ЗdMax: create a clip with space scenes

dMax: create a clip with space scenes
Hello to all! Happy cosmonautics day!

We wrote a song on the space theme and shot a clip (not commercial, with a zero budget). Everything was done without leaving home, on home equipment and it is available to everyone who owns ZdMax.

Next, we will talk about some of the techniques of computer graphics. In this article you can read how to create a nebula for the clip:
')


If there is interest, we will describe other approaches that we used during its creation.

There is a lot of text, pictures and several videos under Habrakat.

This article does not reveal the basics of working with dMax, but is intended for people who have basic knowledge and desire to improve their level and quality of the product.

In computer graphics it is not always necessary to create very complex and detailed objects for the desired result. Sometimes you can get by with a few primitives using quality materials.

For example, in this scene, which can be created in 10 minutes, there are only four simple objects, but high-resolution materials and specially prepared materials were used:



But in this article we will tell you how the nebula was created.



Step by step we will create a scene lasting 20 seconds (600 frames).

Create a material

To create a nebula, we used this texture (you can create this texture yourself or find it on the Internet)



Create a material - open the " Material Editor " and set our texture as " Diffuse Color ", copy it into the " Opacity " so that the dark areas become transparent. " Self-Illumination " (self-illumination) set to 100%



We recommend in the " Opacity " edit the " Output " as follows, which will make the nebula more transparent and will give volume to the final result.

Create a scene

Install the camera in the scene. After that we create the object itself, from which we will make the nebula - " Create => Standard Primitives => Plane ", the plane of the required size, for example 1000 * 1000, the number of segments - 50 * 50, and " Render Multipliers => Density " set to 5.0 . Thus, in the window we will see 50 vertical and horizontal lines, but the render will calculate this object as if it were 250 * 250 or 125,000 facets in size.



We superimpose the previously created material on this object. Turn on the drawing of " Smooth + Highlights " in the " Top " window and see the following image:



And we see this picture in the " Camera " window:



And this is how the image of the rendered object looks like:

Animation - wrapped in a spiral

On our object in the " Command Panel " we hang the modifier " FFD(cyl) " - Free-Form Deformation (cylinder).



Click " Set Number of Points " and set the Dimensions equal to 6 * 8 * 2



We see the following image in the Top window, where the modifier is displayed in orange:



Go to the animation mode - " Auto Key Mode ". In the " Filters " include " Modifiers "



In the toolbar, select " Lasso Selection Region "



In the " Command Panel " in the FFD modifier, select the " Control Points " mode.



Select (select) all points of the modifier and set three key points of the animation - on the 0th, 300th and 600th frames

Go to zero frame

Select the points of the inner circle of our modifier



Rotate the points around its axis by 20 degrees counterclockwise. After this, we capture the points of the first and second round of the modifier and also rotate them together by another 20 degrees.



And so in turn rotate all the circles except the last. Thus, it turns out that the outer circle remains unchanged, and to the inner circle the object is wrapped in a spiral 100 degrees



From zero to 300th frame the spiral will unfold in its original state.

Now we move to the last, 600th frame, repeat the same steps, activate the inner circle, but now rotate it 20 degrees in the opposite direction - clockwise and so on to the outer circle.



From the 300th to the 600th frame the spiral will be wrapped in the other direction:

Animation - we shrink

We install on our nebula the modifier " Noise "



Experimentally, we select the parameters - they depend on the size of your Plane and the personal preferences of the author. In this case, we used the following settings:



All parameters of the modifier are stable all animation, except for the parameter " Phase ", which is set to "0" on the 0th frame, equal to "1" on the 300th frame and equal to "2" on the 600th frame, due to which the nebula will be "worry".

Create volume

The next step in the " Front " window is creating 3 more copies (copy) of our nebula.



We need to break the patterns and symmetry in these four objects.

The upper plane is left untouched.

The second and third in the " Top " window make Scale 130% vertically and 80% horizontally.



The second one in the " Top " window is rotated 120 degrees clockwise.

Turn the third one in the " Front " window by 180 degrees and in the " Top " window we rotate it 100 degrees counterclockwise.

The fourth one in the " Front " window is turned over 180 degrees and in the " Top " window we rotate it 110 degrees in a clockwise direction.

Create a starry sky

For him, we take a sphere centered around the chamber.

We translate the object into " Editable Mesh ", select unnecessary points and delete them.



Set the modifier " UVW Mapping " on this object, select " Planar "



Install the sphere fragment as shown in the figure.



We impose on her material with stars . Do not forget to include in the Material Editor "Self-Illumination"=100% and " 2-sides ", since we are looking at the sphere from the inside.

Result

We animate the camera and fly over the nebula (it is advisable not to fly at an acute angle so that the waves do not turn into folds, keep the camera angle at least 30 degrees). If you correctly followed all the instructions, then you should get a similar video.

Pleasant flight.



If you have questions about how other scenes were created in the video - we will describe them as a separate topic. We are waiting for rekvestov.

ps. On the first video, besides me, Nutochka is also visible .