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Old 24th August 2007, 02:33 PM   #1
captainj2410
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Default Ambassador Class Starship

Hey, how's it going everyone? I decided recently that, since I haven't had a bolt of inspiration strike me in a while, I would make models of current starship classes to pass the time until I get an original idea. I looked around at some of the free models some sites had of starships, and a few of them were not of the highest quality and accuracy. One of the models I found was that of the Ambassador Class of Enterprise C fame. It wasn't too accurate at all, so I found some schematics and started modeling it, trying to keep as close to the original as possible. Here's what I've gotten so far:






I still need to construct the neck, add in all of the windows (which are considerable in quantity. Luckily I figured out a different way to put curved windows in a rectangle, and that'll be my next step for the saucer rim.) and get all the decals and registries in place.

Two questions, though. 1) Does anyone know what font to use for starship registries? 2) Should I model the registries on permanently or make them textures so the model can be reused as different ships?

Last edited by captainj2410; 24th August 2007 at 03:50 PM.
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Old 24th August 2007, 02:36 PM   #2
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Default Re: Ambassador Class Starship

By the way, these were exported to PoseRay (I think that was the name) then rendered with POVRay.

Last edited by captainj2410; 24th August 2007 at 03:37 PM.
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Old 6th September 2007, 03:51 PM   #3
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Default Re: Ambassador Class Starship

BTW: Here's some experimenting I was doing with lighting:



And another ansillary picture:
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Old 10th September 2007, 12:51 AM   #4
SimonNolan
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Default Re: Ambassador Class Starship

Quote:
Originally Posted by captainj2410 View Post
Two questions, though. 1) Does anyone know what font to use for starship registries? 2) Should I model the registries on permanently or make them textures so the model can be reused as different ships?
Awesome work on the Ambassador Class!

Try Linotype Microgramma or Eurostile. Many, many moons ago I modelled a Miranda-class starship in Ray Dream Designer, and I think I used Eurostile Bold Extended, because I already had it. Only difference is that, I think, Microgramma is uppercase only, Eurostile has lowercase. NB: The ancient TOS Technical Manual says it's Microgramma. You can find it here: http://www.linotype.com/89986/microgramma-family.html

I used FreeHand to create my decals. I typed in the registry number, converted to paths, cloned in place, then inset the path about -5 pixels (to make it actually "outset"). That outset, cloned one gives you the outline around the lettering. I exported to Photoshop and made a nice image for the decal there (Freehand didn't do good bitmap output back then). The first pic below shows how I did it, but it's actually the wrong font. I seem to have lost my copy of Eurostile Bold Extended.

If you need the font for interior TNG-era stuff (which maybe was used on interiors for Ambassador Class ships), use Bitstream Swiss 911 Ultra Compressed, here: http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/bitstream/swiss-911/, or Helvetica Ultracondensed Black, I think.

If it were me, I'd definitely make the registry numbers textures. That way when you make your Dominion Invasion Defense Fleet, you can slap on lots of random names and numbers.

Now, can someone help me get an ancient Ray Dream Designer File from 1997 into AC3D? (Please be gentle about the pic below, it's 10 years old!)
Attached Images
  

Last edited by SimonNolan; 10th September 2007 at 01:03 AM.
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Old 10th September 2007, 03:51 PM   #5
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Default Re: Ambassador Class Starship

Thank you very much sir! I'm thinking I'll stick with the Swiss 911 font until I'm out of school because I don't have $25 to spend on a font. Luckily they provided character maps for S911 so I can do it without buying it kekeke...B-)

In other news, I finally figured out how to manipulate lights within Pose-Ray so I can put those in without writing the code now
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Old 21st October 2007, 02:50 PM   #6
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Default Re: Ambassador Class Starship

Very nice work and design. I love it! AWESOME!!!!!
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