summary...

All the stamps are now created. I think the project went OK. I would spend more time on the render of the fish and the layout of the bacteria model. The target i set out to do was to create 3 different animals with different skin patterns. This went OK for the first stamp, but the other 2 were just render normally. I didn't have enough to time to complete them as i planned, so i just rendered them as they would be in real life. Half way through the creation of the fish stamp, the computer i was working on decided to turn off, which has not been uncommon this semester, which was very annoying, but i managed to start again and recreate it. Apart from that i found the programme tricky at first to use, but towards the end it began to get a bit easier as i started to remember where all the buttons and tools are. This being said, there is still so much to learn...

Bacteria stamp...

Here is the final stamp for the 3d bacteria model. I did rush it towards the end as didn't manage my time appropriately. But at least the 3 stamps are complete now. Here it is...

Texture of the bacteria...

I found a veiny texture on the internet which i will use as my material. Here is the orignal and below it the photoshopped image. I simply change the hue and set the contrast up a bit to make the veins really show through. I now need to put it onto the product.

Creating background in photoshop...

I couldn't find a suitable background so i decided to creat one in photoshop. Here is the created background:

Here is a step by step for creating the bacteria...

Now i had looked at some images to give me inspiration i started to model it on 3D s max. I started out with a simple image. A spring.

I then needed to edit the shape. I did this by going into edit poly > selecting the polygons i wanted to remove > deleting the polygons. i was left with this:

Now im left with 2 bacteria like shapes. They currently have open ends, so i need to add a sphere in all open ends to make them rounded.

This is the basic shape done. I now need to add in a background.

3rd stamp idea...

I have now done a fish, and an insect/beetle. I wanted to make something a bit different. I started looking into micro-organisms and bacteria. Here are some images i collected to show what sort of final design i wanted to achieve.


This is bacteria, i like the lighting and texture it has. I could recreate this in my final stamp.

These are the steps i took in creating the discus fish in 3D. The body, tail and fins are all the same part. The dorsal fins have been added on after. As you can see they are shown in a different colour. Here are the images...

images that inspired the discus fish...

I was browsing the internet, looking for some inspiration for my other stamps. I saw some images of coral and underwater scenes. This looked very appealing and would work well on a stamp as all the images were bright and stood out. Here are a few of the images that inspired me...



I then decided on a fish for a subject for the stamp. This is because there is such a wide range of images of fish on the internet to give me some further inspiration. Here are some...



The last fish is a discus fish. I have decided to create a fish similar to this in 3D.

Final discus fish stamp...

Here is the final thing! I decided to use the same effect and matching colours of the beetle stamp. The background of the '2nd' class rectangle is the same colour and texture as the fish, I did this to make the stamp look more professional and all blend in together.

creating bitmap images...

Sometimes I couldn't find a suitable bitmap image to wrap my 3d model in to make it looks realistic so i decided to create one on photoshop. To do this i opened up a new blank document and begun to draw the shape i needed. I was going to wap the fins so needed some lines to make up the fin bones.

Here is the blank document. And below shows the finished bitmap image to wrap the fins with.



Here is the fin bitmap on the fins of the fish. I think it came out quite well.

Make the 3D beetle look like a stamp...

Now i had created the beetle i could make it look like a stamp. I did this by adding the stamp border making it look realistic. I copy and pasted this from the interent and removed the inside leaving just the corregated border.

Next up i added the black background to make it stand out more. I think it looks much better with the black background as the beetle and leaf are quite bright. Then i added the first class logo. I used the same leaf as the background to make it look a bit better and fit in with the theme. The bottom image is showing the final stamp. I think it looks good and stands out well.

S.W.O.T. analysis...

My idea is to design 3 different animals on 3Ds max. I will apply different materials to make them looks like are made out of a certain material. For example, a wooden beetle. This idea has a few strengths and weaknesses.

Strengths
Original idea, that i haven't seen before.
Will look very realistic if the model is designed accurately
Will look good on a stamp and represent biodiversity well.

Weaknesses
Some parts of the animals will be difficult to make and render in the programme.
Will be hard to find images of animals that i can use to copy the shape, from the correct angle.

Opportunities
I started my idea with 3 different animals. I then developed it further as this design was a bit boring. The animals will now will be rendered with different materials. This will make them look much better and more eyecatching to the user/customer. I was finding it hard to get the shape of the beetles body correct, so i learnt how to add an image to a plane so i can line everything up and make sure the body looks good.

Targets
The rendered animals need to look realistic.
The stamp needs to be clear and aesthetically pleasing to the customer.

3D modeling begins!

