3D graphics production

static renders

• image of a scene

dynamics renders

• video of a story

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static 3D production

modelling:

• asset generation stage
• ranges from simple models to whole worlds and ecosystems

sculpting:

• organic modelling
• usually done after a very geometric and mathematical base model is created with primitives
  • depends on the elements in the final render
  • organic elements need sculpting
• sculpting is done to make the model more true to reality
  • by adding character through geometric/mathematical imperfections
  • using dedicated sculpting tools that varies from application to application

texturing:

• is done either to the base geometric model or the sculpted model
• this is to add material to the surfaces of the 3D assets
• can vary from metals to plastic, to transparent glasses and everything in between and outside
• this can range from being simple to very involved
  • might be used in lieu of sculpting in some scenarios

lighting:

• the materials from the texturing stage interact with light to produce different results
• the lighting of the scene is experimented with to obtain acceptable results
• virtual lighting setups along with diffusion and reflective surfaces are used to produce scene-appropriate lighting

posing

• if humanoid or animal like characters are involved, their poses are adjusted for the final render
• the lighting is usually adjusted in tandem with the pose of the characters

rendering:

• creating the final image
  • output of the 3D production
• position the camera appropriately, setup right lens and depth of field configurations
• more complex scenes with more intricate light paths take more computational power and time to render
• render engines and settings are crucial to balance the time taken to render and the quality of the render

compositing

• 3D renders are merged intelligently with real images to create augmented reality images
• has a wide variety of applications including mixing computer graphics elements with real world elements to create a fictional scene

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dynamic 3D production

• this includes the same steps as static 3D production
• has more steps to make the assets move
  • adjust light and camera movement
  • compositing is more involved for merging computer generated elements with video footage

rigging

• this is the one salient step that separates static and dynamic production before rendering
• posing is for static scenes, rigging takes it its place in dynamic 3D production
• posing extended in time leads to rigging
  • the position and orientation of all elements in the scene can be assigned different values in time
• rigging is at the core of animation
  • can range from very gross to very nuanced scales, depending on the scene

video editing

• after rendering, the animation clips have to arranged coherently in a time-line for the underlying story to make sense
• this is usually done after video compositing

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3D printing

• taking it a notch further, static assets can be printed into 3D objects with appropriate 3D printing devices
• assets can be produced in a software like blender
• they are then fed into a 3D printing machine
  • this outputs a real-life, usually scaled, model of the asset

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references

• blender 3D - noob to pro

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