I am stoked. \u00a0SUPER DUPER STOKED. \u00a0Holy smokes this is the greatest 3D news I have seen in a long, long time. \u00a0 We are talking about a complete game changer. \u00a0We are talking about a new revolution in technology. \u00a0If you know me well, then you know I have always had a passion for 3D, which was spawned from learning about virtual reality. \u00a0I always thought to myself, one day I will be the creator of my own virtual worlds.<\/p>\n
One of the biggest issues though is creating detailed objects. \u00a0 Every 3D artist would like to make the highest quality model they can, but we struggle with limitations of the technology. \u00a0The more complex you make your models, the more your computer slows down to a crawl. \u00a0As models have become more complex, going from a few hundred or thousand polygon\u00a0surfaces in the early days of 3D to to models consisting of millions of polygons, it has become easier to crash your programs running out of memory.<\/p>\n
The top visual effects companies use render farms, which are rows and rows of computers linked together in order to generate the insanely complex photo-realistic 3D visuals we see in films. \u00a0I have always thought to myself, eventually, someone is going to figure out how to get past this major issue and allow more complex 3D visualization, eventually it will get to a point closer to reality.<\/p>\n
I found a great video worth watching for anyone who is interested in 3D computer graphics for film or games. \u00a0 Since I first started working with computer graphics and 3D programs I knew that one day computers would be able to create a realistic virtual reality, not just because of the media I had seen growing up such as the movie lawnmower man, or tron, or the matrix. \u00a0It was because I had seen first hand the evolution of computer programs, from the days before real-time rendering even existed.<\/p>\n
The first few 3D programs I used did not have any real-time capability. \u00a0If you wanted to create a 3D graphic, first you would model it in a wire frame. \u00a0After moving the object, the computer would update the image. \u00a0It did not update the image while the object was being moved. \u00a0 It was not intuitive at all, and painstakingly difficult to create something that looked good. \u00a0Creating organic objects was an extremely complex process.<\/p>\n
Everything was viewed on the screen as a wire frame model, and you could not see the surface until you would hit the ‘render’ button. \u00a0Then slowly the computer would generate the pixels of color creating your image in slices of pixels at a time.<\/p>\n
When real-time rendering came about, it really changed everything for the speed in which a 3D artist could work, and the quality of what you could create. \u00a0For the first time you could see your model as you worked on it, you could see the surface with color and in some cases even with a texture.<\/p>\n
Now rotating a model felt like holding an object in your hand, and you could just turn and look at it from different angles.<\/p>\n
There were still many limitations, your object had to be simple or it would slow down too much. \u00a0You could not view many things like shadows or reflections or any special effects real-time.<\/p>\n
At the same time that graphics programs were getting better, real-time graphics had a major impact on the way games were evolving. \u00a03D games became better and better, but to this day they are still very limited.<\/p>\n
Games these days look great, and real-time rendering in 3D art programs has grown up a lot too. \u00a0However there is one thing that is really holding it all back, and that is that you are limited in detail because of processing power.<\/p>\n
3D objects are made out of polygons. \u00a0These polygons have different numbers of sides and orientations in 3D space. \u00a0They are connected at the edges to create a larger surface. \u00a0So a complex 3D model such as a character you might see in a film can have millions of tiny polygons woven together in a sort of ‘mesh’ that creates the skin of the object. \u00a0Virtual light is then bounced off of these polygons surfaces to create the image.<\/p>\n
Game companies and 3D artists have used tricks to recreate the way objects and light look in the real world. \u00a0Yet these are just tricks, and they are all limited in many ways.<\/p>\n
One of the main issues with a 3D model is the question of detail. \u00a0How detailed does it need to be?<\/p>\n
If your model is a character that is far away in a scene, and they never come close to the viewer or camera, then they don’t require a lot of detail. \u00a0You can make a very simple model. \u00a0In video games this trick is used all the time to make a game run faster but still look cool, objects off in the distance of environments are often made out of low detailed shapes because they don’t need to ever come close to a player.<\/p>\n
If your making a character for a music video, and the camera is going to fly right down their throat hole, then you might need a considerable amount of detail. \u00a0Not only on the characters face, but also down the throat hole, including the tongue and teeth.<\/p>\n
When you make 3D art though, it is nice to just build a library one time. \u00a0If your creating a character it would make sense to make it as good as can be so it is more reusable in the future.<\/p>\n
So it would be nice if you could just create a high resolution model, and not have to worry about ever making a low resolution character again. \u00a0 Low resolution characters are going to be more limited to a specific use.<\/p>\n
The only reason you make a low resolution character is to save on time and rendering speed. \u00a0The computer will render things faster with a lower detail model. \u00a0If the computer could render more detail without an impact, if it could render high detail in real-time, it would mean artists could focus on making high quality content without having to worry about rendering speed or other factors. \u00a0In general I think that is a good thing.<\/p>\n
PLEASE LET THIS BE REAL! \u00a0Here is the video..<\/p>\n