“Brewing some Positivi-TEA…☕️”
————— Week 1 —————
Mood-board and idea development:
For my 3D elective project I would like to make a retro machine that brews coffee AND tea. While I was putting my mood board together, it was quite interesting to look at very diverse possible designs of coffee machines. In my head, I could visualise a sort of old coffee machine with some rust and scratches on it that I’d like to model. To idea of being able to bring an imagined idea into a 3D model hypes me up a lot.
Scratched-off ideas
Originally, I wanted to make a retro camera, but I struggled to formulate the whole idea how it would properly function in the old times. Besides, the design looks quite modern and new so I ditched the idea instead.
Sketches and drafts:
I’d like to believe this machine is introduced to the markets in Hong Kong during the year of 1960, when HK was still colonised by the British. It could be observed that there are numbers of British influences that contribute to the unique identity of the petit city that still exist today. So I think it would be a good idea to leave traces of the Brit’s love for english tea onto the machine, as a mark of the city’s colonial past. The english tea “trend” then filters down to local tastes and becomes Hong Kong’s famously known milk tea, which could be found in local “cha chaan tengs” (HK style cafes).
Learning Maya with a Lego man:
It was great to model again on Maya after a long time. I find it very helpful and useful that we needed to model a lego man to get familiarised with the functions of Maya after a while. I was pretty surprised I remember the basic functions of the program. However, I did struggle on creating the lego man’s arms. It was surely a bit of a challenge but still very enjoyable.
————— Week 2 —————
Work in Progress in Modelling my Cofftea Machine:
Front view:
Low-angle view:
Low-angle view:
————— Week 3 —————
For this week, I continued to work on my 3D model. I proceed to add on the tubes that connect the water glass jugs to the containers with coffee beans/tea bags. The tubes were very difficult to construct, so one of my tutors suggested me using the curve tool and the sweep mesh function. It takes patience and skill to use these tools but I am glad how the tubes looked like afterwards.
In class, we also looked into the functions of UV wrapping. The lessons were very challenging to follow, but I am certain UV wrapping is a very useful tool.
Later on during the week, I added a few more things to my model. I added some local food you’ll normally find from chinese restaurants (cha chaan tengs) to compliment the scene. I also modelled the mixing part where the coffee, tea and milk are going to be blended together. Furthermore, I added extra room that allow you to put two extra cups at the backside of the machine.
————— Week 4 —————
Further into week 4, I have completed modelling and stepped into the stage of UV unwrapping. Here’s some progress of me UV unwrapping while I tried to not lose my sanity over how hard it was for some objects.
————— Week 5 —————
During week 5, I started to do some texturing for the objects of the model after UV unwrapping everything. I quickly picked up Substance Painter and was glad that it wasn’t too difficult to understand the interface and the tools available for use. It was super fun!
I actually also contemplated whether I should use z-brush but I think it wasn’t necessary for this project and learning it would not be be an overnight thing. However, hopefully I would be able to utilize the powerful software as well as mastering it in the future!
————— Week 6 —————
Adding textures to my model…
————— Week 6 —————
Final Rendered Stills:
Final Outcome: Animation!
Playblast Version:
Rendered Version:
It was unfortunate that the render farm failed and broke down twice during my rendering progress for my 3D animation. It upset me that I couldn’t render my entire animation as a whole at first, so I also uploaded the playblast version to show how it was meant to look like. However thanks to a few kind technicians that are always wiling to help me out, I was able to render my final piece in time in the morning! What a crazy surprise! I was so happy to be able to get the final outcome. I just feel so grateful that these technicians didn’t mind how hard it was for my project to be rendered or no matter how many times the render crashed, they just kept trying for me. I just felt so touched that there are people out there to lend me a helping hand even when they have more important things to do. I am truly just so thankful that I got so much support and love from so many people throughout his project. It made me realize that sometimes, all we need is some support and encouragement to get to where we want to. We can’t always do things alone! : ) Even though I was able to render my project, the experience still taught me an important lesson. Many things are beyond your control, regardless of how anxious you are or how much time or effort you put in. Some things are simply inevitable. Looking at my final rendered animation in a positive light, I strive to accept all of the errors and lessons I’ve learnt in order to be a better animator in the future. I am glad I gave it my all and tried my hardest without giving up that easily. Also thanks to the people around me that have been cheering me on all the time. I’m pleased I took this 3D elective so I can prepare for what’s to come next year. Bring it on! : D