Magazine Cover in KS7.430 (+ Final)

[Speedster]

Well, I never commit a client to a beta test, but in this case I really wanted to, and besides, KeyShot 7 is running, to quote my Uncle Art, "Slicker than snot on a doorknob".

Magazine cover commission, modeled in SolidWorks.  You've seen it before, as a different image, but this is in KS7.

Tons of IES, Emissive and Diffuse Area lighting. 250,411,897 polys.  Yes, it was just a tad sluggish on 32 cores and 128 GB of RAM.  1.74 GB .bip.  Lots of Matgraph, Accurate Metals + tweaked Anodizing.  Print size rendering (2250 wide) at 300 DPI took 1 hour 45 minutes on 30 cores.

WAY more post than I usually do, almost all image layers.  Very few KS related layers.

Bill G

[Will Gibbons]

Those stats are crazy! Glad you're putting the new release through its paces. Well-done!

[Speedster]

Glad you're putting the new release through its paces.

I have a "special relationship" with computers and software.  If it will crash, I can make it happen!  I blew up three computers in SolidWorks night class at Palomar College, two power supplies and one server crash!  The fire department had to evacuate the building!

Just for grins I did a toon.  The backplate was treated to some love in FilterForge, as was the final rendering to get the sepia tones.  KeyShot and FilterForge are a great team!

Bill G

[evilmaul]

love the toon version Bill!!
the original one I personally find it a bit too 'muddy'

[Magnus Skogsfjord]

I gotta sign in on evilmauls comment here. That toon version looks awesome! Toon mixed with that vintage feel. Really nice!

[DriesV]

The Toon version does look great.

I agree with the rest of the guys.
My eyes get kind of strained looking at that colored image. It is like every part of the image is trying to grab my eyes' focus. I think my main issue with it is the super high contrast of the clouds and trees in the background.
The Toon image is literally much easier on the eyes. The locomotive and lorry (is that British English?) are the areas with the most contrast, and my eyes are naturally drawn to them.

Dries

[Will Gibbons]

Glad you're putting the new release through its paces.

I have a "special relationship" with computers and software.  If it will crash, I can make it happen!  I blew up three computers in SolidWorks night class at Palomar College, two power supplies and one server crash!  The fire department had to evacuate the building!

This is fantastic! Love your stories. Also, that toon one takes the cake! Not to be a yes-man, but I like this one a lot too!

[Speedster]

Hey, guys- I really appreciate and value your comments!  I'm sure glad I have not submitted it yet- I always sleep on a cover shot for awhile.  This will be my fourth.

And I agree.  I lost focus on this one. And the damn thing is I knew it, and yet kept muddling along, digging a deeper hole with every image or adjustment layer. When you reach 30 or so layers it's time to chuck the whole thing and start over!  We've all been there...

I minored in photography in college, and our professor, Imogene Cunningham, would never let us "fix it in the darkroom".  A little dodge or burn was OK, but we had to get it right before snapping the shutter. Post makes us sloppy!

My original plan was a "nocturnal", or night image.  Cumbres, Colorado is at 10,000 feet, high in the Rocky Mountains.  Cold, dark at night, so I wanted to contrast that with the "warmth" of a railroad station and a hot cup of coffee.  This image is posted below. My concern is that the editor likes bright postcard images, and also that all images print darker on chrome-coated cover stock.  We'll see.  I might even submit the toon just to shake him up!

I'm working on a "post card" now!

Thanks again!!

Bill G

[Speedster]

Well- it's a "train" magazine, not a "truck" magazine. So I offed the truck.  New composition.

Accurate metals with anodize tweaks, DOF, bumps, etc.  A ton of Area Diffuse, Emissive and IES lights, so many it was hard to adjust them.  Massive tweaks using the absolutely awesome HDR Editor.

I'm going to submit this image along with the toon.  If the editor likes this one I'll likely have more work to do in consultation with the printer, as it is a bit dark, as was the plan.

Hope it flies!

Bill G
PS: One of the neatest things about the work I do in this "old" stuff, is that it's actually the first time folks see them in "color".  All we have is B/W images, color scrapings taken during restorations, and "Builder's Style Cards" describing the colors, often vague.

[Speedster]

Well, I'm sure it's going to be thumbs down on the night shot, so I did a "postcard" daylight shot.  But I'll submit this, the night and the toon.
Bill G