Ran a test animation today on the same scene I used this morning.

Sun rise to sunset in under 10 seconds.

Testing some materials, lighting, tree models, etc.   Wanted to see how realistically I could create a “natural” scene.   I’m pretty pleased with this first attempt.  On with the testing!

(click the image to enlarge)

Just finished migrating our existing web sites, blogs, etc. into one new home.

Lots of new info here  -  Look around and let me know what you think!

(Be sure to at least check out the ‘Blog’ and ‘Portfolio’ links above.)

Thanks!
Scott

Currently working on wrapping up a video for the development “Indigo Bluffs”, a “distinctive RV retreat” in Northern Michigan. Some weeks ago the client asked us to stage a single lot and render it so it could be used as a backdrop for their traveling trade show booth. Upon speaking with the display manufacturer, we found that they required an image that would print 10′ x 12′ at 300dpi. Gulp! We had never rendered an image that large, so this was a test for us. It came out very well however, and I’m told it has generated quite a bit of buzz at the shows. It seems they had to spend quite some time explaining that this was a rendered concept of what a site could be, and not a photo of a site they could purchase!

I have included the frame we rendered, as well as a photo of the booth at a show. Nice work guys!

Looks like it has been quite a while since I posted anything here. I need to catch up! For now, enjoy our 2008 Sample Church Animation, which we just completed.

Also, see this 15 minute animation we did for Bay Pointe Community Church a few years back:  Click here

Call us for a quote on your project.  I think you’ll be surprised!

In the business, we usually call these non-photoreal, or “NPR”. They could be a traditional media style replicating a hand sketch or a painting, or they could be very basic 3D images without reflections or even textures. Sometimes they are requested as a matter of preference – and sometimes because of the lower cost and turnaround time. And sometimes they just work better than a full photo-realistic rendering due to their simple presentation and high contrast.

Whatever the look and whatever the need, NPR renderings still make up a fair amount of our work. Because of the lower time requirements, we can sneak these in between other jobs pretty easily. But because they are not as glamorous as our photoreal renderings, they usually do not get the same attention. So I decided to use today’s blog post to highlight these images. If you want more information or more examples on any of our NPR styles, give me a call!

Meet Kevin, Angela, and Ryan. They just finished their first full week of rendering!

With Intel quad-core processors, they join Dwight and Andy as the fastest render boxes in the office.

HELP!!! We’re hiring. Do you know 3D?
Check out this link for the skinny.

We’ve been back for a bit, but only just now taking the time to post some details.

JSSVD had booth #749 at the Spring wfx conference in Indianapolis April 30 – May 1. All of us were able to go to the show except for Andy – he was sad.

As I reflect on the journey, it seems more a tour of restaurants that Nick had never experienced than it did a trip to a trade show. First on the list of Nick’s tour was White Castle. You should have seen the excitement on his face! It soon left though, with his first bite of steamed meat. I always heard that their burgers were tiny, but Aubrey could barely even lift hers!

Next was my favorite discovery of the past few years: Famous Dave’s! Yummmmm. Highly recommended! Every time I’m in a biggish city I look for one, as they have not yet made it to the northlands. It was late and we couldn’t decide on individual meals, so we split the giant trashcan lid platter. Very excellent!

I’m not sure what she did that she is smiling about, but here you can see our den mother and navigator, Aubrey. Although soon after this was shot, her navigator status was put on probation however. You see, she is always talking about this restaurant “P.F. Chang’s” that she wants us to try. So one night at 10:45 she searches Google Maps on my cell phone to find them. When she is told they close at 11, she was trying to find out if we could still make it. The lady seemed confused since they were just starting to serve the dinner menu, but said “Yes – you should have plenty of time.” So, we head to town. When we get there, sure enough – they are closed. I took my phone back from her and looked at the last screen. Click here for a clue why we didn’t have Chinese that night.

Well, at one point we actually did man a booth at the show. Here are a couple of pictures as evidence. As usual, Scott is working, Nick is sleeping, and Aubrey is nowhere to be found.

It may not look like it, but these things are exhausting. The first day we were all incredibly busy talking with people. I didn’t sit down that day. Thursday gave us a few breaks, but still steadily busy right to the end. After teardown Thursday, we all went back to the hotel and crashed until very late.

While I was busy trying to establish relationships with prospective clients, Nick & Aubrey went on a swag expedition. (For definition of “swag”, watch “The Office”, Season 3, Episode 2 – “The Convention”) After nap time, Nick laid out his takings.

Before commencing the journey home, we stopped at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I guess that is the thing you are supposed to see in that town. Pretty cool to see the cars in the museum. A lot more impressive on race day though, I’ll bet. Nick is ready, although I think a helmet would be prudent.

On the way home, we came thru Fort Wayne to see the new Sweetwater headquarters. I can sum it all up in one word: “Huh?!” Let me first say that Sweetwater is an incredible supplier of pro audio gear, musical instruments, etc. They have probably one of the largest warehouses of its kind. However, their new digs feel like a strange dream, or one of those spy movies where someone wakes up in a strange facility, having been extracted from their normal lives and trained to work for the government. The place is immense, and when we went – absolutely empty. There were LCD panels everywhere with various shows playing that all seemed as if they were showing propaganda to make us feel like everything is ok. Yet around each corner was a new and strange thing that we could not relate to. A free video game arcade including virtual golf, a movie theater, an exercise room, racquetball, restaurant, concierge, recording studio… Crazy! They did have some music gear in the front of the store that we had to explore, but I couldn’t believe how little the showroom was given their reputation. After playing around a little, I was forced to push Nick thru the glass to the showroom floor.

I’m sure it looks like we mostly played while there, and this is partly true. But when we were working, we were just so dern busy that we could not accurately capture it. Besides, all of the pictures of us “working the booth” look pretty much the same. The bottom line is, it was a very encouraging trip, garnering a number of new leads, and a lot of fun!

This is a quick animation I did some time ago to test our tracking software. Put simply, tracking allows us to identify the path a camera followed while recording, the lens used, and other characteristics. This information is then used to create a virtual camera in our 3D scene with the same parameters. Then, we can render an animation of something that does not exist, and match it into a real-world setting. You have seen this done hundreds of times, but may not have known it. This is how Gollum in Lord of the Rings , King Kong, and the recent HP and Levi’s commercials were made to name just a few.

Click here to view the embedded video.

This test is poor quality, but that was by design. Rather than using a pro-level HD video camera, I used an inexpensive digital camera that shoots mediocre video. I figured if I can get a good track on a jerky 320×240 at 15fps, I can get a great match on smooth HD. After tracking the camera move, I dropped in a building from a past job, planted some trees, and added some moving cars.

Certainly not a product quality I would deliver, but proof that we can make very convincing matches with proper footage.