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Carrara Challenge #50 - A Special Carrara Anniversary Celebration - WIP thread

UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588
edited January 2020 in Carrara Discussion

 

Welcome to the 50th Anniversary of the Carrara Challenge!

 

(Thanks to DUDU for the great image!)

 

It started almost 7 years ago...

In May of 2013, Headwax (Andrew Finnie) stirred the aethers and began the Carrara Challenge. 

According to HW, "The idea initially was two-fold:  1) To foster a sense of community spirit, and 2) To help us learn from each other how to use Carrara in a better manner - and explore her awesome abilities."

The first theme was "Welcome to my Garden."

Daz and Dart were the sponsors.

There were 12 participants and 18 entries.  Participants included Headwax, Varsel, Diomede, Philemo, booksbydavid, 0oseven, FractalDimensia, evilproducer, 3DAGE, Wendyluvscatz, Sockratease, and GSSEV.

 

It must have been a good idea because...

Suddenly - at least it may seem sudden to many of the old-timers here - we have reached number fifty, the Big 5-0.  Time flies!  Now it is time to celebrate this milestone.  Thanks to everyone for the many great theme suggestions put forth on the forum.  Those concepts were narrowed down to three categories.

 

Category 1 - Welcome to my Garden

We revisit and honor the very first Challenge theme.  The idea is to create a garden of plants either modeled in Carrara (including the hair room), or produced via the Carrara plant and terrain rooms.  In other words, plants and terrain must be created using a Carrara function, and not imported from a premade product or other source outside of Carrara ("basic plants" and "basic leaves" premade content within Carrara is OK to use).  Shaders from any source are also OK.  The garden can be flowery, thorny, abstract, alien, full of vegetables, or many other variations on a theme.  You can look at what was done the first time around and use it for inspiration.  See next post for examples.

 

Category 2 - Fifty Shades of Carrara

Here we focus on the coolest way to use the concept of "50" in a render.  Maybe you want to use the Carrara text creator to play with the actual numbers 5 and 0, like on a wedding anniversary cake.  Or maybe you have some association to the word fifty, such as a Fiftieth Golden Jubilee, or Fifty Shades of Grey (this could get interesting).  Whatever your pleasure, pursue your fifty!  See next post for examples.

"Hollywood is a place where they'll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul."  Marilyn Monroe

 

 Category 3 - Your Personal Wild Card

Carrara is an amazingly robust 3D software suite, with capabilities that often surprise even experienced users.  Because no single theme can cover all it does, in this anniversary Challenge we offer you the opportunity to follow your inspiration and push the boundaries of Carrara however you like.  Maybe there is a specific function you always wanted to try.  Maybe you want to show that Carrara can do something that few suspected was possible.  Or maybe you have a great idea and want to find out if you can pull it off.

The point is, YOU choose the subject and what Carrara functions you use.  The goal here is to grab those fabulous tools, and marshal your creative resources into one incredible render.   And because this Challenge is longer than normal (6 weeks +), you have the time to do it!

You can enter only one render in this category, so make it a good one. :)

 

Rules

1.  Up to 5 renders can be entered (but unlimited WIP's are allowed).  Only 2 renders can be entered in any single category.  Only one render in category 3.

2.  Images must be new (previously unpublished).

3.  Images must be "mostly" set up in Carrara.  Plants and terrains in category 1 must be created by the artist using a Carrara function or plugin, or at least be created using native Carrara items from "basic plants," basic leaves," or other such specific content that came with the program.  Shaders from any source are OK.

4.  While postwork is allowed, it must not be the dominant part of the image.  Posting images of before and after postwork is encouraged.

5.  At least one WIP (work in progress) image of the final Carrara setup must be posted to the WIP thread.

6.  First place will be determined by the total number of votes for all renders submitted (Best Participation).  Second through fourth will be decided by the highest number of votes for a single image.

7.  The first place winner qualifies to become the next Carrara Challenge host, and sets the theme and rules for the next competition.  But should the winner decline this honor, other high finishers will be given the opportunity to step forward and fill the role.

 

Prizes

Daz is again on board and sponsoring the Challenge!  Many thanks to them for stepping up.yesyesyesheart  In line with our 50th Challenge, prizes will be awarded equally in fifties:

Best Participation:  $50 in Daz Originals

Best Render of Garden:  $50 in Daz Originals

Best Render of "Fifty" - $50 in Daz Originals

Best Wild Card Render - $45 in Daz Originals, $5 gift certificate.

*Note, an artist can win only one Daz category prize.

