Modelling


   There were no particularly challenging aspects to the modelling of this project. Everything was modelled with NURBS (Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline objects which consist of degree three curves). However there was quite a lot of modelling to be completed so I did have to plan carefully.

   The most important set of objects to be modelled were the meadows. I decided to create these by stitching together a series of NURBS patches. I wanted the landscape to look like a patchwork quilt of different fields and meadows, so this technique was very well suited to the task. At render time each patch was simply textured differently to create the desired effect. The only slightly problematic task was making sure that the patches lined up correctly before stitching. After stitching them together I had to mould hills and valleys into the landscape. I accomplished this using lattice and sculpt deformers. This task was also quite straightforward, except that I had to make sure I did not split the joins of the landscape where I had stitched the patches together.

   The buildings and other objects were also modelled with NURBS. This involved creating curves of the correct shape and then lofting, extruding or revolving them into a final object. It was important that the isoparms of all the NURBS objects were spaced correctly (no bunching etc.) because my shader relied on their spacing during render time (see earlier sections).