Build detailed structures with Clarisse iFX

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Add materials and
textures to your art
With the right textures and effects, we can add a
sinister, almost dystopian feel to our buildings
Clarisse iFX’s materials system works in
a similar way to other 3D applications.
Create a new context and import the
textures via File>Import>Texture>Map
File. After that, create a material by
right-clicking on an empty spot in the
browser and go to New>Material,
where there are several materials
available to choose. Once a material is
selected, there are two ways to assign
textures. One is in the Attribute editor,
which you can access by clicking the
checkerboard icon, or by using the
Material editor, which can be opened by
changing the editor type.
Tutorial files:
• Any necessary assets
• Tutorial video and screenshots
Insert the disc for
in-depth video tutorial
Building blocks with a modular
intermediate level
Build detailed structures
with Clarisse iFX
Learn how to create complex sci-fi structures
using a simple suite of 3D tools
The main aim of this tutorial is
to use Clarisse iFX to build
detailed structures within a
reasonable timeframe with only
a moderate amount of work. Sometimes
artists waste time by spending it on asset
refinement, putting hours into carving out
detail in their assets, but in a professional
production environment there’s simply not
enough time for this. By using Clarisse iFX
and a procedural object-based workflow,
artists can create very detailed structures
within minutes, while also leaving a lot of
room for modularity.
We will start by looking at some
great-looking, modular 3D pieces for a
science fiction building, preparing them
with correct pivot positions and finally
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exporting them to Clarisse iFX. It’s
important to be aware of the two categories
of pieces that we need – pieces to build the
actual core buildings and some for
decorations. We’ll also need to find out
which pivot positions will work the best.
Inside the application we will first import
the assets and assign the materials plus
corresponding textures. After this we will
build a special base – a template – which
will be filled later on with the 3D building
pieces, including some decorations. This
template basically consists of a special
Point Array setup. The Point Arrays and 3D
pieces are inputs for a special tool called
Scatterer. We’ll dig deep into the Scatterer
functionality and explore how to perfectly
use this advanced tool to build modular
buildings. To take advantage of the
procedural object-based workflow, the core
buildings – known as objects in Clarisse
terminology – will be used as a base for
another Scattering action, but this time
based on a Point Cloud. At this stage we’ll
learn how to use a Point Cloud in
combination with the Scatterer to place
decorations around the buildings for a more
detailed structure. This system can be
adapted for use in a variety of projects.
After the buildings are done it’s time to
tackle the process of generating a final
image in Clarisse iFX using a function called
Image View. Therefore, our last task will be
to build a solid base for the final image.
We’ll cover the correct lighting setup,
consisting of a Distant Light and Global
Illumination. In addition, we’ll place a
camera and jump right into Image View to
work directly on the final image using
Clarisse’s brute force ray tracer.
Create various shapes and decorations used
to add to the sci-fi feel of the scene
Create detailed and
modular objects
01 Choose your assets
01
First jump into 3ds Max and create modular
assets using simple shapes. It’s really
important to keep the correct height in
mind. We will work with reference boxes of
between 100 and 200m. This reference is
highly important when you want to add
your own assets. If there are any uneven
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numbers then it will be a pain to set up the
system correctly. Therefore, in the Create
pane we will use only standard primitives,
such as boxes and cylinders. To give these
simple assets a nice shape, use only
modifiers like Extrude, Inset and Connect
followed by a chamfer. To save modelling
time, all assets are available with the issue.
02 Correct anchors for
working modularity
It isn’t just the correct dimensions that
matter when you’re working with a modular
asset system. It’s really important to
understand the correct pivot position to
plug the assets seamlessly together. Before
exporting all the assets, we need to place
them centred on the grid, except for the
ground decorations. The pivot must be
centred at the origin. To do this, select all
meshes, go to the Hierarchy pane, select
Affect Pivot Only and use the Standard
Translation tool to bring the pivot to the
origin. Now we can export the mesh as an
OBJ file by going to File>Export Selected.
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object will be created. The next step will be
to select each individual asset and hide it.
With selected objects we’ll need to untick
the Display Visible box in the Attribute
editor under the Display tab. The last step is
to rename the Combiner – in this project I
renamed mine to Fundament. A Combiner
can hold as many assets as you could
possibly want, regardless of its complexity.
06 Move onto the next part
03
03 Open the files in Clarisse
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We need to bring all the assets into Clarisse
iFX, but before we do that it’s time to swap
to the 3D viewport. In the upper-left corner
we need to tell the Editor field that we want
the 3D view. Now create a new folder –
referred to as context in Clarisse – in the
browser on the lower-left corner by a
right-clicking on Project and activating New,
then Context. We should call this context
scifi_building, then add four more contexts
inside called Ground, Middle, Top and Deco
respectively. Now import the corresponding
assets without materials into each context
by clicking File>Import>Geometry.
