FW 190

# 1 28-10-2011 , 07:18 PM

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I have been messing around with Maya now for a couple of months. Getting to grips with the software, doing a couple of tuts and generally just experimenting. The time has come to seriously start working on my modelling skills. As a hobbyist I figured the only way I'll improve is to start a project and post my progress here.

Got my inspiration from some of the excellent work currently posted here as well as having a keen interest of anything WWII. I decided to represent the Axis powers and make my project the Focke Wulf 190 A8 (Butcher Bird).

The first image of my progress: (Haven't figured out the AO rendering yet)
The rear part of the fuselage so far. Still a couple of hatches and panels to add. Once that's done then time for the canopy. Doing it separately as I have in mind to have this parked under some camouflage nets with the canopy and some of the panels open.

I am still very new to hard surface modelling so all criticism, tips, hints and help will be appreciated.

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# 2 28-10-2011 , 07:48 PM

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Hey there,

you are right, learning by projects is great and can be fun or frustration on the same side user added image

! That looks like a good start although it seems already very detailed. Maybe you already have too much edgeloops here. You should go first very rough and keep your polycount quite low. Start creating the shape and its big sections first. Maybe the mainbody, wings, engine etc. You´ll get detailled enough later. If you start by a too dense mesh now, you´ll could get into trouble later, when its time to work out the actual details or you need to fix some bad areas then you have to work with a lot of vertices! user added image

For your AO render!

Load and select Mental Ray. Open Hypershade and create a Surface Shader from the Maya Section and then in the Mental Ray Section under Textures also create the mib_amb_occlusion node.

Now you should have the two nodes in your work area on your hypershade. Now middlemousedrag the ambient occlusion node onto the surfaceshader and choose default. It should connect the occlusion node to the OutColor channel of the SShader. Thats it.
Apply it and render it. No need for Final Gather or something else!

For better quality you can go to the occlusion node and crank up the samples up to max of 64 which is definitely superb...a value of 24 to 32 should be fine aswell. In your rendersettings go to quality and change to Max Sample Level of 2 and a Min Sample Level of whether 0 or 1...

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# 3 28-10-2011 , 09:41 PM

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Thats sound advice from THExDUKE for modelling, drawing can some time be wrong and its better to find out at a low poly model as it is easer to adjust, I think my sherman will be alright as the FW 109 did not carry bombs or did they....LOL....dave

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# 4 29-10-2011 , 04:36 PM

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Thanks

Thank you Duke and Dave for the advice. I was thinking about the detail level when I started. I will have to suffer in silence thru the pain of handling lots of vertices. Well, all part of the learning curve. Will definitely heed to it when doing the rest.

Dave, about that sherman of yours.... One of the multiple configurations of the 190 did carry 2 smaller bombs under each wing as a replacement for the 4 wing cannons. (On top of the 500lb bomb underneath the main fuselage)

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# 5 29-10-2011 , 06:30 PM

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I will keep the 50cal loaded then.....LOL........dave

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# 6 31-10-2011 , 04:48 AM

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Good start mate...I agree too much detail. One thing I did when I started was try to add all the detail first...I have since learnt..low poly=less stress LOL. The fuselage looks way to boxlike where it terminates at the front?? I have some good refs for this plane....PM me and I will be able to help you some.

Cheers bullet

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# 7 31-10-2011 , 07:58 AM

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thanks bullet1968. i'll have to endure the stress. luckily not much hair left that can be pulled out. it looks kind of boxy as the cowling, exhaust vents and cannon cover are not yet attached (lots of bulges, dents and holes).

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# 8 04-11-2011 , 01:38 PM

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The base mesh of all the main sections are now done.
Still working on where the wing joins the fuselage. I'm not quite yet satisfied with it.
Thanks bullet1968 for those references. It really helped.

I have not yet quite figured how I'll be doing the cannon cover. The inset shows what it should look like. Really. Couldn't they have just installed a smaller cannon user added image

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# 9 04-11-2011 , 01:54 PM

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Thats looking good, I would create the cowling by stretching out a sphere cut the bottom of then doupicate over done a quick one hope you get it..........dave

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# 10 04-11-2011 , 02:08 PM

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Cool. That will work. Thanks Dave.

Forgot to attach this.

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# 11 04-11-2011 , 06:13 PM

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Some advice needed

Thanks Dave for that tip. It worked very well.

I need some advice now user added image

The fuselage of the FW 190 has a couple of very distinct gaps between some of the panels. (Up to a couple of centimeters especially around the cowling). Would you recommend this to be geometry?

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# 12 04-11-2011 , 07:03 PM

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Could you show a picture of what you mean, you look like your doing a good job as you are...........dave

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# 13 04-11-2011 , 07:53 PM

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Hi Dave
I can imagine that in the old days when one of these rolled from the factory floor, all panels were nice and snug. But with wear and tear gaps started to appear especially around all the panels giving access to the engine and guns. The fact that some of the panels came off during flight did not help much either. user added image

(Inferior latches that were fixed in later revisions). Also, the 190 is made up from 4 main sections, the main wing (i), the fuselage from the cockpit to just in front of the tail (ii), the tail section (iii) and engine/ cowling (iv). Definite seams are visible between these sections. (My first post showed sections ii and iii).

I've highlighted some of the most obvious gaps.

Thanx

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# 14 04-11-2011 , 09:04 PM

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I would detatch the main front cowling and flaps most of the others could be done with texture and bump map. It realy depends on how much detail you want to model. Like you said there is a lot of ware and tare on the ones in collections..........dave

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# 15 04-11-2011 , 10:41 PM

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For me Pixal I would add ledge loops or split poly around the areas you have highlighted for the cowling. Then select the faces on the cowling and extract into seperate geo...if that is your intent? You can always delete unused lops etc afte. Then extrude both edges where they would meet just slightly into the centre of the fuselage....doing a good job so far mate!

cheers bullet

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"A Darkness at Sethanon", a book I aspire to model some of the charcters and scenes

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