Getting started
STEP 1
Start up your Bryce program and go to the File menu and select document setup then choose A4 and 1:50 from the options presented on screen. I find using the 1:50 setting best for doing a small quick render during the design stage. When completed, the design can then be rendered at 1:1 before final detailing is made using a paint program such as Photoshop.
Tip: It’s a good idea to have a selection of ready made blank templates to choose from in sizes that you like to work with. For example, I like to use a landscape format set to 1024 x 768 which I use quite often when designing a landscape orientated picture. To make a template simply set the size you want to use regularly and save a blank template (without using any models or terrain) which you can then open from the File> Open menu each time you want to design a picture using that size and resolution.
Now, go to the File menu and select import object. Find the models you have downloaded and select them one at a time to import them into your scene. The building can then be copied and pasted twice and moved into the required positions in the background using the ‘re-position tool’ in the edit palette, and also re-sizing them where necessary. This gives the image more depth as each building appears to be receding into the distance. The spacecraft model can also be positioned to suit your preference.
The materials I used on the buildings and spacecraft were custom designed by myself. You can choose other materials from the Bryce edit menu if you wish, but if you prefer the materials I use you can download them from our 3D models area and similar spacecraft models can be downloaded from the 3D Models download page.
Tip: Material presets can be saved separately and used on other models by adding them to your materials library as a user preset or in one of the installed preset selections. (see fig.2) You can also save materials by selecting a model with the material already applied and clicking the Add option at the bottom of the materials library window.
A suitable sky was then chosen and made more dramatic by changing the colours in the sky and fog palette and tweaking the cloud coverage control. To make the composition more dramatic the viewing angle was changed using the camera trackball and two more of the same spacecraft were copied, pasted and moved into position high in the sky.
A quick render (see fig.1) gave me some idea of how the basic composition looks at this stage.
Because I have done a similar design before (which you can see in the next section) the whole design and composition process took me less than 20 minutes to import the models, position them and play around with the sky, cloud and fog settings to come up with a totally different look from my original design which I did a while back. By using different buildings and spacecraft models you can make your designs as simple or as complex as you like to come up with a variety of different images. But I find that most of the time, simple designs, arranged in a dynamic composition, usually give the best results.
Go to next page... THE FINISHING TOUCHES
