This is my third and final model for this assessment and with each model things get a little easier. I find setting up the studio is no longer a chore and I'm now comfortable with this aspect of the software.
Imperial Shuttle Studio
Even though i could only find one clear blueprint that shows only two views of the shuttle i felt confident with the experience i have gained so far that this would suffice. I will not always be able to find 3 or more detailed blueprint images of a model so some intuition and improvisation will inevitably be needed so why not start now.
Start of Fuselage
When modelling the fuselage i had to add a significant amount of edges and polygons to create the rounded, curved outer part of the fuselage. I know keeping the poly count low and as efficient as possible is a fundamental idea in modelling, however sometimes to get the desired shape you have little choice. I could later remove unused edges to reduce this count slightly. Like at the back and front of the fuselage where the faces are flat and not curved like on the sides. The more edges i have though enabled for a more accurate and gradual curvature of the fuselage.
Fuselage detail
Removing unused and unnecessary polygons at rear of fuselage
In previous projects i have, as much as i could modify one base shape as much as i could. This did bring its own set if problems though and this time i am using a higher number of separate parts of the model which i can then just group together. This will not only help when i come to texture the model but also makes it easier for me to modify and single out one particular part of the ship without having to adjust anything else. When i had one complex shape with thousands of vertices you can sometimes select more than you want (I am still on a steep learning curve) and that unwanted modifications. Sometimes i wont even be aware of them until later on and then its a real struggle to correct these kind of mistakes.
Top Fuselage box and wing connector
Top Wing Started
Top wing advanced
Top Wing Finished
Again when adding details to the wing and fuselage i created new shapes and used the auto grid option for greater accuracy on uneven surfaces.
Top wing detailed and more fuselage detail
The cockpit is also be a separate object along with the neck of the cockpit that connects it to the main fuselage. This could be thought of as a more realistic approach because aircraft's and vehicles (Fictional as this one might be) are usually made up of individually constructed parts then put together at the end. So even if some parts don't seamlessly blend into one another is not unrealistic and still gives an accurate representation.
Early stage cockpit
Beveling and extruding cockpit view port
Adding detail to cockpit
More cockpit detail
Complete detailed cockpit and cockpit neck
Adding the fuselage guns
Fuselage guns complete
Fuselage air intakes early stage
Air intakes complete
Once all the fuselage detail was complete and correct it could be grouped together for easy access and manipulation.
The lower wings were originally planned to be two separate entities. However as they are a mirror of each other and not the same object in two different places (Like on an X-Wing for example) this was not appropriate. So i decided that making one then attaching it to the main fuselage that has a symmetry modifier i would get two identical but mirrored wings. I can then detach the wings again later when i get to adding materials, keeping with the theme of having many smaller objects as opposed to one large complex one.
Lower wings attached and mirrored
Detailed lower wings
Adding lower wing gun mounts
Lower wings detailed with guns finished
When adding the detail to the back of the fuselage i have used less objects than in previous models to try and keep the poly count lower and improve the overall efficiency. I didn't want to go as far as to add no 3D details at all as this would impact the overall quality of the model.
The finished model almost exactly matches my blueprints and I'm very pleased with the accuracy of the shuttle. Its more efficient than previous models too as i was less worried about the actual modelling as i have a small amount of experience now. Which made me relax and think about this aspect of modelling more.
Shuttle in x-ray mode with blueprints visible
Four way view of finished shuttle
More angles of Imperial Shuttle
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