detail. Meshes shouldn't contain 4 million polygons if it's a mile back in the image, same as lower poly count meshes shouldn't be forefront.

 The environment for Self Service employs that principle throughout. Buildings in the background are not only blurred out but also very low poly.

Meanwhile, buildings closer to the camera are dense and detailed.

 All of this combines together to form a coherent image and our eyes are none-the-wiser to the lack of detail at a distance.

Geometry Nodes

This is not something I use often, but it really does have its uses. I employed Blender's procedural "geometry nodes" system so that I could easily scatter some broken cars across the destroyed city block.

 This is a bit of a basic setup, but it works very well!

Most of the work was streamed on Picarto! I have something special planned for next weekend, so stay tuned for a special post tomorrow...