September 2013 Tips and Tricks: Creating a Space Beacon!

[stygg2003]

Thanks Stygg for the explanation, yes I can see the whole composition is transparent at the sky because of the opacity mask, because putting behind a yellow rectangle that shines through

Attachment 98795



Anyway why exactly opacity mask that is? Could not be a normal rectangle with linear transparency?

Your absolutely right csehz, a normal trans. rect. is fine. I'm not sure why I used an opacity mask in the first place, must have had something in mind at the time then forgot about it, which is quite normal for me now a days

Stygg

[Gare]

Okay, getting back to the beacon: what if it had companion shapes and was rising out of the ocean at Earth's beginning, sort of like the monolith in 2001?

This is doable, because I did it about 7 years ago, using the Extrude tool for reference and Vue d'Esprit for the background image.



Anyone care to improvise on this? It's Earth's first math lesson: plus, zero and minus in descending order if you want to play, "Intriguing. I wonder what the artist meant by this?"

Use your own symbols or just play with the idea and the attached file.

My Best,

Gary

[csehz]

Gary thanks, what are the principles basically to make an Extrude tool object transparent?

I mean I also did it in the example this version, but spent much more time which thought it takes. At a simple cube was never sure where to put the back looking lines. Do you switch the grids maybe, or some perspective tool?

I will give a try on this yet, but can try Xara mostly on the weekends

[Gare]

Well, csehz, because an extruded shape is a bitmap—but it maintains dynamic editing properties—there is no back-face to be revealed if you make the extruded shape semi-transparent.

I use an extruded cube as a study:



If you think about it, the three hideen faces are the same shape as the three front-facing facets. There's a little difference because of back-projecting perspective, and I didn't do this drawing perfectly, but you get the idea.

As far as transparency goes, you use linear and flat and probably do some linear gradients to keep the sides interesting looking, but this is Art, and one of the things I've mentioned before, is that if it looks right, you win!

Is it photographically accurate? Probably not, but if it engages the audience, who cares? If you want photorealism:

1. You're really, really good and don't need a reference.

2. You're good but you take a picture as a reference.

3. You just use a good modeling program, or

4. You take a photo!

Technical excellence all by itself is cheap. Technical proficiency plus an imagination is priceless!

-g

[Gare]

Perhaps this will start something:



-g

[csehz]

Thanks Gare, I find your summary in the post very valuable, will remember to it. Both the concrete method how you do the back-faces, and also the general thoughts and advices

[stygg2003]

Gary after looking at your images in #44, I have drawn a cube by using two cross hairs, drawing the top and bottom shapes first and then the rest of the shapes following the guide lines. Seems to work ok?

Stygg

[Gare]

@ Stygg—

That is a brilliant schematic of how to arrive at the visually complex space beacon...manually! It's an isometric perspective (that is, forced or "no perspective") but that doesn't matter here, perspective isn't as much of an issue as showing a manual way to build the beacon.

@Everyone: Please download the jpg in post #47, and examine how Stygg accomplished the composition.

It's an honor to share cyberspace with you, man!

My Best,

Gary

[stygg2003]

Thanks for the comments Gary but the idea came from your 3 hidden sides of an extruded cube post, all I did was straighten up the triangle and realized I could get a pretty could cube from it.

Stygg

[stygg2003]

Did this one purely for enjoyment, Learned a good lot from this Tips and Tricks.

Stygg