Viking Table- Reflection and Analysis

 For the final hand in, I fixed some parts of the project based on feedback I received from lecturers, mentors and classmates. The main problem was that the meshes were too dense, which I thought would be a difficult process, but ended up being quite quick. I avoided deleting seam edges, and imported the meshes straight into Unreal. This was because the Painter files kept resetting the textures every time I tried to reload the meshes, but I could still edit and reimport textures as the meshes retained the same UVs. I also reduced the resolution of all textures except the fur and canvas set, which I forgot to do before the previous hand in. The backlight is also a new addition, as I assumed the comment about the black background not working meant it was swallowing the silhouette. I made it a cold light, as a peer made me aware that the table was quite washed out by yellow. 

The map texture also needed a bit more work, so I added some sea wear and stronger folds to make it stand out more from the fur. I reduced the normal intensity for the noisier textures as they looked too harsh and unrealistic. The fur now uses vertex painting to mask the movement, which I did in 3DS Max to make use of the vertex paint soft selection, with red being small, vibrating movements and green controlling larger, heavier movements.

This project mainly increased my knowledge of texturing and lighting; the challenge of the fur was quite enjoyable, and the use of vertex painting to mask animation/ movement will be helpful in the future. I also enjoyed using particles to enhance the dynamism of the scene, as it is quite simple but extremely effective. My main problems were mostly with texturing the fur and sacks, as it is difficult to make readable textures for objects with such minute details. Even though I had to learn how to use Marvellous Designer in a day, it was actually one of the easiest parts of the project, though it was a simple asset I made. I think I could have spent more time on the textures, as they lack a certain level of detail, but they are improving with every project.