I uploaded my sketch of the beetle into 3Ds max and begun to find the right shape for the body and head. I found it much easier using an image to help me to get it to look realistic. Shown here are a few steps that i have done so far...

The first few steps are beginning modeling the beetle. I started with a capsule shape and played around with it until it looked right.

Once i had the beetle completed i decided to put the leaf tutorial into use and made a leaf for the beetle to sit on. This would sort of make it more realistic. I also added the wood effect to the beetle. Here are the steps showing that...

This was the modelling of the beetle completed. Now i need to copy the render model into Adobe Photoshop so i can make it into a stamp. I will show the steps of this as i go.

Beetle stamp...

In my earlier post i said i was going to create a stamp with a beetle on. The beetle would be created in 3ds max, then i would apply (using the bitmap function) an image of wooden slats, to give the effect of the beetle being made from wood, like a child's toy for example.

To do this, firstly i looked at images of a beetle from the internet and in books. I then sketched up a design i was happy with from top view and side view. This would be very helpful for 3D modelling as i can use it to see what shape needs to be created. Here are the images that i have sketched.

Getting some ideas of existing stamps...

History of stamps...

Stamps were first introduced on 1st May 1840. Stamps were not perforated until 1854, where stamps perforated by Mr.Archer at the house of commons. The government then went on to pay Mr.Archer £4,000 for the patent. Following the introduction of the stamp in the UK the number of letters increased from 82 million in 1839 to 170 million in 1841. Today 21 billion items are delivered by post every year in the United Kingdom.

Recreating ideas on photoshop...

i have tried to recreate my ideas on photoshop. Firstly, i opened an image i got from the internet and bit by bit added the pattern over the top of the animal. I used the warp tool to get it to follow the curves of the body, legs and head. Here are the first 2 designs i will recrete in 3d s max.

Developing my ideas...

After a short chat with richard i had decided on my final idea. I'm goin to make 3 3D animals and use a bitmap image of a different animals markings over the top. For example a rhino with ladybird spots, A snail with wood effect shell. I'm not sure exactly which animals to do yet, but i will do some sketches and see which combinations look the best and which will be best to create in 3D s max.

Sketches of ideas

I decided to sketch out a few designs. This could give me a good idea of how hard they are to recreate. I could also add a few more which I couldn't find images of on the internet.

Researching into biodiversity...

Now I had got a hang of the programme, I started to think about what I could put on the stamp. Our theme is biodiversity. I thought about this long and hard and wanted something that could be easily recognised on a stamp. We don't have much to play with as a stamp is so small and will create problems with actually seeing what is on it. This is where my first idea happened. I thought i could use patterns and textures in the biological world. This will be a good thing to put on a stamp as it will be easily recognisable. I started to collect some images to give me ideas...

Material editor.

Today was an enjoyable lesson. Richard taught us how to give the objects a material and make them look realistic. We started off applying different colours, shadows and reflections to the objects. We later moved on to apply an image directly onto the object. This image can be of a material or it can be of anything! Here are some images to show some materials and images i have applied to some spheres. I have applied football pattern to the first, a basketball pattern to the second, and Samuel Braziers face to the third. The face didn't really look too realistic...

BANANA!

I had a play about with 3Ds Max today. Richard showed us how to use the 'edit poly' tool and the 'turbosmooth' tool. Here is my attempt at a banana. (bananas aren't my speciality) Its banana shaped and yellow. Therefore it's a banana!...I think i need more practice.

Biodiversity Mood Board

First things first, we had to create a mood board to get ideas of what biodiversity really was. I tried to think outside the box a bit and realised biodiversity is not just animals, but habitats, trees, plants, humans and even bacteria. My mood boards gives a broad range of biodiversity.

So i got the brief...

...and i was pleasently suprised. I read through it (briefly) and discovered that we will be taught to use some new 3D software. We have to design 3 new stamps for 1st, 52p and 62p varieties. Why do we need 3D design software to create a stamp? hmm I have faith in Richard and I'm sure he will explain soon enough...hopefully! This should be a change from some of last years lectures, as i was already familiar with the likes of Photoshop. I am looking foward to learning something from scratch; a fresh start! The theme aswell, biodiversity, seems pretty interesting. It's quite a broad subject, so hopefully this should give me a chance to really get stuck in and come up with some good designs. My first ideas that spring to mind are simple shapes and bold, block colours.

Personally i would have prefered something a bit bigger with a logo and text, like packaging, so i could really design something eye catching. But a stamp is quite different. I guess there will be size guidlines and borders to stick too, which isn't great. But I'll just have to give it a bash and see how it goes!