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lisa · 5th August 2009, 02:51 PM

Ditto. It really depends on what the shape is.

I can build and map a realistic coffee mug in under 10 minutes, but a character model could take several weeks depending on the level of detail. Scenery depends on how much is going on: i.e. a house could just be the structure, but does it also include objects sitting on the porch, or furniture visible through the windows? If there is a lot of clutter or small details, the time goes up fast.

For low or mid-poly game models (ie basic scenery but not characters or vehicles) it usually takes me about six to eight hours to flesh out the model, an hour or so to uv map it, and another few hours to a day to texture it. Just like the model, texturing really depends. Ironically, realistic texturing takes the least time as often you can start from a photograph and then it's mostly a matter of removing any lighting from the photo and painting out any seams. Lately I've been working on a project that's entirely done in watercolors and those maps are very, very time consuming. The inking must be done on a separate layer from the paint for technical reasons which means a lot of light table work and time spent trying to line scans back up. (Harder than it sounds.) After its scanned, it all needs touched-up on the computer so its a very slow process. The time spent really depends on the specifics.

The best tip I could give: don't over-complicate your models, especially when you are working with subdivisions. I think a lot of people add too many polys too fast and the model ends up looking "lumpy". It's very, very difficult to correct the underlying shape when there are too many polygons. Concentrate on the basic shape first, and only after you have the core shape exactly right start adding details.

A good way to tell if the basic shape is right is to look at the silhouette. Set your model to black or turn off the headlight, then spin your model around in the 3D view. Your model should still look like what it is even with the lights off. If you can't make it out from the silhouette, the basic shape still needs work. This is especially true of characters: a good character should be able to be identified from their silhouette alone.

5th August 2009, 02:51 PM	#3
lisa Senior Member Professional user Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 917	Re: general tips Ditto. It really depends on what the shape is. I can build and map a realistic coffee mug in under 10 minutes, but a character model could take several weeks depending on the level of detail. Scenery depends on how much is going on: i.e. a house could just be the structure, but does it also include objects sitting on the porch, or furniture visible through the windows? If there is a lot of clutter or small details, the time goes up fast. For low or mid-poly game models (ie basic scenery but not characters or vehicles) it usually takes me about six to eight hours to flesh out the model, an hour or so to uv map it, and another few hours to a day to texture it. Just like the model, texturing really depends. Ironically, realistic texturing takes the least time as often you can start from a photograph and then it's mostly a matter of removing any lighting from the photo and painting out any seams. Lately I've been working on a project that's entirely done in watercolors and those maps are very, very time consuming. The inking must be done on a separate layer from the paint for technical reasons which means a lot of light table work and time spent trying to line scans back up. (Harder than it sounds.) After its scanned, it all needs touched-up on the computer so its a very slow process. The time spent really depends on the specifics. The best tip I could give: don't over-complicate your models, especially when you are working with subdivisions. I think a lot of people add too many polys too fast and the model ends up looking "lumpy". It's very, very difficult to correct the underlying shape when there are too many polygons. Concentrate on the basic shape first, and only after you have the core shape exactly right start adding details. A good way to tell if the basic shape is right is to look at the silhouette. Set your model to black or turn off the headlight, then spin your model around in the 3D view. Your model should still look like what it is even with the lights off. If you can't make it out from the silhouette, the basic shape still needs work. This is especially true of characters: a good character should be able to be identified from their silhouette alone.