Gingerbread car (mega photogrammetry project) - upload of my 2020 3DHum competition project
Greetings, everyone! I am happy to show you my submission for the 3DHum 2020 competition. Although this may seem familiar to some of you (I posted it as a blog post), I have added a few new renders featuring my favourite turntable base that I had created but never used before. If you would like to learn more about the creation process, I highly recommend checking out my Artstation blog, where I have provided a detailed account of the inspiration for this piece, the planning and scanning stages, and the assembly of all the various elements, including those created through photogrammetry.
Blog: https://www.artstation.com/blogs/jurandm/LOz3/hum3d-competition-for-the-best-car-render-2020-part-1
For those short on time, here is a brief overview:
The competition called for a car render, and given the approaching holiday season, I thought it would be fun to create a unique and festive gingerbread car inspired by old Disney cartoons and the Pixar film Wreck-It Ralph.
I searched for a car that resembled a Ford Model T and did some basic photobashing to get a better vision of what I wanted to create and what kind of sweets I might need.
The idea of creating a gingerbread car gave me ultimate creative freedom, so I knew that I wanted some round biscuits for wheels, gingerbreads to create a seam-free material, and all other things that could be used as parts or to create a sweet seam-free texture.
The next stage was to create a basic model with various elements that would work in a candy universe:
The engine is fuelled by a mixture of various gases mixed in a device that is connected to marshmallow gas tanks.
The transmission belt that goes to the back wheel is made of jelly rainbow jerky.
The working steering wheel, based on the Ford Model T, has a breaking mechanism.
The capture process was challenging because small-sized objects created time-to-time issues with aligning, and unfortunately, some textures required fixing - all thanks to the void technique mixed with two-side capture and the fact that Reality Capture at that time didn't work that great with masks (a new and fresh addition, if I remember correctly).
After that, it was time for the best part of the whole project: playing with LEGO blocks. OK, maybe not LEGO blocks because instead of bricks I had photogrammetry models, but still. All models and materials needed to be adjusted at first to match the real-life look (roughness especially, but SSS as well, or translucency) and then change properties like size, proportion, and colors to create the perfect vintage gingerbread car. A large amount of assets allowed me to pick and choose all the time, so over time I added some additional elements that would never be seen - chocolate sofas, jelly peach rings as seats inside the car, and such.
The last part was, of course, light setup. And unfortunately, even after watching excellent ProEdu food and automotive photography courses, I'm still not sure how to create the most appealing renders. Rendering is like any other skill, and unfortunately (Artengine/UE5/professional work) took priority up here in the past 2 years.
Regardless, I hope you enjoy this sweet and whimsical creation.
