Welcome to my article, where I share my journey as a 3D VFX and Digital Composition artist through my thesis project. In this article, I will discuss my experience working with matte paintings and 3D camera projection in Nuke, as well as the challenges and triumphs I encountered along the way. So, follow along as I reveal the creative process behind my matte painting masterpieces.
Embracing the Challenge: Concept Sketch
During my thesis project, the first challenge I faced was creating a concept sketch with my limited knowledge of digital sketching and painting. I decided to make two post-apocalyptic matte paintings, each featuring iconic architecture. The first scene would be set in a desert with the famous Taj Mahal in India.
Taj Mahal
For the Taj Mahal scene, I decided to hand-draw a large portion of the sand but not use 3D software to simulate the sand. I wanted to test my traditional matte painting skills and blend images with some painting. Finding the right images was not as easy as it seems. With the angle I chose, I needed to find assets that were more bird-eye angles, and since the Taj Mahal is a famous historical landmark, there were not many drone shots clear enough to be used in the scene.
St. Basil’s Cathedral
The St. Basil’s Cathedral scene was also tricky to work on. With limited pictures out there that show the whole building structure with a more top-down angle, I had only a few choices to begin creating this scene. I adjusted the buildings I put in the background and added The Spasskaya Tower on the side. It looked more photoreal after color grading and adding some mist in the scene.
Block-Outs
For the next step of completing my two matte paintings, I began to block out the shot and get ready to camera-project in Nuke. Since it’s for projection, I didn’t spend time modeling the details. So far there is just a floor and a few boxes. Then I used the sculpt tool to make it more dynamic, not just a flat surface. My next step would be to finish the block-out for the St. Basil scene. Right now, it’s just a combination of a few simple shapes.
Overcoming Obstacles
After some quick testing in Nuke, I decided to redo my whole sketch and start things slow with the black and white block-out. The result turned out better and had a more cinematic feeling. It took me a while to look for reference images online and try to set the tone of the scenes. Now the desert looks more mystical and larger, and I have used the guidelines to follow the rule of third and make sure the key structures are in the right place. It looks better now, and I can finally start putting images together.
I was having a hard time finding a thesis topic that fits my interest in compositing and Nuke studying. After a long thought process and discussion with my professors, I finally came up with the idea of creating matte paintings, so that I can do more research on 3D camera projection in Nuke.
Therefore, my first challenge begins. With my limited knowledge of digital sketching and painting, it was a struggle to create a decent concept sketch. In the beginning, I was just putting colors together and hoping it turns out well. The result was not exceeding my expectation.
I am making two post-apocalyptic matte paintings. The first scene is set in a desert with iconic architecture in India, the famous Taj Mahal.
After some quick testing in Nuke, I decided to redo my whole sketch and start things slow with the black and white block out. The result turned out better and has a more cinematic feeling.
It took me a while to look for reference images online and try to set the tone of the scenes.
Now the desert looks more mystical and large, and I have used the guidelines to follow the rule of third and make sure the key structures are at the right place. It looks better now and I can finally start putting images together.
Thesis: Create The Scenes
After the concept sketch and some initial block-outs, I moved on to gathering and putting images together. For this part, I need to have references to help me set the tone and find the right assets to work with.
After viewing countless desert and snowy cliffs, I created folders of assets and named them properly. Then I started to blend them with my concept sketch and try to reach the goal of photorealism. I was going to combine CG foreground with matte painting backgrounds, but in the end, I decided to make this a full 2D piece and then eventually block it out in Maya and the camera project in Nuke.
Taj Mahal
For the Taj Mahal scene, I decided to hand-draw a large portion of the sand but not use 3D software to simulate the sand, the reason behind it is I want to test my traditional matte painting skills and blend images with some painting.
Finding the right images is not as easy as it seems. With the angle I chose, I need to find assets that are more bird-eye angles, and since the Taj Mahal is a really famous historical landmark, there are not that many drone shots that are clear enough to be used in the scene.
I might later replace it with a CG Taj Mahal model, but at the moment, it is enough. After adding more elements to the scene and fixing some issues such as the direction of the shadows and the proportion of the foreground sizes, the result turned out to be quite satisfying
I added some broken buildings and a spaceship behind, since the scene is set in the faraway future, there should be some drastic changes besides just being covered in sand.
St. Basil’s Cathedral
This scene is also tricky to work on. With limited pictures out there that show the whole building structure with a more top-down angle,
I had only a few choices to begin creating this scene. In the beginning, the perspective of the background is a bit off and doesn’t seem like it’s in the same space as the cathedral itself. And my thesis chair, Prof. Ilardi pointed out the issue of the foreground angle, it seemed a bit tilted down. Although the perspective can possibly be saved after the projection in Nuke, I decided to continue refining it in photoshop and make it look more realistic.
I adjusted the buildings I put in the background and added The Spasskaya Tower on the side. It does look more photoreal after color grading and adding some mist in the scene. In conclusion, for the upcoming week, I will continue refining the details of both scenes.
It was pointed out by Prof. Stallworth that the foreground of the Taj Mahal scene doesn’t blend well with the rest, and also the proportion of some buildings looks a bit off. And I will also adjust the frost filter on the cathedral to make it look less painted.
The goal for my next step would be to finish refining the details and move on to creating geometries in Maya.
Thesis : Block-Outs
For the next step of completing my two matte paintings, I began to block out the shot and get ready to camera-project in Nuke. Since it’s for projection, I didn’t spend time modeling the details. So far there is just a floor and a few boxes. Then I used the sculpt tool to make it more dynamic, not just a flat surface. My next step would be also to finish the block-out for the St. Basil scene. Right now it’s just a combination of a few simple shapes.
However, with this simple block-out, I can use it to go back to photoshop and then adjust the perspective accordingly.
There are also a few improvements for the St.Basil scene. Besides adjusting the perspective, I also tweaked the edges of the cliffs to make them look more real. I am pretty happy with the result so far.