04 Keep your workspace
clean and manageable
By default every asset that rests in an active
folder will be displayed in the 3D viewport,
which can sometimes be annoying. To
avoid overwhelming your viewport, assets
can be hidden. To hide an asset, take a look
inside the Attribute editor. There’s a section
called Display and if the box is ticked for
Display Visible, an object is visible. Another
function which will save you time involves
jumping to the selected object in the 3D
viewport view. This function can be
activated by using the icon in the upper-left
corner of the viewport.
05 Create a solid base
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We’re now ready to build our first modular
part – the base. Let’s jump into the Ground
context and create a new object called
Combiner. Do this by selecting all assets
and right-clicking in the empty explorer
space. Under New, press Combiner and the
To build the second part, go into the Middle
context, select the Generator mesh, plus
the Support mesh, which holds the rings.
Like before, apply a Combiner object to
both meshes and then hide them once
more. Now we can use the empty middle
part without the generator equipment and
build a living area after we’ve copied it to
the Deco context. Inside the Deco context
apply another Combiner to the middle
building plus the Window Support mesh
and call it Livingarea. To keep the scene
clear, hide both single assets. On both
Combiners we will need to set the
Translate values to 0.
07 Piece the parts together
At this point we will need to add two new
objects to continue, a Point Array and a
Scatterer. Like the Combiner, both are
located in the Creation menu, with the
Point Array under Geometry. The Point
Array will provide us with anchor points to
place the living areas. Select the Point Array
and in the Attribute editor under the
Geometry section, set the Y-size to 140m.
In addition, set the Count field to 5 points.
Last but not least, go right to the top of the
Attribute editor and set the Y-Translate field
to a value of 82m.
Light customisation
for a better look
The basic light setup placed in the
Clarisse iFX scene is okay, but you can
add to the look and feel of the light by
using a special texture instead of a
simple Light Color. First of all, you must
add a Procedural Fractal Noise texture,
which is located in the menu under
New>Texture>Procedural. Now it’s
time to put it in action. After the Distant
light is selected, take a look at the
Lighting Region inside the Attribute
editor. In the line named Color, click on
the checkerboard icon and select the
Procedural Fractal texture.
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08 Use the Scatterer
Now that our anchors are set the Scatterer
can take over and place the living room
asset on each point. To do this, select the
Scatterer and in the Attribute editor under
Scattering tell it that the geometry support,
which is where it should place objects, will
be our Point Array. It also needs to know
what it will be scattering. So, add the
Livingarea Combiner into the Geometry
field below the Scatter Input mode. At this
stage we can hide both the Livingarea
Combiner and the Point Array. Only the
middle asset and the Scatterer will be
visible, which we need to combine and
rename to Livingarea_complete.
09 Tidy up your scene
and workspace
Our Livingarea_complete Combiner isn’t
ready yet as we have to adjust the pivot
position again. Sometimes the Combiner
creates a new pivot position, which is
centred to the object. Select the Combiner,
go into the Attribute editor and set the
Translate Y in Kinematics to 0 and the Point
Translate Offset under Advanced
Kinematics to 0 as well. The pivot will be at
the origin once more. Our last step is to
combine the top parts, so jump into the Top
context and combine the actual Top section
plus the Support mesh for the windows and
call it Top.
10 Set up final anchors
To finalise the modular system, create a
new context named Final_bits. Take all of
the final assets from their respective folders
and copy them into this context. The idea is
to keep the Fundament and the Top piece
static and the middle ones modular. Hide
the living room asset plus the generator. For
the Top piece, add a Y translation of 800m.
Let’s add another Point Array, starting at
the height of 400m (Kinematics>Translate
Y). Under Geometry in the Attribute editor,
add the numbers 3 for the Y-count and
400m in Y-size.
09
Pay attention to
the measurements
10
When you are working with a building
blocks system like this it’s important to
keep the correct measurements in
mind, in particular the different unit
systems inside applications. If you are
using Maya from Autodesk, you can be
sure that one of their standard units is
equal to one metre in Clarisse. If you are
using 3ds Max, however, it’s a different
unit system. Before you start modelling
in 3ds Max, make sure you take a look
at how the units are set under
Customise, then activate the metric
system for the System Units Setup.
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11 Let the system do its job
To bring in the promised modularity, create
another Scatterer and rename it to
Modular_assets. In the Attribute editor
under Geometry Support, assign our Point
Array and under Geometry add the missing
assets, the former being the generator
piece and the latter being the living room
asset. By default, the Scatterer works with a
randomised placement method. At this
point we’re done with our modular building
system. To render the scene, drag and drop
the three files (Fundament, Top and the
Scatterer) to the scene context and adjust
the camera with the Standard
Transformation tools.
12 Add final effects
Now we can add a Distant light and a GI
object. Both are located in the create menu
under the Light section (New>Light). Using
the Transformation tools, which can be
accessed on the Menu bar on the left,
position the light so that it shines on the
building. To render the scene, change from
the 3D view to the Image view in the
upper-left corner of the viewport. Drag the
image from the image browser to the
viewport and in the Attribute editor switch
the resolution of the output image to 720p.
• Did you know? • All tutorial files can also be downloaded from: www.3dartistonline.com/files
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