hehe...

This is my first attempt at doing mesh-based models. The picture is a 
capture of my wings interface. I'm modelling the skull of a cow, and so 
far I think I'm doing okay.

Any advice to a Wings newbie so I don't wind up screwing up my model?

I've decided to take the approach of modelling to the line of symetry, 
then when I have the model sufficiently completed, mirroring along the 
axis and joining the two halves. It took me a while to figure out how to 
cut the eye-hole, but I eventually figured it out. There's still a lot 
of refinement needed, but this is just the first rough stages of the model.

I have to say, Wings is very cool and easy to use. And... best of all, 
FREE! Hehehe..

Yes -- This is for my IRTC entry, btw...

I'm a bit excited about creating a mesh!

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Attachments:
Download 'modelling.jpg' (100 KB)

Preview of image 'modelling.jpg'

"Michael Raiford" <mra### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message
news:40f9503d@news.povray.org...
> hehe...
>
> This is my first attempt at doing mesh-based models. The picture is
a
> capture of my wings interface. I'm modelling the skull of a cow, and
so
> far I think I'm doing okay.
>
> Any advice to a Wings newbie so I don't wind up screwing up my
model?

  Yes, save your Wings file as 'cowskull2.wings/obj',
'cowskull3.wings/obj', etc. - Wings does have a tendency to just
evacuate now and again with near drastic results in my case... You can
then call on these once you've re-booted.

     Nice start.

     ~Steve~

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St. wrote:

> "Michael Raiford" <mra### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message
> news:40f9503d@news.povray.org...
> 
>>hehe...
>>
>>This is my first attempt at doing mesh-based models. The picture is
> 
> a
> 
>>capture of my wings interface. I'm modelling the skull of a cow, and
> 
> so
> 
>>far I think I'm doing okay.
>>
>>Any advice to a Wings newbie so I don't wind up screwing up my
> 
> model?
> 
>   Yes, save your Wings file as 'cowskull2.wings/obj',
> 'cowskull3.wings/obj', etc. - Wings does have a tendency to just
> evacuate now and again with near drastic results in my case... You can
> then call on these once you've re-booted.
> 
>      Nice start.
> 
>      ~Steve~
> 
> 
I agree with Steve.  I typically save copies of models at ever major 
point of departure along the path of development. I have evolved a whole 
standard of nomenclature to track the variations on the model as I 
develop it.  Frequent saving of external copies is the single most 
important thing I believe.  This way you can always return to a lighter 
version of your model rather than try to wrestle with over heavy 
geometry.  Save often and cut you loses quickly.

Make sure also, that you have plenty of depth in your undo buffer.

I use the mirror tool shamelessly but selectively.  I just maintain a 
loop along the plane(s) of symmetry.  I can model with mirror off.  If I 
have created some geometry I need relected, I do the loop cut, create 
the mirror, freeze the mirror and continue on my way.  If I need to see 
how the new geometry looks reflected in real time I leave the mirror on. 
Some tools are more effective with the mirror on, some without.  Often I 
mirror in more than one plane (not simultaneously of course).

I also loop cut then weld back different parts of the model for 
different reasons usually to expose inner geometry or the limit the 
scope of the magnet tool. This would be helpful I would think with a 
subject such as yours with so many internal surfaces. These are more 
advanced techniques, but ones that I wish I'd been more bold to take 
advantage of earlier on.

A technique you also might find will save time and keep you out of 
trouble with a model like yours is the use of the "bounding box" and 
"center" tools in unison.  You might take 10 minutes with a practive 
model to see how they work.  Basically the "center" tool will shift the 
model so that the highlighted part of it, say a face you are working on, 
is located at the origin.  This makes that area easier to examine with 
the camera.  If you need to shift the model back to some original 
location, you will have saved its "bounding box" and return it there. 
The bounding box is only a need if you have several objects in a 
specific relation to each other.

A cow's skull is an excellent, though challenging, subject for a Wings 
model.  To infinity and beyond!

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Cow Skull, Rendered in POV-Ray

The textures are waay wrong, but this is a quick render of the Wings 
model I just created.

I'm not entirely happy with it, I think I'll go back and do a few things 
differently, namely find a way to mirror it without the seam. It 
actually resembles the object I set out to model, though ;)

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Attachments:
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Preview of image 'skull1.jpg'

Michael Raiford wrote:
> Cow Skull, Rendered in POV-Ray
> 
> The textures are waay wrong, but this is a quick render of the Wings 
> model I just created.
> 
> I'm not entirely happy with it, I think I'll go back and do a few things 
> differently, namely find a way to mirror it without the seam. 

You froze the mirror first, then smoothed, right?

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Jim Charter wrote:

> You froze the mirror first, then smoothed, right?

How'd you ever guess? ;)

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Michael Raiford wrote:

> Jim Charter wrote:
> 
>> You froze the mirror first, then smoothed, right?
> 
> 
> How'd you ever guess? ;)
> 
> 
Just checking, *smoothing before freezing* will cause a ridge.  If you 
have properly removed/frozen the mirror before smoothing, and still get 
a ridge, then you do need to be more careful about the angle of the 
faces at the axis.  I have never had that give me much trouble, to be 
honest, so I have never given it much attention.  Perhaps, after you 
freeze the mirror you could select the dividing edgeloop and run a bevel 
along it, then smooth?

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