Funniest Render - $10 Gift Certificate from Misty

PA prize - Phil Wilkes is the PA sponsor, and he will award a prize from his store for best overall render!

 

Dates:

All dates are Daz time: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/usa/salt-lake-city

WIP thread opens Wednesday December 4th, 2019

Entry thread opens Wednesday January 1st, 2020

Entry thread closes/ voting begins January 26, 2020

Voting ends Feburary 2, 2020

 

Promotion

I will soon add an Art Studio thread so you can share your entries with others outside of the Carrara forum.

Carrara 50th Anniversary Image by DUDU.jpg
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Comments

  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588
    edited December 2019

    Sample images for Category 1, Welcome to my Garden

    (the winners from Challenge #1)

     

    My Grandfather's Elephant Topiary - Headwax

     

    Koi's Pond - booksbydavid

     

    Zen Garden - FractalDimensia

     

    Breakfast Time - Philemo

     

     

    Sample images for Category 2, Fifty Shades of Carrara

     

    Aero 50, Czech car model from 1940

     

    The Movie

     

    Birthday Bash

     

    Pentecost

     

    Browning 50 Caliber Machine Gun

     

    Anniversary

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    Post edited by UnifiedBrain on
  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588
    edited December 2019

    Carrara landscape and plant tutorials

     

    Carrara Terrains - a thread by Dart - https://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/37867/building-carrara-terrains-intro/p1

    Carrara Replicators - a thread by Diomede - https://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/38177/how-to-replicators-introductory-methods-tricks-and-advanced-tips/p1

    Creating grass on a Carrara terrain - a tutorial by Jay Versluis - https://www.versluis.com/2016/08/how-to-grow-grass-on-a-terrain-in-carrara/

    Post edited by UnifiedBrain on
  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,169
    edited December 2019

    Progress?

    I think I will try to improve upon my first entry.  Everything in the following was modeled, rigged, posed, and rendered in Carrara.  Lets see if I can do better now.

    Entry No. 2
    Title: Ripe for the Picking

    Description. Everything was modeled in Carrara. The foreground Tree is a vertex model, duplicated, with the second version rotated on the Z axis. I used a surface replicator to attach branches to the tree, and other surface replicators to attach the leaves and the fruit. The leaves are vertex models with a stem. The leaf, bark, and fruit textures are gradients. The grass and dandelions are vertex models. The grass and yellow dandelions are textured with color gradients. The dandelion seeds are spheres with spots applied to the alpha channel. The background trees are from the Carrara plant applied to a terrain with the surface replicator. The trees on the far mountain on the upper right were made by duplicating a mountain terrain, applying a noise filter, and coloring the spiky duplicate green. The harvester is an original figure modeled, rigged, and textured in Carrara.

    Post edited by Diomede on
  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,169

    I am assuming that starting over from scratch and re-imagining the orchard harvester counts as a new image, previously unpublished.

    UB, let me know if I am wrong.  Understandable either way.

  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588

    Definitely counts as a new image.  BTW, redoing your old image is a great idea.  Six years later...  I wish that I had the same option. :)

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 8,615
    edited December 2019

    1950 Studebaker WIP 1

    50 Studebaker Carrara 1.png
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    50 Studebaker WIP 1.png
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    Post edited by Bunyip02 on
  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 8,615
    edited December 2019

    A few changes

    50 Studebaker Carrara 2.png
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  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 8,615
    edited December 2019

    Happy 50th Dudes & Dudettes !!!!

    Happy 50th Carrara 1.png
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    Post edited by Bunyip02 on
  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 8,615
    edited December 2019

    Happy 50th test render

    Happy 50th render 1 1600.png
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    Post edited by Bunyip02 on
  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588
    Bunyip02 said:

    A few changes

    Love those old 50's Studebakers.yes  The colors are much more interesting on this render, including the plant in the front.  The lawn is maybe too perfect? :)

  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588
    Bunyip02 said:

    Happy 50th test render

    Nice!

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    found a wedding cake in the native objs smiley  delish looking for an anniversary cake

  • DesertDudeDesertDude Posts: 1,235

    Thanks UnifiedBrain for hosting - categories sound great! Can't wait to be off work for a few weeks.

    (...My bank account thinks otherwise, but, mmmm, coffee, kitties, sleeping in and Carrara is a good trade off...)

  • StezzaStezza Posts: 8,063
    edited December 2019

    +1 on @UnifiedBrain hosting .. awesome stuff yes  smiley

    Wacky 50th Partaaaaaay

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  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675
    edited December 2019

    cant decide which category would be good for a hairy jalapeño on a stick ?

    pepper garden?

