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Hey peoples, I recently tried using geometry to create a simple sheet metal roof, and my machine was chugging so it seems easier to use a displacement map. I found some dwg profiles here: http://www.steelselect.com/content/view ... hp?id=4285

I must admit I didn't optimise the mesh too much, so that's my bad, and my tek screw is a bit high poly, any tips on creating a height map of a tek screw that I can paste onto a displacement map? Anybody care to share a decent model of a tek screw, obj format would be awesome.

How do you guys do your roofing?

Cheers

What about using instances?

Displacement should be easy too, but some subdivision is recomended for faster rendering.

Yeah Fernando, instances would be good but I set everything up in studio, and its a bit cumbersome to place things precisely, have to start using the modo plugin exclusively

Brett

Yep, Studio needs a better selection system and some kind of snaps.

Fernando Tella wrote:Yep, Studio needs a better selection system and some kind of snaps.

I'm hearing you

Hey Brett, mate the easiest way I've found to do little maps like that is to do a quick model of the object and project a greyscale gradient map across the object from elevation and then take a image snap shot in plan!

Sounds like a good technique Richard, is this a good way to get screws in your sheeting, I don't want to get pedantic, but its those little details that can add something extra to your images

Cheers

Brett

Are you suggesting your anal by chance?

No mate I know exactly what you mean!! The good thing about maps, once you've made them you have them for good and then adding that little detail is a breeze!

BTW yes mate very easy method all you need do is actually model enough of the sheet with one screw to get the correct repeat and project the gradient map across both and all good!!! Much easier than using any depth map generating methods!

LMAO, quite possible, maybe a perfectionist, I dont have very good time management skills sometimes and constantly spend hours adding detail, then the client wants the view from another angle

Cheers

Brett

I know what you mean! I can spend half an hour doing man tidy ups before I go out and then get a knock back, sad!!

Richard wrote:"project a greyscale gradient map across the object from elevation"

Richard, can you help me out and be a tad more specific about what you said (above)? I need to learn how to do this as well as my current workaround is to model EVERYTHING! Joe

I tend to as well Joe! Though I have done a lot of displacement tests I just cant use it on my PC as it grinds to a hault!

Mate I'm not sure what 3D app you are using, I'm only familiar with SketchUp so I'll talk in those terms and maybe you can translate it to other speak!

1. I model everything I want to be displaced,
2. Next to that I make a small vertical plane the same height as the overall displacement model,
3. Paint onto that plane a greyscale gradient map (black bottom, white top) and then set that as a projected texture,
4. Sample that texture and then paint it to the displacement model,
5. Then go to plan view and export an image and crop as required in PS! Done!

When painting the projected texture to the displacement model the gradient map obviously paints perfectly everything from top to bottom the correct depth. You can model in all the detail you want but remember all will cost in render time, cool little trick though!

In the situation of brett’s screws I'd just tend to model a simple hex plane and lift it just off the sheet, at a distance you wouldn't note the lack of detail. OR even more simple - make two maps one for the sheeting (displacement) and one for the screws (clipped) and paint them to two planes just slightly separated and offset the displacement downward. Displacing detail for the screw in the case of say a custom orb roofing would really bump up the displacement precision required for something that really only wants a couple of pixel blemish on the image.

For me any sheeting other than custom orb is fairly low poly when modelled.

Thank you much Richard. I'm going to try that out on the roof of my house....all 5000+ tiles currently are 3d geometry...quite a large file, so this will be very interesting to compare.
BTW I'm using (loving) Rhino...still fairly new to it, but should be able to do that projected mode.
Also, if you're using a pc and are thinking of getting a new machine...I would hold out for the release of the i9 chip, but build it yourself, you'll save a LOT! I'm hearing that we should be able to overclock that chip easily to 4Ghz!!! Think about rendering out 12 cores at 4Ghz
Joe

Yes mate I've read about the i9's though expected at 1500$ for the chip, I can add another node on top of a new pc for that! Though I guess than there is two systems to maintain and I have enough issue with one!!!

Good luck with the roof tiles! Let me know what tile profile you are using I did some up that might make life easy!

http://www.maxwellrender.com/forum/view ... es#p281246

Richard wrote:Yes mate I've read about the i9's though expected at 1500$ for the chip, I can add another node on top of a new pc for that! Though I guess than there is two systems to maintain and I have enough issue with one!!!

Good luck with the roof tiles! Let me know what tile profile you are using I did some up that might make life easy!

http://www.maxwellrender.com/forum/view ... es#p281246

At that kind of price point IMO the i7-920 o'clocked to 3.8Ghz (easily) is still the most "bang for the buck".