    50 hairy tomatoaes  tee hee  

    Post edited by Mistara on
  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588
    edited December 2019
    DesertDude said:

    Thanks UnifiedBrain for hosting - categories sound great! Can't wait to be off work for a few weeks.

    (...My bank account thinks otherwise, but, mmmm, coffee, kitties, sleeping in and Carrara is a good trade off...)

    Thanks DD.  It will be great to see you back in the game.yes

     

     

    StezzaKarara said:

    +1 on @UnifiedBrain hosting .. awesome stuff yes  smiley

    Wacky 50th Partaaaaaay

    Very appropriate (and excellent) celebration scene!  The sheer volume of quality models you've made is just stunning, and this render probably only represents about 10% of them. :)

    If you don't mind me asking, how did you do the confetti?

    Post edited by UnifiedBrain on
  • StezzaStezza Posts: 8,063
    edited December 2019
    UnifiedBrain said:
    DesertDude said:
    If you don't mind me asking, how did you do the confetti?

    don't mind at all..

    I modified a previous model I did ( a simple grid plain of a bank note ) into a small weird shape, duplicated... then applied different bend and twist modifiers to both and added them to a replicator.  wink

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  • UnifiedBrainUnifiedBrain Posts: 3,588

    Thanks for those details.  I'm still not clear on one thing.  What did you apply those replicated objects to?  Is there an invisible plane?

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 8,615
    StezzaKarara said:

    +1 on @UnifiedBrain hosting .. awesome stuff yes  smiley

    Wacky 50th Partaaaaaay

    Superb !!!

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 8,615
    edited December 2019

    Alien Garden WIP 1

    Generated a set of Alien trees in Carrara, now filling in the scene with Alien plants from my library.

    Alien Leaf by spacebones - https://sharecg.com/v/5740/gallery/6/Texture/Alien-Leaf-for-Ivy-Generator-or-common-use
    Alien Branches by spacebones - https://sharecg.com/v/5741/gallery/6/Texture/Alien-Branches-for-Ivy-Generator-or-common-use

    Alien Garden 1.png
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  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,214
    UnifiedBrain said:

    Thanks for those details.  I'm still not clear on one thing.  What did you apply those replicated objects to?  Is there an invisible plane?

    he used a replicator not a surface replicator

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,570
    UnifiedBrain said:

    Thanks for those details.  I'm still not clear on one thing.  What did you apply those replicated objects to?  Is there an invisible plane?

    He lkely didn't use the "Surface Replicator", but the often overlooked "Replicator", which can replicate in many, Many different ways, each which allows for random variations in any and all directions.

    Another way to perform the task would be to use the same model he made in a Particles Emitter, and either freeze the particles after generation, or simply snapshot a single frame of the physics in action! ;)

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,570

    Very Cool Themes! Looking forward to (attempting to) participating in this one!

  • StezzaStezza Posts: 8,063
    UnifiedBrain said:

    Thanks for those details.  I'm still not clear on one thing.  What did you apply those replicated objects to?  Is there an invisible plane?

    what Wendy then Dart said...

    just a replicator not a surface replicator yes

     

    thanks @Bunyip02 smiley

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,570

    Hi Wendy! We must've been typing at the same time! :)

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,214
    Dartanbeck said:

    Hi Wendy! We must've been typing at the same time! :)

    yep but your particle idea was what I too would go for, or surface replication on the fountain primitive 

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,570
    WendyLuvsCatz said:
    Dartanbeck said:

    Hi Wendy! We must've been typing at the same time! :)

    yep but your particle idea was what I too would go for, or surface replication on the fountain primitive 

    Another option is to use good ol' Ctrl + D (Duplicate)! Duplicate a few time, rotating and maybe a slight scaling after the first, then select that group (original + duplicates) and duplicate that, move it, rotate it, scale it, repeat! It's truly amazing how quickly I can fill a scene in such a way, and each instance is entirely custimizeable! 

  • DesertDudeDesertDude Posts: 1,235
    edited December 2019

    I'm getting my foot in the door with this sketch....

    50 people not paying attention to _ANYTHING_ as they...by a miracle of the universe, don't become road kill.

    Cheers!

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  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,570

    Awesome concept!

  • DesertDudeDesertDude Posts: 1,235

    Thanks Dartanbeck. It's my daily experience as a bike courier navigating through a sea of "millenials" who are not paying attention to anything but their hand held screens...

    (==> insert "eyeroll" emoji-thing...)

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